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Just read a review of the Lumix X1 Streamer DAC over on 6moons. They have implemented the lossless digital volume technology from Leedh. No need for an additional preamp for those who only listen to digital sources. I think/hope more DACs will use this technology.

Right, about that PRO iDSD thingy people talk about lately? IT! IS! HEEEEREEEEE! Well, almost. OK, as per usual, we can't give too much specifics, teasers will have to do the trick today... But let's take it one day at a time and dang, things are going to get heavy. Stay with us just a little longer! Juicy details are to be served very soon. In the meantime, ENJOY! UPDATE!!! We have some major news to share. First of all, the Pro iDSD premiere date: The 15th of February 2018 We don't expect any difficulties along the road towards this day. Yet if some shifts will occur, we'll update this very post to keep you good CA people properly informed. And secondly, the Pro iDSD retail price: $2,499 (ex-tax) €2,999 (inc vat) £2,499 (inc vat) Additionally, this thread will serve as the official Pro iDSD repository, which means that every publication (or its location link) related to this device will be listed in this thread for as easy access as possible. 1. Our take on digital filters How iFi audio sees digital filtering in general. 2. Digital filters/options in our Pro iDSD Explanation of how and what is upsampled in the Pro iDSD. Tech talk Part 1: Part 2: Part 3: Part 4: Part 5: Major GE5670 related announcement Pro iDSD front panel Part 1: Part 2: Pro iDSD - The GTO filter Part 1/4 (and the 5.3C FW release announcement): Pro iDSD - The MQA firmware FW 2.01:

For sale are a SOtM sMS-200ultra with Neo capacitor, tx-USBhubEX, Netgear switch and clock cables. See pictures and details at https://www.canuckaudiomart.com/details/649587553-sotm-sms-200ultra-neo-cap-sotm-tx-usbhubex-modded-netgear-switch-two-clock-cables-uptone-audio-uspcb/ tx and switch are clocked by the sMS. Note, the price is in Canadian dollars.

Hi there, Hope everyone is sound and safe during this historic event. I am looking for setting up a budget bedroom system that is compact and simple. Does anyone have recommendation for an all-in-one DAC/Streamer/Pre unit? I have an OPPO 103 which does have streaming capacity but the sound quality is not at audiophile level. I have a pair of Meridian 605 mono amp and a pair of Proac tablette monitors. I am not up to date with current market, and I think Naim has Uniti, and NAD has something similar, but I haven't heard them in person. My budget is $2000 or less used or new. Any suggestions anyone?

I run Roon Core on a Mac mini (2012 model, i7 quad, 16GB RAM, 120GB SSD, 3TB FW800 HD). Playing to a dCS Rossini over the network. Rossini is connected directly to the mini's ethernet port, the switch is connected to the mini via an Thunderbolt/Ethernet adapter, and the two ethernet ports are bridged together (so I can see the Rossini from anywhere in the network). Questions: 1- Are there sound quality difference from switching to, say, a Roon Nucleus+ or other servers - assuming I always play over the network? 2- Are there any network configurations and/or hardware that are better? 3- Any other advice? Thx.

Hi Everyone, I would like to know in detail about the different implementations of data pathways. I currently use windows and I can hear stark difference between music players with different libraries. Most music players with same library sound similar or identical. HQplayer, Winyl and Xmplay sound identical at identical settings while musicbee is similar but slightly sounds lacking in depth. Aimp sounds very different. Foobar sounds very different and lifeless (apparently goes through windows mixers even in asio and has measurable distortion). Albumplayer sounds very different. I can pretty much narrow it down to - if any uninteded processing is happening (like in foobar), or to the way instructions are laid out. The science of getting jitter free data out of CPU is a topic in itself, and I would like to know if there is any kernel/compiler available for linux/bsd that tries to remove the effect of speculative Execution Jitter. From what I know, the current ways are to have tonnes of Lfence instructions or modify the clang so that the instructions are in such a way that spec/ooo execution or other enhancements always returns a predictable sequence (a miss). I have tried a few such programs and while I can hear differences (with the usb dac and supra cable I have), I am not sure if it is all improvements or if there is any skipping going on. I am planning to upgrade my dac. I am thinking of the dddac but haven't setted on one single dac yet. Without a doubt it will be diy and my intention is to use custom coded upsamplers/dithers that I would pre-processes and store before sending the data in 192khz or 176khz, 24 or 32 bit.. I am now confused on the available ways to transmit the information from the processor to the DAC. I will split up the question into two parts. First question I have is, What are the available protocols that communicate data to the dac? I currently use USB, I can see that the data is fetched, packeted, sent to the USB port dma controller. From here it goes to a USB slave which also has a buffer and converts this stream to timed i2s data which will be fed to the dac. Since USB transfer sequence is timed (i think at 125ms between polls) Isosynchronous mode of USB frame skips frames if 44100hz sample rate is used (8000*5 or 6 alternating missing 100 samples). Asynchronous buffers these things so no interpolation in terms of data transfer but doesn't have any error detection or correction and god knows what type of errors/issues could pop in (I hear changes in cables so I don't believe all is well in USB). I went around looking at other protocols - spdif, toslink etc. SPDIF uses manchester encoding and the slave has to decode clock from the data stream. This kind of makes it necessary to have very good engineering in both the master and the slave, and i'm unsure if they will be that much issue free even after that. And the standard looks variable, general certification is only upto 48khz 24 bit though there are implementations that go till 192khz 24 bit. Toslink does the same with optical format (but not the high quality optical standard used in internet transmission and hence apparently varies with cables). I am unsure if any of these support error detection and/or correction. Also all of these seem to have single serial data line. Is there any dual channel data alternative (Ethernet seems to support dual channel, or is it just full duplex they are meaning?). Another interface I saw was aes which is similar to spdif (or is it a subset of spdif?). Ethernet based audio transfer seems to be what is used in the network streamers, with custom protocols on top of the ethernet protocol if I'm right and it seems to be a good way to go about things before sending to the slave. And direct i2s communication over RJ45 or HDMI seems to be available as well but then again i-i communications are a blank slate meant mainly for inter-ic data pathways and I'm unsure how the protocol will hold up to sending over a large line. I would like to get more enlightenment on this topic and subjective experiences of what works best at the moment, the reliable brands of decoders, reclockers, the available chips, diy-options etc. The second question I have is, how is the data taken out from the CPU/memory. For usb, cpu communicates to the USB controller and fills up the data in its buffer before it sends. Another option I've seen common in single board computers is that i2s is available as an i/o from the board itself. As usual, since a general mass production unit may not have good timing (besides they run out of switching power supplies), there are units that take in this i2s stream, buffer, and regenerate them into i2s,spdif or usb signals (like allo kali,digione etc). I have seldom come across chips that communicate to cpu through PCIe and spit out i2s signals (except maybe pinkfaun). Why is it so. What are the other options available for taking data out from cpu with as minimal jitter as possible (provided the software makes sure the cpu is not introducing a lot of jitter). Are there any dedicated computer architectures meant to handle music streaming well enough (ignoring realtime microcontrollers running dos like operating systems). I'm sorry if it sounded too pedantic. I already have a setup I enjoy even out of usb, and I'm only planning to get a better experience. I just want to learn all the options before diving in. And as an EE student, learning these is a lot of fun, and implementing even more so. This is the reason I'm buying diy dac as well and doing my own custom upsampling, just to learn.

Hi After many years with the ATOM based music server (win 7 used as roon renderer) connected via firewire to Weiss DAC202. I am looking for a roon ready streamer to feed the Weiss DAC202. Few considerations... 1. It should sound as good/better than the Ayer7 transport CD also connected via XLR to Weiss 2. Cost up to 2K.. with the higher priced (4.5-5K) alternatives i might go for a new DAC with build in streamer My Setup: ROCK Server > MS > firewire to Weiss DAC202 Ayre 7 > XLR to Weiss DAC202 CJ CT5 and CJ Premier 140 Magico S3 Mk2 Thx

So are you afraid of ESD? Does the thought of Arctic Silver Heatsink Paste make you go cold? Are you fearful of Phillips screwdrivers? Do you still want to play with the NUC? I have found the Goldilocks computer for you. Semi-Custom Fan-less NUC using the Dawson Canyon boards, we have come to love! Orderable with Optane SSD and much more. The system is fully warranted and you can extend the warranty. You can order it with our without an OS installed. (At least get Ubuntu installed for backup and order a USB stick from them) Simply NUC has a custom build that is perfect: https://simplynuc.com. At the top of the page see the custom NUC button. Click that and scroll down to the Fanless case section and pick the i7 model. The options I have selected above are "perfect" for a NUC to run Roon Server, etc. Get Ubuntu installed so the machine has something to run when you start up. The PORCOOLPINE comes with a power supply so you can get going right away. I purchased my Dawson Canyon board from them so I am only a happy customer. I was going to have a model of these custom built for resale, but there was not enough interest and my budget would not allow speculation. You can get an upgraded power supply at some point. You can order any of the options you would like. I just did an Euphony OS setup post that you can follow or you can setup Audio Linux from my NUC build post: HAVE FUN Bob Here is an interesting review of the PORCOOLPINE from another site: https://techsterweb.com/2019/01/27/porcoolpine/

Hi all new to this site and thinking of how to improve the sound in my system and was wondering whether a new streamer or a separate DAC would be the way forward. My current system is mainly CD quality files in AIFF format stored on a Synology NAS streamed through a Squeezebox Touch to a Leema Pulse amp then out to a pair of Proac Tri Tower speakers. Would I be better changing the SBT for a new streamer or adding a separate DAC to current system? If a new streamer had thought maybe starting off with Auralic Aries mini but not sure how much an improvement that would be. I once auditioned a Cyrus XA streamer which at £1200 was only very marginally better than the SBT, well to my ears anyway. I have the chance of a second hand Audiolab MDAC + which I could then add to SBT but again not sure how much improvement over the internal DAC of the SBT this would give me.

Hi Guys, Up for sale is my Syrah Server from Playback Design, Optimised for Audio through Hardware and software. Built upon the Jriver Platform and remote control is free to download from Apple or Android App Store. Sounds Excellent, Universal Voltage. Purchased from an Authorised Distributor. Retails: 6500.00 US. Asking Price is 3500.00 US dollars. + Shipping.. Price is negotiable for serious buyers with reasonable offers. Can Ship World Wide via Fedex. Paypal Is accepted or Bank Wire to a US Account. If your using paypal a 4% Charge is required for fees, Otherwise a friends and family method is fine by me. Can be shipped in its Original Wood Crate Package or to save cost i can get a customised Cardboard box one made (of course strong enough for international shipping) Comes with 2 TB hard drive. I can load this up with DSD and PCM before shipping out. Buy with confidence, my proven track sales on computer audiophile speaks for it self.

Hey, guys! Just sold my NAD M51 and looking for a new amazingly sounding DAC with maybe a streaming option. Would be nice also if that was capable of DSD 512 and maybe PCM 768kHz, just in case Must have XLR balanced outputs and Toslink input. The budget is around $6000 US. Can go higher if needed. My other components are: Foobar2000/HQplayer MacBook Pro (late 2017), USB digital interface: "Gustard U16", Integrated amplifier: Musical Fidelity - "Nu-Vista 600", loudspeakers: "ProAc D48R". Would be super grateful for all suggestions! Thanks!

The Amazon Streamer is now available for pre-order. Very curious about this, anyone get a listen at a pre-production unit? https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0798DVZCY?ref=em_1p_0_ti&ref_=pe_2409890_229390510

For sale is a SOtM "Trifecta" of SMS-200ultra Special Edition, tx-USBultra Special Edition and SPS-500 PSU. Included is a D-Link 5 port switch modified by SOtM with upgraded caps and components, which uses a clock output from the SMS-200ultra. These have taken my system to the best it's ever sounded. I am sadly selling to fund some unexpected non-audio related costs. These are about 1 year old - I am the original owner, purchased directly from authorized SOtM dealer Crux Audio. Condition is conservatively a 9/10 - they've been only installed in one place on my audio rack and never moved aside from one trip back to Korea for upgrades (see below), with a total of maybe at most 10 plug/unplug cycles. Rock solid reliability and stellar reviews throughout the web! Reviews: https://audiobacon.net/2017/05/23/sotm-tx-usbultra-usb-regenerator-review-the-ultimate-digital-defuzzer/ https://audiobacon.net/2017/11/18/sotm-sms-200ultra-network-audio-player-sps-500-power-supply-review/ https://www.audiostream.com/content/sotm-sms-200ultra-mini-network-player-and-sps-500-power-supply http://hifiknights.com/reviews/transports/sotm-sms-200ultra-sps-500/ Additionally, all three units have been fully upgraded at SOtM Korea a few months ago for substantial additional cost, with details below: SMS-200ultra Special Edition - originally purchased as Special Edition unit (9V power setting) - included modified Ethernet switch using onboard SCLK board with clock wire (5V power) - upgraded silver internal wiring (+$180) - eABS-200 EMI absorption material (+$20) - further upgraded to the latest Evox capacitors which was recommended by May Park over the Neo capacitor.(+$100) Retail $1,500 (streamer + switch) + $300 (SE and Evox upgrades) = $1,800 Asking $1250. tx-USBultra (9V power setting): - upgraded silver internal wiring (+$150) - upgraded eABS-200 EMI absorption material (+$20) - upgraded Evox capacitors (+$100) Retail $1270 (identical to a "Special Edition" tx-USBultra). Asking $900. SPS-500 - upgraded eABS-200 EMI absorption material (+$20) - upgraded Evox capacitors (+$100) **Included with the SPS-500 is a 30cm 7N UPOCC copper Y DC power cable (+$300) Retail $500 + $420 upgrades = $900 Asking $650. Total = $3970 retail. Asking $2600 as a bundle, with individual prices as above. Shipping and Paypal fees (if any) are the buyer's responsibility. The upgrades a few months ago took the trifecta up another notch which I did not think possible. This brought up even more detail and realism in the sonic picture, with some improvements in midbass and soundstaging as well! All original packaging, boxes and accessories included. Serial numbers available on request to confirm with SOtM regarding update status, if desired. I'm located in Maine, with local pickup welcome!

Hello everyone. I am in research for a streamer or network audio player. Expectations: - it can read mp3, flac and DSD from NAS (network attached storage, in my case Synology DS212j) and USB memory stick - it should transport digital signal (via SPDIF or USB) to external DAC - reliable while operating - price of the player should be within 1500€ (linear power supply included) - I don't want solutions that need external display (e.g. computer monitor). It should be HiFi device that can be turned on via button Advantage: - dedicated mobile application, and not just web control interface - AirPlay - Internet radio - streaming services Current candidates: - Sonore microRendu - no dedicated application. 640 $ + linear power supply. - Sonore ultraRendu - no dedicated application. They say at several forums that this model is better than its predecessor. 875 $ + linear power supply - SOtM sMS-200 - no dedicated application, didn't hear it. 450 $ + linear power supply - SOtM sMS-200ultra - no dedicated application. They say at several forums that this model is better than its predecessor. 1200 $ + linear power supply - Auralic Aries Mini - dedicated application. AirPlay + internet radio. 550€ + linear power supply - Auralic Aries LE - dedicated application. AirPlay + internet radio. I heard there are several problems with the stability caused by network problems. 1000€ + linear power supply - Auralic Aries - dedicated application. AirPlay + internet radio. I heard several problems with the stability caused by network problems. I do not know the price. - Bluesound Node 2 - dedicated application, Airplay, internet radio. No DSD support. 600€. - Electrocompaniet Rena S1 - dedicated application, Airplay, internet radio. 600€. - Onkyo NS-6170 - dedicated application, Airplay, internet radio. 350€. I heard only Sonore microRendu which had great sound for me. There are not candidates: - Raspberry Pi - there is no customized version of the HiFi I just buy, without having to do anything, put together, buy separately etc. that is sonically good enough for my system. Correct me if I'm wrong. - Aurender - great equipment but out of the price category. - dCS Network Bridge - great equipment, but out of the price category. Questions - do you have candidates to add to this list? - did you ever heard one of this candidates or can you compare it? It is own hearing experience that is most relevant to me, not reviews from 3rd sources. - if there is perfect or near-perfect process of comparing different streamers, what would it be? I noticed there are no such information available publicly. Many thanks!

Hello, I would like to buy a pure streamer device (without DAC just accurate, low jitter digital output). I found the Digione (Signiture) Player. But it has digital coax/BNC 75ohm output while my sound processor (the streamer will feed it) has digital XLR 110ohm connection. Is it any way to add XLR connection to Digione Player ? Or could you advice me other "chap", accurate Streamer device with USB for USB stick/HDD and digital XLR output ? I found one XLR board for RB Pi, but I'm not sure it works with Digione Player; https://www.audiophonics.fr/en/dac-and-interfaces-for-raspberry-pi/audiophonics-digipi-aes-toslink-tcxo-digital-interface-aes-ebu-for-raspberry-pi-p-13316.html Any idea, please ? Thank you all the idea/advice sharing with me, Istvan

I just finished my DIY audiostreamer. The base is an AsRock motherboard with onboard processor (Q1900-ITX), wide PicoPSU, 3 linear power supplies (PSU) for the mobo, the ssd and the PPA USB V2 Card (Paul Pang). I made linear PSU’s based on the sigma 11 DY project by AMB laboratories (USA). Currently, I have installed Daphile. More info and photo's on: https://audiostreamerdiyproject.wordpress.com/

Aurender launches two new streamers - the N100 and N10. The N100 will be available in January followed by the N10 in March 2015. Both offers NAS connectivity with full cover art browsing etc. The N10 will also have internal storage capacity of 1TB (SSD). Prices are not yet official. More info: AURENDER - Reference Music System Aurender N100

I found an interesting review published on 23rd of September 2017. You may need to use google translator. Link: http://www.salonav.com/arch/2017/09/audioserver-aurender-n10.htm

November NewsletterClick above link for full newsletter FALL SPECIALS EDITION This month we've got tons of specials to tell you about. Whether you're looking for a new system or considering upgrading an existing component, we've put together some very attractive packages that will help you get your system to where you'd like it to be. To start things off, we've got a new SPECIALS SECTION on the site. This is where you'll find all of our ongoing sale items, packages and factory authorized specials. This season we're offering a number of cable/equipment/Roon software packages from some of our more popular products from Auralic, Luxman, Ayre and Lumin. We're also going to begin offering double Rewards Points, which will allow you to earn 10% back on every purchase through the holiday season, so be sure register for our Club Ciamara Membership Rewards Program to start earning store credit on every purchase. As always, we offer FREE SHIPPING on all purchases over $99 and the ability to try just about anything we sell in the comfort of your own home for up to 30-days. Thanks for taking the time to take a look at this month's newsletter, if you have any questions feel free to contact us here, in our LiveChat or at 844-242-6272 1.844.CIAMARA (1.844.242.6272) High End Audio Store NYC - Experience Ciamara

So I have collected a large SACD collection. I have hundreds os SACD ISO's on a USB Hard drive. I am wondering is anyone has made a streamer that can playback these ISO's like Foobar does on a PC? This would same me constantly changing discs and I could invest in a high end DSD compatable DAC... SS

I have been out of touch for a few years thinking that my digital front end is all sorted for the foreseeable future. Unfortunately, my world is a bit upside down right now after direct comparison between my transport & my file as source player. The transport with spinning disc seems to sound better than the file player. I have been dabbling in computer audio since the late 2000's with RME sound card, Foobar 2000 etc & progressing to my current setup. Now, it seems if I want to get best CD / redbook playback, I have to go back to spinning disc. Therefore, I need help from all to point me in the direction which component can beat my transport in terms of sound quality. My current digital front end consists of : 1) Aurender W20 (wordclock fed from DCS master clock with RS232 interface for auto switching) 2) DCS Vivaldi 4 stack with latest streaming hardware in the upsampler & latest firmware + Antelope 10M Reference clock 3) Songs mostly ripped to FLAC level 5 using dBpoweramp Since the above revelation, I have tried a few things : 1) ROON with ROCK with upsampler as end point & QNAP fanless NAS as file server 2) ASSET with QNAP fanless NAS as file server into upsampler via network 3) SSD direct into upsampler USB input So far none is even as good as the Aurender. (2) does come quite close though. What other components should I audition to challenge my transport ? In this day & age, cannot be nothing that can surpass the transport.

Well, I’ve just moved my gear around for the 4th time in as many months, always a PITA with squat lift grunts picking up and moving tube amp, getting speakers positioned for correct bass response and the inevitable, oh - I forgot and put the interconnects on with arrows the wrong way between components. But what I really, really have come to hate is reconnecting the streaming solution. Network renderer.. check… USB cable.. check… USB clock regenerator.. check… asynch USB converter.. check… coax cable.. check… DAC.. check… oh and cant forget LPS, battery and AC wallwart devices/connections and power strip, oh my, oh my. It’s a spaghetti way of doing things, and I’m ready to move on, just wish someone like Sonore and Schiit would collaborate on a one box Roon ready endpoint solution.

Hello all, My current setup involves a Cambridge Audio CXA60 amp, Azur 851D DAC (Which I picked up for an absolute steal) and a Yamaha WXC50 which I use as a network streamer. I am absolutely happy with the sound quality I get out of this setup, but as you know with all things audio, the question of "Can it get any better?" is always at the back of my mind. The way I look at it, the streamer is the weakest link in the chain, more of a budget component than the other two, so I am wondering if it makes any sense to upgrade this. I have my eyes on either a Linn Majik DS or a Naim ND5 XS (Can't justify the investment yet, but maybe in some months or sooner if a good used deal pops up). But honestly, would the streamer make any difference when all analog conversion duties are being handled by the outboard DAC (851D)? I am not talking about minute differences that one can only measure with lab equipment, but actual, audible difference that makes one sit up and notice? Any thoughts would be highly appreciated.

Hello All, I will upgrade some parts of my system but i am not sure where to begin: There are 4 things that i will be adding / upgrading (step by step): 1.- My current DAC (OPPO 205): i am considering: Denafrips Terminator, PS AUDIO - PerfectWave DirectStream Junior DAC OR Upgrade the Power supply of the OPPO 205 with the new one from CLONES and keep while see more reviews about these and other DACs. 2.- Streamer SOtM-sMS 200ultra & sPS-500 w/ Modded Switch OR ZENITH MKII 3.- Tellurium XLR Ultra Black IC's & Speakers 4.- A better Isolation Transformer, a balanced and grounded one from Alexander Tsankov (my actual one is a Topaz 1kva .001 pF) If i go with the PerfectWave DirectStream Junior DAC , if its good enough i could be doing 2 steps in one (DAC & Streamer) but i would like to know if the Terminator/sMS-200ultra would be a lot better than the single PS Junior...that is some important point!! I hope you can share your experiences... Thanks to all for reading and God bless!!

Like new DAC / Streamer. First owner from a pet and smoke free environment. Serious buyers only. Pickup welcome in Toronto. Shipping anywhere in North America for the asking price. Buyer pays paypal fees. The unit is in rare silver finish and comes with the MiND streaming board with the latest firmware updates. Please check out the link for more info. Many reviews are available online. Non serious and tire kickers will be politely ignored. Not looking for trades. Thanks for looking. Original box, papers, remote. $3400 USD