Has anyone had a chance to listen to or read much about the Rockna Wavedream DAC?

[Zurv]

@PavelDosko I think a lot of use would like to know that answer too.

I just ordered my wavedream and I would have also ordered the wavelight server too.. but.. *shrug*

 

In the meantime i got the Pink Faun i2s bridge.

[Zurv]

@VerdantAudio oh.. can i pepper you with some questions?

 

(i emailed rockna and got nothing I also emailed pink faun and they do reply, but only to some of what i ask.)

This is about clocks and sources.

 

Main question, how are the rockna's clocks in the wavedream. The clocks are Femto.. One can also pick which clock the dac is going to follow. Local (its own) or remote (the source sending it).

 

When i'm sending audio I'll be using my PC. Not just for music, but work stuff, YouTube, gaming, etc. (I'm also plan to use the pi2saes when the PC is off. Then maybe to upgrade from that to a wavelight server.. maybe)

 

So should i be using a better clock? ie, OCXO?

https://www.pinkfaun.com/shop/content/11-clocks

 

now to the the physical source in the PC. 

I like the pink faun stuff because of external power and the positive buzz about them.

Right now i have the Pink Faun i2s bridge. But it is limited - seemly can't stream DSD.

[quote] the Pink Faun HEA bridge is the best to use for streaming PCM files up to 32bit / 192KHz [/quote]

But i don't use DSD right now. (but maybe i will?)

 

Or i could order the USB pink Faun bridge. That is more flexible. I also too have the AQ diamond USB cable already too.

 

But doesn't the DAC sound better from the i2s than usb? Is there any real way to test it without getting equal sources. 

hrmm.. maybe someone with the wavedream net can test outputs to the dac using i2s and usb?

 

Thanks!

[Zurv]

16 minutes ago, Saleh84 said:

Hi,

 

I do have wavedream signature dac and NET.

I can tell you the difference between USB and I2s is not massive. But the difference between not having the NET in your chain is.

NET is just a great server. And also a CD player (i don't use that bit much).

The I2s gives you a bit more of everything. But USB is not at all far behind. And some other people found that USB input from a server like SGM extreme was better than NET with I2s, so to have you relax, I2s is not a must, its the preferred connection method for rockna servers to get the last bit of performance.

 

By the way, if you are not already listening to DSD and favouring it, don't start, there is not advantage in my opinion. Most DSD tracks are just taken from a PCM source. We don't really need more that 16 bit 44.1 khz to enjoy. So if that's what's holding you from the pink faun card, i advise you not to. I used to have this format anxiety few years back when i was buying my first dac. Its all gimmicks))

 

Lastely, I get in touch at times with Rockna to ask questions, they are great people, just unbelievably extremely busy. Also, they are perfectionists. the wavelight server won't be released until its perfected, lets hope its the upcoming couple of months!

 

 

 

Thanks sir! (You are part of the reason i ordered the wavedream. (headfi, and SBAF))

So i'm likely good with the Pink Faun i2s bridge that i have in my hand now. But yes, if you could get some input from Rockna about the clocks - that would be amazing!

I'm not buying the Ultra OCXO for $1300.. but maybe their normal OCXO clock if it is better than the rockna (that i can hear, not just on paper)

(ugh,, that means i need a i2s cable then too. But in the short term i'll just use the AQ carbon 48)

[Zurv]

Rockna replied to me:

 

[quote]

both I2S and USB are fine. With I2S, you can eventually expect not-perfect-compatibility with the source, but a bit more relaxed and live sound.
I cannot comment on particular products and brands other than ours. A DDC usually does a good job, especially if is with isolation. I advise you to try it.
The Wavedream is designed in such way that input clock influence is minimal. But, there is no such thing as perfection, the better input clock is, best results you have, but this is for you to judge, as environment, ears, rest of the system are different for any of us.

[/quote]

 

I have the i2s card... so i just ordered the pink faun USB bridge too.. and the "cheaper" (HA!) clock

I'll have both to play with. Also the cost of the USB with the clock is cheaper than what i would have spent on a i2s cable.

(and i already have the audioquest diamond USB cable.)

 

now.. external power. I think i might start with the new iFi power for the cards:

https://www.amazon.com/iFi-iPower-Elite-Supply-Adapter/dp/B08S5MBFDK/

 

but no rush on that.. Rockna's order/shipping times are ... a pain in the butt.

(When i order from Pink Faun it comes in 1-2 days - I'm in the US and both of them are in Europe. Yes, Romania is different than the Netherlands. But 1-2 days compared to a month+ ... )

[Zurv]

haha.. i still don't have it yet .. maybe it will be 6 weeks. That said, the dealer (maybe to make a deal) said 3-4 weeks. In the meantime i keep spending money. ugh.

 

but the weather is getting nice. I have my shots. Roses should be blooming soon.. 

[Zurv]

My Wavedream is still a month away. (6 weeks like @saleh84)

 

I think i'm going to use the pink faun USB with OCXO clock. I also got a sbooster LPS.

I'll play around with the impact of "local" and "streaming" clock.

[Zurv]

@ds2k Nice! I'm sure it will sound amazing!

 

Why did you go with the Wavedream net vs the wavelight server. It is my understanding they are pretty much the same sans the optical drive. Of course, if an optical drive is what you use, then that is perfect :)

 

 

What are you feeding your DAC now?

[Zurv]

Any one play around with changing the fuses in the Rocka? 

IMO this is a extra level of crazy (higher than cables).. but it would be interesting to hear others feed back. :)

 

The wavedream has a 5x20mm fuse, but i'm not clear on the amps 

[Zurv]

@ds2k what amp? for the fuse... but i'm not sure how useful that would be to be as you guys are likely not using the same power as the US.

[Zurv]

i did ask. They only told me the size. 

[Zurv]

So i guess that is 2A slow for the US power grid?

[Zurv]

question to rockna users. (i'm still waiting on mine)

How does one disable the pre? Set the volume to 100? bypass option setting?

 

Thank!

[Zurv]

It is a shame they didn't upgrade the dream to use the same pre as the wavelight. The wavelight's pre is analog, but the wavedream's is in the digital domain.

better.. would be to just not have a pre-amp at all. 

[Zurv]

i'm not a fan of digital domain volume change...

i'd also rather use this: :D 

[Zurv]

After two month I finally got the Wavedream.

 

Version: Rockna Wavedream RD-1.1

Manufactured: May 2021

Software: 480XLR 

 

Here is some pr0n:

 

 

Testing:

 

 

[Zurv]

Problems i had when i got the unit:

The buttons on the front of the unit didn't work very well. I had to hit them multi times for anything to happen.

I also had a lot of audio drop out - but after a few hours the audio fixed itself.. and so did the button issues? Maybe a button was stuck?

 

Pink Faun USB card did not like the Rockna (it has no problem with the yggy a2) - I kept getting pops from it. Audiophile USB are likely pointless as any good dac should know how to handle PC noise. But if you want the magic, maybe don't use the PF with the DW. 

I also had problems with Pi2AES with volumio (and Qobuz) - using i2s and AES - sometimes is went into slow motion.  very odd.

(yes, i2s worked fine - but note that using i2s with a WD you aren't getting bit perfect (Rockna told me this.) 

 

In the end everything worked get from a PC off a normal USB jack.

 

Mainly I'm in the just-darn-enjoying-it stage.

But two things really stood out to me. (vs the yggy)

The first relates to how i felt about the Schiit Aegir. I always liked it but thought the bass was a little weak. No, i'm not a bass head, I just want the correct amount of bass to add meat to the bone. With the Rockna is it there.. I guess it was the yggy that was hold it back. (?)

The other is the top end. For example, I really like Nora Jones but some times i wince when she gets up there. Even songs that i enjoy i'll sometimes skip because of this. I normally fix it with tube rolling.. but in effect i'm just rolling off the top end.

I don't know what magic is going on, but it isn't rolled off ... everything is there.. but no wincing.

Back to enjoying the music. I think my window of playing the same sounds over and over is closing soon. <-- RE: wife getting sick of it.
I do feel like i made the right choice getting this and of course it isn't "worth" $$ it. (I really wish i had a Halo May to compare it to.)

[Zurv]

@Saleh84 Did you get a chance to hear the Halo May L2 (or L3) yet and compare it to your WD?

I'd be very interested in that shootout. Luckily for me i don't like the brass side of the May, but it sounds like it would give the WD a run and at less that 1/2 the price. 

[Zurv]

The @GoldenOne video? yeah... makes it sound really good. I wish that guy didn't live in the UK as i'd love to lend him my WD unit.

I'm very happy with the WD and I normally  have a problem of looking for  a problem when I get new equipment. Negative bias :)

(which is normally correct when i get anything from AudioQuest.. ugh.. what junk. Wireworld at least doesn't make things sound worse. Better? i'm not sure.. but AQ makes it worse.) *rant* :)

 

I can feel this upgrade from the yggy A2 to the wavedream. Oddly less than the upgrade from my Elac Vela FS speakers to the Focal Sopra 2. Oh, they are better.. but $$$$ better.. maybe not. (that said, i've not fully broken the Focals in and i don't play very loud.  They are still my end game and i'm "done" with speakers.)

Clearly the yggy to WD is not a massive change - but is an upgrade i noticed and i'm happy with. 

In the end i'm not going to use I2s (it isn't bit perfect on the Rockna - is it on other devices?) and I don't have any DSD .. 

*shrug*

[Zurv]

odd.. I got it from him. Hrmm..

 

let me look for that email. Maybe i miss read it.

It seems i did..

I wonder if my Pink Faun i2s card will suffer like the Pink Faun USB card did with the WD.

the usb card had pop on it. (The usb slot on my mobo didn't nor did yggy have a problem.) 

Does the WD have galvanic isolation on inputs? All dac at this price point should have that.. i hope...

 

also that was the point of the PF card.. and with linear power supply. That is another $2k in the shit gear box. :P

(along with $1k AQ power cables and robinhood speaker cable..)

 

 

 

[Zurv]

He doesn't reply to me all the time when i msg. I'm fine with using the USB on the mobo. I'm just grumpy with wasted money on the PF and the extra power.

i2s worked fine via pi2aes till the unit went into slow down mode (Not a Rockna problem. likely.)

I'm am using AQ diamond usb. I don't notice any diff with that vs my other generic USB cables.. but it it isn't causing any problems and cost a ton.. so i'll keep using it. :)

 

[Zurv]

Ok. Time to try the Pink Faun i2s card :)

 

all prep'd to make a mess.

 

 

I also did notice that i hadn't installed the audiobyte drivers. Maybe that will help with the popping when using the USB card. (then again. I'm have zero issues with the one build into the mobo... but the PF was over $1k (plus power)... sooo it should use that.

 

Side question, any suggestions for settings HQplayer? The default settings sounds pretty great. 

It sucks i can't run qobuz thought it without roon/network streaming.  Right now my PC does it all. Unless i'm missing something?  (also, qobuz fits my needs and i don't want to build a library locally to play. ) Maybe there is a trick to output qobuz to the HQplayer app? (only using one computer.)

[Zurv]

*sigh* - back into grumpy mode again. The i2s card has the channels reversed.

When i ordered the card there is an option to pick which dac it is for. 

 

Also either of the PinkFaun cards worked when internally powered by the computer... so. yeah.. there is that too.  I an external linear, which does work, but take up way to much room and likely makes zero diff. 

[Zurv]

flipping thru the options i don't see an option for different modes. hrmm.. there are 2 inputs on the back. Maybe they are different.. but..  no documents came with the unit. The manual online is from 2014...

How would you change it on the WL?

 

On the plus side, the popping i was getting from the PF USB bridge is gone. Disconnecting the battery pack on the AQ diamond cables did the job. It was still only an issue related to the PF, but i feel a little bit better that something is working. :)

I'm still loving the unit, but i think this is the last time i'm getting costly gear from out of the way places/vendors. RE: Rockna 

 

Are you finding any change when switching clocks on your wavelight? local/streaming? I don't. (i only have the OCXO clock on the PF - but i didn't expect it to. I wanted to make sure i wasn't missing something. Now i know.)

So far my fav sound is going thru HQplayer.. but I have one album on my PC. :D 

[Zurv]

Good to know. Are you sure your brain didn't settle in over 500 hours? :)  the core issue with any burn in.  (well.. other than speakers... those have moving parts.) (Not questioning you.. but all of us.)

speakers... i'm super suck trying to burn them in.  It isn't like i can keep them playing music when i'm working or sleeping :) Focal says 100+ hours.. and i think i put like 5 hours on them... from watching TV...

Maybe i can't hear as well as i think i can. Age shouldn't have hit me too bad. (I'm in my mid 40s.. never played loud music via headphones when younger.. and in hate loud music. I'm the dummy at weddings that has the ear plugs in too.

On not hearing differences, all the filters seem to same to me. Are you guys noticing changes? I've only been testing with hi res stuff.

I do notice the difference going via HQplayer. So i notice something :)  

 

side note, PinkFaun's support was great. They are going to replace my i2s card with the channels flipped.

 

 

[Zurv]

18 minutes ago, louawalters said:

For WL the I2S mode is in the menu  - I2S mode 1, 2 or 3.   But strangely enough, there is no option for local or remote clock.

I built a custom end-point with PF 12S no fan, no HD, and it runs Euphony Endpoint.  It is a new generation low power AMD, so uses a big ass copper heat sink to cool CPU (no CPU fan).  6 cores so no issues running HQPlayer.  ROON server sits on the other side of the house, network is fiber single mode into the audio room, where it terminates to ether regen.   I am finding that I actually prefer the sound of USB straight off of the motherboard.  To me it sounds more organic.  I2S to me sounds slightly more lively but can sound forced on some recordings.   I am using an external power supply (FARAD) to power the pink faun.   I have a JCAT USB XE on order, and will try that (with the Farad external power supply).   I am not expecting much of a change.   I am currently using HQPLAYER, and find that it does make a subtle improvement.  I do not use RAAT streaming protocol at all, even without HQ up-sampling on the endpoint, Euphony allows to stream using NAA protocol from ROON and that sounds significantly better.  In my system, moving ROON server out of the stereo room, as well as the spinning hard drive, made the biggest improvement.      I am contemplating upgrading to either the Wavedream Balanced or Holo May.   I am not sure how much of an improvement I will actually realize though.    I upgraded from a PS Audio Direct Stream, and yes the Wavelight was better, but it wasn't night and day.   Upgrading the streamer, IMHO made a more significant improvement.   BUT - the rest of my system is fully balanced, and I wonder if a fully balanced R2R is the way to go.   Still very much unsure.  @zurv, is your WD the Standard Balanced version or the Signature?

 

 

 

Thanks for your input on the USB and HQplayer.

I'm using the standard balanced edition. It also shows version RD-1.1 when the unit boots up. I wonder if the .1 upgrade is something new or happened a while ago.

It is my understanding that Rockna when thru a few upgrades. MSB.. then custom chips.. then new custom chips? *shrug*

I think a bunch of us are wondering how the DW holds up to the May. I have a feeling i'll likely get one by the end of the year - sadly i don't have the ears or equipment to test which is "better"