Anyone have any info on The Bricasti Design Model 5 Network Player

[cjf]

On 9/1/2017 at 2:00 PM, rickca said:

Why is the M5 USB output limited to DSD128?  What clock does the M5 use?

Probably because there is fewer albums available then I have fingers and toes worth listening to above DSD64. Manufacturers need to draw a line somewhere when designing a product. Having a product that supports DSD 1Million (So to speak) is of little value and not worth their time supporting.

 

Unless you have a DAC and other capable supporting components that supports DSD native without PCM conversion I wouldnt worry about chasing the DSD xxxx goal.

 

Dont be fooled, Redbook is still king, with the right gear and recording/mastering.

[cjf]

12 hours ago, Miska said:

I think manufacturers should just equip devices with SFP slots, then you can choose between copper ethernet and various different optical links. This is what is the common practice in normal IT world.

+1

 

I've long wondered why this approach still gets ignored by the manufacturers of these audiophile geared streaming/server devices.

 

I suspect the use of Fiber is still considered Snake Oil and very foreign to the creators at this stage of the game even though the rest of the computer/security world have been using it for its isolation and long distance benefits for a long time.

 

If one wanted to build their own server/streamer and didn't care about trying to keep the footprint small and low power then building an all Fiber rig is pretty easy to to.

[cjf]

Question for those with the M5. How does one choose which output is active during playback or are all outputs active at the same time?

 

Also, has anyone compared the SPDIF output to the AES in terms of SQ? Supposedly USB output SQ depends on DAC in use so I wonder if the same applies to these other output options or if its been universally deemed that most who have tried USB feel the other outputs are better?

 

Lastly, I find it interesting that the direct ETH card installed within the M1 DAC can compete with the M5 at all since I would imagine that the M5 may have more processing/ram horsepower onboard given its larger frame and internal realestate compared to what could be fitted onto just a small ETH card.

 

In addition, with the M5, it has its own dedicated power source compared to the ETH card option within the M1 that probably gets its power from one of the existing PS internal to the M1. I wonder how the additional power draw from the inclusion of the ETH card being installed within the M1 impacts the DAC, if at all compared to the same DAC without the ETH card?

 

I've got an itchy finger holding onto my credit card with sights set on the M5 as my next purchase but cant decide if having a DAC with ETH builtin is a better way to go or not.

[cjf]

23 hours ago, fsmithjack said:

 

Hello CJF - here is the response from Brain Zolner to your questions. I hope this helpful and feel free to put forwarss any other questions you may have. Thanks 

 

In simple terms the #1 is the M1 with the network installed, next from the M5 # 2 is AES, #3 is SPDIF and last is USB.  but this is using an M1 or M12 to test,  one might have different results with other products, but that is what I prefer.  If he has the money the M1 is the way to go, but when you connect it to the M1,  its easy to hear too, the AES though is very close, its quiet relaxed similar depth and color,  USB is the most processed sounding and colored.  I use same cables from my router to both to test as well, you can hear the same track from the same source file at the same time to both paths.

 

He is looking at it the wrong way, should be does the M5 keep up with the M1.   Same streamer in both products, same compute resources as it’s the same processer we made, same power supply with direct feed from the linear supply in both products, enough current with the supply.  The important difference is when installed in the M1 the data goes direct with I2S to the DSP, and when using the M5 it’s the same thing inside the M5 and then out the AES or USB to the M1’s inputs and they feed to the DSP.  So just a different path for the same data.   The streamer was made for the M12 and M1 then we adapted it to the M5 as a standalone for anyone to use, and without having to use USB.

Hello @fsmithjack

 

Thanks for taking the time to forward on my questions.

 

Are you a dealer by chance? If so, are you a dealer for Bricasti?

 

Thanks

[cjf]

I've recently purchased/received an M5 for my system. Its a very nice piece of kit. I was taken a back by its high build quality and heft of the unit while removing it from the box. Impressive!

 

I was previously using the USB Input on my Benchmark DAC3 DX fed by a Sonore MRendu which was powered via a Lab Grade LPS. The new setup now uses AES OUT from M5 to AES IN on the DAC3. The MRendu and all the pieces required to make it sound half decent will be a great stocking stuffer to friends and family. 

 

Anyway, the end result now in terms of SQ while using the M5 in my system is most excellent. As an added bonus, I am able to use it to feed music to both my Benchmark DAC3 and my Lynx Hilo at the same time, one via SPDIF and the other via AES. The Lynx Hilo doesn't work at all with the MRendu or any Linux based system via USB which has always annoyed the hell out of me. It works great with Windows but apparently Lynx failed to consider the Linux community during their USB implementation phase. Anyway, it doesn't matter anymore now that the M5 is being used to feed it via SPDIF. 

 

In terms of its operation and handling of mixed bit rate and varying resolution files the M5 has been flawless. It seamlessly transitions between formats on everything I've tried up to DSD64 without a hiccup using ROON and the Benchmark DAC3. The only test I haven't tried yet is how the M5 does with JRiver over DLNA. In my system JRiver has always been a bit of a disaster while trying to use it with the MRendu for anything over Redbook (Skip,Skip, Buffer, Studder) so hopefully things will work better with the M5 in that regard. I suspect it will be just fine.   

 

In the end the M5 is a winner in my book and everyone should give it try if the opportunity presents itself. I don't think you will be disappointed.