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dCS Network Bridge


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4 hours ago, stevebythebay said:

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.

 

“The clock cable was not dark in this case”, what i meant was the Transparent XL AES/EBU can be slight darker in the tone. 

 

The Clock cables do also make a diffrence absolutley, but that was not what i meant, ;) 

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13 hours ago, stevebythebay said:

 

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.

 

Hi

I had the Berkeley Ref v1 followed by the Rossini and now the Vivaldi Dac and clock.

 

The upgrade was easy to hear from Berkely / Rossini and to the Vivaldi Dac. I also use the Vivaldi clock with a Mutec Ref10 with 0.5 m Habst 75 ohm BNC to clock my digital chain. 

 

I had the Mutec Ref 10 from earlier and connecting the Vivaldi Clock with generic bnc cables / Canare 12G was great but after  connecting the Habst the sq is really amazing!

 

I have clocked my Mac mini with a 4 tab sCLK-EX and a RedNet 16R with 2 tab sCLK-EX . All connected to the Ref10. This is a major advantage I think, to be able to sync all components to a reference clock. 

 

I also use the Galileo LE but have the SX incoming. Looking forward to hear what the new cables from S. R will bring?

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5 hours ago, Beolab said:

 

“The clock cable was not dark in this case”, what i meant was the Transparent XL AES/EBU can be slight darker in the tone. 

 

The Clock cables do also make a diffrence absolutley, but that was not what i meant, ;) 

Will need to check back in with my dealer about the cables he used with the Vivaldi when he came over last week.  I know the AES/EBU were Transparent.  Just don't know if he brought XL or others.  I think the clock cable was an XL. 

Steve Schaffer

Grimm MU1 / dCS Vivaldi Upsampler - APEX DAC - Clock / Spectral DMC-30SV preamp / Spectral Anniversary monoblocks / Wilson Audio Alexia V /  Wilson Lōkē subs / Shunyata Everest / Shunyata Omega interconnects, power cables, Ethernet / Shunyata Altaira / Uptone EtherREGEN switch / Cybershaft OP21A-D / Uptone JS2 LPS / HRS racks - Vortex footers - damping plates

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Wondering how much better upsampling via the dCS Upsampler might be versus relying on the Roon Core doing so. 

 

Anyone test this?

Steve Schaffer

Grimm MU1 / dCS Vivaldi Upsampler - APEX DAC - Clock / Spectral DMC-30SV preamp / Spectral Anniversary monoblocks / Wilson Audio Alexia V /  Wilson Lōkē subs / Shunyata Everest / Shunyata Omega interconnects, power cables, Ethernet / Shunyata Altaira / Uptone EtherREGEN switch / Cybershaft OP21A-D / Uptone JS2 LPS / HRS racks - Vortex footers - damping plates

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24 minutes ago, stevebythebay said:

Will need to check back in with my dealer about the cables he used with the Vivaldi when he came over last week.  I know the AES/EBU were Transparent.  Just don't know if he brought XL or others.  I think the clock cable was an XL. 

I'm using the Transparent Reference AES cable and really like it.

 

http://transparentcable.com/products/show_product.php?recID=48&catID=3&perfID=1&modCAT=1

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10 minutes ago, The Computer Audiophile said:

I'm using the Transparent Reference AES cable and really like it.

 

http://transparentcable.com/products/show_product.php?recID=48&catID=3&perfID=1&modCAT=1

Thanks.  Guess I'll eventually need to experiment with these and maybe the XL.  Since I'd already had an investment in the Synergistic Research Galileo LE, I ordered up another (though they're not currently being produced) through Scott Walker, rather than "throwing the baby out with the bath water".  Especially as I'm already using their Galileo LE XLR cables between the DAC and Spectral preamp.

Steve Schaffer

Grimm MU1 / dCS Vivaldi Upsampler - APEX DAC - Clock / Spectral DMC-30SV preamp / Spectral Anniversary monoblocks / Wilson Audio Alexia V /  Wilson Lōkē subs / Shunyata Everest / Shunyata Omega interconnects, power cables, Ethernet / Shunyata Altaira / Uptone EtherREGEN switch / Cybershaft OP21A-D / Uptone JS2 LPS / HRS racks - Vortex footers - damping plates

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Checked back with my dealer.  Seems that both the AES/EBU and the Clock cable used between the dCS Network Bridge and Vivaldi were all Reference level.

Steve Schaffer

Grimm MU1 / dCS Vivaldi Upsampler - APEX DAC - Clock / Spectral DMC-30SV preamp / Spectral Anniversary monoblocks / Wilson Audio Alexia V /  Wilson Lōkē subs / Shunyata Everest / Shunyata Omega interconnects, power cables, Ethernet / Shunyata Altaira / Uptone EtherREGEN switch / Cybershaft OP21A-D / Uptone JS2 LPS / HRS racks - Vortex footers - damping plates

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4 hours ago, stevebythebay said:

Checked back with my dealer.  Seems that both the AES/EBU and the Clock cable used between the dCS Network Bridge and Vivaldi were all Reference level.

 

It is two great cables, no questions about if you got the budjet for it. 

 

As an cheaper alternativ is Habst AES/EBU and Bnc 75 Ohm cables that i have tried out now for a couple of weeks, and they give you a great fluid / vivid sound, without any grain or metallic shine. 

One of the better cables i have tried out in the middle price point and in the upper. 

 

The best cable i ha e heard amd own is the reference cable dCS use and recommend, and that is the MIT Oracle MA-X BNC 75 Ohm with its passive artikulation 3D system that you can decide on your own what type of signature you want with an 6 step attuniator knob on the silver cable. 

 

 

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14 hours ago, Beolab said:

 

It is two great cables, no questions about if you got the budjet for it. 

 

As an cheaper alternativ is Habst AES/EBU and Bnc 75 Ohm cables that i have tried out now for a couple of weeks, and they give you a great fluid / vivid sound, without any grain or metallic shine. 

One of the better cables i have tried out in the middle price point and in the upper. 

 

The best cable i ha e heard amd own is the reference cable dCS use and recommend, and that is the MIT Oracle MA-X BNC 75 Ohm with its passive artikulation 3D system that you can decide on your own what type of signature you want with an 6 step attuniator knob on the silver cable. 

 

 

That's the first I've heard that dCS recommends an MIT cable.  Everyone I've spoken with tells me they don't actually "recommend" any brand but do test with Transparent.  Dealers who offer Transparent and/or Nordost usually recommend them.  Main thing they all say is to keep the "loom" consistent in terms of manufacturer.  I suspect this is more critical for the XLR and AES/EBU than clock cables.

Steve Schaffer

Grimm MU1 / dCS Vivaldi Upsampler - APEX DAC - Clock / Spectral DMC-30SV preamp / Spectral Anniversary monoblocks / Wilson Audio Alexia V /  Wilson Lōkē subs / Shunyata Everest / Shunyata Omega interconnects, power cables, Ethernet / Shunyata Altaira / Uptone EtherREGEN switch / Cybershaft OP21A-D / Uptone JS2 LPS / HRS racks - Vortex footers - damping plates

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18 minutes ago, stevebythebay said:

That's the first I've heard that dCS recommends an MIT cable.  Everyone I've spoken with tells me they don't actually "recommend" any brand but do test with Transparent.  Dealers who offer Transparent and/or Nordost usually recommend them.  Main thing they all say is to keep the "loom" consistent in terms of manufacturer.  I suspect this is more critical for the XLR and AES/EBU than clock cables.

 

That is absolutley correct, sorry i used wrong word, not recomend, they have used MIT , Transparent and Nordost in their demo and testing rigs. 

 

I lile the Mit Oracle MA-X csbles where you can tune the sonic charachter for best synergy effect. 

 

Yes it could be good to use the same cables in some csbles, but Word.clock signals is more like a anslog frequency that is static, so the sound characteristics is not applicable like on how the cables “brother” that transport SPDIF signals 

 

that can be good to know 

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This thread is veering off topic so I thought I'd could slip in a short OT question...have any current Vivaldi owners compared their choice to the MSB Select DAC?...they are similar in price and the reports, from both camps, are positive.  

I do not own either but would welcome any comments. 

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I’d considered doing so, but with no dealer in the S.F. Bay Area, likely poor trade in for my existing DAC, potential issues with stability of ladder DAC components over time, and anecdotal reports having to do with customer complaints that suggest quality control problems, I decided not to pursue this option. 

 

However, I anticipate a solid review shortly from TAS re: the MSB Reference DAC. 

Steve Schaffer

Grimm MU1 / dCS Vivaldi Upsampler - APEX DAC - Clock / Spectral DMC-30SV preamp / Spectral Anniversary monoblocks / Wilson Audio Alexia V /  Wilson Lōkē subs / Shunyata Everest / Shunyata Omega interconnects, power cables, Ethernet / Shunyata Altaira / Uptone EtherREGEN switch / Cybershaft OP21A-D / Uptone JS2 LPS / HRS racks - Vortex footers - damping plates

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@AMP

 

i discovered for a few month ago that if i play a song on the NB and pull the RJ45 cable from it,  that it still play the track for 15 seconds, i thought the NB did not use a read ahead RAM memory buffer at all , and that it only did som sample correction during the track, or is this something you have implemended in the newer FW’s ? 

 

 

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A New Habst Digital BNC 75 Ohm 5N Cryo with dual chanel termination and separated RCA ground was delivered to my door yesterday for some testing. 

 

Have it on burn in right now before any critical testing, but it looks promising. 

 

It sounds very alike my AQ Diamond BNC , but slight slight more separation but but the same heavy deep dark fluid sound so far. 

 

 

 

The Oyaide BNC got a more dryness  and clinical. 

 

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I will also try the new Nordost Odin 2 vs my MIT Oracle Ma-X in the next few weeks in the Ultra High End leauge. 

 

 

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As I understand it, most Vivaldi users both clock and connect Vivaldi boxes either with Transparent Ref or Nordost Valhalla 2.

- Mark

 

Synology DS916+ > SoTM dCBL-CAT7 > Netgear switch > SoTM dCBL-CAT7 > dCS Vivaldi Upsampler (Nordost Valhalla 2 power cord) > Nordost Valhalla 2 Dual 110 Ohm AES/EBU > dCS Vivaldi DAC (David Elrod Statement Gold power cord) > Nordost Valhalla 2 xlr > Absolare Passion preamp (Nordost Valhalla 2 power cord) > Nordost Valhalla 2 xlr > VTL MB-450 III (Shunyata King Cobra CX power cords) > Nordost Valhalla 2 speaker > Kaiser Kaewero Classic /JL Audio F110 (Wireworld Platinum power cord).

 

Power Conditioning: Entreq Olympus Tellus grounding (AC, preamp and dac) / Shunyata Hydra Triton + Typhoon (Shunyata Anaconda ZiTron umbilical/Shunyata King Cobra CX power cord) > Furutec GTX D-Rhodium AC outlet.

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3 hours ago, Patatorz said:

Hi Beolab, could you tell us more about this dual termination ? I’m not sure to understand the use case. 

The 5N crying is a standard at habst ?

 

Hi

 

Yes 5N Cryo is standard in their better cables they develope. 

And they use a twin-axial balanced matrix geometries , where one of the channels got slight thicker AWG sizes than the second channel, and they use over sized Teflon tubes with air as dielectric, so the higher KHz FQ's can travel more feely whereas the lower sub Hz FQ's travel inside the core of the conductor. And separate ground point instead of using the outer ring of the BNC plug, you can instead choose to ground it in a active or passiv grounding box or in your equipment.  

 

Habst use about 10 leading silver conductors with different AWG size in each channel.

But as you wondered a BNC can not be true balanced so the two channels is soldered together in the end plug, so it is like a semi-balanced design you can say. If you go for the AES/EBU XLR the cable is exactly the same but with 110 Ohm XLR plugs instead.

 

synergisticresearch use the same design ,but they have put in som more magic such as graphene and a filter etc.

Hard to say how much better it sounds, but according to Audio Bacon it sound great.

 

Synergisticresearch galileo Uef digitalic

   

 

 

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 11/15/2018 at 11:11 AM, xtraktz said:

Will it be much worse if I connect NB to Debussy DAC using RCA coax instead of XLR AES/EBU?
I want to buy one good digital cable, but it is RCA.

Changed my Oyaide AR-910  to Siltech Golden Ridge G5 RCA - the difference is obvious. Siltech sound very appetizing  :) 

Unfortunately I lost Dual AES mode and DSD128.

 

Also added Canare BNC-BNC as W/C cable. Sound is more deep, wide and liquid with less grain.

 

Definitely these changes are level up for my system)) 

 

Also I moved from external USB storage to NUC7i5BNH with Roon Rock installed. Most positive impressions ))

dCS Bartók > ATC SCA2 > ATC SCM 50ASLT

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  • 1 month later...

It is early 2019 now , and when is your prognosis for the v.2.0 relese for the Bridge , and will it bring any SQ upgrades in the coding or just better Roon stability? 

 

@AMP

 

Network Firmware Update:

dCS has done a major revision to the Network Firmware used across all of their streaming products: dCS Rossini, dCS Vivaldi One, dCS Vivaldi Upsampler and dCS Network Bridge. This release should provide a very high level of reliability when using Roon, as it release includes a complete re-write of our Roon Ready implementation and brings with it a number of performance and stability improvements. Roon support in this updated released gets an independent signal path.

The dCS Rossini, dCS Vivaldi One, dCS Vivaldi Upsampler can all be upgraded effective immediately over the internet.  The firmware for the dCS Network Bridge will also be released as a update over the internet in early 2019.

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