Sonore opticalRendu

[lxgreen]

On 1/26/2019 at 7:22 AM, barrows said:

That is TBD...  I have not even built a first prototype Signature optical (yet).  If/when Sonore does offer a "Signature" level opticalRendu one can be assured it will be optimized for the best possible performance.  There are a couple of power supply changes I will be testing...

It is also very likely that there will be an upgrade program for current Signature Rendu SE owners (The Chassis, transformer, and power supply in the SRse make up a significant portion of the cost), as these customers have a very significant investment in their Renderer.

As for silver, I do not know.  Perhaps...  offering even two faceplate color options adds significant complexities and expense to inventory management and is difficult for a low production volume product like this.  The black faceplate on the Signature is a really special finish and looks fantastic (no way can pictures do it justice) but we understand the desire of some customers for silver...

This would be great news if you can upgrade my Signature Rendu SE to include this modification. I got the unit as a way to imorove sq but also simplify system. I figured I would not get the new optical modules since it adds more devices/ cables, etc. however, if it were part of an upgrade I wouldn’t hesitate to do it. 

[lxgreen]

Now I’m confused. I ordered the SE upgrade, bought the OM4 fiber you recommended. Do I also need to purchase an FMC?

[lxgreen]

2 hours ago, barrows said:

Does your existing Network have a switch or router with an optical output (SFP cage)?  If so then you will not need an FMC.  If you have no existing Network component with an optical port (SFP cage) then you will need an FMC to convert from electrical Ethernet to optical.  We provide the SFP transceiver (a module which fits inside the SFP cage) for both the Signature Rendu and the upstream converter.

For the Signature Rendu with optical upgrade a simple connection scheme looks like this:

 

Server-wired Ethernet (CAT 6A, etc)-Router-wired Ethernet (CAT 6A, etc)-FMC-optical cable (LC-LC, OM1, etc.)-Signature Rendu/optical.  In this scheme the FMC (fiber media converter) just converts from wired Ethernet (CAT 6A etc) to optical cable (LC-LC OM1 etc).

 

This is the basic set up, of course there are many possible variations.  The main thing to understand here is that the Signature Rendu with the optical upgrade takes an optical cable input, so some device upstream has to use an optical cable as well: that device could be an FMC to convert from electrical to optical signaling, or it could be Network switch with an optical port, or it could be a Router with an optical port.

I hate to be an annoyance here, but your communication re this upgrade is really poor. I sent an email to you asking how to order the upgrade, you replied with the tiers of upgrade available which, as far as I can tell, is nowhere on your website. You also indicated I needed an OM4 fiber and supplied the link, which I immediately ordered. Now, since I have a standard Ethernet switch, I obviously don’t have an optical port. I guess it is supposed to be obvious that now I also need an FMC; but since I have never seen what the upgrade looks like nor what additional parts I need I don’t see why some kind of simple diagram with parts and part numbers or order links would be quite useful. Why are you making a simple upgrade so difficult? I will order an fmc now but can you provide me with which I should buy and where? I’d be surprised if I was the only one having problems trying to get this right the first time.

[lxgreen]

4 minutes ago, barrows said:

I am sorry you feel you are receiving poor support!  I have not received any e-mail from you that I am aware of?  Do you mean you sent an e-mail to someone else at Sonore perhaps?

In any case, I do not handle sales, and do not know what the pricing is of the different tiers of the upgrade.  For information regarding pricing and ordering you need to contact:

 

[email protected], that is Adrian, he handles sales.

 

I am happy to answer any technical questions you might have here on this thread.

 

As far as FMCs go I am using this one it is plug and play:

 

https://www.amazon.com/TRENDnet-1000BASE-T-Converter-Switching-TFC-GSFP/dp/B01M32YPHJ/ref=sr_1_fkmrnull_4?keywords=Trendnet+TFC-GSFP%2FA&qid=1551653118&s=gateway&sr=8-4-fkmrnull

 

You should have no problem with your OM4 optical cable as long as it has LC/LC terminations.

 

Please let me know if I can help in any other way.

So sorry. You are correct. Adrian is the one I emailed. I appreciate your suggestion for an fmc

[lxgreen]

On 11/16/2019 at 5:53 PM, Musikfan said:

Hi, thank you for the responses.  Much appreciated.  I wonder if there are any OR and OM users that may weigh in on whether they see any perceived benefits to adding an etherREGEN to their systems.  I'm not sure I understand what added benefit the etherREGEN brings if one is already using an OR and OM.  I'm also using a sonic transporter plus Chord Dave+Mscaler.  Again, thanks.

I have a optical RenduSE that I was using with optical module and happy with sq. I bought the etherREGEN with the understanding that it would add additional benefits over the om. However, as mentioned here, you can’t use the om with the etherREGEN. After hours of trying to troubleshoot, this incompatibility was finally brought to my attention. So I removed om and ran the optical rendu to the sfp cage on the A side of the etherREGEN and now it works, I haven’t listened that long but so far I do hear a difference but not sure if better or different than just using the om setup i originally had. There is supposedly break in time so I will wait a while til making final judgement. There is a lot of conflicting information on these forums including telling us not to use the other A inputs if using the etherREGEN in this configuration to its ok to use the other A inputs. Seems kind of a waste of money to buy the etherREGEN instead of the om if you shouldnt use the other A ports. 

[lxgreen]

Correct. Current set up is router ->copper Ethernet> B side EtherRegen copper input> then output from  A side EtherRegen optical > optical Signature RenduSE. I’m going to try and use OM with my Apple TV.

[lxgreen]

I thought the OM was definite improvement to my Sonore optical Signature Rendu over the generic module I used previously. When I switched to the ER I honestly not so sure if any difference from the OM. Since I can not use the OM with the ER the way I had planned,  I moved OM to use with my Apple TV (with second FMC) and convinces myself the video and sound were slightly improved.