Schiit Audio Releases its Unison USB Upgrade

[JoeWhip]

8 hours ago, matthias said:

 

Mike,

thanks for sharing 🙂

Does it sound better than your famous Theta transport?

 

Matt

I had the Data Basic Transport and it was a damn fine sounding transport. Too bad the laser mechanism failed a few years ago with no spares to be found. This will be a great sounding transport when it is released. They will sell tons.

[lmitche]

10 hours ago, baldr said:

This is a good time for me to restate my opinion that CD playback with our Unison CD Host and Input is the finest digital audio I have heard.

This implies that you can build the worlds best sounding one box CD player with analog outputs today as no USB circuits need be involved. Is that right?

 

There are many serious audiophiles that will toss their birds nest of streaming gear in a heartbeat for such a solution if it also has a decent remote.

 

BTW - Personally I am not going back to CD playback, ever. My Modius arrives on Monday.

[AudioDoctor]

15 minutes ago, lmitche said:

This implies that you can build the worlds best sounding one box CD player with analog outputs today as no USB circuits need be involved. Is that right?

 

There are many serious audiophiles that will toss their birds nest of streaming gear in a heartbeat for such a solution if it also has a decent remote.

 

BTW - Personally I am not going back to CD playback, ever. My Modius arrives on Monday.

 

As I understand it, the USB is the output of the CD player with Unison. If I am wrong, I am sure everyone will correct me.

[matthias]

17 minutes ago, AudioDoctor said:

As I understand it, the USB is the output of the CD player with Unison. If I am wrong, I am sure everyone will correct me.

 

Correct, IIUC there will be only USB as output of the transport.

 

Matt

[beerandmusic]

3 hours ago, AudioDoctor said:

 

Because unless it's a portable device, my entire library won't fit on an SD card for one, and for two, why? It is a pointless complication.

and it will fit on a cd?  How much of it do you actually listen to?  I am sure you can fit the mass majority of what you listen to regularly on a single sd card.  I rarely ever plug in a cd anymore unless it is to rip it.

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

50 minutes ago, AudioDoctor said:

If I am wrong, I am sure everyone will correct me.

That's not the internet I know and love :~)

[AudioDoctor]

39 minutes ago, beerandmusic said:

and it will fit on a cd?  How much of it do you actually listen to?  I am sure you can fit the mass majority of what you listen to regularly on a single sd card.  I rarely ever plug in a cd anymore unless it is to rip it.

 

 

Here you go

https://hifiman.com/products/category/1

[beerandmusic]

1 hour ago, lmitche said:

This implies that you can build the worlds best sounding one box CD player with analog outputs today as no USB circuits need be involved. Is that right?

 

There are many serious audiophiles that will toss their birds nest of streaming gear in a heartbeat for such a solution if it also has a decent remote.

 

BTW - Personally I am not going back to CD playback, ever. My Modius arrives on Monday.

 

Would a dac designer design a device that doesn't require a DAC?

The concept is great for a transport that uses an external dac, but the conveniency of a cd player will never catch....

Engineers need to figure out the timing why a transport could sound better than a flat file....do it with a sd card or ssd drive then you would have something.

[beerandmusic]

6 minutes ago, AudioDoctor said:

 

Here you go

https://hifiman.com/products/category/1

 

none will have a chord or shiit dac embeded..I can show you more cd players.

 

would be nice to have a shelf system with a sd or ssd player with sonics of streamers at a low price (smile)....just me, but i have no desire for the inconvenience of a cd player even though i stil have over 600 cd's after selling off twice as many...i am with lemitche in that regard...i will never go back to cd as my media of choice.

[AudioDoctor]

16 minutes ago, beerandmusic said:

 

none will have a chord or shiit dac embeded..I can show you more cd players.

 

would be nice to have a shelf system with a sd or ssd player with sonics of streamers at a low price (smile)....just me, but i have no desire for the inconvenience of a cd player even though i stil have over 600 cd's after selling off twice as many...i am with lemitche in that regard...i will never go back to cd as my media of choice.

 

ok... Argue your point with Schitt. I'm not the one making a CD player.

[beerandmusic]

8 minutes ago, AudioDoctor said:

 

ok... Argue your point with Schitt. I'm not the one making a CD player.

 

Also, CDs are limited to 44.1K...although many will suggest that encompasses our hearing, yet many flat files exist much higher, where a CD medium won't cut it.

 

I am not going to argue with Mike...he knows what he knows and that is his profession, and he makes the best music he can with his knowledge.  PS, i have hinted at DSD before and he has no interest in pursuing flagship dsd dacs.

 

He has experience already with both CD transports and PCM dacs which is where he excels and is understandable.  He is probably getting older and doesn't want to diversify from what he knows best. 

 

There has to be a reason why so many people suggest DSD over enet is currently best possible sounding architecture though, but usb is a whole lot more convenient.

 

There are always trade-offs.

[JoeWhip]

4 hours ago, matthias said:

 

Correct, IIUC there will be only USB as output of the transport.

 

Matt

It is my understanding that the transport will have USB and spdif outs and AES as well. Mike is pretty clear that the Unison USB is the best sounding output of all but it makes sense to have the other outputs as well, no? He has also been clear that Unison out to Unison in is utterly fantastic. I hope to find out!

[matthias]

15 hours ago, beerandmusic said:

There has to be a reason why so many people suggest DSD over enet is currently best possible sounding architecture though, but usb is a whole lot more convenient.

 

IMHO, the best sounding architecture is either UHQ server via USB into DAC like Taiko Extreme or CDT via USB into DAC like Schiit with Unison.

 

Matt

[beerandmusic]

5 hours ago, matthias said:

 

IMHO, the best sounding architecture is either UHQ server via USB into DAC like Taiko Extreme or CDT via USB into DAC like Schiit with Unison.

 

Matt

most people that have tried, would argue take if you took the same dac you suggest off of an enet solution like optical rendu or sotm that it would be better....inre cdt, it's just not practical for conveniency anymore....why couldn't schiit do a sd or ssd transport? Then it would be interesting...jmo

 

While you are here though, i have a question regarding the unison usb....

with the unison usb, does it isolate well enough where it doesnt matter how noisy the pc is?  And why would it make a difference what computer (e.g. you mention some uhq server?) if you use a unison usb if it truly isolates?  Is there still a probelm with usb timing or something else where the pc would make a difference even with unison usb?

 

The way unison is marketed, it sounds as though it doesn't make a difference what pc is being used if it isolates and regenerates??

 

No one has ever provided a logical reason (at least that makes sense to me), that if everyone agrees that the digital music is recieved by the dac correctly, and if all there is that is transmitted is:::

 

digital music (everyone agrees the dac receives this correctly)

reference voltage (unison isolates and provides it's own)

noise (galvanically isolated)

 

 what difference anything would make....and it seems the dac engineers don't know the answer either?? 

 

Even if you can't completely isolate all noise, if it recieves the bits correctly and it regenerates the bits without audible noise....etc...

 

There is still some part of the technology missing for it to make sense?

[matthias]

Some more info about Schiit Unison Out CD transport this time from Jason:

 

Don't expect the transport to be super-cheap, if that's what you're looking for, though we're not talking car-like prices (like other transports that use some of our mechanicals cost.)

Do expect it to be a game-changer in what you can expect from a transport.

And do expect it this year.

 

Matt

[matthias]

23 hours ago, beerandmusic said:

most people that have tried, would argue take if you took the same dac you suggest off of an enet solution like optical rendu or sotm that it would be better....inre cdt, it's just not practical for conveniency anymore....why couldn't schiit do a sd or ssd transport? Then it would be interesting...jmo

 

While you are here though, i have a question regarding the unison usb....

with the unison usb, does it isolate well enough where it doesnt matter how noisy the pc is?  And why would it make a difference what computer (e.g. you mention some uhq server?) if you use a unison usb if it truly isolates?  Is there still a probelm with usb timing or something else where the pc would make a difference even with unison usb?

 

The way unison is marketed, it sounds as though it doesn't make a difference what pc is being used if it isolates and regenerates??

 

No one has ever provided a logical reason (at least that makes sense to me), that if everyone agrees that the digital music is recieved by the dac correctly, and if all there is that is transmitted is:::

 

digital music (everyone agrees the dac receives this correctly)

reference voltage (unison isolates and provides it's own)

noise (galvanically isolated)

 

 what difference anything would make....and it seems the dac engineers don't know the answer either?? 

 

Even if you can't completely isolate all noise, if it recieves the bits correctly and it regenerates the bits without audible noise....etc...

 

There is still some part of the technology missing for it to make sense?

 

I have the impression that nobody can answer your questions to your satisfaction, anyway I share my opinion:

 

To maximise the quality of digital music reproduction, the order of importance is (from most to least):

 

The performance of the artist, the recording, the CD/file, the source component that replays the CD/file, the DAC, the preamplifier, the power amplifier and the loudspeaker (least important).

We often refer to this order of importance as Source First.

 

The Schiit Unison seems to be a higher performing USB interface and allows you to hear better the quality of the music presented through the upstream components like network devices and server or CD transport.

 

IMO, even with isolating devices like FMC etc. the server is more important than the DAC.

 

Matt

[Rexp]

I hate CD Players but will be ecstatic if this one delivers the goods. 40 years waiting, better late than never. 

[AudioDoctor]

1 hour ago, Rexp said:

I hate CD Players but will be ecstatic if this one delivers the goods. 40 years waiting, better late than never. 

 

I am 100% not interested in a CD player, however if at some point they bring this magical and fantastic sounding device to a network player, I may not complain too much...

[jcbenten]

I personally would like an awesome, standalone, USB Ripper...I prefer CD much more than buying a file but, since I no longer have my Genki, I need to rip.

[matthias]

30 minutes ago, jcbenten said:

I personally would like an awesome, standalone, USB Ripper...I prefer CD much more than buying a file but, since I no longer have my Genki, I need to rip.

 

Why not buy the upcoming transport?

 

Matt

[JoeWhip]

Expect the transport to be priced around a grand. It will not be in the mid hundreds, it will do more than just spin CDs. I think Jason and Mike have already indicated that. Nothing else I can say. All will be revealed eventually. All I can say is I want one and am holding off on getting the optical Rendu because of this product.

[matthias]

4 minutes ago, JoeWhip said:

Expect the transport to be priced around a grand. It will not be in the mid hundreds, it will do more than just spin CDs. I think Jason and Mike have already indicated that. Nothing else I can say. All will be revealed eventually. All I can say is I want one and am holding off on getting the optical Rendu because of this product.

 

Do you know something about the mechanical drive they will use?

Toploader?

Thanks

 

Matt

[all300b]

This product may be the final motivation for audio hoarding. Made the first foolish error in selling my LP collection at a yard sale when CD was advancing perfect sound forever. Based on my cheap Yamaha turntable with its perpetually damaged tonearm, how good could records really sound anyway? Then watched the turntable resurgence with deep regret.

 

More than 20 years later, followed the trend and ripped 600+ CDs to the computer - finally lifting the music collection from its physical shackles. Then made the second foolish error in considering what do do with that huge cardboard box of already ripped CDs on garbage day. Besides, how good could CDs really sound when computer audio offered the potential for perfect sound in perpetuity?

 

I guess the lesson is never - NEVER - throw your music away.

 

[The Computer Audiophile]

I think the transport idea is really cool, but I have zero interest in ever spinning a plastic disc again. I guess I’m off @baldr’s Christmas card list this year :~)

 

I look forward to @JoeWhip reviewing it for AS. 

[JoeWhip]

1 hour ago, matthias said:

 

Do you know something about the mechanical drive they will use?

Toploader?

Thanks

 

Matt

I have said all I can say.