Soulnote D-2 ver.2
Nicely Roasted
Sound Quality
90/100
Build Quality
84/100
Features Connectivity
82/100
Value for Money
85/100
The Soulnote D-2 ver.2 brings digital music to life with explosive dynamics, luminous clarity and exceptional transient speed. hi-fi+ found its NOS mode especially vivid, while its broad input complement, balanced outputs and optional external clock support make this a compelling DAC for systems craving scale, separation and musical immediacy.
Pros
Delivers vivid, dynamic sound with incisive transients, strong impact and luminous detail.
Creates a large, deep soundstage with excellent separation and clearer orchestral individuality.
NOS and FIR modes provide useful tonal flexibility, with NOS favouring vividness and FIR adding warmth and smoothness.
Cons
Its assertive, bright-leaning presentation can develop treble glare on unsuitable glass shelving or with poor system matching.
Fixed-level outputs limit its usefulness as a standalone preamplifier.
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What Reviewers Are Saying
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 90/100
The D-2 is presented as a vivid, forceful and highly involving converter, with strong transient attack, notable separation and a large, deep soundstage. Its presentation favours speed, clarity and excitement over relaxed smoothness, and system matching matters because the reviewer encountered some treble brightness with the supplied hard feet on glass.
Tonal Balance and Musicality
90/100
Hi-fi+ describes a vibrant, vivid sound with explosive dynamics, tonal brilliance and an arresting sense of musical intensity. The character is deliberately assertive rather than soft or laid-back: it prioritises speed and excitement over smoothness, while placement and support can affect perceived treble glare.
Resolution and Detail
91/100
The review repeatedly highlights luminous clarity, insight and a vivid, detailed presentation. In orchestral music, the D-2 separated instrumental sections more distinctly and made hall ambience easier to perceive, although one comparison found its advantage in detail required close listening.
Digital Performance
89/100
The NOS setting was said to reproduce short transient pulses more cleanly than the FIR option, which introduced audible pre- and post-ringing. In listening, the D-2 sounded more incisive, dynamic and lively, though its energetic nature can become bright in an unsuitable support arrangement.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Build Quality
84/100
The reviewer calls the D-2 straightforward and simple to operate despite its internal complexity. There is little direct reporting on chassis construction or long-term durability, while the supplied hard metal feet proved sonically problematic on a glass surface and benefited from alternative isolation.
Features Connectivity
82/100
Connectivity is generous for a dedicated DAC: USB, two coaxial inputs and two AES/EBU inputs are joined by both balanced XLR and RCA outputs. It supports PCM to 768kHz and DSD to 22.6MHz via USB, offers a 10MHz external-clock input, and includes an unusual stereo/left/right mono output selector.
Value for Money
85/100
At $9,085, the D-2 is positioned as a serious high-end DAC. Hi-fi+ found it capable of bettering the already strong Auralic Altair G2 in dynamics, incisiveness and detail, and called it hugely impressive, but does not directly assess whether its asking price is especially competitive against peers.
Reviews & Sources
Professional reviews and sources for this product's Watt'n Potatoes analysis.
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Specifications
- Model name
- D-2ST(PLATINUM SILVER)/D-2BT(BLACK)
- Input format(USB)
- PCM, DSD (DoP v1.1, ASIO native)
- Input format(Coaxial・AES/EBU)
- PCM, DSD(DoP v1.1)
- Supported sampling frequency(USB)
- Max.768kHz (PCM) / Max.22.6MHz (DSD)
- Supported sampling frequency(Coaxial・AES/EBU)
- Max.192kHz (PCM) / Max.2.8MHz (DSD64 DoP v1.1)
- PCM quantization bit rate(USB)
- 16bit, 24bit, 32bit
- PCM quantization bit rate(Coaxial・AES/EBU)
- 16bit, 24bit
- Digital input
- USB (Type B), coaxial x2(SPDIF), AES/EBU x2
- External clock input
- 10MHz (BNC50 ohm)
- Analog output
- XLR x1, RCA x1
- Analog output level(XLR)
- 5.6Vrms
- Analog output level(RCA)
- 2.8Vrms
- Frequency characteristic
- 2Hz to 120kHz (+0/-1dB)
- SN ratio
- 110dB
- Total harmonic distortion
- 0.008%(NOS/176.4kHz)
- Analog filter
- Two-dimensional passive
- Power voltage
- 115V AC 60Hz
- Power consumption
- 56W
- Maximum external dimensions
- Main unit: 430(W)×160(H)×405(D)mm
- Weight
- 17kg
- Included accessories
- Spikes, Power cord
Manufacturer's Description — Soulnote
Soulnote D-2 ver.2
D/A CONVERTER – available in Premium Silver / Premium Black
Twin mono construction with “New Type-R Circuit”
Featuring a massive, non-NFB discrete amplifier circuit comparable to a power amplifier, it incorporates the latest “New Type-R Circuit” — originally developed for SOULNOTE’s flagship phono equalizer E-3—refined specifically for the digital-to-analog-converter. This achieves a twin mono construction with power supplies and all components arranged separately for each channel.
LMX2594 from Texas instrument for DDS
Texas Instruments' PLLatinum™ RF synthesizer LMX2594 is adopted for as an audio DDS.
It boasts world-leading specifications: a performance index of -236dBc/Hz and jitter of 45fs (femtoseconds, where 1 femto equals 1/1000th of a pico). This ultra-low jitter DDS enables overwhelmingly clear and profound spatial imaging, not only when using a high-precision external clock but also when utilizing the built-in TCXO.
10 MHz external reference clock input
The internal clock employs a high-performance TCXO boasting excellent phase noise performance (-121 dB at 10 Hz offset). To avoid jitter introduced by ICs during switching between the internal and external clocks, a mechanical high-frequency relay with mechanical contacts is used. When using an external clock, the internal clock's power is turned off to stop oscillation, eliminating mutual interference.
The external clock terminal employs a SMA connector with enhanced high-frequency characteristics and reinforced construction. This eliminates the need for the conversion plug previously required when connecting the clock generator X-3. Using the X-3 dramatically improves sound quality across the entire frequency range.
Resistor IV circuit with ES9038PRO
Each channel employs two ES9038PRO chips, boasting a powerful 120mA output current. This enables IV conversion using a single low-resistance component. It eliminates TIM distortion, a common issue in feedback-type IV circuits, achieving a fully non-NFB D/A converter. The ES9038PRO utilizes synchronous mode to deliver the highest possible sound quality.
NOS mode
In addition to the conventional FIR oversampling mode, the D-2 ver.2 has adopted a NOS (non-oversampling) mode, which is a non-NFB version adapted to operate in the digital domain. When this mode is selected, the pre-echo and post-echo observed in the impulse response of FIR oversampling do not occur.
Impulse output waveform in FIR oversampling filter (analog output)
Pre- and post-echoes are artificial "sound" created by data calculations before and after the data is interpolated. They make waveforms like sine waves appear smoother, but calculation algorithms can affect the sound quality or ambiguity and be added to the time axis.
Impulse output waveform in NOS mode
This waveform can only be achieved through a combination with a non-feedback discrete amplifier that eliminates analogue filters. Because music waveforms are actually a series of impulse waveforms of different heights, the NOS mode eliminates any ambiguity in the time axis information, creating more realistic and natural sound quality and an expansive listening environment to the hearing acuity of humans, which is extremely sensitive to the time axis.
* The NOS mode cannot be used with DSD.
400 VA bifilar wound high-regulation toroidal transformers with eight windings on the secondary side
The D-2 ver.2 incorporates the power transformers with eight windings on the secondary side that are capable of regulation similar to that of very high-power amplifiers. Independent rectifier circuits in each stage prevent interference. Unnecessary vibrations from the power transformer are released outside the enclosure via a spike foot positioned directly beneath the transformer.
Noise countermeasures that don't rely on filters
The D-2 ver.2 uses 4 boards wrapped in 70-micron thick copper foil that eliminates noise by optimizing the printed circuit board layout. Noise countermeasures that don't rely on filters that can impact sound quality like ferrite, etc., are employed thoroughly, and each mode keeps unwanted radiation.
Verified Dealers
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Authorized dealers for Soulnote D-2 ver.2
- Absoulute Audio plus Video — in-store — Aiken, South Carolina, United States (website)
- Supreme Acoustic Systems — in-store — Las Vegas, Nevada, United States (website)
- The Music Room — online and in-store — Erie, Colorado, United States (website)
- Aalen Hifi — in-store — Schwäbisch Gmünd, Baden-Wurtemberg, Germany (website)
- Absolute Hi End — in-store — Ormond, Victoria, Australia (website)
- Anagram Audio — online and in-store — Bury St Edmunds, England, United Kingdom (website)
- Art & Voice — online (website)
- Art et son — online and in-store — Montréal, Québec, Canada (website)
- Art Sonique — France (website)
- Atelier 13 Audio — in-store — Forest Hills, Tennessee, United States (website)
and 36 more verified dealers
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