dCS Network Bridge

[stevebythebay]

I know it would certainly be nice to test it out, without having a Network Bridge on hand. But no luck. I will say, it's fine as far as it goes.  Quite basic as a player. If you're not using Roon, for instance, or another player, it's supposed to see you NAS and allow you to play tracks and build queues, etc.  I don't know how you'd access music that's on, say, a USB attached or international to a Mac or PC. As for setup, there's little to it. Just need to match the capabilities of your DAC to what the dCS is putting out. 

[k-man]

1 hour ago, tdimler said:

I'm also looking at the dCS bridge vs the new Auralic G2.  One thing I'm having trouble getting information on is the dCS streaming app.  Can anyone provide their impression of it's ease and user interface?

 

Thanks

I just happen to be reading the Network Bridge Manual - from page 10 there are a few steps with screenshots on app use. I have no first hand impression, but hope you get something out of it (to me it seems similar to iPeng/mPod I have been using the last few years). 

[wdw]

Have one in house to review from our local HiFi hut....Sound Room, Vancouver, the best!

 

Two seconds in it was apparent how discreet, quiet and fascinating our most well-known playist is from this musical device.  

Piece was brand new, cold out of the box, no burn-in, etc....

 

amazing!

[stevebythebay]

2 hours ago, wdw said:

Have one in house to review from our local HiFi hut....Sound Room, Vancouver, the best!

 

Two seconds in it was apparent how discreet, quiet and fascinating our most well-known playist is from this musical device.  

Piece was brand new, cold out of the box, no burn-in, etc....

 

amazing!

Allow it to "burn" in for 100 hours - just get a source to let the bits flow in and out and you'll really get it to perform at its best.

[wdw]

Yes, good advice....best, wdw

[pam1975]

Can anyone be kind enough to let me know what the auralic G2 is supposed to bring more than what the dCS bridge provides from a functionality standpoint?

thank you

[pam1975]

Another question, has anyone tried to dCS network bridge with an external master clock?

[Emerald Core]

On 6/12/2017 at 6:42 AM, wdw said:

Have one in house to review from our local HiFi hut....Sound Room, Vancouver, the best!

 

Two seconds in it was apparent how discreet, quiet and fascinating our most well-known playist is from this musical device.  

Piece was brand new, cold out of the box, no burn-in, etc....

 

amazing!

 

Can you relate to existing streamers from Aurender, Auralic, Lumin, Melco and solutions like MR and SOtm SMS200 ? 

 

Thanks 

[matthias]

11 hours ago, Emerald Core said:

 

Can you relate to existing streamers from Aurender, Auralic, Lumin, Melco and solutions like MR and SOtm SMS200 ? 

 

Thanks 

 

Extreme expectations:-)

 

Matt

[wdw]

17 hours ago, Emerald Core said:

 

Can you relate to existing streamers from Aurender, Auralic, Lumin, Melco and solutions like MR and SOtm SMS200 ? 

 

Thanks 

Had an Auralic Aries...replaced with the ethernet virtual soundcard "AIR" that Devialet offers as it was audibly superior....to the collection you list...dunno but would wager that this dCS Bridge is the leader of the pack...have seen some posts from Aurender folks saying something similar...best digital we've had in house...

[wdw]

18 hours ago, pam1975 said:

Another question, has anyone tried to dCS network bridge with an external master clock?

Would love to hear if this has been done as well

[kblundy]

On 14/06/2017 at 3:30 AM, wdw said:

Would love to hear if this has been done as well

I use mine with a dCS Scarlatti master clock - it's fantastic.

 

the sound stage opens way up when used in a system where all the components are synced to a master clock.

[pam1975]

Thanks @kblundy

I am getting my dCS network bridge next week and was hesitating between their Rossini master clock and potentially another one in the dCS range but don't know what is the best match for the network bridge? Also what is the price point of the Scarlatti master clock?

 

[kblundy]

45 minutes ago, pam1975 said:

Thanks @kblundy

I am getting my dCS network bridge next week and was hesitating between their Rossini master clock and potentially another one in the dCS range but don't know what is the best match for the network bridge? Also what is the price point of the Scarlatti master clock?

 

If you don't have any other components in the Scarlatti system - you should go for the Rossini.

 

The Scarlatti range was the flagship until mid 2015 when it was replaced with the Vivaldi.

 

The Bridge ideally needs two master clock inputs 44.1K and 48K based. The Rossini can provide those if you are using it with the Rossini DAC.

 

The Scarlatti clock will only produce a single master clock - the rate of which can be changed to suit.

 

What DAC / Upsampler do you have?

 

[pam1975]

@kblundy I will use the dCS network bridge as standalone piece, meaning with no other dCS piece associated to it.

I bought myself Kii Three active speakers (which are absolutely stunning by the way) and they embed their own internal DAC as well. So I go straight from the dCS network bridge to my active Kii Three Speakers in AES.

As such, would the Rossini master clock be the best fit for purpose device? Or I can use any master clock that provides 44.1K and 48K?

[kblundy]

13 minutes ago, pam1975 said:

@kblundy I will use the dCS network bridge as standalone piece, meaning with no other dCS piece associated to it.

I bought myself Kii Three active speakers (which are absolutely stunning by the way) and they embed their own internal DAC as well. So I go straight from the dCS network bridge to my active Kii Three Speakers in AES.

As such, would the Rossini master clock be the best fit for purpose device? Or I can use any master clock that provides 44.1K and 48K?

The Rossini is an expensive addition if you don't need it for other dCS kit. If you were to try the mutec Mc-3+ that would provide all the clocks you need and is significantly cheaper. I have one of these and have tried with the bridge - it works fine. 

[Emerald Core]

Kindly update us if anybody received the network bridge for review. This box could turn the tide against flagship streamers from other brands who are asking double/triple the price. 

[pam1975]

There is an upcoming publication I think in the UK that reviews it and puts it on par with Naim NDS/555PS DR

will try to find the link again

 

I'm getting it on Friday 

[Emerald Core]

5 minutes ago, pam1975 said:

There is an upcoming publication I think in the UK that reviews it and puts it on par with Naim NDS/555PS DR

will try to find the link again

 

I'm getting it on Friday 

 

I don't know how good NDS 555 is but I know that there is Aurrender N10 that is taking the market with high praise all over the internet. 

 

I would be happy to know if dCS can surpass this streamer. It is literally double the price of network bridge. 

[pam1975]

NDS/555PS is one of the very best streamers on the market. Top 3. Worth 18-20k euro I think?

 

have not heard Aurender N10

[Emerald Core]

4 minutes ago, pam1975 said:

NDS/555PS is one of the very best streamers on the market. Top 3. Worth 18-20k euro I think?

 

have not heard Aurender N10

It may be one of the best, I am nobody to argue about that. The N10 is universally agreed to be better compatible with a large amount of audio systems, and sounds best through USB & AES connections. Also note that N10 has a high end internal clock which is a plus. Unlike NDS which is supposed to work best with Naim setup. 

 

I am here just to observe users reaction to the NB. I hope it becomes a game changer to the crazily developing overpriced streaming market. 

[pam1975]

I'm nobody either to judge these devices, I just heard the NDS/555PS DR and compared it with other streamers but not Aurender. Anyways, seems you're really interested in direct comparison with Aurender, maybe you'll have to wait a bit until someone does this A/B comparison.

I took a leap of faith on the NB, we'll see.

[pam1975]

here is the link, maybe it brings you interesting insights.

http://www.moremusic.nl/reviews/dcs/Network-Bridge/review-dCS-network-bridge-HiFi News.pdf

 

[stevebythebay]

I wouldn't put the N10 in the same category as the dCS or Naim units. The N10 has internal drives for the music library and offers some network services like Tidal. It has no capacity for external clocks but does have internal power supplies. I think it more a music player that happens to play nice with a network of addition sources.  And price wise and based on more features, the Aurender S20 is a more reasonable comparison, at least with respect to the Naim unit.

 

I see the dCS as more narrowly defined. No internal drives. Just takes Ethernet network bitstream (including Tidal and Spotify) with Roon endpoint support, adds upcoming WiFi and MQA support and sends the "unaltered" bitstream on its way. And it is capable of upsampling or downsampling as needed.  I say "unaltered" to really mean undiminished, since I'm getting far more sonic pleasure from the dCS than anything else I've tried in my system. 

 

I know little of the older Naim technology. So I can't compare how it might fare.  Also, the dCS has no USB output, making it less versatile if a DAC expects that as input. 

 

I had the N10 in my system, replacing a MacMini. I found a nicer result with a microRendu.  Both had been feeding into a Berkeley D-D converter into the AES/EBU input of a Berkeley DAC. Now, using the dCS to replace the microRendu/converter, I'm experiencing a much better sonic result. As always, "your mileage may vary" based on your system. 

[pam1975]

great summary @stevebythebay