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A novel way to massively improve the SQ of computer audio streaming


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Most important: please realize this thread is about bleeding edge experimentation and discovery. No one has The Answer™. If you are not into tweaking, just know that you can have a musically satisfying system without doing any of the nutty things we do here.

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I run my ISO Regen with a Ghent split USB cable powered with a clean 5v and then another clean 5v into the DC input. There is a clear SQ improvement this way. 

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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6 hours ago, tapatrick said:

I run my ISO Regen with a Ghent split USB cable powered with a clean 5v and then another clean 5v into the DC input. There is a clear SQ improvement this way. 

I did 5 months ago.But with sclk ex clocked sparky and singxer, the non clocked iso regen make sq down.

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On 1/27/2018 at 7:26 PM, austinpop said:

 

That would be interesting, but I would amend it to SE chain vs. an sCLK-EX modded PC chain.

 

BTW, the SE is a 25-lb monster, so it's not something you throw into your carry-on bag.

Dimensions   70 x 420 x 320 mm (H x W x D)
Weight   11 Kg

 

So any comparisons would have to be within driving distance.

I'm wandering why Innuos do not offer a lighter version with no optical drive and perhaps with a smaller size. A driveless version would likely also simplify the design of the power supply and would be appealing to users that only need a high quality server. 

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6 hours ago, hurka said:

I did 5 months ago.But with sclk ex clocked sparky and singxer, the non clocked iso regen make sq down.

.. Okay, but I'm not ready for the sCLK route just yet. I'm keeping an eye on the findings of this great thread to see where it goes and what products will be born from it. I didn't mention (I've documented this elsewhere) but I have a Bluwave USB to SPDIF board after the ISO Regen, powered by the SR4 it's sounding pure magic.. This is getting a bit off topic tho'..:)

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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58 minutes ago, tapatrick said:

.. Okay, but I'm not ready for the sCLK route just yet. I'm keeping an eye on the findings of this great thread to see where it goes and what products will be born from it. I didn't mention (I've documented this elsewhere) but I have a Bluwave USB to SPDIF board after the ISO Regen, powered by the SR4 it's sounding pure magic.. This is getting a bit off topic tho'..:)

 

I did´nt know this was a thread to get off-topic at as long as it is audio related! :D Anyway, I can sign your statement with ISO Regen>BluWave. It is truly a match made in heaven! :) I am powering the galvanicly isolated Spdif output with a LPS-1.2 right now. Sounds great but experiencing some vinyl crack issues with the supplied SMPS at the moment. Expecting it to be sorted out tonight when I change to Gophert csp-3205II as a feeder supply. I will experiment a lot more with the LPS-1.2, but need to wait for all the additional parts to arrive.

 

 

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ASUS PRIME J4005I-C Gemini Lake Mini-ITX Motherboard is Selling for around 80 Euros

https://www.cnx-software.com/2018/03/07/asus-prime-j4005i-c-gemini-lake-mini-itx-motherboard-is-selling-for-around-80-euros/

 

Look, we've got both 24-pin ATX and 4-pin ATX 12V connectors again (just like Supermicro X10SBA-L)

 

https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/PRIME-J4005I-C/

image.thumb.png.c164fff94e450a2a2900fab43e972fe2.png

Quote
  • 1 x M.2 Socket 1 with E Key, type 2230 WiFi/BT devices support or PCIe/USB mode
  • 1 x M.2 Socket 3 with M key, type 2260/2280 storage devices support (PCIe x 2 mode)
  • 1 x 24-pin EATX Power connector(s)
  • 1 x 4-pin ATX 12V Power connector(s)

 

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10 hours ago, hurka said:

I did 5 months ago.But with sclk ex clocked sparky and singxer, the non clocked iso regen make sq down.

Well reclock the ISO regen then. Sounds much better now. For me the ISO regen after the jcat USB femto didn't improve sq, still sounded lean. Jcat on its alone sounded more balanced.

IMG_1074.thumb.JPG.be34d185b619d1b1546f8280156eff81.JPG

With the neutron star 2 the sound is balanced nicely but with much better resolution and detail all over the place.

i think the crystek 575 shouldn't be used at the end of the chain, sound is unbalanced. 

Meitner ma1 v2 dac,  Sovereign preamp and power amp,

DIY speakers, scan speak illuminator.

Raal Requisite VM-1a -> SR-1a with Accurate Sound convolution.

Under development:

NUC7i7dnbe, Euphony Stylus, Qobuz.

Modded Buffalo-fiber-EtherRegen, DC3- Isoregen, Lush^2

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1 hour ago, RickyV said:

Well reclock the ISO regen then. Sounds much better now. For me the ISO regen after the jcat USB femto didn't improve sq, still sounded lean. Jcat on its alone sounded more balanced.

IMG_1074.thumb.JPG.be34d185b619d1b1546f8280156eff81.JPG

With the neutron star 2 the sound is balanced nicely but with much better resolution and detail all over the place.

i think the crystek 575 shouldn't be used at the end of the chain, sound is unbalanced. 

Sounds interesting @RickyV but I'm not able to add a £350 clock to my USB chain ...Makes you wonder when we will see a system soon on this thread that has one monster master clock running all the clocks in a system...

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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6 hours ago, seeteeyou said:

ASUS PRIME J4005I-C Gemini Lake Mini-ITX Motherboard is Selling for around 80 Euros

https://www.cnx-software.com/2018/03/07/asus-prime-j4005i-c-gemini-lake-mini-itx-motherboard-is-selling-for-around-80-euros/

 

Look, we've got both 24-pin ATX and 4-pin ATX 12V connectors again (just like Supermicro X10SBA-L)

 

https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/PRIME-J4005I-C/

image.thumb.png.c164fff94e450a2a2900fab43e972fe2.png

 

Nice find, I have a friend that could use this. He will be delighted!

Pareto Audio aka nuckleheadaudio

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6 hours ago, RickyV said:

Well reclock the ISO regen then. Sounds much better now. For me the ISO regen after the jcat USB femto didn't improve sq, still sounded lean. Jcat on its alone sounded more balanced.

IMG_1074.thumb.JPG.be34d185b619d1b1546f8280156eff81.JPG

With the neutron star 2 the sound is balanced nicely but with much better resolution and detail all over the place.

i think the crystek 575 shouldn't be used at the end of the chain, sound is unbalanced. 

I'm considering getting my ISO Regen converted to accept external clocking - mind if I ask who did the clock conversion for your IR?

 

Thanks

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1 hour ago, lmitche said:

Nice find, I have a friend that could use this. He will be delighted!

 

Yeah, that board seemed to check all the boxes. We're talking about SoC (i.e. no PCH whatsoever) here so both M.2 slots are getting their PCIe lanes directly from J4005 itself.

 

For those of us who prefer something similar with 3 PCIe slots, Asus also made J3455M-E (Micro-ATX) with both 24-pin ATX and 4-pin ATX 12V connectors

 

https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/J3455M-E/

 

All sellers @ Amazon.com should be located in Japan, therefore the prices are way beyond insane


https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B01LYCDG4H

It's somewhat difficult to track them down in US now, most places should be backordered

 

http://www.zones.com/site/product/index.html?id=104503320

https://www.pcnation.com/web/details/6F2064/Asus-J3455M-E-Desktop-Motherboard-Intel-Chipset-Intel-Celeron-J3455-Quad-Core-4-Core-1-50-Ghz - J3455M-E - 00889349539170


They're offering worldwide shipping for free but unfortunately they specifically don't ship to US

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Asus-J3455M-E-Mainboard-Hardware-Electronic-Asus-NEU/112850320094
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Asus-J3455M-E-Mainboard-Hardware-Electronic-Asus-NEW-/362260073163

Thankfully we could still order them from either Germany or Italy, international shipping wouldn't cost that much to begin with so those of us who live in US could still get them for 100 bucks or less

https://www.amazon.de/J3455M-Mainboard-Intel-Celeron-DDR3-Speicher/dp/B01MQ5OAN1
https://www.amazon.it/ASUS-J3455M-motherboard-motherboards-DDR3-SDRAM/dp/B01MQ5OAN1

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2 hours ago, tims said:

I'm considering getting my ISO Regen converted to accept external clocking - mind if I ask who did the clock conversion for your IR?

 

Thanks

Hi Tims,

i did that myself and is not for the faintharted. The crystek 575 needs to be removed but there are lots of smd components near the 575 that can’t be damaged or you have a problem. The 575 is a pcb with a metal lid, the pcb is probably glued to the iso regen pcb and then soldered. The lid is easy to get of with pliers, then you see the xo and some hardly visible smd comonents. I just removed all the components making sure there is no short between the 4 origenal pads when your finishes. Then you can solder the coax to the correct pad of the old 575. Thats all.

Meitner ma1 v2 dac,  Sovereign preamp and power amp,

DIY speakers, scan speak illuminator.

Raal Requisite VM-1a -> SR-1a with Accurate Sound convolution.

Under development:

NUC7i7dnbe, Euphony Stylus, Qobuz.

Modded Buffalo-fiber-EtherRegen, DC3- Isoregen, Lush^2

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3 hours ago, elan120 said:

 It took quite a while for this upgrade to materialize, but I am happy to report my newly added components from SOtM after some modification work, is now up and running over the weekend (see diagram below), while it is still early in the burn-in process, preliminary listening impression is very positive.  The new components took place of JCAT Femto USB card, IsoRegen, and the previous extensively modified SU-1 for now, and I plan to do more comparison once burn-in past 200 hours.  Although I don't have other setup to compare against, but by adding one item at a time starting with txUSBUltra, following with now more modified SU-1, and finally txUSBexp, every additional reclocking is adding more "magic" to the SQ.  Based on the initial 50 hours of burn-in, I am hopeful SQ will elevate further once the total burn-in past 200 hours.

 

image.thumb.png.511ca8b4a21dd6013b631e090858e3a7.png

 

 

 

Wow, that is quite a project! I look forward to your findings.

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14 hours ago, RickyV said:

Well reclock the ISO regen then. Sounds much better now. For me the ISO regen after the jcat USB femto didn't improve sq, still sounded lean. Jcat on its alone sounded more balanced.

IMG_1074.thumb.JPG.be34d185b619d1b1546f8280156eff81.JPG

With the neutron star 2 the sound is balanced nicely but with much better resolution and detail all over the place.

i think the crystek 575 shouldn't be used at the end of the chain, sound is unbalanced. 

in my chain the biggest impact: clocking singxer f1,but clocking sparky system, usb, usbridge each wery nice step up!!!!!!!!!

I like your tweeter,i have the same:D

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Scan speak D3004 Beryllium.

IMG_0489.thumb.JPG.707ee82e117470d8d3aea5bd8220030c.JPG

This is the rest of the speaker.

Woofer is from AudioTechnology.

Meitner ma1 v2 dac,  Sovereign preamp and power amp,

DIY speakers, scan speak illuminator.

Raal Requisite VM-1a -> SR-1a with Accurate Sound convolution.

Under development:

NUC7i7dnbe, Euphony Stylus, Qobuz.

Modded Buffalo-fiber-EtherRegen, DC3- Isoregen, Lush^2

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23 hours ago, Cornan said:

 

I did´nt know this was a thread to get off-topic at as long as it is audio related! :D Anyway, I can sign your statement with ISO Regen>BluWave. It is truly a match made in heaven! :) I am powering the galvanicly isolated Spdif output with a LPS-1.2 right now. Sounds great but experiencing some vinyl crack issues with the supplied SMPS at the moment. Expecting it to be sorted out tonight when I change to Gophert csp-3205II as a feeder supply. I will experiment a lot more with the LPS-1.2, but need to wait for all the additional parts to arrive.

Yes. I don’t use SMPS’s either as I find they usually detract from SQ. 

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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55 minutes ago, tapatrick said:

Yes. I don’t use SMPS’s either as I find they usually detract from SQ. 

 

I understand, but my Gophert csp-3205II is still a SMPS but a floating one and with no JSGT (DC- output grounding). After changing out the original SMPS to the floating SMPS LPS-1.2 sounds glorious powering the GI Spdif output of the BluWave board. Next up I will be adding LT3045s pre and post LPS-1.2 to see how that turns out! :) 

 

I wrote about it here yesturday and will continue to report my findings there

 

 

 

 

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4 hours ago, Cornan said:

 

I understand, but my Gophert csp-3205II is still a SMPS but a floating one and with no JSGT (DC- output grounding). After changing out the original SMPS to the floating SMPS LPS-1.2 sounds glorious powering the GI Spdif output of the BluWave board. Next up I will be adding LT3045s pre and post LPS-1.2 to see how that turns out! :) 

 

I wrote about it here yesturday and will continue to report my findings there

 

 

Always impressed by your dedication to the cause Micael! I am so busy these days with life that when I find a solution that works I tend to move on. As regards PSUs, my search is over with my modded Teradak plus LT3045s and an SR4, I have an LPS-1 in reserve too... My Sparky streamer project is the next chestnut to crack... :) 

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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1 hour ago, tapatrick said:

Always impressed by your dedication to the cause Micael! I am so busy these days with life that when I find a solution that works I tend to move on. As regards PSUs, my search is over with my modded Teradak plus LT3045s and an SR4, I have an LPS-1 in reserve too... My Sparky streamer project is the next chestnut to crack... :) 

 

Thanks Patrick! :)  It is a tweakers duty to atleast try to make the impossible possible! :D Actually the exploring or experimenting part of audio is the real fun with this hobby. You know all about it. You´ve got the tweaker genes. Right now they are probably just waiting for a break through in the the Sparky project before pumping the endorphins into your brain! :D 

 

 

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3 hours ago, Cornan said:

 

Thanks Patrick! :)  It is a tweakers duty to atleast try to make the impossible possible! :D Actually the exploring or experimenting part of audio is the real fun with this hobby. You know all about it. You´ve got the tweaker genes. Right now they are probably just waiting for a break through in the the Sparky project before pumping the endorphins into your brain! :D 

LOL! ??

yes, I find they whole idea of running low powered, reclocked, isolated, clean powered, simple boards running simple Linux code very interesting versus big expensive servers... more to come when I make some progress....

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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13 minutes ago, tapatrick said:

LOL! ??

yes, I find they whole idea of running low powered, reclocked, isolated, clean powered, simple boards running simple Linux code very interesting versus big expensive servers... more to come when I make some progress....

When wtfplay can be run on Raspberries then that will be an interesting breakthrough. Coming soon I believe...

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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Just now, tapatrick said:

When wtfplay can be run on Raspberries then that will be an interesting breakthrough. Coming soon I believe...

 

Yeah, that surely sounds interesting! ? I wonder when Fidelizer goes Raspberry? He seems to be moving in that direction anyway! ? Please let me know how it goes with Sparky. BTW. Have you seen that a new quicker (5G wireless network and 1.4 GHz processor) Pi3 model B+ have been released? 

 

 

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2 hours ago, Cornan said:

 

Yeah, that surely sounds interesting! ? I wonder when Fidelizer goes Raspberry? He seems to be moving in that direction anyway! ? Please let me know how it goes with Sparky. BTW. Have you seen that a new quicker (5G wireless network and 1.4 GHz processor) Pi3 model B+ have been released? 

yes I saw that. I've bought a Rpi 2 tho' as it's apparently quieter but haven't tried it yet. The Sparky is where my money and attention is currently but had a few glitches so I'm working on that when I have the time... too many options to try.. :)

Topaz 2.5Kva Isolation Transformer > EtherRegen switch powered by Paul Hynes SR4 LPS >MacBook Pro 2013 > EC Designs PowerDac SX > TNT UBYTE-2 Speaker cables > Omega Super Alnico Monitors > 2x Rel T Zero Subwoofers. 

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