str-1 Posted May 15, 2018 Share Posted May 15, 2018 Munich has come and gone. Has anyone picked up anything more on likely price and availability of the Zenith Statement? Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted June 23, 2018 Share Posted June 23, 2018 Just saw photo of tne Innuos setup at the North West Audio Show. I have the same Atacama shelf stack and have options to increase the spacer height, so could accomodate the Statement’s two boxes stacked. Just wondering how much of a noise penalty there would be in doing that. Would welcome Innuos comments. Thanks. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 4, 2018 Share Posted September 4, 2018 Innuos still hoping to start shipping in September. Dealers still waiting for prices to be confirmed. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 21, 2018 Share Posted September 21, 2018 I’m hoping to hear an a/b comparison of the Zenith Statement and Zenith SE at next week’s Festival of Sound show in London. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
Popular Post str-1 Posted September 29, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted September 29, 2018 I had a listen to the Statement yesterday at the Festival of Sound show in London (am likely to be going again tomorrow, primarily to hear Antonio Forcione in a live set). While there I was able to hear the Statement compared to the SE through a Chord Electronics (M Scaler, Hugo TT 2 and amp)/Chord Company cables/speaker setup, with both servers using the same interconnect and mains cables. It being not long after opening when I turned up at the Innuos room, I was also able to have a good chat with Nuno with the room before people started turning up I forgot to bring my headphones and so the listen was not ideal for me, being an exclusively headphone guy these days. That said, it was interesting to hear the comparison, and a difference between the two was not hard to hear. In short, the Statement sounded cleaner and had noticeably more depth. What wasn’t clear to me was whether my SE with its SR4-powered tX-USBultra (and anticipating an upgrade of this with Evox caps, master clock input and adding a Mutec REF 10)I would close the gap. Discussing with Nuno, he felt that would be an interesting comparison that might show things to be much closer (albeit with several more boxes and cables). We also speculated briefly on whether that post-server setup could raise tbe Statement even higher. Nuno was open to the possibility. I will be going back tomorrow with my Utopia/Prion4 headphones to see what more I can pick up, hopefully with music I am more familiar with. I did manage to pick up a few updates on the Statement that will be of interest to some. Release is now looking to be towards the end of October. There are just a few minor things to take care of, including screen-printing on the nice-looking thick aluminium casing. The external USB upgrade module that a few existing SE owners might be interested in is still a way off - won’t be this year. Nuno has still to finalise his thinking on the design. You will be able to order your Statement in black. The interconnects between the two boxes are now much smaller than the Burndy cable you still see in the website photos. There are two of them, one at each end of the rear panel. Innuos still intend to develop their own control app. For SE owners, there is another firmware update coming very shortly that will add functionality. I will post anything more I learn tomorrow. austinpop, rickca and simorag 1 1 1 Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 29, 2018 Share Posted September 29, 2018 7 minutes ago, rickca said: Can you tell us any specifics about the SE firmware update functionality @str-1? He mentioned two or three things. But I was still thinking about other things I was more interested in and the only thing I can remember clearly was that you will now be able to rip individual tracks from CDs. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 29, 2018 Share Posted September 29, 2018 54 minutes ago, BigAlMc said: Don't suppose Nuno mentioned whether the firmware update included the enhancement to narrow the substantial SQ difference between Roon and the LMS player by allowing Roon to play from cache memory too, was included? I can’t be sure but can ask tomorrow. 50 minutes ago, vpnogueira said: Thanks for the update! I have a Zenith SE feeding my Totaldac Server using the Ethernet output of the SE, so I am most interested in a comparison of the ethernet output of the SE vs. ethernet output of the Statement. I don’t think they were setup to demo ethernet output. BigAlMc 1 Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 30, 2018 Share Posted September 30, 2018 On 9/29/2018 at 5:20 PM, BigAlMc said: Don't suppose Nuno mentioned whether the firmware update included the enhancement to narrow the substantial SQ difference between Roon and the LMS player by allowing Roon to play from cache memory too, was included? I asked, but no. They haven’t got that quite right yet. I also learned that importing facilities are being enhanced, including import history. Firmware is in final beta testing. BigAlMc 1 Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 30, 2018 Share Posted September 30, 2018 On 9/29/2018 at 5:13 PM, moby1977 said: Thanks for this update ! If allowed and not much to ask for,would it be possible to have some pictures of the unit particularly the back panel ? And several questions sorry for that : - I understand the units were plugged through USB ? Any chance to listen through the Ethernet output or USB is the best output according to Innuos ? - Did you listen using Roon or upnp ? - Any comparison between SE and MK3 model ? Thanks Alex Went back today and again visited the Innuos room. I only heard comparisons between the Statement and the SE, but they did have a Gen 3 Zenith in the rack. They were only using Tidal and music stored on the Statement, and only USB output. USB and power cables used were Chord Sarum T. Bumped into the dealer who sold me and delivered my Zenith SE. He said he would be happy to loan me the Statement for a few days when he gets it, which probably won’t be for at least a couple of months. Something to look forward to. FredM 1 Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted October 11, 2018 Share Posted October 11, 2018 Audio Bacon write-up on visit to Innuos room at RMAF, including video of demo and interview with Nuno. https://audiobacon.net/2018/10/10/rmaf-2018-innuos-zenith-statement-vs-zen-mk-3-music-servers/ BigAlMc 1 Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted October 16, 2018 Share Posted October 16, 2018 I see prices now confirmed on the Innuos website. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted January 2, 2019 Share Posted January 2, 2019 Scheduled to be included in next month’s Hi-Fi+ (out 31 Jan) Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted January 21, 2019 Share Posted January 21, 2019 New review in The Ear - http://www.the-ear.net/review-hardware/innuos-statement-network-audio-server This includes a link to separate piece by Sean Jacobs on his design of the power supply. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted February 1, 2019 Share Posted February 1, 2019 9 hours ago, Johnny Moondog said: Mmm. Perhaps they rescheduled for a future issue. Don't see it listed for Issue #167 - January 2019. Just received my digital copy (Edition 168) and it’s in that. Very positive review by Jason Kennedy, who compares with the Zenith SE, which reviewed a year ago. Statement was found to improve on the SE with more three-dimensional space, lower noise and more resolution . Jason preferred ethernet out (into an Auralic Aries G2) with which he heard greater depth of analysis and low level resolution. He concludes by describing the Statement as one of if not the best digital source you can buy. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted February 1, 2019 Share Posted February 1, 2019 11 hours ago, Johnny Moondog said: Mmm. Perhaps they rescheduled for a future issue. Don't see it listed for Issue #167 - January 2019. Just looking again at last month’s edition I see that while edition 168 was due out in the UK on 31 Jan, it is not due out in the States until 28 Feb. I wonder why that is. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 It’s still early days and there won’t be many Statement owners out there yet, but I wonder if anyone has personally tried an external USB reclocker with the Statement, or heard of someone else trying this. I’m curious to learn whether a USB regenerator/reclocker like the SOtM tX-USBultra (with of without Reference Clock control) can improve on the Statement’s internal reclocking. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 My thanks to @Blackmorecand @justubesfor those thoughts. As I do not have a master clock, and as my tX-USBultra does not have master clock input, it would seem that trading in my Zenith SE, a Chord Hugo TT 2 (not getting much use) and my tX-U for a Statement might be a cheaper way of getting more performance than adding master-clocking to my current setup. Just downloaded issue 169 of HiFi+, which probably means issue 168 with the Statement review is now available in the States. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 Thanks for these further thoughts. The thing is I want better sound quality ideally with fewer boxes/cables and without me having to pay too much more for it. I want my system to look good (or at least tidy) in the equipment rack placed unobtrusively away in the corner in my lounge - I listen exclusively through headphones these days. The ideal for me would be just server, M Scaler and DAVE with the appropriate interconnects, power supplies and power cabling. I don't do much streaming so have little interest in audiophile switches. I was never much of a tinkerer, and am even less so today. I am prepared to try different interconnects and power cables but do not want to be opening boxes and running additional wiring into them, not least because I have little technical knowledge and probably wouldn't know what I was doing. This rules out the sclk ex approach for me, even though I have read countless times from those who have done this and obtained great results. I also have my doubts over how much additional performance (if any) I would get from the external USB reclocker Innuos plan. Would it be likely to deliver better performance than my standard tX-U (powered by a Paul Hynes SR4), or an upgraded tX-U with silver dc wiring, Evox caps, master clock input and emi absorbing paper? I cannot imagine the Innuos unit costing less than £1,500, and it could well cost substantially more. There is also the cost of a quality power cable and interconnect to consider (£500-£1k?). Would it have the 1cm thick aluminium casing that would allow it to be stacked? At the end of the day it still wouldn't be as good as the Statement. If I stay with what I've got but upgrade the tX-U (£600) and add a REF 10 (£3,100), the cost of doing this would still be significant and might not exceed the performance of the Statement, or by very much, and I would have even more boxes and cables than I have now. From all of this, I could conclude that trading in and getting the Statement is the best option for me. But it is still easily the most expensive option, which for the moment is holding me back. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted March 10, 2019 Share Posted March 10, 2019 Sorry for this tardy post offering my thanks to @Blackmorecand @justubesfor those thoughts. I thought I had posted it days ago, only to find a draft still sitting in the editor when I logged back in today. As I do not have a master clock, and as my tX-USBultra does not have master clock input, it would seem that trading in my Zenith SE, a Chord Hugo TT 2 (not getting much use) and my tX-U for a Statement might be a cheaper way of getting more performance than adding master-clocking to my current setup. i am hopeful of getting a loan of a Statement at some point over the next two weeks, which will allow me to compare with my SE in my own system. Just downloaded issue 169 of HiFi+, which probably means issue 168 with the Statement review is now available in the States. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
Popular Post str-1 Posted April 4, 2019 Popular Post Share Posted April 4, 2019 This is just a short post to tell of my experience with the Innuos Statement server I had on loan last week. I didn’t manage to spend as much time as I would have liked listening critically to it in comparison with my Zenith SE. Following Brexit (there’s simply no escaping it) and dealing with other things limited the time I had available, some of which I wasted playing around with different power cables before realising it was better for the comparison to run both units with the supplied cables. My system for the comparison was DAVE, M Scaler, standard tX-USBultra (SR4-9v) and Focal Utopia (Prion4). Power cables/smps were as supplied for servers and MSC, Shunyata Alpha HC for DAVE, and Jorma Trinity for SR4. These cables were all plugged into a Shunyata Venom UK6 distribution block connected to a non-dedicated wall socket via a Shunyata Alpha EF cable. WAVE Stream BNC cables connected DAVE/MSC. A Lush^2 cable was used for the server/MSC and tX-U/MSC connections, and a Sablon Reserva Elite cable for the server/tX-U connection. In straight head to head without the tX-U, the Statement (which had 200+ hours on it) was cleaner, unearthed more detail, had more body, depth and texture, and was a little darker. Everything was more natural sounding and convincing. The acoustic with choral and classical music was more natural, both in tone and weight. These improvements were very clear to hear. Introducing the tX-U helped the SE to narrow the gap, allowing it to show more delicacy, detail and focus. Things were a little cleaner, though never as clean as the Statement. But the downside for me was a slightly leaner sound, which is why I sometimes prefer to use the SE without the tX-U. Bottom line, there was still a clear gap. The Statement just sounded my believable with texture, tone, weight and acoustic. I have yet to hear a tX-U with Evox caps and silver wiring but I am struggling to imagine that upgrade being able to take the SE up to the Statement’s level based on what I hear my tX-U doing. Next up was to try the tX-U with the Statement. There were differences but I’m not sure that for me they added up to a net improvement. It sounded mostly like the tX-U was just imposing its character on the sound rather than improving the fundamentals. I got no sense of it pulling out more information. The sound was perhaps a little brighter with possibly a touch more emphasis on detail and air but it was also leaner, leaving me missing some of the Statement’s weight, especially the subtle weight around acoustics and with fine textural and tonal changes with choral pieces and with the complex sound surrounding the striking of gongs. The Statement has now gone back and I am still undecided about upgrading. Objectively (in as far as I can be objective), the differences between the SE/tX-U combo and Statement were not night and day. But subjectively, I felt the differences to be important, which registered most strongly with me when I stopped trying to focus on performance and just listened to the music. As with the SE, power cables do make a difference with the Statement. But I did not have time to be clear on what each of my upmarket cables was doing. austinpop, spotforscott, flkin and 5 others 5 3 Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted April 4, 2019 Share Posted April 4, 2019 47 minutes ago, yellowblue said: @str-1 did you try the SE with new firmware with the "new experimental feature"? I find it so much better that I sold my tx-USB Ultra (powered by LPS 1.2) which didn´t gave me better SQ anymore. Maybe even good to know for you that Nino informed me that an "external USB reclocker module including the same USB board as the Statement and the two linear power supplies required to power it in one box" at the end of Q2. It should close the gap to the Statement to some extend. I updated my SE with the latest firmware (1.4.1) the day it was released. But I do not use Roon. Thanks for the update on the external Innuos reclocker. Nuno mentioned it was coming soon in emailing me about other things. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted June 26, 2019 Share Posted June 26, 2019 On 6/14/2019 at 8:25 PM, Blackmorec said: I just went came back to this thread looking for a particular post and just thought it worth mentioning that with 200 hours, a Statement is nowhere near run-in. With its array of Mundorf capacitors the unit will produce its very best after ca. 4 months. It’ll sound great from the get go but the level of perfection the Statement is capable of will only fully reveal itself after a substantial period under power. Interesting to learn that it takes this long for the caps to reach their peak. The obvious question then to occur to me is how long do these caps stay performing at their peak before they can be expected to start deteriorating? I remember from my Naim days many years ago that the caps Naim used in, for example, their power amps needed replacing periodically to keep these units performing at their peak. Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 3, 2019 Share Posted September 3, 2019 @nvitorino Nuno, would this re-clocker improve on the re-clocked USB output on the Statement? https://darko.audio/2019/09/innuos-to-launch-phoenixusb-re-clocker-with-a-b-demos/ Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 11, 2019 Share Posted September 11, 2019 Can anyone comment on the performance of the PhoenixUSB at RMAF? Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
str-1 Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 19 hours ago, Anwar said: Zenith SE > USPCB (5v off) > tX-USBultra 9V (SR4) > Sablon Reserva Elite USB > M Scaler > WAVE Stream bnc > DAVE > Prion4/Lazuli Reference > Utopia/LCD-4/HE1000se Link to comment
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