Auralic Altair DAC/Streamer

[cordobaman]

Would like to see a comparison to the Marantz NA8005 which also does DSD streaming + USB inputs. Seems like nobody has critical listening reviews of the marantz DAC, almost like it's a ghost. You'd think more people would want the future-proofing of both streaming and USB, at least, that's why I bought it. Maybe that's why Auralic is getting into this market (albeit at 2x the street price of the Marantz).

 

 

I am looking to replace my Marrantz SR6009 AVR specifically because it's streaming/Marantz App constantly drops connection (wired ethernet), and has issues skipping songs (.dsf files especially).

 

I am strongly considering the Altair, and like others, waiting for some reviews before I take the plunge.

[cordobaman]

I replaced the streaming portion of my NA8005 with a RaspberryPi3. It does both Roon and NAA for HQPlayer for $50. So I use the 8005 just as a DAC via USB-in and couldn't be happier.

 

-mike

 

 

How do you like Roon...worth the cost in your opinion? I am using a RP2 with a DAC HAT and Rune in my office and it sounds really nice for the cost. However Rune takes about 10 minutes to load my music library, so that is a little frustrating.

 

Still, the all-in-one no fuss solution of the Altair seems really appealing.

[cordobaman]

I love Roon, very worth the cost. I left A+ and never looked back. I haven't had any performance problems with Roon (aside from the SMB bug with OSX 10.11.5 that affected everything on my NAS, and I worked around that). Have you posted about your load times on the Roon forums? They are amazingly responsive there.

 

I agree the all-in-one of the Altair is nice, and I am usually all for paying the tax for things that "just work". It's just that if you're going to use the Altair as a RoonReady device (as I would if I purchased one), you're paying for a lot that goes unused.

 

-mike

 

I would probably use an Altair with Lightning DS app for IOS, any feedback on it's functionality appreciated. Not quite sure if the $10/month with year commit is worth it, then add Tidal on top.

 

As far as long load times using my RPi2, I am using RuneAudio (not Roon).

[cordobaman]

Ah sorry, I thought that was a typo, not familiar with Rune.

 

I like using Roon as it works seamlessly and with the same UI across all my rooms and setups (streaming, HQPlayer, direct connection to my NA8005, headphone DAC on laptop, etc). In that sense, it is "all-in-one". The downside of Lightning is it only works in that one scenario with that specific hardware. The flexibility, combined with a really great UI and strong support on the forums, makes it worth the $ for me.

 

Hope that helps!

-mike

.

Thanks Mike, helps quite a bit...the multi setup functionality with Roon would be great to have

[cordobaman]

...Much better sounding than the Teac NT-503 I tried earlier this year, which I think tried too hard with its multiple DACs and power supplies, providing imprecise and muddied sound...

 

Great info overall, thanks.

 

Interested in how you felt about the N-0503...Would you say the Altair is worth twice the price? Functionality, was the Teac on par (what interface did you use)? Did both do gapless DSD streaming over ethernet?

[cordobaman]

...The Teac did not do gapless DSD streaming. I haven't tried that aspect of the Altair yet; I believe it is supposed to do that when using Lightning DS...

@ddps, have you had a chance to try gapless DSD streaming yet? Now that you've had the Altair a couple weeks, are there additional comments on the performance/sound!

 

Thanks!!!

[cordobaman]

Pre-amp, DAC, ethernet streaming in one box.

 

I have been searching, but have yet to find any direct competitors to the Altair for under $2000 (USD). The Teac and Oppo seem to be the closest...any others?

 

Niether the Teac NT-503 nor the Oppo Sonica DAC have gapless playback via ethernet (none for Oppo, No DSD for Teac), no Tidal, Roon, (or Pandora), limited functionality of their iPhone/Andoid control app. Also the Teac does not allow simultaneous use of the XLR + RCA outputs (which I would use to connect my amp on XLR and subwoofer on RCA). The Altair has more inputs as well.

[cordobaman]

Maybe the moon 280dsd with inbuilt mind module could be considered a competitor.

 

I looked at the Moon 280D, however packaged with Mind it is $2800 USD...

[cordobaman]

...If I remember correctly the Lumin D1 is also around the 2k price point. Not sure if it will operate with wifi. But I prefer a wired network over wifi by a long shot. WiFi is not stable enough.

 

Ah, close...and it looks to be quite a handsomely made unit. But no pre-amp functions. No additional inputs. Also I believe no Roon, Tidal, Pandora...just internet radio.

[cordobaman]

Can anyone confirm ( @scirica ?) that the Balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA outs are Both active at the same time? I'd like to use the XLR to the main amp and the RCA to my subwoofer and Zone 2 amp.

[cordobaman]

Can anyone confirm ( @scirica ?) that the Balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA outs are Both active at the same time? I'd like to use the XLR to the main amp and the RCA to my subwoofer and Zone 2 amp.

 

Sent an email to support and had an answer with 5 minutes from the main dude! ...great service!

 

The XLR and RCA are individually buffered so they can be used at the same time. Thanks.

Xuanqian Wang | CEO & Designer | [email protected]

 

 

Attachment(s)

ALTAIR_USERSGUIDE_R2.pdf

[cordobaman]

Well I made the plunge and purchased an Altair, received today. Since I am in the middle of a remodel I could only set it up quickly in a temporary room using DLNA/Minimserver. Initial impressions...very very detailed. It works. It plays everything perfectly with no hiccups (unlike my departed Marantz). Looking forward to a proper set up in a treated room with quality connections. Will keep you folks updated!

[cordobaman]

congrats! Do you use ROON?

 

 

No Roon at this time but I plan on evaluating with their free trial to see what all the hubbub is about.

[cordobaman]

I also took the plunge today, with the Altair replacing a Mac Mini/Audirvana/iFI iUSB/Meridian Director combo. Initial impression is bags of detail compared to the previous setup but there seems to be something missing in the bass. Will give it a week or two to burn in.

 

I noticed the subtle lower bass output as well. I changed to Smooth mode and it calmed the highs just a tad (a good thing).

Have been leaving the unit on continuously to see if there is any improvement with burn in. Will continue to listen as and report.

[cordobaman]

I have not noticed any bass insufficiency fwiw.

 

It's not really an "insufficiency", just slightly less bold than when I was using my Pono Player as my source, headphone out direct into my Rogue Audio Atlas Magnum (that's all I had while waiting for the Altair to arrive). The Altair definitely has much greater detail/clarity. And again, I am still in a temporary set up, in less than optimum conditions...so take anything I say (for now) with that in mind.

[cordobaman]

I have really been enjoying my Altair, still getting to know Lightning DS. I do have a question for other owners...I am experiencing a tick/click in between songs when playing random and bitrate changes? It is noticeable and consistent for me. I asked Auralic support and they suggested increasing delay (buffer) time, which has not solved the problem. Anyone else?

[cordobaman]

I got mine a while back and have been listening to it as just a DAC vs my QuteDac and Metrum Octave. It definitely puts out less bass that the other two.

 

Anyway, I decided to get it going as a streamer yesterday. The Lightning DS app gets as far as the bit when you are meant to select your home LAN but unfortunately the app just keeps scanning and although I can see my router I can't click on it.

 

The Altair just sits there now looking for a network and won't even act as a DAC. Have tried numerous resets and reinstalls of the app.

 

Auralic support is quite responsive and I'll probably get a solution at some stage (also need to check the booklet again) however I suspect I won't be keeping the Altair.

 

Ps how do you add pics with an iPhone?

It may be a "Share" issue. Have you changed settings on your computer (PC?) to allow "everyone" and "read/write" sharing?

[cordobaman]

I have really been enjoying my Altair, still getting to know Lightning DS. I do have a question for other owners...I am experiencing a tick/click in between songs when playing random and bitrate changes? It is noticeable and consistent for me. I asked Auralic support and they suggested increasing delay (buffer) time, which has not solved the problem. Anyone else?

 

I have been working with Auralic support to get to the bottom of my intermittent ticking problem when transitioning between songs of different bitrate, mostly with 96 kHz to others. Seems after many emails and suggestions, Auralic cannot explain the issue and suggested I have my Altair exchanged. So if I may ask before I do the return...has anyone else experienced this issue?

[cordobaman]

I have really been enjoying my Altair, still getting to know Lightning DS. I do have a question for other owners...I am experiencing a tick/click in between songs when playing random and bitrate changes? It is noticeable and consistent for me. I asked Auralic support and they suggested increasing delay (buffer) time, which has not solved the problem. Anyone else?

I have been working with Auralic support to get to the bottom of my intermittent ticking problem when transitioning between songs of different bitrate, mostly with 96 kHz to others. Seems after many emails and suggestions, Auralic cannot explain the issue and suggested I have my Altair exchanged. So if I may ask before I do the return...has anyone else experienced this issue?

 

First off, I want to extend my appreciation for AURALiC's support to date, especially the personal attention. I returned my Altair to my dealer HiFi Heaven (also recommended), and HiFi Heaven WAS able to reproduce the issue.

 

I was sent a new/replacement and Unfortunately this one behaves exactly the same as the original. The intermittent tick/pop absolutely occurs at random, in random channels, when transitioning from 24/96 to any other bit/frequency. Again it is -very intermittent- but quite obvious when it occurs.

 

Has no one else experienced this issue??

 

I am still working with AURALiC to see what can be done. They are suggesting that it's possibly due to the lack of a muting circuit during clock changes...may possibly look into reducing with a firmware update.

 

Aside from this I absolutely love the sound quality and operation of the Altair.

[cordobaman]

For non-DSD files I have to disagree with you. The OP should not be getting ticks/pops between tracks. This is not normal. What you state above is all true except with gapless playback it is not relevant. To be honest, you shouldn't get ticks when sample rate changes between tracks. In my system, I only get ticks between tracks with DSD files, which is a known issue, with PCM files I get nothing but silence. As far as the Altair goes, I have not heard of this problem with any Auralic products before.

I speak from direct experience with my chain, which is Aries Mini > Ayre Codex. I too thought the issue was with DSD only, but have since heard it on PCM too. Less often, but it does happen.

This topic comes up periodically on CA, if you search back. One thing I have noticed is that music I've bought from download sites like HDTracks, MusicDirect, eClassical, etc. seems to be completely tick-free. It could be that they are using professional tools, that do a better job at track boundaries.

Also, you may just be lucky not to hear it with your specific gear. It really does seem to be very dependent on the DAC.

 

My Altair(s) have no problems playing DSD files (except for MJ's Billy Jean...which skips but that seems to be a known issue). It is when transitioning PCM files from 24/96 to/from any other br/freq. Actually occurs with legit HDTracks downloads more often than my DVD-A rips.

 

I have the Altair connected in WiFi mode (also tried ethernet-connected), streaming flac and dsf files, sourced from various download sites plus CD, SACD, and DVD-A rips, all stored on 2TB internal hard drive housed in Windows 10 PC. Files are accessed using Lightning Server (SMB) and Lightning DS software, controlled from an iPad mini or an iPhone 7 running IOS10. The problem also occurs with files on a USB thumb drive or external hard drive inserted into the USB port on the rear of the Altair. All items have latest firmware/software versions. I tried using headphones only, the amplifier was switched off, absolutely still occurs.

 

Note that my previous system was a Marantz SR6009 AVR, and streaming the same files on the same network did not exhibit the tick/pops.

 

Originally the electrical power was a shared circuit. As an attempt to eliminate interference/noise problems I ran a dedicated circuit direct from the main panel. Only the Altair and the amplifier are on that circuit. Voltage reads 124 VAC and a quality hospital-grade outlet is used. I also tried a different hospital-grade power cables, no difference.

 

To test, I loaded 4 songs into queue, two were 16/44.1 and two were 24/96. I then switched between the different files, alternating bitrate each time. I could hear a very subtle (acceptable?) tick every time. However every 10 or so the louder/annoying tick/pop DID occur, it was quite obvious. And definitely was in single/random channels.

 

I am game for any other ideas or suggestions...please keep them coming!

[cordobaman]

I have been enjoying DS TestFlight v4.1 and the new Tidal Master support. Thanks to AURALiC for incorporating MQA into the software! (even with the cap of 48 Hz sampling it sounds very good)

 

HOWEVER, I get the intermittent tick/pop while streaming Tidal and changing between HiFi 16 bit and Master 24 bit...yes with Tidal too!

 

My testing concludes:

- The tick/pop occurs during the change from 16 bit to 24 bit, regardless of sampling frequency.

- Not related to my file storage, happens with networked SMB/NAS, direct-connected external HD, flash drive, or thu Tidal.

- Not related to connected equipment, occurs with thru headphones (with my amplifier turned off).

 

The tick/pop is easy to reproduce. I find it unlikely that you folks couldn't reproduce it by switching between 16 bit and 24 bit songs over and over...sometimes it takes 10-20 song changes before it occurs but when it does it is quite obvious. Would some of you volunteer to try?

 

Anxious to hear responses from the CA Altair owners!

[cordobaman]

What is and how does one get Test Flight? My Altair is on 4.1, no MQA decoding.

 

TestFlight is an app in the Apple store that is a conduit for private testing of other apps. To get the Lightning DS betas to test, you apply to be a tester on AURALiC's website in the Lightning DS section. If they grant your request they send a link to the DS beta app.

[cordobaman]

Hi folks,

The Altair seems to tick of all boxes for me, but first I would like to ask you eminent people following questions:

How to play Spotify from Android phone and Windows 10 to the Altair? I would prefer another option than Bluetooth....

How is the headphone amp? Im not using the headphones so much, but still interested to hear your opinion.

 

Boxes left unticked would be support for Android or Windows. Likely you could use in DNLA mode (Minimserver + Bubble UPnP) to achieve it though I have not tried. I actually bought a used iPad Mini just to use as a remote control for my Altair.

 

Tidal is fully integrated with their Lightning DS interface (for iPhone/iPad). How about using Tidal as your service instead? I was please to receive a free 3 month subscription to Tidal with my Altair purchase. You can also stream the Masters (MQA) files at 24bit thru their Lightning DS interface.

[cordobaman]

I have done it with permission of AURALIC. Took me about 20 minutes.

 

There is an adapter kit that takes the IDE style power connector and converts it to SATA power as well as a SATA connector. You could also do this with generic Computer adapters. There is a metal shield that encases the hard drive area and the kit also has the correct screws to mont the hard drive, but again nothing extraordinary that you couldn't use standard computer screws for.

 

I love using the internal hard drive. Everything is dead quiet with a total black background. The only real downfall is it takes forever to transfer files wirelessly.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Computer Audiophile

[cordobaman]

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

Was the metal shield part of the kit or already there? The disk didn't require formatting or any special initialization before installation?

 

Thanks again!

 

The metal box is part of the Altair.

 

The drive "initializes" for several minutes upon first start up. For me, the initializing phase was taking too long and I was impatient after 1/2 hour and re-booted the Altair. I also had to re-boot my router/PC network in order for my Windows 10 PC to see (what it called) ARIES-xxxxxx on my network. After all that I was able to treat the Altair's SSD just like any other drive, adding folders and dragging files. 500 GB of files took a few hours to transfer.