junki

My Preferences

For DACs, I prefer to optimize for transparency. Specifically, I look for design, engineering, and validation excellence across distortion, jitter, noise, crosstalk, and other errors that are a part of the overall reconstruction error of the analog signal. I pay attention almost exclusively to measurements over subjective impressions of DAC performance.

For amplifiers, I am open to euphonic distortions, and accordingly, I value nuanced, honest-to-self impressions from listeners who possess a competent technical foundation for the subject matter. Objectively, I look for class A designs, THD+N below the audible threshold (SINAD > ~80 dB for my headphone impedances), and resistor-ladder or digital IC driven volume knobs.

For headphones, I prize manufacturer-tuned neutral-warm tonalities that yield effortlessly accurate timbre, with smoothness from the upper midrange through presence, and I prefer technicalities that sway musical and dynamic rather than analytical and refined. I look at measurements and subjective impressions roughly equally here. As this is the category that most impacts my experience, this is also the category I prefer to spend the most money on.

My hobbies do not include audio equipment, in the sense that I’m here for the destination of making an infrequent purchase, not the journey. I wade through information here and elsewhere, editorializing what I read and filtering for signals that are useful to me. I don’t post often, but when I do I try to contribute signals or spicy takes.

Headphone Impressions:

Source & Amplifier Impressions: