Building a DIY Music Server

[auricgoldfinger]

3 hours ago, StreamFidelity said:

 

I think it fits. I see the problem in the short distance between JCAT NET and PinkFaun USB. Mutual influences or heat development in the sensitive watch would not be good.

 

Do you think the distance between the JCAT NET and Pink Faun USB cards would closer than the JCAT NET and USB cards in your build? 

[auricgoldfinger]

This was a phenomenal thread.  Thank you so much!

[auricgoldfinger]

24 minutes ago, Nenon said:

And the last thing - adding a SR Orange fuse. That's my favorite fuse at the moment.

 

Dumb question...where does the fuse go in your build?

[auricgoldfinger]

31 minutes ago, Nenon said:

 

Yes, PinkFaun ultraOCXO. That's the best clock I could find on the market. If anyone knows anything better I can use, please let me know. 

 

What about this one?

 

https://www.fidelityaudio.co.uk/c4-reference-low-jitter-clock-1548-p.asp

 

Their signature model should be available in the next month or so.

 

https://www.fidelityaudio.co.uk/c5-signature-low-jitter-clock-4461-p.asp

 

This is out of my realm, so apologies in advance if they won't work for your application.

[auricgoldfinger]

3 hours ago, vhs said:

The original clock underneath the heat sink of chipset was replaced by using two silver wires connected to the new OXCO PCB board.

 

What are the two silver wires connected to for power?  What kind of connector is used?

 

EDIT:  Is the PCB purchased separately?  Do you happen to know the manufacturer and model number?

[auricgoldfinger]

21 minutes ago, ASRMichael said:

Then onto Router and Modem, this is at the bottom of my list, as I'm currently planning local files only

 

I recently bought an Arris SB8200 cable modem to replace the noisy gateway which I was renting from xfinity.  (I was only using the modem features.  Routing is handled by a separate Linksys router.)  My goal was to get rid of the annoying fan noise that was polluting my otherwise silent office.  Since my music files are stored on a NAS, I wasn't expecting to hear any change in SQ.  I experienced an OMG moment when I heard a rather substantial improvement using only the SMPS that was supplied with the modem.  As @Nenon has mentioned, an LPS and good quality, shielded DC cable will further improve the SQ.

 

In my experience, the SB8200 is a relatively high value, low cost upgrade even if you only use the SMPS included with it.

[auricgoldfinger]

I've been trying to determine the quality of the clock offered by Fidelity Audio, and it has been a struggle.  Apparently, I am the first person to have asked about the phase noise characteristics of their clock.  It seems they may devote more effort to their voltage regulator than Pink Faun. 

 

This 40hz data in the attached graph is from the supplier of the range of oscillators they use.  Any thoughts?

 

phfobkoogonohchd.bmp

 

 

[auricgoldfinger]

1 hour ago, lmitche said:

Some motherboards allow the disablement of the PCH and doing so greatly enhances SQ

 

How can one determine if this is possible on a particular motherboard?  Is it disabled physically?

 

1 hour ago, lmitche said:

The absence of a GPU is audible, and on Intel chips disablement of the GPU through software is possible as a GPU and monitor is not required for music playback.

 

Is the GPU disabled in the BIOS?

 

Thanks, Larry.

[auricgoldfinger]

Cue thread invasion from vortecjr. 

[auricgoldfinger]

1 hour ago, Nenon said:

I completed my tube SET monoblocks a couple of weeks ago. They sound amazing! Even better than they look. The Duelund Cast tinned copper caps are still breaking-in as well as all the Mundorf MTube and MLytic AG capacitors I used but they are 99% there. Add to that, the custom silver wires used throughout, Mundorf silver/gold wire for the power supply, custom transformers, custom chokes, Z-foil resistors, WBT silver connectors, NCF IEC inlets, Grade A Sophia Electric tubes, Grade A Shuguang WE6SN7 PLUS tubes, SR Orange fuses, etc. I used to love my Lundahl output transformers but those beat the shit out of the Lundahls! These monoblocks are something special. They really are a piece of art, and I am very proud of the end result.

 

Definitely something to be very proud of.  Happy listening!

[auricgoldfinger]

5 hours ago, cool_chris said:

And yes I can confirm thet the more switches the better.

 

Additionally adding ultra clocks tranformed the already great Bufflows to totally different levels.

So I have 2 Nenon Moded Buffalows now and 2 Nenon + Pink Faun moded  Buffalos.

I agree with Nenon findings that ONE Pink Faun ULTRA clock moded Buffao is better that stacked 4 Buffalos.

This clock simply adds something that is unreachable in normal switches.

It is so calm, fluid and transparent that nothing compares to that.

 

 

What is the magnitude of the change going from one PF switch to two?

[auricgoldfinger]

52 minutes ago, Brucemck2 said:

Where can someone in the US purchase these upgrade(s)? I have two unmodified units.

 

Jord is now a Melco dealer, so you also can order a fully modified S100 from him on a turnkey basis.

[auricgoldfinger]

55 minutes ago, cool_chris said:

Nenon is correct.

I got 4 Buffalo switches but sent 2 for the clock upgrade to Jord at Pink Faun.

He did fantastic work as you see on the pictures I submitted few pages ago.

Spering the money now to get other 2 upgrated. I need to have all 4 Buffalows  with Pink Faun clocks. Those are fantastic switches.

I wish you could hear the difference on my system. Night and day difference. 

There is no way to take any of the 4 Buffalows away or to get the 5th switch (Ether Regen) out of the chain.

 

I am glad Nenon confirmed the Telegartner M12 being excellent as a musical and sweetness adding solution. 

I wish I could afford to get one and install in my chain as the 6th switch.

 

For now I Prefer to keep Buffalows with PinkFaun clocks if they give 60 % of performance related to 40% of M12 performance ( Nenon rating).

So as far as I understand it correct

you get little more SQ for much less money.

Thank you Nenon !

Best

Chris

 

 

 

 

What 9 power supply rails will you be using with the 4 PF Buffalos and EtherRegen?

 

[auricgoldfinger]

1 hour ago, ASRMichael said:

Each to their own! working out total costs! 
 

4 switches 1k

4 PF clocks 6k

4 SJ rails 8k

+ wiring 1k

 

16k plus. I always say if you’ve got the money spend it on Hifi! (My wife says otherwise)

Enjoy & thanks for reporting 

 

Your estimate is too low.  He needs 8 SJ rails for the 2 DC inputs on each PF Buffalo pluse a 9th SJ rail for the EtherRegen. 🙂

[auricgoldfinger]

Just now, ASRMichael said:

20k then!!  Getting closer to an Extreme price! 

 

True, although many Extreme users have multiple switches.  Some have 2x M12 Gold.

[auricgoldfinger]

19 minutes ago, Nenon said:

 

The MSRP of the Duelund CAST Silver Capacitors used to be very high. Here is an example of one value above 0.1 uF - 

https://www.partsconnexion.com/DUELUND-77035.html - with MSRP of $1,499.95.

 

Duelund created its own competition when they released the Tinned Copper version. It was supposed to be a more affordable option to the silver and the hybrid (copper/silver) caps. It turned out many people (including me) prefered the tinned copper version over the copper or hybrid (copper/silver) version.

Here is a review that ranks the hybrid less than the tinned copper version: http://www.humblehomemadehifi.com/Cap.html

 

As a result of this, the tinned copper version became the most seeking of the CAST range caps. And that is probably what drove the cost down on the other models. 

 

Are any of these CAST range caps used in a DC4?

[auricgoldfinger]

Thoughts on this range of power supplies anyone? 

 

https://www.pachankostudio.com/products

 

[auricgoldfinger]

5 hours ago, seeteeyou said:

"Word first class build LPSU" sounded very so promising to me, LOL

 

FWIW Pachanko didn't seem to have a solid track record according to multiple customers

 

https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/topic/26411-pachanko-sata-cable/page/6/#comments

 

If they weren't even able to ship their cables without significant delays, what are we supposed to expect for a megabuck PSU then?

 

Unless they're ordering their Duelund CAST Silver in bulk just like what Taiko Audio did, where would they find a reputable + reliable source with reasonable pricing?

 

https://www.facebook.com/duelundcoherentaudio/posts/3707228172640409

https://www.facebook.com/duelundcoherentaudio/posts/3752379124791980

 

They didn't really mention whether it's the cheapest one @ 0.1uF or the others, Hifi Collective could hardly keep that particular one in stock

 

https://www.hificollective.co.uk/catalog/-c-61_68_329_338.html

 

Right now I don't even see 0.1uF here while only 1 outta 3 choices could be added to their shopping cart despite the status shown

 

https://www.partsconnexion.com/duelund-cast-pio-silver-electronic-film-capacitors-630vdc.html

 

Maybe they're actually stocking up on 0.1uF for real, who knows? Though it's just kinda funny to see Audio Note on their product page while they're claiming that's meant to be Duelund CAST Silver

 

https://www.pachankostudio.com/product-page/pachanko-audiophile-masterpiece-edition-highend-lpsu

 

Could they REALLY find the the right source for Duelund or not?

 

And then I certainly hope that 4N silver stuff wouldn't come from Tao Bao before they're treated cryogenically, not sure if there were too many O-core transformers with 4N silver out there but Kenneth Lau got them from Simon Tuned

 

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=534199855459

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=534325078734

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=534389904041

 

Maybe they're also sharing the same source or something?

 

https://kitsunehifi.com/product/kitsune-hifi-800w-occ-isolation-transformer/

 

Neotech 7N Cryo Silver and Duelund 5N Cryo Silver could also be found on Tao Bao easily

 

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=15985627183

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=36010441073

 

"Super low noise linear regulator boards" could mean so many things. LT3045? Single / double-regulated? What kinda (continuous / transient) current could each 19V / 5V rail provide?

 

Just asking for so much money without giving us some basic details, especially their (realistic) lead time in the middle of a global pandemic that ain't going away soon.

 

I dunno man, 3 rails of DC4 just happened to cost £4400 and that's like quite a bit less than €5000 these days. Which one is a (much) safer bet?

 

Thanks for your thoughts and detailed analysis!  Terrific as usual.

[auricgoldfinger]

1 minute ago, Dev said:

 

One thing I must say that the chassis looks extremely beautiful and high-end, very much "Ayre" type and something I would like to see in my rack, off-coarse provided their performance is at par or beyond.

 

Having been burned by Adrian at TLS, I was naturally skeptical.  @seeteeyou confirmed my intuition to stay away.

[auricgoldfinger]

12 minutes ago, Dev said:

 

Reading that thread I thought all issues were sorted out....but anyways, my comment was not for anyone to go ahead and buy it. I was merely commenting on the chassis which no one seems to offer. Pretty unique in that respect, regardless of what anyone claims.

 

 

I didn't take your post as a recommendation. 🙂

[auricgoldfinger]

Is the Taiko DC-DC ATX also a drop in for the HDPlex 800W DC-ATX?

[auricgoldfinger]

6 minutes ago, JayM said:

Hello everyone! 

 

My real name is Jelle, but all my American/English friends call me Jay. Somehow my Dutch name keeps – unintentionally - being pronounced as Jelly or Yellow.

 

So, hello everyone, I am Jay! ;)

 

For a - relatively short – while I’ve been working closely with Emile, Ton and Ted at Taiko audio. We’ve recently moved from our old, shared facility in Hengelo to our own new headquarters in Oldenzaal. Our new location and set-up will allow us to do a lot more development and testing.

 

To manage the ever-increasing complexity of our operation, Emile has asked me to work with him as General Manager for Taiko Audio. In the coming months we will try to streamline our production and logistics process to expedite the time between order placements and actual shipping. This will enable us to fulfil orders faster and faster in the coming months.

 

That brings me to the reason why I’ve decided to introduce myself in this thread.  Until now we’ve only shipped a very limited amount of DC DC-ATX’s for testing.  If our supplier delivers some of the last needed components for the DC DC-ATX as scheduled, we will be able to ship all existing (paid) pre-orders on the 30th of April. 

 

Everyone who pre-ordered a DC DC-ATX can expect an email in the upcoming days:)

 

Welcome, Jay!

[auricgoldfinger]

@Marcin_gps My observation is there are better ways to advertise and market your products than the way you have been carrying on here.  These last few pages are really a bad look for you.

[auricgoldfinger]

It seems to me this thread went completely off the rails about 3 pages ago.  I suggest deleting them would keep the thread properly focused.  This discussion rapidly devolved into the usual objective/subjective arguments.

[auricgoldfinger]

On 5/23/2021 at 10:52 PM, atxkyle said:

I bought a 1TB Samsung 980 Pro SSD (m.2 pcie) and adding it to my server did bad, filthy, naughty things to SQ. Especially when I had it internally, but even when attached externally via USB adapter. So bad it makes me very curious about how the Extreme and other servers have managed to neutralize the impact. 

 

How were you powering the external SSD?