iFi's Pro iDSD (official) - NEW Firmware - MQA and more.

[RichB]

What is THAT on the bottom of that stack of gear??!?!?! I see binding posts on it! Is that a power amplifier in a "Pro" series chassis???? Maybe a "iAmp Pro"????

 

And we have some goodies from RMAF!

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]29618[/ATTACH]

[RichB]

On 12/26/2017 at 4:30 PM, AMR/iFi audio said:

 

It has a wireless functionality.

 

 

Being able act as a Roon end point would be nice, but suspect it may just be Bluetooth capability as available in other iFii audio products.  Wil be interesting to see what pans out.

[RichB]

On 12/28/2017 at 4:20 PM, AMR/iFi audio said:

Preview – Pro series - part 3/5

Even more jaw-dropping features

 

Hi-Res Network Audio

 

As the flagship in iFi Audio’s formidable fleet of DACs, the iDSD Pro is extremely highly specified. In addition to traditional inputs, it features:

• WiFi/network playback system with leading streaming services (see below)
• MQA decoding onboard for the maximum quality of playback via MQA music files or streaming. 
• Wide protocol support including Airplay and USB Memory/Hard Drive/SD Card playback to make a full standalone streamer/network audio player with 32 Bit/192kHz & DSD64 support.

The iDSD Pro gives you plenty of options for playing music online. Here are a few of them:

1. Play direct from SD card
2. Airplay Network Audio Playback from iPhone, iPad, Mac Computers
3. Use Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) to playback from smartphones, tablets and Windows/Linux computers
4. Stream playback from Amazon Music, Audible, Spotify, TIDAL, Napster, Spotify Connect, and QQPlayer
5. Playback from Hard disk drive, USB Memory or SDHC Memory Card
6. Playback from Network Attached Storage (NAS)

 

Zero Jitter for all inputs

For all inputs data is sent to the aforementioned Memory Buffer, which iFi describes as ‘large’ and ‘elastic’. Here it is de-jittered to eliminate any transmission of source jitter to the DAC output. The data from the Memory Buffer is further re-clocked by with the low-jitter Global Master Timing® clock, which also drives the X-Core 200 & FPGA.

 

Click on this more information on iFi’s jitter solution:

 

http://www.amr-audio.co.uk/html/dp777_tech-papers_jitter.html

 

Studio Remastering

While the X-Core 200 is favourable for USB Audio, AES/EBU/SPDIF decoding and decoding MQA, DSD, it is not the best platform for DSP, digital filters and PCM-to-DSD conversion. This is where the iDSD Pro’s Studio DSD Remastering system comes in. It excels at handling the Upsampling and Digital Filter duties and has at its heart the Crysopeia FPGA Digital Engine for digital filtering and PCM to DSD remastering, up to DSD1024.

Upsampling in hardware, on board has enabled iFi Audio to overcome the current USB limitation of DSD512 as well as implement multiple filters optimised for specific time-domain behaviour, including that of the DAC and Analogue stage, a level of optimisation not possible in generic software upconversion (as found in Foobar et al).

 

The five filters available are:

1. ‘Bit-Perfect’              No digital filtering is applied, 1 Tap
2. ‘Bit-Perfect+’            No digital filtering is applied, 1 Tap
3. ‘Minimum Phase’     Minimum filtering, no pre-ringing, minimum post ringing, 32 Taps
4. ‘Apodising’                Modest filtering, no pre-ringing, modest post ringing, 128 Taps
5. ‘Transient Aligned’   Max filtering, max Pre-Ringing, maximum Post-Ringing, 16,384 Taps

Stay tuned, there's more!

 

Well, hopefully Roon end point capability will only be something along the lines of a firmware update in the future.... going through all AMR/iFi has done to make the unit Airplay (which is limited to 16/44 right?), DLNA, Spotify, tidal etc network capable and not giving the unit the ability to be a Roon end point  does not make great sense to me (for a DAC of this caliber). Looking forward to reading more about the tube/as output stage/design (and maybe a rear panel pic would be nice too so we can see the pile of inputs and outputs this thing has).

[RichB]

On 1/7/2018 at 5:48 PM, Em2016 said:

Thanks Gents! @AMR/iFi audio

 

Wow, super impressive stuff.

 

Just to double check, WiFi and ethernet inputs both support up to 32/192 and DSD64?

 

I don't know of many DACs out there that support DSD256 via ethernet input so I assume it's tricky and expensive to do well.

 

Are these the same reasons the PRO iDSD's networked inputs are limited in sample rate support, compared with the USB inputs?

 

 

 

From reading the iDSD Pro specs, which states that for DSD/DXD/ or PCM above 24/192 - its looks like LinkPlay (Ethernet or WiFi) only does PCM up to 24/192 and does not support DSD (did not see anything on LinkPlays site about DSD/DXD support). Apple AirPlay is PCM only too... I think it can support up to 24/192 (that is if the source supports it).

 

So, for those looking to stream via Ethernet or WiFi (direct to the iDSD Pro), its looks like you are limited to PCM and leave it to the iDSD pro to convert it to DSD via its Studio Remastering function/mode. That will be a bummer thought for those who have a lot of DSD/DXD source material and want to stream via Ethernet to the iDSD Pro... they will need to  use a renderer with USB output to the iDSD Pro that supports DSD/DXD data/rates.

 

I'm sure iFi Audio will clarify things further (especially if I'm wrong about any of this. :-)  )

 

I am curious to know how the single ended analog output is generated... derived from the balanced output???

 

[RichB]

43 minutes ago, Newson said:

Okay, thanks for the answer. I use it with USB.

I will then have the same compatible with roon and HQplayer. This is great

 

I am using it right now with our Roon Nucleus music server via USB (using the iDSD Pro's built in DSD 1024 up-sampling right now, not doing any up-sampling in Roon yet). I also have a i7 Mac Mini Running Roon Core and HQ Player (which is just doing up-sampling to 24/192 feeding into  our Wavelength Cosecant USB DAC  at this moment) with direct Ethernet connection to a Sonore Ultra-Rendu which I will be trying  with the iDSD Pro as well (using the Ultra-Rendu USB out into the iDSD Pro). We just got our first couple of iDSD Pro's yesterday, so am just at the running it in for several days phase right now. Also using it with the stock iFi power supply for now, will try a good linear power supply with it too at some time in the future.

 

Will be interesting to see how HQ Player DSD and PCM up-sampling compares to the iDSD Pro doing that (with native data inputted). Between the up-sampling/filtering options offered by HQ Player and the iDSD Pro, you can spend many days comparing the various permutations possible (if you want)!

 

 

[RichB]

36 minutes ago, o.fz said:

 

I've about the same experience: an audible hiss (mostly in the medium frequencies) and a cyclical 'cloc'. Kind of: cloc... cloc... cloc... I'll try to record it tomorrow,  if ever I can find back my Lavalier microphone...

That said, it's not audible when the music is playing. I only ear it when it should be silent.

I might contact the 'support' team, but my experience about it is rather disappointing: they create a ticket and nothing more happens, as far as I can tell.

I hope you'll be more successful.

 

Given I am a dealer and have a variety of gear connected/playing in my listening room at any one time, I have noticed with some gear the iDSD Pro is generating RFI that is being picked up by some (not all) gear. The most noticeable occurrence was with a Joule-Electra preamp which is about 20 years old.... the all tube phono stage in it (sitting about 3 feet away horizontally from the iDSD pro) in MC gain mode was clearly picking up interference which was rather audible from the speakers... less so in MM mode, but still there. Turning off the iDSD Pro made the interference  (like that mentioned above by OFZ) made it go away... (I will point out that there are 2 Mac Mini’s and a Roon Nucleus running in the room which cause. No such interference issues)

 

My guess is that it is not the power supply, but the unit itself - the WiFi signal it is broadcasting. Maybe there is some way to turn off its WiFi capabilities?