The EtherREGEN thread for various network, cable, power experiences and experiments

[GryphonGuy]

11 hours ago, LewinskiH01 said:

Thank you!

 

So your eR is in the network before your PC, and then another RJ45 in the PC is used for the "subnet" to connect thru the SG105E to your Focusrite? I guess you tried eR a>b between PC and Focusrite and didn't work because of Dante demands (demanding, even though not as much as Ravenna).

 

I do 8-channel at 24bit/192kHz and works without problem but have no Dante/Ravenna protocols imposed by the hardware.

 

I want to clean the rack a bit: today I have a PC, its LPS, two DACs, and could do with just an ethernet 8-channel interface and have the PC elsewhere. And in the switc, of course, would like to improve sound quality.

 

Maybe I should get a USB interface and have a small NAA behind it? And get around Ravenna/Dante.

 

The Focusrite card, from memory, senses 100Mbit/s speed and says please connect to 1Gb/s ethernet port or words to that effect. Very blatant and inoperative until it connects at 1Gb/s.

 

8 channels @ 24/192 runs to about 74Mb/s or 74-75% capacity of a 100Mb/s connection. I am always super conservative and don't design ethernet connections to run at more than 50% capacity due to overheads, packet broadcast requirements etc etc even in full-duplex connections. So you are lucky that it is currently working.

 

My own research found that single-mode fibre (commonly yellow colour) with 1310nm wavelength transceivers works best for audio.

 

Professional multi-channel USB interfaces are rare because it is so hard to do it well and be electrically quiet. Prism Sound in the UK do some high-end USB interfaces. I chose Avid MTRX for my interface as ethernet is much better with audio than USB electrically speaking, in my opinion and to my ears.

 

Regards

GG

[kennyb123]

8 hours ago, Iving said:

Just ordered a Farad Super3 12V Purple Fuse.

It was a tougher buying decision than I expected

I went with the 12V also.  You will feel great about your buying decision the moment you get it connected.

[LewinskiH01]

21 minutes ago, GryphonGuy said:

 

The Focusrite card, from memory, senses 100Mbit/s speed and says please connect to 1Gb/s ethernet port or words to that effect. Very blatant and inoperative until it connects at 1Gb/s.

 

8 channels @ 24/192 runs to about 74Mb/s or 74-75% capacity of a 100Mb/s connection. I am always super conservative and don't design ethernet connections to run at more than 50% capacity due to overheads, packet broadcast requirements etc etc even in full-duplex connections. So you are lucky that it is currently working.

 

My own research found that single-mode fibre (commonly yellow colour) with 1310nm wavelength transceivers works best for audio.

 

Professional multi-channel USB interfaces are rare because it is so hard to do it well and be electrically quiet. Prism Sound in the UK do some high-end USB interfaces. I chose Avid MTRX for my interface as ethernet is much better with audio than USB electrically speaking, in my opinion and to my ears.

 

Regards

GG

Yeap. Prism Titan is one I had my eye on a while back (when I purchased Hilo), but to me makes sense that a good ethernet implementation should be better than a good usb implementation, so been looking for that.

 

Avid MTRX looks Pro Tools focused. Were you a Pro Tools user before buying the MTRX or you learnt for this application? 

How does the MTRX get along with the eR and the 100Mb/s?

Where in your chain is the single-mode optic fiber you mentioned?

 

Thanks for the input!

[GryphonGuy]

3 hours ago, LewinskiH01 said:

Yeap. Prism Titan is one I had my eye on a while back (when I purchased Hilo), but to me makes sense that a good ethernet implementation should be better than a good usb implementation, so been looking for that.

 

Avid MTRX looks Pro Tools focused. Were you a Pro Tools user before buying the MTRX or you learnt for this application? 

How does the MTRX get along with the eR and the 100Mb/s?

Where in your chain is the single-mode optic fiber you mentioned?

 

Thanks for the input!

This is a simplified view. It doesn't show, for example, the Tp-link switch powered by Uptone Ultracap 1.2 to play a trick on the Dante audio card.

 

I am a Pro Tools licenced user but the MTRX operates completely independently from Pro Tools. Roon plays music to the MTRX via all the software routers. Roon sees it as just another endpoint. The MTRX has been configured with and will function with 4 x 24/192 channels saying it is using only 38Mb/s bandwidth on the 100Mb/s connection. I have had more channels configured but simply don't need it. It is the dante card in the PC that panics and refuses to work beyond 4 channels even though it too reports that only 38Mb/s is being used. I just live with the dante drama. LOL. The sound is really second to none.

 

I'll put a cat amongst the pigeons here and say that the MTRX as configured produces and much wider and deeper soundstage than my current Chord DAVE setup but Dave is using standard power (ATM) and standard high-end USB cable. But the Chord Dave just has the ability to pinpoint accurate timbres of instruments which, I think, points to slightly better timing. In the coming months I will upgrade the DAVE's power supply to the Sean Jacobs ARC6-DC4.

 

Regards

GG

[Johnnydev]

14 hours ago, Iving said:

 

 

 

Just ordered a Farad Super3 12V Purple Fuse.

It was a tougher buying decision than I expected.

I'd have started thinking Paul Hynes, but PHD is no longer in business. No s/h on market. No s/h of much at audiophile level actually.

Farad would have been next choice - dilemma 9V or 12V - was still deciding (inclined to 9V) but rehearsing checkout I realised +20% at least in taxes etc so doubled back.

Double outputs inc. JS-2 over spec.

High current models over spec.

sps-500 not linear I discovered

Sean Jacobs beyond reach

Teddy Pardo not UK-local

Seriously considered a Plixir Elite BDC for a bit - available in UK so no import charges £500 delivered.

I don't deserve my wife. She went all understanding on me and I ordered the Farad. I may pay best of £700 eventually (no cables - just Purple fuse).

I admit resale possibilities steered me from 9V to 12V - cognitive dissonance will help me be happy.

 

 

Got some GX16-4 connectors from Amazon and will make up Mundorfs first - uses all 4 pins if nothing else.

 

I'm looking forward to hearing the eR Power Supply effect in my new configuration PC > Fiber > eR > RedNet D16 AES > Mutec reclocker > DAC.

 

btw credit to Mattjis for comms. - just answers all the questions.

Yes, Mattijs is great!

[Encore]

On 1/20/2022 at 3:54 PM, Encore said:

I tried covering the sides of my boutique Ethernet cable with masking tape but that prevented it from inserting into the female connector. So I took an old Monoprice cable and removed the shield at one end.

 

I have inserted it into the system. Even though its sound when unmodified wasn't as good as the boutique cable, it wasn't that far off, and I figure that if I have significant problems with a leakage loop here, fixing that should outweigh quality differences in the cables.

 

So far I don't think it sounds better but I will give it a couple of days to settle in. Will report back.

OK. The jury didn't need that long. Even though it's shielded, my boutique cable sounds better than the stripped Monoprice. But I saw in another thread that Alex had said that between the eR and the DAC (streamer PC in my case), leakage loops aren't a problem, so that may explain that. 

 

I actually concluded that my boutique Ethernet cable has developed over the months--the difference to the Monoprice cable was larger than when the cable was (relatively) new.  

 

However, that's not to say that it wouldn't sound even better if it weren't shielded. I got a big scare, because I almost couldn't unplug the Monoprice. It turns out that the metal shield also guides the connector in and out somehow. I had to prod it and using more force than I liked for several minutes to get it out.

 

But I may try to cover the sides with some thinner tape and see if that allows the connector to insert.

[barrows]

5 minutes ago, Encore said:

OK. The jury didn't need that long. Even though it's shielded, my boutique cable sounds better than the stripped Monoprice. But I saw in another thread that Alex had said that between the eR and the DAC (streamer PC in my case), leakage loops aren't a problem, so that may explain that. 

 

I actually concluded that my boutique Ethernet cable has developed over the months--the difference to the Monoprice cable was larger than when the cable was (relatively) new.  

 

However, that's not to say that it wouldn't sound even better if it weren't shielded. I got a big scare, because I almost couldn't unplug the Monoprice. It turns out that the metal shield also guides the connector in and out somehow. I had to prod it and using more force than I liked for several minutes to get it out.

 

But I may try to cover the sides with some thinner tape and see if that allows the connector to insert.

Kapton tape is the right call here.  It is available in many thicknesses, get the thinnest you can.

[Encore]

17 minutes ago, barrows said:

Kapton tape is the right call here.  It is available in many thicknesses, get the thinnest you can.

Thanks. Had never heard of that.

[audiom3]

Figure I could put my first post here in the ER tweak thread =)

I inserted an ER into my setup about 4 weeks ago.  I run an all-fiber LAN which I converted from copper early last year.  The ER honestly didn't make much or any difference.  Mind you, I can easily hear audible differences when adding in linear power supplies way up stream on a switch, router, etc.  And on that point, I was hesitant to replace the ER's PSU because Uptone seemed so confident in it.  So I thought I'd start slow (and cheap).  I bought a 7V type 2 linear transformer wall-wart.  Nothing special at all.  But the difference it made after insertion was not subtle.  I experienced a different and better sound with my network files played back on a PS Audio DS DAC via Bridge II.  Same kind of differences when adding in a linear power supply.  Bass can extend just a bit deeper, sound is more open and airy.  As luck would have it on the following day, I received a pair of Finisar FTLF1318P3BTL transceivers.  I was very skeptical that sfp's could or would make a difference but I figured what the heck.  Installed one in the ER and the other in my fiber switch.  Boy was I glad I tried them.  For the money, these are very easily the best tweak I have ever come across in all things audio.  The subtle things we notice with cables/upgrades like guitars being slightly more recessed in the soundstage, vocals more clear, open, closer to you, placement of small percussion and on and on.  With these transceivers now in the ER, it was crazy with how far back in the soundstage the guitars were thrown.  It's about the equivalent of moving from the 2nd or 3rd row to the 12th-15th row at a live concert.  I have never experienced such a drastic change before.  For reference, I was using 10Gtek 1000 base transceivers prior.  I listen to a lot of 80s Thrash metal and being as most of those albums aren't mastered very well, they now sounded much more enjoyable, crank-able all while still containing all of the energy I crave.

One tricky thing with the ER though is I had to disable auto negotiation in my switch and even 1G speeds.  I find the least amount of errors occur with 100M selected.  The downside to 100M is it performs the most pauses (taking the lesser of all evils, so this is where it will remain).  I don't think there's anyway around that as my NAS has a 10G NIC (running fiber SFPs) and my network is all 1G (other than NAS and Win10 machine for transferring movies and music to the NAS).  Anyway, long story short, after contemplating the re-sell of the ER, it is a keeper now for sure.  I never thought my system could sound this good.  I should have a boxed LPS arriving in a couple days which should take things up another notch or two.

On the more recent/relevant side, I am using a WW Starlight 8 ethernet.  Pretty sure this is fully shielded but for now, I am very content with the sound.

[R1200CL]

52 minutes ago, audiom3 said:

I received a pair of Finisar FTLF1318P3BTL transceivers. 

What did they replace ?

[Superdad]

Glad to know that you are enjoying your EtherREGEN! 

 

2 hours ago, audiom3 said:

I bought a 7V type 2 linear transformer wall-wart.

Do you have a link? Are you sure it is a "linear" and not a switcher?

Virtually all transformer-based wall-warts (heavy; that's how you tell its not an SMPS) are unregulated supplies--just a transformer, cheap diodes, and maybe a capacitor or two. Almost impossible to find regulated linear wall-warts.

Unlike an LPS with a voltage regulator, the output voltage on such units will be what they state (7V in your case) only when the load is equal to their current rating. With no load they will measure a much higher output voltage, and with some load less than their rating they will output something in between.

You ought to check.  

For the above reason, we really do not sanction the use of unregulated power supplies with the EtherREGEN. Even though it is a "7V" supply and if wall-wart size likely not a high current rating, it is hard to predict its output voltage with the EtherREGEN as load. [FYI: EtherREGEN draws 1.35A at 7V, 1.0A at 9V, or 0.8A at 12V]

And there is a chance that it does not have enough current capability since with an SFP transceiver installed an EtherREGEN will for sure draw 1.3A at 7V.

 

 

2 hours ago, audiom3 said:

As luck would have it on the following day, I received a pair of Finisar FTLF1318P3BTL transceivers.  I was very skeptical that sfp's could or would make a difference but I figured what the heck.  Installed one in the ER and the other in my fiber switch.

 

2 hours ago, audiom3 said:

One tricky thing with the ER though is I had to disable auto negotiation in my switch and even 1G speeds.  I find the least amount of errors occur with 100M selected.

 

Uh, something does not add up with your above two statements since the EtherREGEN's SFP cage is 1G and 1G only.  100M is impossible with that port.

The four RJ45 ports on the 'A' side will negotiate to 10/100/1000 (1G), with the LED above each port showing amber for 1G and green for either 10Mbps or 100Mbps.

The long RJ45 'B' side port is 100Mbps-only (no 10, no 1G).

[audiom3]

14 hours ago, R1200CL said:

What did they replace ?

10Gtek 1000base multi mode transceivers.

[audiom3]

12 hours ago, Superdad said:

Glad to know that you are enjoying your EtherREGEN! 

 

Do you have a link? Are you sure it is a "linear" and not a switcher?

Virtually all transformer-based wall-warts (heavy; that's how you tell its not an SMPS) are unregulated supplies--just a transformer, cheap diodes, and maybe a capacitor or two. Almost impossible to find regulated linear wall-warts.

Unlike an LPS with a voltage regulator, the output voltage on such units will be what they state (7V in your case) only when the load is equal to their current rating. With no load they will measure a much higher output voltage, and with some load less than their rating they will output something in between.

You ought to check.  

For the above reason, we really do not sanction the use of unregulated power supplies with the EtherREGEN. Even though it is a "7V" supply and if wall-wart size likely not a high current rating, it is hard to predict its output voltage with the EtherREGEN as load. [FYI: EtherREGEN draws 1.35A at 7V, 1.0A at 9V, or 0.8A at 12V]

And there is a chance that it does not have enough current capability since with an SFP transceiver installed an EtherREGEN will for sure draw 1.3A at 7V.

 

 

 

 

Uh, something does not add up with your above two statements since the EtherREGEN's SFP cage is 1G and 1G only.  100M is impossible with that port.

The four RJ45 ports on the 'A' side will negotiate to 10/100/1000 (1G), with the LED above each port showing amber for 1G and green for either 10Mbps or 100Mbps.

The long RJ45 'B' side port is 100Mbps-only (no 10, no 1G).

Superdad, you are exactly right and I posted bad information.  The port above (on the switch listing) the ER goes to my OLED TV and that is the port with AN off and 100M enabled.  Very sorry for posting inaccurate information.  The ER has auto neg enabled and 1G.  Again, my apologies as I am normally more thorough with my posts. 

 

Here is the PSU although I did not buy it off of Amazon.  I made sure to babysit the ER while running the new PSU and it runs cooler overall than the with the stock PSU.  But my linear boxed model has arrived, I just need time after work to install it,  Thanks for calling out my bad information.

 

https://www.amazon.com/120V-1500mA-1-5-Power-Adapter/dp/B00HFY4BTK

 

PS - you do not recommend powering the ER with your LPS-1.2 then?  Or is it ok if using 9v or 12v settings?

[audiom3]

Here is the proof that you were right and I was mistaken:

[Iving]

On 1/23/2022 at 5:38 PM, Iving said:

Just ordered a Farad Super3 12V Purple Fuse.

 

On 1/19/2022 at 1:52 PM, Iving said:

I have some leftover Duelund silver foil 1.0 and also some Mundorf Silver Gold 1mm and, so, in time can experiment (albeit Ag not Cu). As it happens I have 2 x 3 lengths of the latter making it a bit awkward to exploit the Farad output connector GX16-4 using all of it. According to Mattijs "We cannot change the output connector".

 

On 1/23/2022 at 5:38 PM, Iving said:

Got some GX16-4 connectors from Amazon and will make up Mundorfs first - uses all 4 pins if nothing else.

 

Don't usually photo/blog cable-building as too impatient to get listening.

Won't receive Farad for a few days so here goes.

The Mundorf "snips" I have are just the right length for the specific Super3-EtherREGEN run.

So no star quad or anything like that.

Besides - the cable will be only about 10" ...

and the Mundorfs aren't amenable to twisting imo ...

anyway I'm running 2 +ve GX16-4 pins [1 & 3] to Oyaide DC 2.1G +ve and 2 to Oyaide -ve [2 &4] so it's not a 4-to-4 config.

 

First squashed a 2.5mm silver ferrule over 2 white Mundorfs, soldered, snipped to length

 

clamped and soldered to Oyaide -ve

 

temporary tape holds 2 Mundorf yellow, solder, trim

 

solder to Oyaide +ve

 

rehearse/investigate wiggle room Oyaide shell

 

add shrink to hold 2 +ves together and 2 -ves together

 

rehearse again

 

2 lengths 2mm cotton tube over

 

tape holds cable in 180 approx. shape as will be used

 

shrink tube over

 

Oyaide shell on - needed a bit of lube (washing-up liquid)

 

cuff strengthens Oyaide joint and adds buffer for JSSG

 

GX16-4 connector looks fiddly for soldering - 2.5mm silver ferrules fit nicely over each connector

 

trim cotton tubes, also excess shrink, GX16-4 shell on, with a bit of extra shrink for future use - trim Mundorfs rehearsing locations in GX16-4 connector

 

solder Mundorfs inside ferrules on GX16-4 connectors

 

basic cable completed

 

test continuity all 4 pins

 

add JSSG cuff to GX16-4 connector

 

open flat copper braid with old knife sharpener

 

rehearse length copper shield and feed over JSSG wire

 

tape copper shield both ends

 

shrink over whole length, tie and solder JSSG wire, trim

 

two more cuffs, a mid-way clasp for JSSG, and add spacer on Oyaide for EtherREGEN

 

I did try a couple of dressing braids but they were fussy about heat notwithstanding usual shielding precautions using heat gun. I'm OK with the end-result.

 

I'm just a hobbyist at this. I have learned from others here on AS - taking what I need and learning from imperfections. Hope this is a similar contribution.

[LewinskiH01]

I'm back again with an idea that might allow me to use eR with a Ravenna or Dante multichannel ADC/DAC. Would love to get input from the knowledgeable around here!

 

I realized my PC optimized/dedicated to audio, currently connected thru USB to Hilo, has 2 ethernet ports. It's an old Intel S1200KPR server motherboard with two 1GbE ports. One port connects to an eR, which connects to the router, etc. Some ethernet audio cards, such as Merging Hapi, allow direct point-to-point ethernet connection to a PC, so I could connect it to the second RJ45 in my computer.

 

Would using the second RJ45 in the motherboard undo the benefits brought by eR on the first RJ45 in the motherboard?

Does anybody know if Ravenna/Dante would work on "LAN#2" if "LAN#1" is limited to 100Mb/s?

 

Thank you!

[Encore]

On 1/25/2022 at 4:08 PM, Iving said:

 

 

 

Don't usually photo/blog cable-building as too impatient to get listening.

Won't receive Farad for a few days so here goes.

The Mundorf "snips" I have are just the right length for the specific Super3-EtherREGEN run.

So no star quad or anything like that.

Besides - the cable will be only about 10" ...

and the Mundorfs aren't amenable to twisting imo ...

anyway I'm running 2 +ve GX16-4 pins [1 & 3] to Oyaide DC 2.1G +ve and 2 to Oyaide -ve [2 &4] so it's not a 4-to-4 config.

 

First squashed a 2.5mm silver ferrule over 2 white Mundorfs, soldered, snipped to length

 

clamped and soldered to Oyaide -ve

 

temporary tape holds 2 Mundorf yellow, solder, trim

 

solder to Oyaide +ve

 

rehearse/investigate wiggle room Oyaide shell

 

add shrink to hold 2 +ves together and 2 -ves together

 

rehearse again

 

2 lengths 2mm cotton tube over

 

tape holds cable in 180 approx. shape as will be used

 

shrink tube over

 

Oyaide shell on - needed a bit of lube (washing-up liquid)

 

cuff strengthens Oyaide joint and adds buffer for JSSG

 

GX16-4 connector looks fiddly for soldering - 2.5mm silver ferrules fit nicely over each connector

 

trim cotton tubes, also excess shrink, GX16-4 shell on, with a bit of extra shrink for future use - trim Mundorfs rehearsing locations in GX16-4 connector

 

solder Mundorfs inside ferrules on GX16-4 connectors

 

basic cable completed

 

test continuity all 4 pins

 

add JSSG cuff to GX16-4 connector

 

open flat copper braid with old knife sharpener

 

rehearse length copper shield and feed over JSSG wire

 

tape copper shield both ends

 

shrink over whole length, tie and solder JSSG wire, trim

 

two more cuffs, a mid-way clasp for JSSG, and add spacer on Oyaide for EtherREGEN

 

I did try a couple of dressing braids but they were fussy about heat notwithstanding usual shielding precautions using heat gun. I'm OK with the end-result.

 

I'm just a hobbyist at this. I have learned from others here on AS - taking what I need and learning from imperfections. Hope this is a similar contribution.

Big thanks for this 👍 If I ever attempt to build my own cable, I'll be following your photos.

 

So far, I'm at the stage where I'm toying with the idea of wrapping cables in aluminum foil and connecting each end with a wire tape of the foil.

[Iving]

2 hours ago, Encore said:

Big thanks for this 👍 If I ever attempt to build my own cable, I'll be following your photos.

 

So far, I'm at the stage where I'm toying with the idea of wrapping cables in aluminum foil and connecting each end with a wire tape of the foil.

 

Thanks

General approach may be varied depending on connectors required at each end.

Aluminium not as good a conductor as copper.

Trial by experience definitely the way to go and great fun provided confident enough electrically safe.

Hope you post your own experiments.

[Iving]

On 1/25/2022 at 3:08 PM, Iving said:

Don't usually photo/blog cable-building as too impatient to get listening.

Won't receive Farad for a few days so here goes.

I'm just a hobbyist at this. I have learned from others here on AS - taking what I need and learning from imperfections. Hope this is a similar contribution.

 

Update: Farad arrived yesterday

 

Here is my DC cable, dressed for dinner, in situ. It's very thick - even thicker than reported above - so it must sound Ace ;-)

This post is a quick note on "all other things equal" SQ delta, the result of changing from EtherREGEN stock smps to Farad Super3 12V (with Purple fuse and Furutech AC inlet upgrades) combined with DIY DC cable.

 

System is atypical - internet offline:
PC > Fiber > EtherREGEN > RedNet D16 AES > Mutec MC-3+ USB > DAC.

 

AfterDark Triple feeds 10 MHz EtherREGEN and Mutec, the latter WC to D16 and DAC.

 

First impression with new Super3, new DIY DC cable and with system cold:
Potential for digital calm / energy spread
Grip
Space and detail affording prat
Punch
but veil recognisable new equipment / cables

 

+20 hrs
Veil gone
Punch and thud
Space around instruments and voices which have more texture - both male and female voices more "personal"
Curious elevation in timing aka prat
Worthwhile reduction in digital effrontery which I hope will deepen over coming days/week or two

 

Summary: unambiguous and significant SQ uplift over stock smps in my system - I would grade it as higher-than-average bang-for-buck

 

[Johnnydev]

1 hour ago, Iving said:

 

Update: Farad arrived yesterday

 

Here is my DC cable, dressed for dinner, in situ. It's very thick - even thicker than reported above - so it must sound Ace ;-)

This post is a quick note on "all other things equal" SQ delta, the result of changing from EtherREGEN stock smps to Farad Super3 12V (with Purple fuse and Furutech AC inlet upgrades) combined with DIY DC cable.

 

System is atypical - internet offline:
PC > Fiber > EtherREGEN > RedNet D16 AES > Mutec MC-3+ USB > DAC.

 

AfterDark Triple feeds 10 MHz EtherREGEN and Mutec, the latter WC to D16 and DAC.

 

First impression with new Super3, new DIY DC cable and with system cold:
Potential for digital calm / energy spread
Grip
Space and detail affording prat
Punch
but veil recognisable new equipment / cables

 

+20 hrs
Veil gone
Punch and thud
Space around instruments and voices which have more texture - both male and female voices more "personal"
Curious elevation in timing aka prat
Worthwhile reduction in digital effrontery which I hope will deepen over coming days/week or two

 

Summary: unambiguous and significant SQ uplift over stock smps in my system - I would grade it as higher-than-average bang-for-buck

 

Wait for about 500 hours for the Farad, but also for the purple fuse

[Encore]

3 hours ago, Iving said:

 

Update: Farad arrived yesterday

 

Here is my DC cable, dressed for dinner, in situ. It's very thick - even thicker than reported above - so it must sound Ace ;-)

This post is a quick note on "all other things equal" SQ delta, the result of changing from EtherREGEN stock smps to Farad Super3 12V (with Purple fuse and Furutech AC inlet upgrades) combined with DIY DC cable.

 

System is atypical - internet offline:
PC > Fiber > EtherREGEN > RedNet D16 AES > Mutec MC-3+ USB > DAC.

 

AfterDark Triple feeds 10 MHz EtherREGEN and Mutec, the latter WC to D16 and DAC.

 

First impression with new Super3, new DIY DC cable and with system cold:
Potential for digital calm / energy spread
Grip
Space and detail affording prat
Punch
but veil recognisable new equipment / cables

 

+20 hrs
Veil gone
Punch and thud
Space around instruments and voices which have more texture - both male and female voices more "personal"
Curious elevation in timing aka prat
Worthwhile reduction in digital effrontery which I hope will deepen over coming days/week or two

 

Summary: unambiguous and significant SQ uplift over stock smps in my system - I would grade it as higher-than-average bang-for-buck

 

Cool system! 👍 Always warms my heart to see old Snell A speakers 😊 What is the clothed contraption in front of/under the midrange driver? Is it to block first reflections from the floor?

 

Also got inspired on how to keep the eR in place with thick, unwieldy cables going into it 👍

[Iving]

27 minutes ago, Encore said:

Cool system! 👍 Always warms my heart to see old Snell A speakers 😊 What is the clothed contraption in front of/under the midrange driver? Is it to block first reflections from the floor?

 

Also got inspired on how to keep the eR in place with thick, unwieldy cables going into it 👍

 

ty

 

These are Snell Type A III.

Bought them years ago - had them under tarpaulin in a hiatus after which got the surrounds fixed with love. Built the whole sytem in front of them.

The cloth below the midrange is stuffed/stapled on by manuf.. It hides the upper. xover. Yes I think also it has the function you mention. I've never (yet) de-stapled to check the caps. Sometimes I'm tempted, but then an upgrade like this one makes me plenty happy for now. Usually all this is hidden by the grilles over the upper chamber - but you have to remove these to get at the mids - and replacing the upper cloth is just not worth it. Maybe they sound better this way. Qvortrup says mine look "agricultural". My wife hears me murmur "agricultural" in my sleep. That's how much I love my Snells.

The ER is strapped down -  safe with inflexible cables exactly engineered!

[audiophilac]

Are matching transceivers required to ensure proper audio performance?

I've a HP JL683A switch but I'm not sure if Finisar FTLX1475D3BTL works with it.

 

[hifiveharry]

I have a question. I have an Uptone lps 1.2 running my ER, and have a JS 2 running my Optical Rendu and my After Dark clock that connects to the ER. Am I crossing the moat by using the JS 2 to power the clock connecting to the ER? Thanks in advance. 

[JohnSwenson]

8 hours ago, hifiveharry said:

I have a question. I have an Uptone lps 1.2 running my ER, and have a JS 2 running my Optical Rendu and my After Dark clock that connects to the ER. Am I crossing the moat by using the JS 2 to power the clock connecting to the ER? Thanks in advance. 

Do you have the ER connected backwards? (A side optical to the oR?)  If so the clock jack (B side) is on the upstream side which WILL allow network leakage current to bypass the moat in the ER AND the fiber to the oR. In this case it would be best to run the clock from the lps-1.2 and the ER and oR from the JS-2.

 

If you do not have the ER running backwards, how are you connecting the B side to the optical port on the oR?

 

John S.