Amarra, Stereophile component of the year

[Audio_ELF]

I believe the Naim UnitiServe and HDX are based on off the shelf Mini ITX boards - they run Embedded Windows XP IIRC.

 

Mark was referring to the Naim players / streamers. These are ARM9 based with (I believe) a custom "computer" board (which i believe is the same for Uniti, UnitiQute and original NDX but a new design for ND5XS and upgraded other models) which then feeds Naim's own digital processing, DAC and analogue circuitry. I don't know how much Naim design the computer board.

 

Elosie

 

PS RE: awards... I've come to the conclusion the best "awards" issues just list the highlights of the year. No attempt to create Best CDP, Beat CA Product, etc.

 

[Mark Powell]

I cant figure out why the ND5 XS is 1995 UK pounds and the UnitiServe is 2500. I make do with a 70 pound Seagate NAS and my laptop for ripping.

 

[Mark Powell]

It was once said "Mark is a man of strong opinions, lightly held"

 

Not wrong.

 

Regards

 

[Paul R]

(grin) That was Mikey Fremer, who is, I suspect, not afraid of man nor devil. At least in the Audiophile world.

 

He also went way out of his way to make sure people knew he didn't understand beans about what he was being told, just passing it on for other people to evaluate.

 

All in all, I thought he did a good job on that subject. There are many who crawl out of their burrows to attack anyone who dares to suggest cables might make a difference. He did a good job of warning them off.

 

There is far more we don't know about this hobby that we know. Or think we know.

 

Nothing about this hobby is easy, but I suppose if it were, then it would not be as much fun or half as rewarding.

 

By the way, our Chris has put out some controversial stuff in his reviews before, and done it without caving in or being offensive. His write-ups/reviews were what initially attracted me to CA, and one reason I hang around. (The other reason is the cool people.

 

-Paul

 

 

 

[Priaptor]

quite some time. The only reason I even downloaded Amarra Mini for a trial is I decided to give Audivirvana Plus a trial as it looked pretty good and it integrated well with iTunes so I figured, why not try Amarra as well. I initially wasn't going to, until I saw there was a way to "totally remove" all parts of the program if I didn't like it.

 

After working through the bugs, I finally decided to use it in playlist mode linked to iTunes. The difference in SQ was not subtle. First off, vocals and horns are more neutral and pleasing. I am experiencing more layering and depth in imaging; significant more 3-dimensional. Bass is better defined and I find a little snappier without any bloat, the way I like it. Texture of guitars are absolutely amazing. Peppino D'Agostino's Acoustic Guitar like I have never heard. When I first heard the Nola Baby Grands it was with a Ref 5, the older Ref 210's as well as the amps I just got rid of, the Mac MC2301 and their Ref CD8. I thought the speakers were amazing then but this combination is a real quantum leap. I find all aspects of Amarra Mini better as it pertains to SQ, top to bottom and everything in between.

 

Since my Ref 250s are relative new with 150 hours on it and AR recommends 600 hours of burn-in,I thought maybe the differences were just the amps breaking in. So to be fair I went back to PM and Audirvana Plus, did some listening for a prolonged time as well as some A/B switching. The differences on my system are not subtle. Despite all the crap, bugs and inability to use Amarra the way I would like to, it is clearly superior to the point all I want to do is listen which is all I am doing.

 

I am by no means putting down PM or Audirvana, as I own those. I really wasn't expecting such a difference. And yes all my settings are properly set up within each program.

 

[losingmyreligion]

 

"Art Dudley seemed to like Decibel (at $33) just as much sonically..."

 

My recall of the review was similar.

 

 

"But Dudley wasn't the only one voting, it would seem that some of the other writers went with Amarra."

 

 

All in all, there were 15 votes for Amarra as the Computer Component of the Year, four giving it first place honors.

 

 

Incidentally, both Decibel and Pure Music were Runner's up in the Budget Component of the year, even though the latter fell behind Amarra and Decibel in the head-to-head comparison.

 

 

clay

 

 

 

[johnwilk]

Yes, I try and try the alternatives but for all its irritating problems Amarra is so much better in sound quality I endure it. Some of the complaints here seem a result of failing to follow the advice on running Amarra uninterrupted by other computer activity; the popping etc. just doesn't happen if you follow that advice. On the other hand the loss of seconds at the beginning of tracks towards the end of a ripped CD when in cache mode drives me crazy. But I now know the answer is to quit Amarra and restart before every listening session. I don't want to have to do this. I want to just collapse after work and select music from Remote on my iPhone. It's annoying. I hope they will fix it soon. But when after the necessary fiddle Amarra works...

 

[DigiPete]

 

The question is:

 

What is the weak link in the chain if one player sounds better to you than another???

 

Is it the player or is it the DAC???

 

I blame the DAC manufacurer for pour design!!!

 

My own test:

 

Play 24/96 (ALAC) file through Pure Music/iTunes

Play 24/96 (FLAC) file through VLC

 

Result:

both play bit perfect

both sound exactly as clean and beautiful as the other.

 

My reasoning: my setup is as good as it gets.

 

I personally blame DAC manufacturers for producing jitter prone equipment.

I thank firewire and Daniel Weiss for delivering a professional solution.

 

The pros wouldn't use USB when there is firewire

And they use AES/EBU and not analogue cable

Well, my 5 cents?

 

 

Who is to say how someone else reaches their conclusions.

 

Peace

 

[johnwilk]

Since we both use Weiss DACs and since Daniel Weiss specifically recommends Amarra your comment seems doubly beside the point.

 

Peace indeed.

John

 

[DigiPete]

@ johnwilk

 

John, I have no Weiss DAC, I use the AFI-1 to do firewire -> AES/EBU to feed AES/EBU straight to my 5.1 Genelec speaker setup.

 

The DAC is build into the speakers.

 

VLC delivers the same fine sound as Pure Music in my setup.

I seem to have created a setup that is not player sensitive.

Why not make DAC that are equally robust?

That is my point.

 

Peace indeed.

Peter

 

[wdw]

...all of you kind posters mention how good Amarra sounds but with so many proviso that I am must admit some level of confusion....sounds like the interface needs some major work but the music produced is delightful. Considering the market and potential for economic return, can't they simply hire a few competent programers to tidy things up?

 

[johnwilk]

Understood. How I wish this stuff were so straightforward. But using a Weiss DAC via FireWire there is no question Pure eventually becomes wearisome (for example) whereas Amarra continues to give pleasure. The difference is palpable and I don't see why I should attribute that to a deficiency in the DAC as opposed to capability in the DAC.

 

Homage to the Perfection of Wisdom.

John

 

[jacquesr]

FWIW Despite the UI glitches, and the strange way that the company handles its customers, I get the best SQ with Amarra. My experience is the same as Priaptor's.

 

[losingmyreligion]

"What is the weak link in the chain if one player sounds better to you than another???

 

Is it the player or is it the DAC???"

 

It's the computer hardware. The (only?) reason software players can make a difference at all (when logically they should not) is that general purpose computers spew noise out every orifice.

 

The software players (and the various hardware/software tweaks employed) modulate this noise, perhaps removing a bit of it, perhaps moving some of it to a different frequency.

 

Once could argue that the DACs should be impervious, but even then, one would need to insure that the noise doesn't affect any other component of one's system.

 

For example, it's VERY important to use some sort of filter between computer and AC circuit so that noise doesn't leak from computer to say, amp or preamp, not to mention the DAC.

 

clay

 

 

 

[John_Atkinson]

"The December issue of Stereophile has named Amarra as the "Computer Audio Component of the Year". I find this a curious choice. If we think of the number of posts from very satisfied users of alternate and far less costly playback software, the choice of this particular package is odd. Absolute Sound has ringingly endorsed Pure Music so is this simply the Stereophile team carving out their particular ground?"

 

There is no conspiracy here. Pure Music was not eligible for an award in 2011 because Pure Vinyl, which includes Pure Music, was one of our 2010 winners.

 

Stereophile has users of Pure Music and Decibel as well as Amarra.

 

John Atkinson

Editor, Stereophile

 

[Desk Jockey]

John,

 

Thanks for clarifying and welcome to CA.

 

The "product of the year" selection process is still somewhat confusing after your explanation. If Pure Music was not in the voting for "computer audio component of the year" due to its review in 2010, why is it listed as a runner-up in the "budget component of the year"?

 

Greg

 

 

 

 

 

[John_Atkinson]

"The "product of the year" selection process is still somewhat confusing after your explanation. If Pure Music was not in the voting for "computer audio component of the year" due to its review in 2010, why is it listed as a runner-up in the "budget component of the year"?"

 

This was a judgment call on my part, that while I didn't think Pure Music eligible for Computer Product of 2011, due to Pure Vinyl winning that honor in 2010, neither Pure Music nor Pure Vinyl was a winner in the 2010 Budget Component of the Year. As we had spilled more ink on Pure Music this year, it was eligible again in the Budget Component category.

 

John Atkinson

Editor, Stereophile