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

[Solstice380]

19 hours ago, Johnseye said:

It's my belief that speakers have the biggest impact on sound and these should be my endgame there.

 

Congrats!  And, I agree on that as well as the room.  

[mourip]

22 hours ago, Johnseye said:

I also just upgraded my Persona 3F speakers to the 9H, and my projector to the new JVC 4k.  The speakers are a substantial, or in Roy's words HUGE, improvement and run at 96db which opens up some doors if I'd like to try some other stuff out.  Yes, I am gushing over these speakers.  It's my belief that speakers have the biggest impact on sound and these should be my endgame there.

 

Congrats also...

 

My experience is that everything matters but that once you have really good speakers all of the sudden you will start focusing on your front end because any change, either positive or negative, will be telegraphed downstream ...and heard.

 

Our hobby is a rabbit hole no matter how you look at it 🙂

[tboooe]

3 hours ago, mourip said:

 

Our hobby is a rabbit hole no matter how you look at it 🙂

No truer words have ever been spoken....and this is precisely why I won't even consider dabbling in vinyl even though my daughter keeps trying to tempt me with her setup which does sound very good.  BUT. MUST. RESIST.

 

[Cornan]

1 hour ago, tboooe said:

No truer words have ever been spoken....and this is precisely why I won't even consider dabbling in vinyl even though my daughter keeps trying to tempt me with her setup which does sound very good.  BUT. MUST. RESIST.

 

 

You have a clever daughter! However, the vinyl rabbit hole is probably the deepest of them all if you want to explore it all! 😁

[EnjoyTheMusicNow]

A router change and instant improvement. I upgraded from a Netgear Nighthawk  x6 to an x10 so that I could run fiber without a converter direct from the router to my listening room (sotm switch takes fiber direct) I have not run the fiber but the difference in just changing the router was substantial. The chain is as follows:

 

x10 router in closet

sonic transporter connected to router in closet

 

the rest is all in the dedicated listening room:

sotm network switch special edition with master clock input

sotm sMS200 ultra Neo SE with master clock input

sotm txbultra SE with master clock input 

sotm master clock

dave dac

pass labs xa30.8 amp

focal Maestro speakers

cables are VOVOX textura

power conditioner is Niagara 5000

isolation is silent running Audio platforms

 

i will update once the fiber is in place but the router change was big.

[Johnseye]

1 hour ago, tboooe said:

No truer words have ever been spoken....and this is precisely why I won't even consider dabbling in vinyl even though my daughter keeps trying to tempt me with her setup which does sound very good.  BUT. MUST. RESIST.

 

 

Vinyl's my benchmark for sound.  Nothing sounds  better than an AAA sourced album to me.

I've invested much more into my digital equipment in terms of time, effort and money.  It doesn't take that much to get a decent TT.

[mikicasellas]

Hey Guys,

 

Regarding the powerful NUC7DNBE that is being used with better results, i see there are 3 different choices with the CORE i7-8650U, almost identical but with some differences.

 

NUC7i7DNKE, NUC7i7DNHE & NUC7i7DNBE

 

Question, would any of these choices would do the same task for our audio purpose?

 

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/nuc/nuc-kit-nuc7i7dnke-nuc7i7dnhe-board-nuc7i7dnbe-brief.html

 

[BigAlMc]

10 minutes ago, mikicasellas said:

Hey Guys,

 

Regarding the powerful NUC7DNBE that is being used with better results, i see there are 3 different choices with the CORE i7-8650U, almost identical but with some differences.

 

NUC7i7DNKE, NUC7i7DNHE & NUC7i7DNBE

 

Question, would any of these choices would do the same task for our audio purpose?

 

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/nuc/nuc-kit-nuc7i7dnke-nuc7i7dnhe-board-nuc7i7dnbe-brief.html

 

 

It's been a while since I bought mine but I think the main difference is that the DNBE doesn't have WiFi or Bluetooth built in and assuming you dont plan using either of these has potentially lower noise as a result.

 

My setup uses Ethernet so I went with the DNBE for my endpoint as no point having radio transmitters on my board if I don't need them.

 

I doubt there's a great deal of a difference though so you're probably best to prioritise the functionality you need.

 

Cheers,

Alan

[mikicasellas]

4 minutes ago, BigAlMc said:

 

It's been a while since I bought mine but I think the main difference is that the DNBE doesn't have WiFi or Bluetooth built in and assuming you dont plan using either of these has potentially lower noise as a result.

 

My setup uses Ethernet so I went with the DNBE for my endpoint as no point having radio transmitters on my board if I don't need them.

 

I doubt there's a great deal of a difference though so you're probably best to prioritise the functionality you need.

 

Cheers,

Alan

Excellent Alan,

 

That was exactly my doubt, other Built in "things" that could compromise sound

 

Thanks a lot!

 

Miki

 

 

[gordec]

I am trying to get bridge setup on my Windows PC. One Ethernet port received data, the 2nd card connects to pro iDSD. I can get internet connection after setting up bridge, but Pro iDSD doesn't show up on my network. Do I need to assign an IP address to the Ethernet card that the Pro iDSD is connected to?

[Dutch]

@mikicasellas, @BigAlMc The ‘built in’ WiFi/BT is just an m.2 add in card, which is removable. If you’re planning to transfer the NUC board to a fanless case just get the cheapest of the three. Here in The Netherlands the DNHE was both cheapest and most versatile. The motherboards are 100% identical.

[tboooe]

24 minutes ago, gordec said:

I am trying to get bridge setup on my Windows PC. One Ethernet port received data, the 2nd card connects to pro iDSD. I can get internet connection after setting up bridge, but Pro iDSD doesn't show up on my network. Do I need to assign an IP address to the Ethernet card that the Pro iDSD is connected to?

I am not familiar with the iDSD but you need to assign an ip address to it in order for bridging to work in Windows.

[gordec]

3 hours ago, tboooe said:

I am not familiar with the iDSD but you need to assign an ip address to it in order for bridging to work in Windows.

I figured it out. I needed to assign just a random IP address to the ethernet card connected to the Pro iDSD works great. 

[the_doc735]

14 hours ago, EnjoyTheMusicNow said:

A router change and instant improvement. I upgraded from a Netgear Nighthawk  x6 to an x10 so that I could run fiber without a converter direct from the router to my listening room (sotm switch takes fiber direct) I have not run the fiber but the difference in just changing the router was substantial. The chain is as follows:

 

x10 router in closet

sonic transporter connected to router in closet

 

the rest is all in the dedicated listening room:

sotm network switch special edition with master clock input

sotm sMS200 ultra Neo SE with master clock input

sotm txbultra SE with master clock input 

sotm master clock

dave dac

pass labs xa30.8 amp

focal Maestro speakers

cables are VOVOX textura

power conditioner is Niagara 5000

isolation is silent running Audio platforms

 

i will update once the fiber is in place but the router change was big.

 

....could you possibly advise 'here': 

Cheers!

[the_doc735]

13 hours ago, mikicasellas said:

Hey Guys,

 

Regarding the powerful NUC7DNBE that is being used with better results, i see there are 3 different choices with the CORE i7-8650U, almost identical but with some differences.

 

NUC7i7DNKE, NUC7i7DNHE & NUC7i7DNBE

 

Question, would any of these choices would do the same task for our audio purpose?

 

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/nuc/nuc-kit-nuc7i7dnke-nuc7i7dnhe-board-nuc7i7dnbe-brief.html

 

...is this for a server? (or endpoint)

[Advieira]

22 hours ago, mikicasellas said:

Hey Guys,

 

Regarding the powerful NUC7DNBE that is being used with better results, i see there are 3 different choices with the CORE i7-8650U, almost identical but with some differences.

 

NUC7i7DNKE, NUC7i7DNHE & NUC7i7DNBE

 

Question, would any of these choices would do the same task for our audio purpose?

 

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/nuc/nuc-kit-nuc7i7dnke-nuc7i7dnhe-board-nuc7i7dnbe-brief.html

 

 

DNKE and DNHE uses the same DNBE board.

Order a DBNE if you use a chassis other than stock.

[Advieira]

IMPRESSIONS ABOUT SNH-10G (sclk-ex)

 

Sold my Sotm Ultra Combo and replaced it for the SNH-10G switch + PS Audio Bridge II.

 

Setup 1

Router > Mac Mini (stock ps) > Snh-10G (stock ps)

Router > Snh-10G (stock ps)

Snh-10G (stock ps) > PS Direcstream Bridge II

 

 

Setup 2

Router > Mac Mini (stock ps) Direct Connection > SNh-10g (stock ps) > PS Directstream Bridge II

 

Setup 2 is clearly and undoubtedly better. Level is some db higher, more musical, more body, more everything. bridged ethernet connection is a no return config. But I will try fiber one time.

 

Next steps to listen (after Brazilian carnival):

Replace the dlink for a SFP input router (zerozone lps), fibered to SNH-10G.

Replace mac mini for i7dbne on Akasa (Linear Power Supply Zerozone) running OSX on M.2, Audiolinux headless and Windows Server 19, both ram mode.

Replace Snh-10g stock ps for a linear power supply (sps500 or zerozone).

 

[EnjoyTheMusicNow]

On 2/23/2019 at 11:49 AM, EnjoyTheMusicNow said:

A router change and instant improvement. I upgraded from a Netgear Nighthawk  x6 to an x10 so that I could run fiber without a converter direct from the router to my listening room (sotm switch takes fiber direct) I have not run the fiber but the difference in just changing the router was substantial. The chain is as follows:

 

x10 router in closet

sonic transporter connected to router in closet

 

the rest is all in the dedicated listening room:

sotm network switch special edition with master clock input

sotm sMS200 ultra Neo SE with master clock input

sotm txbultra SE with master clock input 

sotm master clock

dave dac

pass labs xa30.8 amp

focal Maestro speakers

cables are VOVOX textura

power conditioner is Niagara 5000

isolation is silent running Audio platforms

 

i will update once the fiber is in place but the router change was big.

Well... the fiber is in place from the Router to the SOtM switch and all I can say is OMG.... the difference is astonishing. It is like a different system. The sound is so immersive that it sounds like I have 8 or more speakers playing when it is only the 2 channel towers. Any harsh note that was there is gone. It is smooth as silk with a feeling that you are in a space 10x the rooms size. My next project, after the m-scaler arrives, is to run fiber with a converter from the sotm switch to the sms200 ultra neo. But for now I'm going to need a surgeon to remove the smile off my face.

 

Note the router is SFP+ but the sotm switch is only SFP. I learned the hard way that you need to use SFP transceivers on both ends and both the transceivers and the fiber optic cable have to be multi mode. Hope to save someone else the extra expense.

[tboooe]

25 minutes ago, EnjoyTheMusicNow said:

Well... the fiber is in place from the Router to the SOtM switch and all I can say is OMG.... the difference is astonishing. It is like a different system. The sound is so immersive that it sounds like I have 8 or more speakers playing when it is only the 2 channel towers. Any harsh note that was there is gone. It is smooth as silk with a feeling that you are in a space 10x the rooms size. My next project, after the m-scaler arrives, is to run fiber with a converter from the sotm switch to the sms200 ultra neo. But for now I'm going to need a surgeon to remove the smile off my face.

 

Note the router is SFP+ but the sotm switch is only SFP. I learned the hard way that you need to use SFP transceivers on both ends and both the transceivers and the fiber optic cable have to be multi mode. Hope to save someone else the extra expense.

Can you please explain your network setup? Do you have a NAS connected to the X10?  I'm not sure I understand how the X10 able to impact your sound quality.  Are you perhaps using it as network bridge receiving the music files wirelessly?

[EnjoyTheMusicNow]

The x10 is my router/internet and is in a closet 100 feet away from my listening room. It is connected to the internet cable coming into the house. Previously I had an RJ45 cable running from the router to the listening room, connecting to the SOtM switch. This was replaced by fiber. I gained galvanic isolation from my sonictransporter (also 100 feet away connected to the X10). I also think I gained a cleaner (less loss) signal but I have no way to confirm that - just the sound. The X10 is just a beast. It is a 1.7GHz Quad Core Processor. My only guess is that similar to the NUC findings, the extra processing power ensures that it can handle network traffic very well - i.e. it is not struggling to perform tasks.

[EnjoyTheMusicNow]

This does beg a question. Has anyone asked SOtM to mod their SMS200 with an SFP port in place of the RJ45 connector? I see Rendu now has an Optical Rendue that accepts optical LC cable. 

[tboooe]

6 minutes ago, EnjoyTheMusicNow said:

The x10 is my router/internet and is in a closet 100 feet away from my listening room. It is connected to the internet cable coming into the house. Previously I had an RJ45 cable running from the router to the listening room, connecting to the SOtM switch. This was replaced by fiber. I gained galvanic isolation from my sonictransporter (also 100 feet away connected to the X10). I also think I gained a cleaner (less loss) signal but I have no way to confirm that - just the sound. The X10 is just a beast. It is a 1.7GHz Quad Core Processor. My only guess is that similar to the NUC findings, the extra processing power ensures that it can handle network traffic very well - i.e. it is not struggling to perform tasks.

Thank you.  Is your NAS connected to the X10 then or are you using a service like Tidal?

[EnjoyTheMusicNow]

I only have an SSD in the sonictransporter and I stream Tidal. No NAS connected as of yet. That said, when I add the NAS it will be installed as you indicate so I still get the benefit of noise isolation.  

[tboooe]

2 minutes ago, EnjoyTheMusicNow said:

I only have an SSD in the sonictransporter and I stream Tidal. No NAS connected as of yet. That said, when I add the NAS it will be installed as you indicate so I still get the benefit of noise isolation.  

Ok thank you.  I am very curious because I am also considering the X10 for it's SFP port that I would use with my NAS.   In my case, the NAS is upstairs and my music system is downstairs connected to a wireless bridge.  Since I am streaming the music wirelessly I don't know what kind of benefit I would get with the SFP for my NAS.

[EnjoyTheMusicNow]

In your case I'm not sure you would gain anything. That said the internet quality and speed has improved over our wireless as well between the X6 and the X10. Not sure if that would translate to an audible benefit though.