dCS Network Bridge

[Lyosha]

Hi All,

I saw the firmware update available for my network bridge this morning and I started installing it.

According to the instructions you have to wait for the light on the front to start flashing and then you have to turn the power off and on. Well, the light never started flushing, a couple hours later it is still just on.

I am afraid to turn the power off and mess up the update, anybody else ran into the same issue?

Thanks. 

 

[Tadders]

Attempted to update my NB with firmware 398.

 

Still awaiting pulsing led (signifying apply hard reset) after 1.5 hours (instructions say wait 10 minutes).

 

What do I do now?

 

Phill

[Patatorz]

If the dCS app is able to reconnect to the network bridge, I think you can switch off/on the NB

[Tadders]

6 minutes ago, Patatorz said:

If the dCS app is able to reconnect to the network bridge, I think you can switch off/on the NB

The NB app connects but version and status report ‘no entries’

 

My router shows the NB has an assigned IP address

[Lyosha]

Same here - 'no entries'...

[Cooler]

1 minute ago, Tadders said:

The NB app connects but version and status report ‘no entries’

 

My router shows the NB has an assigned IP address

 

i clicked on iphone install new firmware for NB, downloading started, once it finished, after 30 seconds app showed message, that no NB found, then i waited 3-5 minutes and led started to pulse on NB, turned off, waited 30 seconds, turned on. Done.

 

Turn off your device and turn on again and check its firmware version.

[Patatorz]

If no entries it means it restarted. You can turn off and on and should be updated

[Tadders]

5 minutes ago, Patatorz said:

If no entries it means it restarted. You can turn off and on and should be updated

Phew, all seems ok!

 

I hate firmware flashes that sulk.

 

thanks for your help

 

phill

[Patatorz]

Yes ! Check if you have 398 and 1.01 for the different versions

[The Computer Audiophile]

Same thing here. I just rebooted it after a while and no issues. 

[Tadders]

7 minutes ago, Patatorz said:

Yes ! Check if you have 398 and 1.01 for the different versions

Yep, both now latest version

[Patatorz]

Everything is ok ! Enjoy

[Beolab]

@AMP

 

Great update! 

 

Now the App behaives much more stable than ever before, just one crash since startup this morning, and now when i am wrightning this it is night over here where i am based. ??

 

Tryed to enable DNS but it just jumps back to the No setting, so i cant fill in the DNS adress? 

 

Would be great if the focus in the next FW/SW could be on the audio SQ performance , so it plays on par with my Puccini with SACD’s would be great!

Today it is not that much Air / separation / soundstadge / slight more flatter /  compressed even if you play DSD 128 in my comparison , could this be a hardware limitation or is it possible to sqeeze slight more out of the FPGA do you think in the next release? 

 

And last but least! 

 

Is your recomendation to use the NB as Master clock insted of the Puccini U-clock II i am using today? 

 

Yes or No ? ??

 

Keep up the good work! 

 

[xtraktz]

Has anyone compared BNC-BNC 

Canare 12G-SDI 
Apogee Wide Eye

Oyaide DB-510

 

Which one will be better for NB?

[Beolab]

6 minutes ago, xtraktz said:

Has anyone compared BNC-BNC 

Canare 12G-SDI 
Apogee Wide Eye

Oyaide DB-510

 

Which one will be better for NB?

 

Yes i got all three in my possession, and you are thinking to use them as word.clock cabels ? 

 

I think the Canare 12G-SDI gives you a fuller richer sound with great depht , whears the Apogee is slight dryer overall , and the Oyaide gives you less 3D depht but slight higher detail overal , but i find them flatter and slight more harder in the top end. 

 

 

[xtraktz]

19 minutes ago, Beolab said:

you are thinking to use them as word.clock cabels ? 

Yes, I want use it as clock cable from dCS Network Bridge to dCS Debussy. Canare is your recommendation ?

Will there be a difference with and without clock connection between NB and Debussy?

[Beolab]

Yes, in my opinion the synergy is better, because the Network Bridge is towards the slight neutral side from the beginning, so you get slight more metallic shiny sharpness in the top end on string instruments with the Oyaide, whereas you get a richer tone without the metallic shine with more depth with Canare 4k 12G or Belden 8k 12G gives you the similar sound also. 

 

( Nordost is using Belden BNC plugs on Valhalla 2 BNC for example, and many other High End brands are using the Canare connectrors. ) 

 

i have tryed out Valhalla 2 as word.clock cable, but i can not recomend to use it as a word.clock cable, only as SPDIF , but i couldent here any diffrence between the Canarare  4k 12 G in my Abyss Phi headphones or in my speakers used as SPDIF, they vere very similar.

The Oyaide used as SPDIF gives you an slight clinical unnatural resolution and less depht. This effect is most probable the use of a singel solid silver wire, it is better to use multi stranded wire for less clinical effect if you should go with the silver route. 

 

Hope that clarifies a little. 

 

 

 

 

 

[xtraktz]

22 minutes ago, Beolab said:

Hope that clarifies a little

Yes, thanks)) I have ordered one canare 4k from Japan

 

By the way, about silver solid core, silver cables are now working in my system, but this is not clinical to my ear. I have one RAL balanced interconnect, Siltech SQ-110 mk2, Siltech SPX-30 mk2 power cord on NB and Siltech G3 HF9 as digital. Also I have Oyaide AR-910 it’s little more sharper than HF9 on highs, yes, but not critical..

[Beolab]

24 minutes ago, xtraktz said:

Yes, thanks)) I have ordered one canare 4k from Japan

 

By the way, about silver solid core, silver cables are now working in my system, but this is not clinical to my ear. I have one RAL balanced interconnect, Siltech SQ-110 mk2, Siltech SPX-30 mk2 power cord on NB and Siltech G3 HF9 as digital. Also I have Oyaide AR-910 it’s little more sharper than HF9 on highs, yes, but not critical..

 

Yes normaly silver cables got this signature but is not a overal rule, but this time the Oyaide fell under the same light unfortenatly. 

 

I got many silver cables that is not sharp or clinical either, but it is often an outcomst of the insolation , the shielding material and if its solid connector. 

 

Multistrand silver cables without a helix silver shieldning tend often to sound softer than a helix silver shielding with proplen isolation and solid core conductors. 

 

 

I am a critical listener , and i felt the diffrence for Oyaide vs MIT Oracle Ma-X  , Apogee Wide Eye , Audio Quest Diamond BNC , and Canare 4k 12 G was pretty huge for a cable alone. 

 

( The Oyaide also needs like 30 houers burn in to settled slightly)

 

 

[Patatorz]

Thanks Beolab to share your experience on bnc cables for clocks. Did you ever test the following Pasternak as a clock bnc (https://www.pasternack.com/bnc-male-bnc-male-rg216u-cable-assembly-pe33403-24-p.aspx) ? Best regards

[xtraktz]

2 hours ago, Beolab said:

The Oyaide also needs like 30 houers burn in to settled slightly)

in my opinion, even more than 30 hours, about 200 I think ))

[Beolab]

1 hour ago, Patatorz said:

Thanks Beolab to share your experience on bnc cables for clocks. Did you ever test the following Pasternak as a clock bnc (https://www.pasternack.com/bnc-male-bnc-male-rg216u-cable-assembly-pe33403-24-p.aspx) ? Best regards

Thanks!

Sorry i haven't listened or compared them yet. 

2 minutes ago, xtraktz said:

in my opinion, even more than 30 hours, about 200 I think ))

 

Most sertenly, but 30 hours minimum, i have had them for about 3 month time now, and mybe they progress slightly after 100++ houers , but it could be placebo also, i find them slightly to flat in the sound stadge + shiny & sharp nevertheless, compared to other cables i got.

The vivid rich musicality is slightly lost. 

 

 

[stevebythebay]

Have been happy with the latest updates to the Network Bridge.  Have not experienced any issues with Roon (Transport: failed...) and the NB when switching song bitrates.  All is well.  I've even stopped using any DSP in Roon (that allowed for only 176k and 192k to emerge from Roon to the NB.  And I've had no crashes with the Roon Core after their recent updates.  Only problem now is a failing NAS disk...(always something I suppose).

 

My dealer brought by a Vivaldi last Friday for me to hear in my system.  Well bye bye Berkeley DAC.  The Vivaldi is substantially better on all counts.  Now just have to figure out whether I should run a Transparent XL cable between the NB and VIvaldi or a lesser quality one.

 

If anyone has experience with this or similar setup, I'd appreciate hearing from you.

[Beolab]

1 hour ago, stevebythebay said:

Have been happy with the latest updates to the Network Bridge.  Have not experienced any issues with Roon (Transport: failed...) and the NB when switching song bitrates.  All is well.  I've even stopped using any DSP in Roon (that allowed for only 176k and 192k to emerge from Roon to the NB.  And I've had no crashes with the Roon Core after their recent updates.  Only problem now is a failing NAS disk...(always something I suppose).

 

My dealer brought by a Vivaldi last Friday for me to hear in my system.  Well bye bye Berkeley DAC.  The Vivaldi is substantially better on all counts.  Now just have to figure out whether I should run a Transparent XL cable between the NB and VIvaldi or a lesser quality one.

 

If anyone has experience with this or similar setup, I'd appreciate hearing from you.

 

Great Choice! 

 

I like the Berkeley Alpha DAC for its full-bodied tone and presentation, but vs a dCS DAC it comes slight short in my book.

 

And if you got a deacent price on a Vivaldi DAC you then got a great platform for expansion in the future , i would try it out with the vivaldi clock, but in the same time the NB internal clock is so good so the diffrence would only be slighty calmer and more fluid with the clock vs without. 

 

You mentioned the Transparent XL Ref, where you thinking of using dual AES/EBU cables or single SPDIF or? 

 

Then you need a descent word.clock cable 

if you would like to sync the clocks in each product. 

 

I think you should evaluate a few mid to top end cables and see what you think. 

 

The diffrence can be pretty big, and its hard to just say go for the most expensive alternative. 

 

Transparrent XL is a good choice if you like slight darker tone, but there is many others brands that is great also, so try out a few others is my tip ?

 

 

[stevebythebay]

Having used the Berkeley Ref. 2 for a few years, I know it's still a great value.  But in the face of the Vivaldi, it's clearly not its equal.

 

I've been using Synergistic Research Galileo LE cables for both connection to my preamp (analogue XLR) and have ordered an additional AES/EBU to have two for the dCS Network Bridge to Vivaldi digital connection.

 

Re: the clock cable, I was unaware that they can impart "dark" or other tonality.  I naively thought it was more or less a matter of getting all the bits through in a "timely" manner to ensure that the Vivaldi was keeping the master "time" for the NB.