Building a DIY Music Server

[MarcelNL]

4 minutes ago, Dev said:

 

and why would they make a cooling system which will not work with their chassis ?

 

 

 

Ask Larry...I dunno, I just think it's awfully convenient and I was not planning to use a metal case anyhow.

[MarcelNL]

wow that is indeed far out of what anyone would expect!

 

interesting! Wouldn't that mean that you'd need to flash your bios every time you reboot?

[MarcelNL]

4 minutes ago, Nenon said:

That was the plan... I still have a Taiko chassis, motherboard, Taiko ATX, and everything else needed here to build one for a friend. It was sitting in the middle of my music room for several months last year. The thinking was that if these parts were in the middle of the room, I would get to building this server sooner. But no, that did not help. 

Then I moved them to my workshop and they have been sitting there since the beginning of the year. My friend is probably mad at me, and I am planning to work on it this month. Unfortunately, my Taiko Extreme server got me spoiled and motivation for server DIY work has gone down significantly. 

A DIY horn speakers project has occupied most of my DIY time lately.... 

 

makes perfect sense! The tinker enthusiast usually has more interesting challenges on the to do list than documentating previous stuff! 

 

I can imagine that a DIY horn will keep you plenty busy! (I'm trying to get my horn project started but I;m waiting to confirm my hunch on the exact horn curve)

 

Anyone hwo knows if the Sage C621E normally comes with KVM ability? I see the chip on the MB but am unable to find the IP adress in BIOS.....new to server grade MB and all that ;-) 

[MarcelNL]

could it be that the KVM chip is on the MB but it requires BMC to make that work?

 

(just trying to find a way to make the ad interim fan cooled heatsinks a bit more quiet)

 

 

[MarcelNL]

guess I'm right 

 

https://www.dustinhome.nl/product/5011167537/asmb9-ikvm-ipmi-management-adapter?ssel=false

[MarcelNL]

6 hours ago, BOBO said:

no no no. when you flash the modified bios, it will replace the default one, so even if you do a CMOS reset, the settings that you changed will remain.

I must be missing something here, patience with me please ;-)

 

I always tought it's a BIOS backup battery, but upon some reading it mostly keeps the clock ....sweet! I imagine that clock time is not needed so NO battery is doable.

great finding ! When the time comes I'll tinker with it too!

 

 

[MarcelNL]

7 hours ago, SK8 said:

I believe you can put the C621e in their H5 case but HDPlex won't supply the copper heatpipes to connnect the second CPU to the left hand side heatsink. Again, please double check with Larry.

Thanks for the heads up yet I won't need to, I've got a supply of heatpipes and will not use the HDPlex case (or any metal case)

[MarcelNL]

7 hours ago, SK8 said:

I used the Mundorf SWG115 wire which is about the size of AWG 14. It is so stiff making it very hard to have the Molex pins securely locked in the housing, especially for the ATX 24 connectors. At the end, I ordered 2 of the following MB ATX header and soldered the wires directly to both connectors for the ATX 24 cable.

 

 

 

https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Molex/15-24-7243?qs=mjekseImwbYPBDyRu413TQ%3D%3D

 

 

NIce find, the ATX is a PITA....I'm indeed using 14AWG and that is what killed the previous MB...(well actually that and the fact I was too lazy to disconnect the other side of the ATX cable also because it's so stiff)

 

Not sure if the soldering holds well...the connectors look a tad small to me to make a good connection with 14AWG, you need a mechanically sound connection before applying solder, most folks see soldering as 'conductive glue' well....if folks entertain the thought that a BIOS battery can be heard they ought to listen to a solder joint....

 

I'd really like a screw type connector....but with 24 pins in that small of a space it ain't going to happen.

Perhaps we just need to epoxy the back side to keep the pins in place....now that might work...

[MarcelNL]

55 minutes ago, Nenon said:

That was always installed on the Asus SAGE motherboards I have bought. Taiko removes it on the Extreme. 

 

 

they sell two versions,  the regular one and the BMC version, might be differering per country.

In the end it is no big deal but I hope to listen to the beast prior to getting the last parts together for passive cooling!

Those fans are LOUD

[MarcelNL]

what i found to also help is to ensure the wings that keep the molex pin inside the connector body are not squashed when crimping.

 

O , and Angelo, why not turn the ATX module 180 so your cabling is 10 cm shorter?

[MarcelNL]

the first sound is coming through the system, incredibly lean W10 using foobar (for lack of getting anything else to work).....two fans at 4500rpm blazing but what I hear makes it clear there is no going back....wow.

 

The clarity of the midrange, the weight, authority, liquidity, my current server is good but this is on an SMPS, no OS optimalization whatsoever, no CPU assignements made and network and screen attached (not headless).

 

WOW

 

 

 

[MarcelNL]

1 hour ago, NewOldman said:

B12 | Dynatron

Would have been much preferred yet those were not in stock anywhere near me, and I think those rely on cold server rooms with lots of forces air flow don't they?

[MarcelNL]

11 hours ago, drjimwillie said:

Hi Marce

I have a couple more questions about delidding, please?

 

I hope it is not inappropriate for me to ask this question here, but how much are you paying to have somebody delid one of your CPUs. I can send you a PM if you think it is more appropriate. 
 

Also, what type of guarantees do you get that your CPUs will not be harmed in the process?

 

Am I correct in assuming that this will void the warranty on the CPU?

 

The numbers for reducing the operating temperature of the CPU looked very promising. However, personally, I worry about the risk. This CPU cost about $500 each. 
 

The CPU are the last components that I need to purchase for my build. I am waiting until I have everything else ready, just in case there is an issue with the CPU and I need to return it.

 

are a lot of enthusiast doing this?

I look forward to your assessment. 
 

I am not too worried about the risk of delidding, m CPUs were used ones ...Xeon CPUs are near indestructable ad can be bought at around 50% of the street price for new.

The price of delidding is around 30E a piece, and if Shit happens it's just that.

 

Are many folks doing this....I don not know...yet when it is a viable option for hard cre gamers why not try it, as core temp is an important factor for sound quality.

[MarcelNL]

I2S is a better USB card ;-) 

 

I'd wait to hear the TACDA before claiming it's better, it looks like it can be a great design though...I'm interested.

 

[MarcelNL]

12 minutes ago, littlej0e said:

 

Excellent point. This was my biggest concern with the Taiko USB card, though I suppose the real problem is finding a DAC manufacturer that cares enough to write really good DAC drivers. 

 

 

You are absolutely right - the price has to be closer to what you posted. No way they only charge €500 for the V2. 

 

Both of you make excellent points and reinforce my biggest problem with going with a Taiko USB card:

1. I have to find an existing Extreme owner and beg them to buy a card for me or wait until one shows up on the used market. 
2. I will never get optimized DAC drivers unless Taiko opens them to non-Extreme owners (which I doubt they will ever do and I don't blame them for not doing so). 

Thankfully, @Nenon was kind enough to eliminate my confusion surrounding Taiko's proprietary drivers - they are basically a collection of custom DAC drivers - not general Windows audio system drivers. Meaning all of these cards are theoretically on a level playing field for non-Extreme owners. So the million dollar question is, will the Pink Faun/JCAT cards outperform a Taiko using the same general Windows audio drivers (or third party optimized Windows system drivers) and manufacturer-supplied DAC drivers?

We'll simply need a shootout...which is difficult since it's comparing apples and oranges real quick.

 

Personally my bet is not on the PF using supercaps, anything I heard so far using those had a grey veil over it. If Taiko releases the TACDDA with I2S and that is able to do I2S over RJ45/utp/stp my bet would be placed there.

 

 

[MarcelNL]

We'll see how and when it'll be released "to the masses'  ..I'd not call tge select audience here "unwashed" ;-)

How many people do you know who are building something like a high ocrane CPU audio server?

 

So far Taiko had not disappointed in delivering, sure an almost similar level could be obtained with loads of coordinated tinkering yet there is plenty of reason to their apparent madness.

 

 

[MarcelNL]

58 minutes ago, baconbrain said:

Perhaps I am missing something around Taiko’s Tacdda solution, but isn’t a DAC only as good as it’s analog output stage? If so, how will Taiko fit such on a PCiE card?

Tacda is not just an plug in DAC card, that is one option...it is designed as a modular direct from CPU output card.

I personally doubt the DAC module is an end game design, but we may be surprised

[MarcelNL]

4 minutes ago, di-fi said:

 

Wifi being worse than Ethernet cables, I realize your listening ritual must be a desktop experience to get the best out of the XACT S1.
That seems a significant compromise for whom prefer listening not from behind a desk.

Would a wired iPad with wifi not connected be comparable in SQ to the M2 Mac Mini to allow for a more flexible choice of listening position? 

When I shut down thw web page interface to Daphile on my laptop of Ipad sound quality improves after like 20 sec or so.

Wired connection sounds like a great option...or a good old fashioned IR extender ;-)

[MarcelNL]

Interesting....beware....at this level the differences may be small but typically so important there usually is no going back!

 

 

[MarcelNL]

16 hours ago, matthias said:

Just for reference:

Emile from Taiko Audio prefers a wifi solution for his upcoming Taiko router. He would never do this if wifi is inferior from a sound quality POV.

 

Matt

if we only could tap into the knowledge behind that ;-)

 

 

[MarcelNL]

1 minute ago, di-fi said:

 

But  @Marcin_gps seems to suggest in his personal setup by disabling wifi and adding a XACT S1 (switch) he  virtually eliminated all network noise resulting in better SQ even for files played directly on the server.
Control point - switch - server

 

Contrarily to Taiko in his setup @Marcin_gpshas to disconnect from the router (besides not using wifi) to obtain the best SQ.

 

I tried introduce the idea to explore an iPad connection in his setup to resolve the UI being somewhere on a desk in the room.

 

 

yep!

It'll be an interesting journey discovering what makes a network for audio tick....

 

I usually switch off the user interface for Daphile for serious listening, after 20 sec or so SQ definitely gets better...not by much but still.

 

It would be great to have a forward backward control, hardwired to the server, for critical listening.....

[MarcelNL]

ultimately the implementation is what matters..whoever gets that right  rules.

[MarcelNL]

23 hours ago, basillus said:

Yes, this psu can be adjusted from 5 to 24v, but it depends on the voltage output of the transformer. I think to get 5v a 9v transformer are preferred,

but maybe a 12v can be used to…

check with the manufacturer please, in general you need some voltage drop for the regulation but having excessive voltage drop can make the thing more noisy which IMO is contrary to the point behind using a dedicated PSU.

 

 

[MarcelNL]

14 hours ago, Nenon said:

@BOBO - these things are so cheap, why don't you just order another one with the right voltage and avoid any risks.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/125943342243?chn=ps&var=426895517614

(there are many sellers and some sell them even cheaper)

 

Note: I don't recommend this product. 

I vote against the product, I bought a dual output dual transformer version based on this circuit to test the effect on SQ on my general use (not audio) Wifi AP's, the first transformer had a catastrophic meltdown within a month, used well within spec and the second one weeks later.....the only thing the seller could do was to tell me I surely had modified the unit and did not know what I was doing. 

 

junk.

[MarcelNL]

1 hour ago, basillus said:

Sounds weird, was it with toroidal transformer or R-core transformer?

I have a few with R-core transformers and there have been no problems with them. It is basically the same psu as Xymox at "whatsbestforum" uses with a few modifications for his AppleTv X and switches/AP. 

the R core version, the weird thing was that one R core transformer was labeled 18V, which is a LOT for a 12V output PSU to didssipate in heat, the other side was a 15 V Rcore that also released its magic smoke....the first one we inhaled, for the second I recognized the smell.