The true experimental tweak thread

[agladstone]

51 minutes ago, R1200CL said:

@agladstone

Can't tell. I suppose you will have to try. And maybe even without those Medical Passive Galvanic Ethernet Isolators. 

If your switch can accept LPS-1, there is most likely something to gain. 

Thus far, the Baask Medical Galvanic Ethernet Isolators have made a huge improvement in sound quality when streaming from Tidal, they're kind of like ISO Regens for Ethernet  

my Switch requires 19V / 3A, so I can't try an LPS-1, but I do have it powered by its own dedicated HDPlex 100W and with an IFI DC Blocker at the plug. 

[Cornan]

1 hour ago, R1200CL said:

 

The 4S6 does not have shield. The cable Alex is using has I think. But he won't make it with JSSG. 

Also I think John did advice not to use his JSSG on DC cables. The trick was star quad. 

 

What may be more interesting to know is if you could use the JSSG on your power cables or even use star quad design on them. 

 

I've asked John in another thread, but not sure I will get an answer. 

 

Though I can't see any harm in making a Faraday Cage on a AC cable. 

 

I think someone soon will have have some fun withe HMDI cables, and there the JSSG probably will make sence. 

Or those that having fun with the external Korean clocks.  There is cables really important.

 

I already use Canare 4S6 through out in my both setups, but since Canare also have shielded starquad cables in their portfolio I am interested how that would turn out. I know Ghent does'nt offer the Canare 4S6 with JSSG, but I have asked him for a quotation for three DC cables with JSSG. I am prepared to gamble a bit just to see how it turns out IRL! ? I am still waiting for a reply from Ghent.

 

 

 

 

[R1200CL]

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/34998-entry-level-power-cord-suggestions/?do=findComment&comment=709944

 

Something to try ?

 

[Cornan]

1 hour ago, agladstone said:

I would bet that your best results will be the Vertere out of Aries Mini into IR

and USPCB from IR to Brooklyn DAC, I don't think a Canare USB Male to Female extender with USPBC will result in anything better. 

The Aeries mini is really small, are you sure you can't just use the two USPCB's behind the Brooklyn? (Do you have 2 straight ones

or at least 1 90 degree 1? That is what helped me with fitting things with the USPCB's and also by using Hockey Pucks and different size and height sorbothane feet so I could get all the heights lined up perfectly 

 

 

I will certainly try both the Vertere and the USPCB with a DIY Canare 4S6 USB extension cable. It is both fun and dead simple to make one anyway! ?

 

I am sure it will not fit with two USPCBs in my setup. Too many other important things I rather keep than sacrifice for the sake of fitting a second USPCB. I can always buy a Lush that many people prefer to a second USPCB and be happy. However experimenting is half the fun, so I rather try something else than the obvious choise! ?

[Cornan]

7 minutes ago, R1200CL said:

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/34998-entry-level-power-cord-suggestions/?do=findComment&comment=709944

 

Something to try ?

 

 

I like it! ?

[tapatrick]

21 hours ago, Cornan said:

Got some time to listen some more to my brand new Ghent Audio ET02s. What really strikes me most is how much more details, air, 3D and depht I hear on low volumes with the ET02s. It is like all the great sound I have got at -40dB before have been squeezed into -50dB volume level. The treble edgyness is all gone now. All the frequencies are silky smooth. Background is pitch matt black, almost like it is not there at all. The music is arrising from the depth with crystal clear notes. Even the bass is heavy on low volume.

 

Listening to the great sounding album "Slush Hours" by Phlake and get knots all over my body with only -50dB volume. Amazing! ?

 

http://tidal.com/album/60983727

 

 

Now I am definately sold on the JSSG route and are starting to plan to change out all of my DIY Canare 4S6 cables to Ghent Audio Canare 4S6 with JSSG as well. ?

Thanks for the review Cornan.

"It is like all the great sound I have got at -40dB before have been squeezed into -50dB volume level."

 

I ordered a Ghent ET02 cable too. I'll be away for a few weeks in a few days and it should be here when I'm back to connect to my new DAC coming next month..

Interesting about the JSSG screening too.

[Cornan]

1 hour ago, tapatrick said:

Thanks for the review Cornan.

"It is like all the great sound I have got at -40dB before have been squeezed into -50dB volume level."

 

I ordered a Ghent ET02 cable too. I'll be away for a few weeks in a few days and it should be here when I'm back to connect to my new DAC coming next month..

Interesting about the JSSG screening too.

 

Thanks a lot tapatrick! ?

Good choise! I am sure it will be great. The ET02 (and JSSG) really works wonders in my setup! 

A new DAC? Awesome! May I ask which DAC you'll be getting? I am very curious you know! ?

[Cornan]

I got my Audioplan Sicomin base today. A miss-calculation of the hight forced me to select another spot than the Gophert tower.

 

 

While I was at it and had some damping feets/cones left over I added them on several other spots in my setup.

 

 

Added some quartz stone bags on top of the Gophert tower as well to reduce any micro vibrations.

 

 

Finally I thought I take a picture of my stripped Intelligent sound Master Reference 880 power cable with 2 x 4 conductors that I wrote about in an earlier post. Here you can see one of the two Shankti inlines (Performance optimizers) used to separate the two starquads cables from each other. ?

Visable in the last picture is the portable GFCI/RCD that I recently added on the output of my Peaktech 2240. See the blue and green buttons on the background. I am happy to inform that it did'nt change the sound to the worse as I feared. Now it sounds good and are much safer as well! ?

 

 

 

[John769]

1 hour ago, Cornan said:

 

Visable in the last picture is the portable GFCI/RCD that I recently added on the output of my Peaktech 2240. See the blue and green buttons on the background. I am happy to inform that it did'nt change the sound to the worse as I feared. Now it sounds good and are much safer as well! 

Can you link to it, please?

[tapatrick]

8 hours ago, R1200CL said:

 

 

I would expect an audiofile switch will be one of the next products we will see. 

I recently added the Aqvox switch with their short Lan cable - a major improvement in my system. Basically it made streaming from Tidal noticeably better than local flac files from my Antipodes DXe. 

[tapatrick]

2 hours ago, Cornan said:

 

Thanks a lot tapatrick! ?

Good choise! I am sure it will be great. The ET02 (and JSSG) really works wonders in my setup! 

A new DAC? Awesome! May I ask which DAC you'll be getting? I am very curious you know! ?

I'm pushing the boat out getting the Directstream Junior. It's too expensive here in the UK - £4000, so I found a US one converted to 230v at a great price. Looking forward to getting it next month. 

[tapatrick]

5 hours ago, Cornan said:

 

I am sure it will not fit with two USPCBs in my setup. Too many other important things I rather keep than sacrifice for the sake of fitting a second USPCB. I can always buy a Lush that many people prefer to a second USPCB and be happy. However experimenting is half the fun, so I rather try something else than the obvious choise! ?

I tried 2 USPCBs in my system before and after the ISO R. I found it added more detail but was too harsh. Subtle but enough to put me off. 

[Cornan]

7 hours ago, John769 said:

Can you link to it, please?

 

I bought this simple one here in Sweden http://m.clasohlson.com/se/Jordfelsbrytare-med-stickproppsanslutning/32-3492, but just about any certified outdoor RCD will do the job connected to the output. I only choosed it since it did'nt light up as a Christmas tree as some other ones do.

 

[Cornan]

5 hours ago, tapatrick said:

I recently added the Aqvox switch with their short Lan cable - a major improvement in my system. Basically it made streaming from Tidal noticeably better than local flac files from my Antipodes DXe. 

 

Same thing for me. The Aqvox switch-8 was a major jump in SQ with Tidal. ?

[Cornan]

5 hours ago, tapatrick said:

I'm pushing the boat out getting the Directstream Junior. It's too expensive here in the UK - £4000, so I found a US one converted to 230v at a great price. Looking forward to getting it next month. 

 

Wow, that's a truly great choice tapatrick! Please post your impressions when you have tried it out. Enjoy! ?

[Cornan]

5 hours ago, tapatrick said:

I tried 2 USPCBs in my system before and after the ISO R. I found it added more detail but was too harsh. Subtle but enough to put me off. 

 

I actually noticed that my first USPCB sounded a bit harsh post my Regen Amber initially. It is all gone now though.

[Cornan]

13 hours ago, R1200CL said:

Don't go below one meter. 

 

The reason why I personally choosed 15cm & 50cm lenghts is based on three things:

• Aqvox recommend a short ethernet cable from source to the switch-8. Therefore I choosed a 15cm cable. I see this similar to Uptone recommendation of a short USB cable between Regen/IR to DAC. It is all about SI.
• I have tried different lengths of Ethernet cables in the past and to my ears shorter sounded slightly better.
• I am using a wireless adapter pre my Aqvox switch-8. Since it sounds so much better than wired in my setup I have assumed that it is all about speed and SI (and isolation). Therefore I use the shortest possible cable (50cm) between the TP-Link RE450 and the Aqvox switch-8.

[agladstone]

6 hours ago, tapatrick said:

I tried 2 USPCBs in my system before and after the ISO R. I found it added more detail but was too harsh. Subtle but enough to put me off. 

Are you now using any USPCB's (like one of them?), or have you gone to none ? (Just curious because I'm finding it difficult to decide if they're better, the same, or worse than my Cardas USB cables - I know at least thus far at least a combo of the Cardas USB cable in addition to a USPCB sound better than all

USPCB's , but none at all vs a combination of USB Cables and a USPCB is what I just can't seem to decide upon yet?? 

[Cornan]

Here is a new picture of my music corner (A setup).

 

 

It is funny! I do not think that anyone except my family would ever beleive how many hours I have spent improving this corner. ?

 

[Cornan]

4 minutes ago, agladstone said:

Are you now using any USPCB's (like one of them?), or have you gone to none ? (Just curious because I'm finding it difficult to decide if they're better, the same, or worse than my Cardas USB cables - I know at least thus far at least a combo of the Cardas USB cable in addition to a USPCB sound better than all

USPCB's , but none at all vs a combination of USB Cables and a USPCB is what I just can't seem to decide upon yet?? 

 

I am still using one. The one I ordered before the ISORegen. It sounded harsh in the beginning, but not anymore. Difficult to know why though. It could be the Ghent ET02 or simply burn-in.

Many people prefer using cable plus USPCB rather than dual USPCBs, but there are people in the other corner as well. I'll guess it is all about sound preferences and which kind of music you listen to. I will report my findings when the IR have arrived.

[R1200CL]

1 hour ago, Cornan said:

 

Same thing for me. The Aqvox switch-8 was a major jump in SQ with Tidal. ?

 

Just think when John is finishing his audiophile switch ?

 

Even just an old D-Link 10/100 powered with LPS-1 made a improvement in my system. (Only to serve the MicroRendu)

[Cornan]

41 minutes ago, R1200CL said:

 

Just think when John is finishing his audiophile switch ?

 

Even just an old D-Link 10/100 powered with LPS-1 made a improvement in my system. (Only to serve the MicroRendu)

 

I love audiophile gossip! Have you heard that John S & Alex C is planning such a network switch? 

 

I can tell you some more things you should try with a normal switch:

• Add a wireless adapter pre the switch. If it uses dual bands remove one of the two (preferable 2,4Ghz). Static IP & DHCP off.
• Try the network switch with input on port 1 and output on the last port.(QoS)
• If your switch have a GND screw ground it, but do mind that it should be connected to a clean ground. Grounding box preferable.
• Power all network switches with floating power (AC ground not passed through to the DC negative/chassi).
• Try a AC mains DC blocker trap filter for everything including ALL network devices (switch/router/wireless adapter etc). 
• RJ45 ethernet noise caps works on all unused RJ45 sockets.

[R1200CL]

1 hour ago, Cornan said:

l love audiophile gossip! Have you heard that John S & Alex C is planning such a network switch? 

 

Let me se if I can find Alex's spesifications ?

 

Here it is:

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/30376-a-novel-way-to-massively-improve-the-sq-of-the-sms-200-and-microrendu/?do=findComment&comment=628861

 

Of cause, he wont confirm when or if, but I'm quite sure that's one logical next step, but there may be other products before that. 

As you can see there is planned something else for this fall, which of cause may have changed by now. 

 

Something with a SPDIF output would also be nice.

So many good sounding old expensive DAC's without USB and Ethernet interface that would gain a lot with the right upgrade. 

 

I couldn't wait, so my modified SU-1 by @scan80269 does a quite good job for now. 

[Cornan]

4 minutes ago, R1200CL said:

 

Let me se if I can find Alex's spesifications ?

Of cause, he wont confirm when or if, but I'm quite sure that's one logical next step, but there may be other products before that. 

 

Something with a SPDIF output would also be nice.

So many good sounding old expensive DAC's without USB and Ethernet interface that would gain a lot with the right upgrade. 

 

I couldn't wait, so my SU-1 does a quite good job for now. 

 

Thanks, that would be very interesting to read about!

It's understandable that Alex C do not want to wind-up any expectations until it's at least close to a final product, but I can imagine that a kind of network-ISORegen would be a very cool device. 

 

I read great reviews about the Singer SU-1, even from Alex C. From my point of view however I am all done with the Spdif path. Left that trail when I changed out my Win 10 Pro PC with JplayStreamer>April Music Stello U3 >DAC years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

[tapatrick]

3 hours ago, Cornan said:

 

Wow, that's a truly great choice tapatrick! Please post your impressions when you have tried it out. Enjoy! ?

I will try to do that Cornan  but might be October before everything is set up and burnt in.