UpTone Audio EtherREGEN Listening Impressions

[Pokey77]

I've had my ER for two weeks and it really makes a very significant difference though I am also hearing that it has not quite settled in yet. So I will wait another week or two before commenting. It is safe to say though that it will not be coming out or being sent back to Uptone. The SQ gains are across the board. In the mean time, I'm learning about power supplies, cables, etc.

 

(put my system in my profile but it is not displaying; not sure why.)

[Pokey77]

@jcn3

 

Thanks, I didn't realize it was under settings. Had put it in a different area. All good now.

[Pokey77]

I’ve had my  EtherREGEN (ER) since 2/26. Connected it to wall power that evening to start warming it up about 6PM and then the next morning I was able to put it in the system around 10AM. My rig is fairly simple and you can see my system configuration below in my sig. Also  of note, my particular ER came with little rubber feet on it. Not sure when that upgrade was instituted as I’ve never noted them in photographs of the ERs I’ve seen on the internet.   

 

I use the ER to treat the incoming internet signal delivered via a high-speed 300 mbs ATT fiberoptic service going to my Aurender N10.  The N10 is my sole source used to listen to Tidal HiFi.  For over three weeks I have had  constant  signal running through the ER to the N10, and feel that the ER is now burned in. I did have times when the music was not as good as others during the burn-in process but now it is just glorious all the time.  So  I’m fairly certain that the ER has stabilized. I don’t turn off the ER or any of my other gear; the system is on 24/7.   

 

My listening space is 13.5 X 20.5 with a 9 – 11.5 foot ceiling.  The listening position is 11’ from the front of the speaker plane. I usually listen at or near the same volume.  On my TAD C2000 preamp the volume is set to 40, which is around 70-80db with some peaks being 85ish based on readings using a SPLnFFT sound meter v7 app on my iPad. Playing at this same level, the music seems slightly louder. I also find I can now listen at much lower levels and still maintain excellent resolution.  

 

Listening  impressions:  

I noticed right away that with the ER in the system, an amazing level of scrim, grit, distortion, or what might be termed “digital haze” is either significantly reduced or totally gone. This allows me to see deeper into the music, hear new detail and find a sense of realness that was probably there all the time but could not be heard due to this “haze”. I can say with certainty that ALL tracks sound better with the ER. The benefit of the ER is across the board. Tracks that were borderline have become quite listenable. An example would be the band Pinback. Love their music but it certainly is not equally well recorded in all cases. With the ER, my favorite tracks from say Nautical Antiques, like “Anti-Hu”, might still not be sonically perfect, but because of reduced noise and the resulting improved sound quality it is much more enjoyable. In fact, all my favorite tracks from that record just sound much better. I also have favorite playlists that I’m very intimate with and can tell you I’m hearing those songs at a whole new level. I thought my system was very musically revealing before, but with the ER, it has become much more so. 

  

I will often listen to music while reading and researching audio gear (go figure).  With the ER in place, the music will now frequently catch my attention. Tracks I’ve heard many times stand out as having much better sound quality.  Some, with appropriate content on the recording, I find flabbergasting.  The ER lets the music through in a very clean, natural, 3-dimensional way. It is holographic and layered and lets my system sing in the most beautiful way. 

 

To summarize:  

• The music is now smoother, with significantly greater ease, and yet still has better detail in a very non-fatiguing way.  

• Bass is more fleshed out and textured and cymbals sound more correct.  

• The music is more dynamic.  Tone and tempo are more believable.  

• If the recorded material has the information, the room ambiance, bass reverberation, and synth echo are readily apparent.  

• Sound stage can expand well beyond the boundaries of the room and stage depth increases. 

 

The end result is a whole that is greater than the sum of the parts and must be heard to be believed.   

 

Associated with these significant gains in sound quality, the E-1 speakers often totally disappear when music plays. The ER just makes everything better. To say it is easy to hear these improvements would be an understatement. Anyone with half-decent hearing could easily hear the sound quality increase. It is very significant…“massive”, even.  Night and day is not an overstatement here.  

 

As you can tell, I am very pleased with the ER. Just as others before me have praised its many virtues, I too am singing its praises.  The readily heard improvement in sound quality shows how John Swenson's Moat technology employed in the ER effectively stops noise that is riding in on the fiber as well as noise from routers and other items that are in the path from the utility pole to your server or computer. I simply would not be without the ER. In fact, compared to the other upgrades I’ve performed on this system over the last 1.5 years since it was purchased, I can say unreservedly that the ER is THE best upgrade by far. It has brought me to a whole new level of musical enjoyment and I’m excited each time I sit down to listen. I am so very happy with how my system sounds now.   I’ve not thought at all – not even once - about sending the ER back to  Uptone.  It is not going anywhere.  

 

But, being an audiophile, I’m already looking into power supply and network cable upgrades. I’ve learned a lot from some of you who are already experimenting with these items. I will continue to experiment to see how much more I can pull out of this little ER since others have had good success with power supplies,  network cable, fiber optic cages, word clocks, etc.   

 

In closing, let me say, use your own ears and don’t worry about measurements or even the reasons why it does what it does. Measurements have their place but are unnecessary when your ears can so plainly hear what the EtherREGEN  does so beautifully for music. It makes it so much more listenable and brings it closer to (if not to the level of) a fine vinyl rig. Take the chance and hear it for yourself. You have nothing to lose and only increased listening pleasure to  gain.  

 

Note to  Uptone Audio: -John and Alex, you’ve really hit this one clean out of the park.  I think we all look forward to what new things you are working on at  Uptone.  

 

**Charley and Dorie, thanks so much. 

[Pokey77]

@Superdad Alex,

 

I meant to put a note in my review about the proximity of the ER to my server but forgot. I may try that at some point, but it does run pretty warm as you are aware and having it in a different room allows me to put it in an area where it can breath well. I do admit I'm curious to see if it is even better behind my rack close to the server. -I'm also thinking JS-2 where the ER is now and the second rail could power my router.

 

Pinback are a band that kind of rescued me. I hadn't had any real break throughs in new genre's in a long time and stumbled on them probably a decade ago - I was late to the party but for me it is a good one. I can say they are one of my favorite bands for sure. If you look into them more, just start at the beginning and work your way forward. You will be rewarded. Most of their stuff is on Tidal.

 

Charley and Dorie helped me flesh out my thoughts and get things in the right order. Chuck is a very good friend for sure.

 

@austinpop Your answer above is insightful and a bit hilarious. BTW, I was referring to you and others I've been learning from since I made my way to AS.

[Pokey77]

20 hours ago, austinpop said:

Thanks! I was just being silly. It’s happy hour here in the US. 😉

Yes, it was a bit silly! But we sure can use more of that right now.

[Pokey77]

You can see my review on Page 33. The ER makes a substantial improvement in an otherwise resolving system. I still enjoy sitting down and hearing such a massive improvement brought by the ER. I can literally listen all day.

 

So, yesterday, for whatever reason I forget, I turned the volume down on my preamp to below 10. Seems as I recall that before the ER that below 10 there was little or no sound, as in music, coming through, or barely audible. Now the music comes through down to nearly 1 on the preamp. I don't have the technical expertise to explain this but to say that the ER removed so much noise the music is now apparent. BTW, fiber was just installed in my neighborhood in the last year and I have 300 mbs service.

 

The ER works so good, I'm now thinking about the JS-2. I'd like to run my router (ATT-supplied BGW210) and my ER with it. I'm not sure if this a go or a no-no.

[Pokey77]

@Ponkbutler

 

Nice review. Thanks for sharing.

[Pokey77]

2 hours ago, MichaelHiFi said:

Received my ER yesterday. Plugged her in and via a CAT6 of no remarkable quality but straight from my router to the "A" side of the ER. The B side used another unremarkable CAT6 to my microrendue which inputs to a Lindemann Musicbook DSD 25. Roon core resides in Sonore Small Green computer. It is/was a very fine sounding digital system. 

 

Listening through the ER I had little expectation other than noting late last year, ears I trusted described more than subtle improvements in SQ, so I ordered one. What I heard was not what I expected. I sat in my seat and said "huh". Hard to describe. Clarity, color, space and decay. All were improved. But the bass. WTF. Bass was already stellar coming from the 11" Eaton woofers hidden inside the lower cabinets of the Ushers, but this was something different. Again, hard to describe but the bass was fuller yet tighter and more defined. It pressurized the room. Just as interesting was that I was listening at volume  ~50. I listen loud. My wife listens louder. 50 is loud but not that loud in our system. Music was flowing. I was really pleased, then decided hey, I can turn this up louder, so I did. Louder until I hit 80. That's concert level folks and what blew me away is that that was no breakup, no harshness just an image of the band as I was playing "Over now" by Alice in Chains. I was laughing hysterically. Moving to different Genres, it was more of the same. Greater insight into the recordings, better spacial cues and the bass...

 

My wife came home from work so I asked her to have a listen. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She wanted to hear Sarah Brightman's "Angel". Not my favorite recording for sure but behind the ER the recording was somehow different. Clean with the smeary, woolly bass removed and yet deeper and more resolved. She just sat back with her eyes closed and was transported into the music. I could go on but only having a day of listening it's not really fair to access what I'm hearing objectively. But I'm loving what I'm hearing. 

 

From what I've read, the ER needs breaking in. Most everything in the Audio equipment world does. But this is what I'm hearing from a unit with just a handful of hours on it!!!

 

I ordered some Supra CAT8 cables as my dealer friend noted a definite improvement as others to had noted with these almost affordable cables. I may have jumped the gun. These cables have a great deal of shielding built in to them. Reading the ER manual, I noted that shielded CATX's can bring eddy currents with them through the RJ45 shell.

I may have to "operate" on these cables at least on the "A" side to severe the shields. Nuts. Anyone with experience with these cables? Should post this as a separate topic, I know.

Thanks!

 

I too hear the same type of significant improvements. I'd say that my ER took more than 3 weeks to fully burn in and settle, but it was surprisingly very good 10 minutes out of the box.

 

I use Supra 8+ and it is much better than the Monoprice Cat5e I was using before. I also have the Cable Matters 8 and am waiting for them to finally burn in. The Supra 8+ took around 4 weeks to burn in/settle, but I really like them. The CM8 was initially, even after four days, mechanical and non-musical. Lately it seems pretty musical. But I'll know when I compare to the Supra 8+. Hoping to do that this weekend.

 

I think my next step is to power the ER with an LPSU like an SR4T or Farad3. And will look into the clock mentioned above. Price on that is under $100.

 

Please update us as your ER burns in. Cheers.

[Pokey77]

So, you may remember that several have mentioned that having the ER closer to the source is supposedly the best place for it to be. As it has been in a different room for months, I finally got to experiment last Monday. A friend and I tested, with the same Ethernet wire (three cables - 2, 1M Supra 8+, and 1 Monoprice Cat5e - it is the cable out of the router). The only difference is the placement of the ER - either in the audio room or the other room where its been for months. In this other room, it is about 2' from the router.

 

Since my friend and I only did this test one time, with one song, I knew I needed to test more to make up my mind.

 

So, I decided to perform the following test - start with the ER in the audio room since that is where it was at. Both tests used the same four songs though today I added a fifth song. They are in order:

 

Eerie Wanda - Pet Town

Matt Lange - Testarosa

Lambchop - Everything for you

Carey Bell - It's so easy to love you

Royksopp - The Alcholic

 

Round 1, play songs - take notes. Round two, switch ER to old master. Round three, switch ER back to audio rack.

 

Surprisingly I heard the same thing both days only more so on the second day. With the ER in the audio room, I heard overall more resolution, which yielded more convincing tones, timber, and I found it more engaging. There was more air, better bass control, especially on the Matt Lange track, and instruments that sounded more real or natural. I also noticed better defined separation, a more snappy and real snare sound on several tracks, 3D soundstage (wide, tall, good depth). There is just a more linear, balanced, natural cadence to the music with the ER just a 3' section of Supra 8+ away from the Aurender N10. Cymbals also had that very natural sound and decay and that tinkly sound cymbals make, not a "sssshh" sound. Vocals on the few tracks with them were also very natural with excellent timber and believableness. I also found myself more relaxed and wrote "lovin' it!" on one track. Truthfully it was on all tracks I was lovin' it. Though the ER being in the other room did seem to have better bass on some tracks with perhaps more texture, it was not as natural and was even ever so slightly boomy (not good). And I also observed that when the ER is in the other room, some instruments or frequencies almost seem louder; ER closer to the source seemed to yield more linear sound.

 

As you may remember when I first reviewed the ER back some months, having the ER in the other room is better strategically for me as I've got room for it and an upgraded linear power supply (to come) and there is more open space for the ER to vent the heat, but the ER just sounds better closer to the server. So I'll have to figure that out next since I'd like to put a second power conditioner where the ER is currently in the audio rack. So, I, like some others, have found that the ER being very near the source is a plus. I also believe Alex said the same thing.

[Pokey77]

I had planned to purchase a JS-2 if the ER stayed in the other room. I'd have used the other output on my router. But because I am going to leave the ER in my audio rack, I'm will most likely go with a Paul Hynes SR4T because I only need one output. I do wish that Alex and John would make a single rail power supply that didn't use a wall wart to power it. Also, Alex did mention somewhere about building the ER in a larger enclosure and including an upgraded LPS. That'd be sweet! I'd buy one for sure.

[Pokey77]

Loving my ER very much, especially with the recent Paul Hynes SR4T LPS added.

 

Congrats Alex & John.

[Pokey77]

43 minutes ago, kennyb123 said:

Congratulations @JohnSwensonand @Superdad!!

ditto!

 

Natural sound that can now fully rival an analog setup - now that is praise. I know I wouldn't be without my ER.

[Pokey77]

I know this isn't the right thread to discuss LPSs and other tweaks to the ER, but I can say that adding a quality LPS (the one I refer to and purchased is approximately the same cost as the ER) and I think I got near or the same sound-quality improvement by adding it. So, for me, it was well worth it. If you look at the "The EtherREGEN thread for various network, cable, power experiences and experiments", you'll see many posters talking about significant improvements from well-built LPSs.

[Pokey77]

1 hour ago, Superdad said:

Just as long as they don't start making the fiber optic cables with soy-based plastics.  We have a major problem with pack-rats around our rural home and they have already disabled two of our vehicles.  Auto makers use soy-based wire insulation and component plastics and the rats love to eat that stuff! 

Sounds like you need a few rat traps in the engine bay!

 

Super stoked for you on the continued demand for the ER. I just love mine with a PHynes SR4T power supply.

[Pokey77]

26 minutes ago, TimF said:

 I own an Er and have done for some time. Is powered by Sean Jacobs DC3. Can’t hear any improvements with it in. Maybe v2 will be better. 

I have the ER with Paul Hynes SR4T and it makes a huge improvement for me. I totally get that you have your own experience, but it seems that maybe you are the outlier as most report a fairly decent uptick in SQ with the ER and even more once a quality LPS is added. I couldn't live without the ER+SR4T!

[Pokey77]

1 hour ago, Superdad said:

 

Indeed.

Thankfully, the Sonore opticalModule Deluxe (redesigned with parts more readily available) should be available again within about 2 months;

And at UpTone we are making good progress on EtherREGEN Gen2--with a number of internal technical improvements as well as Gigabit capability on the 'B' port. Have already invested about $30K in chosen chips for production--so that we do not get skunked once we are through design/test/beta and ready to produce boards.

This is good and interesting news!