austinpop

Thanks for the recommendation @AnotherSpin! Truly wonderful.

Yes, the min frequency setting really does not get used by the Euphony OS. This is by design. Željko can confirm. Euphony OS runs with the CPU governor set to "performance." See https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/CPU_frequency_scaling This causes the CPU to run at the "max frequency" all the time. The reason this does not cause CPU temps to rise is because on native sample rate server/renderers on Euphony, the CPU is mostly idle. When a core goes idle, it enters into a halted state (C-state). This is an extremely low energy state.

Sold.

Just can’t get enough of this collection. There are so many Beethoven cycles out there, yet I love what Savall has brought to these performances.

Not sure what to say. Definitely not your father's Vivaldi! I find Kopatchinskaja very refreshing.

Sale pending...

Final Price Drop This is the lowest price at which I will sell these cables. If no takers, I'll either keep these for future projects, or break up this Schroeder configuration, and sell as individual digital cables. The latter would be a travesty, but...

Very true. In fact, I have had multiple queries from folks asking if I would break up the Schroeder HFC CT-2 digital cables I have for sale, and sell them individual CT-2 cables. I suspect I would actually make more on the sales this way! But I really want people to hear just how good this Schroeder config can sound. And @Nenon is spot on regarding connectors.

Very nice performance and up to Alpha’s high SQ standards.

While home CATV cable is indeed 75Ω, I suspect — never having done this — that any cable used should meet or exceed the specs of the RG-6 standard. Per Wikipedia, RG-6 stipulates a loss of under 6dB/100 ft @ 1GHz. Not sure how audiophile 75Ω cables would compare. Absolutely. You always provide us with the best links!

Thanks for your wonderful report, and congratulations on the improvements. It's just impossible to overstate the importance of quality power supplies in the digital chain! BTW - this is exactly the thread to post a listening impressions report of this kind. Enjoy this parity between Qobuz and local as long as it lasts!

Doesn’t really have an effect.

Let me spell this out for you: config 1: HQP directly connected to DAC via ASIO driver config 2: NAA alloted to CPU0, connected to DAC via ASIO driver HQP alloted to CPU1, connected to NAA. Music playback directly via HQPlayer. No Roon, No TAS. Config 2 sounds better than config 1. I have no idea how to decode this sentence.

Yes, on the same machine. The idea came up as a way to exploit both CPUs, since HQPlayer 4 Desktop seems to not recognize the 2nd CPU. So we're running HQPlayer on one CPU (logical CPUs 0-19), and NAA on the other CPU (logical CPUs 20-39), using Process Lasso to assign CPUs. This boosts SQ noticeably, but may only apply to machines like the Extreme.

Absolutely! And I'm glad you found the ones that worked best for you. Enjoy!

It's fascinating how personal headphone preferences can be! Coming from the HD800, I was addicted to the spacious soundstage, and I found the Utopia to be very closed in, especially on a big Mahler symphony. Were all these 'phones well burned in? The Empyrean especially can initially sound rather unresolving, but really open up after 100-200 hours.

We passed crazy 4 switches ago!

I look forward to reading about both your listening impressions, and what you decided. 🍿

Thank you, I had not actually heard Chailly’s version. I haven’t been particularly taken with a couple of his other Mahler recordings, but I should have tried his 10th. It is rather good! While overall I still prefer Dausgaard, this one goes in my library as a very welcome alternative.

Completely agree. I know @Musicophile and I have somewhat similar musical tastes, so I definitely urge you to try the Empyrean and the Abyss Phi TC. The former is $3k yes, but it holds its own with all the other TOTL headphones IMO, and is very easy to drive, so is not so fussy about amps. The only one I've not tried yet is the RAAL (pending), but from all accounts, it is not exactly forgiving. I find the Empyrean to be almost as comfortable than the HD800S, and far more comfortable than any of the others.

Chris, Is it me, or does the site now have a brighter white background than before? Yeah I know, that's a nonsensical statement, but I do find the background fatiguing after a while. Did the old version have a hint of grey, or some delineation between elements? Maybe I'm imagining it...

Hallelujah - it works!

Bump