indigo Posted October 23, 2010 Share Posted October 23, 2010 I collected my Chord QB76. I'm wondering what other owners of this DAC are usng to connect from their PC? I'm currently have J River Media -> Kernal Streaming to HiFace Evo -> QDB76 (via Optichord). I've also tried the USB interface direct on the QDB76 but only Direct Sounds seems to work. The HiFace Evo sounds okay but I'm wondering if it's really doing the DAC justice, CDX2 + XPS sounded better. What are other's experience? Should I be considering a Weiss INT202 or something else instead of the hiface EVO? I'm pretty new to the whole using PC as a music source and am keen to get the best I can out of this DAC. The rest of the setup is Windows 7 HTPC (Borg heatsinks etc), Chord 2600 Amp, B&W 802D speakers, chord signature speaker cable. Any advice, tips or shared experiences appreciated. Regards Indigo Link to comment
Audio_ELF Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 One thing to consider is that for the highest bitrates (192 and 176.4) the Chord expects these via dual-wire; only the Weiss INT202 and AFI1 and PCI(e) cards such as Lynx AES16 and RME HDSPe AES32 support this. Eloise Eloise --- ...in my opinion / experience... While I agree "Everything may matter" working out what actually affects the sound is a trickier thing. And I agree "Trust your ears" but equally don't allow them to fool you - trust them with a bit of skepticism. keep your mind open... But mind your brain doesn't fall out. Link to comment
indigo Posted October 24, 2010 Author Share Posted October 24, 2010 Thanks very much for your response Eloise. By Dual inputs you're referring to the EAS XLR inputs on the Chord? I was going to buy a cable to try with the HiFace Evo but sounds like this won't work Out of the devices you mention, which one in your opinion will give the best results? Also, my PC doesn't currently have Firewire, will a PCI firewire adapter do the job? Thanks Indigo Link to comment
Audio_ELF Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 If you connect the Evo to your QBD76 via a single AES cable will only allow you upto 96/24. Dual-wire mode splits the digital signal into left and right each connected via a separate AES XLR cable. A lot of people recommend the Lynx AES16 for this type of connection while others recommend Weiss' INT202 (or AFI1) while still others feel the RME cards are superior. If you choose the Weiss FireWire interface then a PCI card would be suitable. Eloise Eloise --- ...in my opinion / experience... While I agree "Everything may matter" working out what actually affects the sound is a trickier thing. And I agree "Trust your ears" but equally don't allow them to fool you - trust them with a bit of skepticism. keep your mind open... But mind your brain doesn't fall out. Link to comment
indigo Posted October 24, 2010 Author Share Posted October 24, 2010 Thanks Eloise, after your last post I did a bit of searching through the forums and the Weiss INT 202 does seem to be quite a favourite so I'll give that a go. Many thanks for your advice. Indigo Link to comment
r2d2 Posted October 30, 2010 Share Posted October 30, 2010 I currently have a setup which includes the qbd76. Goes like - macbook pro -> toslink - > qbd76 ----> lehman black cube linear ----> sennheiser hd800/ hd650/ denon d7000. I always have the 5 second ram buffer selected. The spdif sounds better than the usb with this dac imo. Link to comment
downbeat Posted November 2, 2010 Share Posted November 2, 2010 i just connect my mac mini or macbook via optical with max buffer. mac mini - chord qbd76 - atc sia2-150 - atc scm19[br]www.atcforums.co.uk Link to comment
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