Innuos ZENith "STATEMENT"

[Blackmorec]

Here you go!

 

http://www.innuos.com/en/go/contact-us

 

[JFHSQT]

18 minutes ago, Blackmorec said:

Here you go!

 

http://www.innuos.com/en/go/contact-us

 

Thanks - unfortunately they have no US support number. Was hoping they'd answer the email or I could find the answer on a forum somewhere. I may have to make the international call if I can't get any response from them by the end of the day. 

[nvitorino]

1 hour ago, JFHSQT said:

Thanks - unfortunately they have no US support number. Was hoping they'd answer the email or I could find the answer on a forum somewhere. I may have to make the international call if I can't get any response from them by the end of the day. 

 

You can PM me with your email and I'll check on the tickets. We had a similar question about 3 days ago and we did answer that back immediately - not sure if it was you or if you received the answer.

 

Anyway, Quarantine, Music Library and Import will not show when in Roon Mode with the Experimental Squeezelite integration is selected. We have to turn off our Music Library for the Squeezelite Integration to work and that prevents those features from working, so we disable them.

 

Nuno

[JFHSQT]

32 minutes ago, nvitorino said:

 

You can PM me with your email and I'll check on the tickets. We had a similar question about 3 days ago and we did answer that back immediately - not sure if it was you or if you received the answer.

 

Anyway, Quarantine, Music Library and Import will not show when in Roon Mode with the Experimental Squeezelite integration is selected. We have to turn off our Music Library for the Squeezelite Integration to work and that prevents those features from working, so we disable them.

 

Nuno

Thanks Nuno - sounds like that's the issue. I just PM'd you the email. 

 

Thanks again!

[Anwar]

How true is this story?  

Although they were only released in 2016, there are reports that Intel Apollo Lake processors are dying sooner than expected.
Source: https://www.techradar.com/news/are-intel-apollo-lake-processors-already-dying

 

Updated news: 

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-apollo-lake-cpu-not-dying-pcn-lpc-bus-degradation,40378.html
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/intel-retracts-apollo-lake-warning-discounts-claims-of-reliability-issues/

https://www.extremetech.com/computing/298248-intel-walks-back-apollo-lake-cpu-recall

 

Intel Apollo Lake includes Pentium N4200 processor which is used by Zen/Zenith Mk3 and also Statement.

 

[str-1]

19 hours ago, Anwar said:

 

[str-1]

20 hours ago, Anwar said:

How true is this story?  

Although they were only released in 2016, there are reports that Intel Apollo Lake processors are dying sooner than expected.
Source: https://www.techradar.com/news/are-intel-apollo-lake-processors-already-dying

 

Updated news: 

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-apollo-lake-cpu-not-dying-pcn-lpc-bus-degradation,40378.html
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/intel-retracts-apollo-lake-warning-discounts-claims-of-reliability-issues/

https://www.extremetech.com/computing/298248-intel-walks-back-apollo-lake-cpu-recall

 

Intel Apollo Lake includes Pentium N4200 processor which is used by Zen/Zenith Mk3 and also Statement.

 

@nvitorinoNuno, would be great to have your comments once you’ve had chance to look into this.

[matthias]

@nvitorino

 

According to Innuos HP Innuos will be at X-FI Show but Innuos has disappeared from the exhibitor list.

 

Please, can you shed some light on this?

 

Thanks

 

Matt

[nvitorino]

On 9/22/2019 at 9:25 AM, str-1 said:

@nvitorinoNuno, would be great to have your comments once you’ve had chance to look into this.

Hi everyone,

 

We're following up on this but it does not seem to be any kind of a critical issue. The problems identified seem to occur only in specific circumstances in the LPC, SD Card or RTC system, although Intel does not detail them. Our systems do not use the LPC bus and SD Card so on those two there would be no issue. On the RTC potentially but we need more clarification about the conditions where it does fail or for which subsystems. If this is only related to the LPC bus then it should not affect our products at all - the LPC bus is mostly used by legacy devices - see definition here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low_Pin_Count

 

From my initial reading it does not mean at all the Apollo Lake are "dying".  They will have a new revision with the F-1 Stepping. This is exactly the reason we only opt for motherboards with long availability dates - they have a much better commitment to their continuity. On a consumer board this would just be discontinued and job done.

 

So far we haven't detected any of our systems with a fault like this but we will seek further clarification from Intel to know the circumstances under which problems can occur and whether those may or not affect our systems.

 

We'll keep you posted.

 

Nuno

[nvitorino]

6 hours ago, matthias said:

@nvitorino

 

According to Innuos HP Innuos will be at X-FI Show but Innuos has disappeared from the exhibitor list.

 

Please, can you shed some light on this?

 

Thanks

 

Matt

 

I can confirm we will be at X-Fi on Room 35 - we'll be sharing the room with Chord Electronics. We're sorting out the listing with the X-Fi organization.

 

Nuno

[FredM]

On 9/23/2019 at 4:11 PM, nvitorino said:

 

I can confirm we will be at X-Fi on Room 35 - we'll be sharing the room with Chord Electronics. We're sorting out the listing with the X-Fi organization.

 

Nuno

Looking forward to it this weekend, I hope the Phoenix is there also. Would be great to hear the impact it makes. 

[nvitorino]

33 minutes ago, FredM said:

Looking forward to it this weekend, I hope the Phoenix is there also. Would be great to hear the impact it makes. 

Hi,

 

Yes, the Phoenix will be there (and so will I). We did have a last minute change and we moved to room 18 together with Chord Electronics, which is a 50 m2 room. Do come and say hi and I'll be happy to demo the system with and without Phoenix. 

 

Nuno

[FredM]

6 hours ago, nvitorino said:

Hi,

 

Yes, the Phoenix will be there (and so will I). We did have a last minute change and we moved to room 18 together with Chord Electronics, which is a 50 m2 room. Do come and say hi and I'll be happy to demo the system with and without Phoenix. 

 

Nuno

👍 See you on sunday!

[FredM]

For those who won’t visit a show, here’s an impression of the Phoenix USB reclocker at RMAF:

 

[Yorkshireman]

5 hours ago, FredM said:

For those who won’t visit a show, here’s an impression of the Phoenix USB reclocker at RMAF:

 

 

[Yorkshireman]

Firstly when did Computer Audiophile become Audiophile Style? And why? 

 

Secondly thanks for posting the video, it's just a shame that Nuno didn't also compare the Statement in the demo. Because that is what everyone that owns an SE will wan't to hear.

[nvitorino]

5 hours ago, Yorkshireman said:

Firstly when did Computer Audiophile become Audiophile Style? And why? 

 

Secondly thanks for posting the video, it's just a shame that Nuno didn't also compare the Statement in the demo. Because that is what everyone that owns an SE will wan't to hear.

 

Hi,

 

We did the comparison between the ZENith, ZENith + PhoenixUSB and Statement at RMAF, though not for that video. There is still a difference between the ZENith + PhoenixUSB and the Statement as the Statement is more than just adding a reclocker board. Some thought the difference was considerable and others thought it was more subtle but clearly there. Do take into consideration that the SE is superior to the ZENith MK3 so it will be closer to the Statement than the ZENith. But not even the Statement board USB output connected to the PhoenixUSB sounds like the reclocked USB output of the Statement - this is where short signal paths make a difference...

 

This is something I write based on the feedback of a few hundred visitors that heard the comparison at RMAF, X-Fi and WestDeutsche Shows. I maintain my opinion that SE users will be very happy with the improvement the PhoenixUSB considering the investment of getting a PhoenixUSB vs selling the SE and buying a Statement. 

As always, if you have the chance, have a listen for yourselves so you can make your own decision.

 

[MasonStorm]

Greetings all.  As a STATEMENT owner myself, I've been wondering what (if any) further upgrades are possible, and I see many forum participants wrote that post-STATEMENT USB improvement devices don't help.  How about on the other side - that is, improving the ethernet input with one of those super-duper audiophile switches?  I see that the EtherRegen has just launched, so no one can have any experience with it and the STATEMENT yet......but how about that viciously expensive Telegartner M12 gold, or the equally frightening combination of  the SotM  sNH-10G switch (with optional upgrades built-in) and an external clock attached to the sNH-10G?

[Blackmorec]

HI MS,  yes I too own and am extremely happy with my Innuos Statement. Its performance really established new standards for me but I have found in the 10 months of ownership that its performance can be further improved. 😀

 

Firstly I added a Synergistic Research power cable (UEF Black HC) and after a long and painful break-in it further opens up and refines the sound (its hard to fathom where those improvements will come from but they are there)

 

Then an even more significant improvement, that really elevates the Statement’s performance is the Chord Company umbilical cables that connect the 2 modules. With fully screened individual cores, the cables add further purity but more important incredibly well delineated 3 dimensionality, such that notes no longer just sound like instruments....they sound like they are coming from instruments.....along with even more naturalness and listener involvement. They cost me just under £1000 from Innuos. I honestly don’t think any Statement installation should be without them. 

 

One area I’ve been tempted to look into but didn’t so far is fuses.....which can bring benefits but which can also have downsides with qualities like PRaT, so a lot of care and caution is required in their selection, so I haven’t gone there yet. 

 

Another area I’m going to try is separating the 2 modules onto different shelves of my Finite Elemente Master Reference rack (absolutely brilliant piece of kit BTW, unfortunately no longer made).

 

Finally you asked about upstream. Here I have made many improvements which have a direct effect on SQ. Adding a better, 3 band router so I can dedicate one 5GHz band to audio, adding LPSs to both cable modem and router, adding a TPLink RE650 wi-fi extender to make the wi-fi link and isolate the hi-fi’s remote stream electrically, modifying the RE650 to remove its cheap and nasty SMPS and powering it with a Sean Jacobs designed and built DC3 LPS (same supply I use on the router and modem). Finally I use a DC3 powered AQVox SE switch with Neotech 16awg UPOCC 7N JSSG360 DC cable.   

I’m sure there are better switches than an AQVox SE but the DC3 seriously elevates its performance, as does the DC cable, so I’m not terribly motivated to join the EtherRegen scramble at this stage.  One omission I must mention, i’ve never tried the Statement without the AQVox and given that the Statement reclocks incoming ethernet, its not totally clear that the AQVox is actually needed, good as its sounds.  I really must try a direct connection 

 

Finally some other significant improvements in SQ came with the addition of SR Atmosphere X Ref USB and Ethernet cables. On my Innuos Zenith SE I actually much preferred the sound of SE to DAC direct via this USB cable than SE to TX-USBUltra to DAC, where the treble sounded slightly hyped and less natural in comparison. 

 

So where is my system today (apart from waiting for the Ghent Audio sourced DC cable to run in)?Essentially the system creates a 3 dimensional venue according to what is on the recording, populated by musicians that sound as if they are playing real 3 dimensional instruments (again assuming that’s on the recording). Walk into the room, switch off the lights, set the volume to minus 14.5dB, select your favourite album on Quboz, touch play, close your eyes and experience the thrill and shock of your entire reality changing. You’re suddenly in a completely different space, with a completely different atmosphere,  populated by musicians playing together in a wholly immersive 3 dimensional space that grabs your entire attention and doesn’t let go. You can literally get to the end of an album before you ‘resurface’. Its the sort of fully immersive, fully believable listening experience i’ve been aiming for for over 40 years. Personally I would never have dreamed that this would be possible from simple Red Book files. Its absolutely amazing just how much information is on there and what your brain can construct with it. 

 

Simple question, long answer. I hope it has some value for you 😀 

[str-1]

5 hours ago, Blackmorec said:

Then an even more significant improvement, that really elevates the Statement’s performance is the Chord Company umbilical cables that connect the 2 modules. With fully screened individual cores, the cables add further purity but more important incredibly well delineated 3 dimensionality, such that notes no longer just sound like instruments....they sound like they are coming from instruments.....along with even more naturalness and listener involvement. They cost me just under £1000 from Innuos. I honestly don’t think any Statement installation should be without them. 

A helpful post.  One thing you mentioned that I had previously asked Chord Company about is the umbilical cable they make.  I think I understand it is just the longer length cable that is shielded/screened in the way you describe. I assume from your mention of intending to separate the Statement boxes that you have the longer length cables.

[Blackmorec]

42 minutes ago, str-1 said:

A helpful post.  One thing you mentioned that I had previously asked Chord Company about is the umbilical cable they make.  I think I understand it is just the longer length cable that is shielded/screened in the way you describe. I assume from your mention of intending to separate the Statement boxes that you have the longer length cables.

Thanks!  Unfortunately I know nothing about the Chord Cable range regarding the umbilicals, other than what i’ve mentioned. I bought mine through Innuos.  Mine are indeed 50cm in order to (as you correctly surmised) separate the modules onto 2 shelves. I haven’t done this as yet because I’ve been travelling and waiting for the umbilical cables and DC cables to burn-in so I can clearly hear the effects of separation. 

What I did decide when I saw the price of the umbilicals was that they had to warrant their price on sound quality alone. It took about 300 hours of ‘switched-on time’ to get to the point I was absolutely sure they were well worth their money from a SQ standpoint. They add another layer of realism to the music which is almost always worth paying something significant for. 

 

 

[MasonStorm]

Hi Blackmorec, and thank you for your detailed reply.  I will look into those upgraded umbilicals soon; it will take a while to explore all of the options you mentioned regarding LPSs for everything in the chain, etc.

 

I wonder if the AQVox SE, EtherRegen, the SotM sNH-10G, and/or the Telegartner M12 Gold offer sonic improvements vis-a-vis reduction in upstream electrical nasties/EMI/RFI, such that they might offer improvements separate from the reclocking that the STATEMENT provides....or if the STATEMENT also does such a good job with that aspect that these devices don’t add anything much.  Please do let us know what you think of the sound when you remove that switch from the path.  And anyone who owns those other switches, please let us know your experiences as well!

[Tintinabulum]

Re switch, you could try a CISCO 2960, pretty cheap and generally effective.

 

Regarding power cables, presumably the topic has been done to death here? The science? Anyone remember a Swenson video where just plugging in an inactive component into the mains reduced mains circuit noise? (sorry to interrupt)

[Anwar]

I don't own the Statement but Zenith Mk2.  From Statement pictures on internet, I am not sure whether the internal SATA cable from motherboard to SSD is audiophile grade or regular computer grade.  I know the Zenith Mk2 internal SATA cable to SSD is regular computer grade.

 

From my own experience with DIY streamer, this cable matters, even if the player reads into memory and plays from memory.  I think Antipodes uses high quality internal SATA cable to SSD.

[Blackmorec]

Hi Anwar,

An audiophile grade SATA cable? Can you post links to the manufacturer who is producing SATA cables optimised for sound quality.....I could be interested in other, network products they have that don’t involve potentially voiding my warranty. Thanks