432 EVO

“I have yet to meet someone who has one.”

@thyname,

Sometimes the folks promoting the product can be a detriment, it sure seems the case for 432 EVO :-)

😂🤦‍♂️, Naah… Lalin is fine

thanks thyname

We have two pieces out for review so far bothreviewers are quite impressed with the sound of the servers

“Naah… Lalin is fine”
@thyname

You should ask him to send you a 432 EVO for audition. Your feedback would carry a lot of weight versus a dealer’s tireless shilling!

@lalitk : cannot say it never crossed my mind to ask. But really I don’t want to do that before I am sure this is something I needed for my system. It’s only fair

@thyname   Can you elaborate on "I don’t want to do that before I am sure this is something I needed for my system"?

You list the Roon Nucleus + in your system...so I'm confused by the above statement.

I'd expect the 432 Evo to be a step or two above the Nucleus, depending on the level you choose.

I have not updated my system recently here under Systems. I am back to the ZENith MK3. My DAC also has a network bridge built in. So I have a couple of options. As it is.
 

I am really hesitant to make additional changes as everything sounds very good as it is. All the commotion, hassles buying and selling, money, and all that. I am a bit tired doing all that honestly. Sometimes we just have to sit back and enjoy what we have. Even if not permanently. I hope this makes sense 

@thyname  Yes, that makes sense.

I, however (being factual; not negative), believe you can do better than the Zenith Mk3...fwiw.

Fairly negative review of the EVO High End on Positive Feedback site:

The reviewer had a hard time discerning any differences between the EVO and his NUC, USB out to his Schiit DAC:

"

Where's the Magic?

After making all the connections with the Sbooster power supplies, USB cable to my DAC and external hard drive (which stores over 4 TB of ripped and downloaded music), I fired it up. Using the Roon Labs app on my iPhone to control it, I could not access music on my external HD, which was disappointing. I later read on their online manual that the music could be streamed from Roon, Qobuz, Tidal, and Internet radio stations or played from its internal 2 TB hard drive, but that ripped or downloaded files needed to be moved there via a controller such as iPeng or their online portal. Additionally, when I played music on it, I noticed a slightly warmer presentation than my Intel NUC Roon Optimized Core Kit music server, but the difference wasn't quite what I imagined; it still sounded very good, but the purported 432 magic largely escaped me. "

He also mentioned this in one of FB comments:

"All this said, I had the input of a computer engineer who built his own DACs encourage me to go the route of having a simple computer server linked up to the Yggdrasil for excellent results. And he was right. Save for the tuning and DSP, the Intel NUC with a great DAC like the Yggie is quite competitive."

It also looks like it takes 20-25 minutes to rip a single CD, which I find outright outrageous

He says this "

but the purported 432 magic largely escaped me. "

, but then his review conclusion:

" The 432 EVO High End Music Server is a remarkable player, making good on its promise to deliver a warmer, more pleasant listening experience via its 432 Hz tuning. It definitely takes the edge off digital files and, if you’re jonesing for vinyl playback but don’t have the bucks or inclination to purchase a good one (or a decent cartridge and phono stage preamplifier, for that matter), this might be the way to go; you get the convenience of digital with a lion’s share of vinyl’s warmth. Moreover, if you prefer your downloads, ripped files and streaming served straight up, you can do that, as well; with a click of a setting, you can listen in 440 Hz. But, wait, there’s more! You can also rip CDs via its built-in ripper. There’s also the upsampling options, but that does not appeal to me, so I didn’t bother and, hence, cannot comment on that.

Either way, the 432 EVO High End Music Server is a great value; teamed-up with the likes of the Schiit Audio Yggdrasil OG DAC, Pass Labs amplification, Straight Wire cabling, Usher Audio Mini Dancer 2 tower speakers, and a good acoustical space, it delivers a musical experience that entreats you to listen to just one more song, again and again! Moreover, it is fully upgradable to their $7500 432 EVO Aeon model. Bottom line, it gets my thumbs up."

Thyname the reviewer at first was using the wrong usb input he switched to the correct one he  found the sound was far better now

As per rip times it is 8 to12 mins

“The reviewer had a hard time discerning any differences between the EVO and his NUC, USB out to his Schiit DAC”

@thyname

A great DAC like Yggie; seriously 😂 It’s a decent DAC but hardly a SOTA DAC to evaluate a server like 432EVO. I bet a different result when 432EVO paired with a Esoteric DAC like yours! I agree with you on ridiculous 20-25 minutes to rip a single CD. My ACS100 takes less than 5 minutes to rip a single CD.

at first was using the wrong usb input

You mean the wrong OUTPUT on the EVO 432? Or the wrong USB input on his DAC?

And if the reviewer says the following on FB forum immediately after posting the review, that is all someone needs to know. Having a hard time distinguishing between USB out from a $400 NUC to DAC vs. a $5,000 server / streamer, sounds like a waste of money to me.

I have to say though, up until the actual review of the unit, the entire historical story of the 432 tuning was well written and a pleasure to read. Lots of stuff I did not know. I enjoyed that.

I read the review last evening. My take: Positive Feedback should get an experienced (digital focused) reviewer for a second opinion. @thyname  @facten  @lalitk all would do a far, far superior job.

I agree on the historical portion of the review...perhaps the reviewer should reconsider what he's better suited for?

@thyname, You left this part of the "Where's the Magic?" section of the review out:

I recalled reading a passage that warned not to use the USB 3.0 ports to connect the audio, as they were noisier than the USB 2.0 port which I couldn't seem to find. Then, spotting another reviewer's photo of their USB playback cable plugged into the 432 EVO, I found it: a single USB port with the familiar SOtM Audio name stamped sideways to the left (SOtM USB cards are specifically designed to reduce noise and maximize computer audio playback performance with its special filter circuits, low-noise voltage regulator and ultra-low jitter clock). 

Apparently using the USB 2.0 output on the 432 brought the magic that the USB 3.0 output on the 432 did not.  This part of the review was not well written or laid out with the pictures, but I think this is what the reviewer meant.  You'd have to ask him to know for sure.

I did read that. But he did not specifically said this USB port was much better to his NUC than the previous USB port was using. And as he posted this on FB right after (see screenshot I posted above), that led me to believe he did not hear much difference vs. NUC USB out to DAC, period.

I am perhaps arriving to wrong conclusions, but that’s what I thought when I read these. Just me.

Maybe someone can ask him of Facebook. It's on Audio Enthusiasts Group, private group with about 57,000 members

I agree with david_ten that pf needs to have someone else review the 432 or have Juan C. Ayllon clarify what his opinion of the 432 is. Is it this (from the conclusion):

The 432 EVO High End Music Server is a remarkable player, making good on its promise to deliver a warmer, more pleasant listening experience via its 432 Hz tuning. It definitely takes the edge off digital files and, if you’re jonesing for vinyl playback but don’t have the bucks or inclination to purchase a good one (or a decent cartridge and phono stage preamplifier, for that matter), this might be the way to go; you get the convenience of digital with a lion’s share of vinyl’s warmth.

or this (from Facebook):

Save for the tuning and DSP, the Intel NUC with a great DAC like the Yggie is quite competitive.

Although, the Facebook post does say, "save for the tuning and DSP", well aren’t the tuning and DSP major functions of the 432? What does their inclusion in the 432 do to the comparison with the Intel NUC?

@tomcy6 : I asked Juan that question on Positive Feedback website, under comments. It's still waiting to be approved. Hopefully it will show up there soon, and Juan can shed some light on this

Thanks @thyname.  I hope he clears his thoughts up.

if you are not using the dedicated usb output ofthe Evo you are not going to be experiencing the evos sound the standard board connected usb ports do not have any of the technology that is designed into the server

the usb card is powered independtly

the usb on the board is for periperals like a keyboard or usb hd only

no special tuning no additional filtering basicaly you are taking away everything that the designer put in to elevate the servers performance

when used through its corect usb port it sounds amazing 

it will sound like any other decent device but in no way exceptional through the standard usb ports

Dave and Troy

Audio Intellect  NJ

US. Importer 432vo

No response from Juan on my comment on Positive Feedback. Maybe too early for a response since it is only been a couple of days.

He did double down on Facebook though by saying the following:

———-

I have reviewed the Lumin T2, Lampizator Komputer, Lampizator Super Komputer and more in my system. The Intel NUC matches up well…

I think Juan should clear up what he thinks about the 432. His statements on Facebook are too vague.  He likes the Intel NUC but every NUC is going to sound different based on the skills of the person turning it into an audio streamer, so that's not very helpful.  

Well, this seals it. Juan posted a direct reply on his own site: 

Short, but he makes the point. At least to me.

"Why someone in their right mind would pay $5,500 for this vs. a few hundred dollars on a NUC?" "The short answer is for the sound."

"Moreover, prior to the arrival of the 432 EVO, my system, anchored by the Schiit Audio Yggdrasil OG DAC, Pass Labs XP-12 preamplifier, X150.8 amp, Straight Wire reference cabling, and Usher Mini Dancer 2 loudspeakers, has never sounded better."

Seems like he's saying his system never sounded better with it, and also , it depends what you will be satisfied with

"But bottom line, the 432 EVO yielded a more organic, natural sound to vocals and instruments when playing in the 432 Hz mode. Now, at 440 Hz, the differences were negligible. So, if you like that added warmth and other pleasant qualities that 432 Hz imparts on the signal enough to warrant the purchase, and you have the funds, then definitely! If not, keep your money. Let’s face it: some people--even some reviewers--prefer 440 Hz. That’s not a bad thing."

Seems like he’s saying that his system never sound better with the EVO in place, and then , if you don’t want the benefits of 432 then you may not want to spend the money. Guess one needs to decide what he/she is after

Audiotroy’s touting his product as the European champion is purely based on wishful thinking: it’s virtually unheard of over here (I know both the UK and German markets well) whereas Innuos is an acknowledged market leader here. The whole idea of digitally changing the original tuning of an audiophile recording from 440 to 432Hz disqualifies him as a serious audiophile in my mind.

Thanks @thyname for hunting down that article.  That does make it clear.  If you're looking for a more organic, analog sound; try the 432.  It MAY be worth $5500 to you.  If that's not something you're looking for, an Intel NUC is probably all you need, according to Juan anyway..  As always, YMMV.

As for the 432 vs 440 tuning, that's a whole other can of worms that has been debated for centuries.  It appears that some people will like it, even with the extra digital processing it requires, and some people won't.

It sounds to me like Juan was unable to hear any difference between his NUC and the 432 EVO when using the standard 440 tuning. And that’s with USB out from both to his DAC. With that method there was a tremendous difference from my Nucleus+ vs. from ZENith MK3. And we know Innuos does not do 432 tuning.

And in theory Nucleus + should be better than an off shelf NUC (fanless case, optimized for Roon). Based on this professional review I draw my conclusion that 432 EVO is not worth the money, unless of course that 432 tuning provides some magic. But then again, there was no magic with 432 tuning and regular USB port, from original review on PF. And NUC definitely has a regular USB port. So….

Tom "as per no magic with 432 tuning and regular USB port."

the reguar usb port does not use the 432 plug in nor does it use the server as designed which is to use the sound card and filtered usb

we would expect no difference

juan definatly noticed a difference when he used the server correctly

"so But bottom line, the 432 EVO yielded a more organic, natural sound to vocals and instruments when playing in the 432 Hz mode.  Now, at 440 Hz, the differences were negligible.  So, if you like that added warmth and other pleasant qualities that 432 Hz imparts on the signal enough to warrant the purchase, and you have the funds, then definitely!  If not, keep your money.   Let's face it: some people--even some reviewers--prefer 440 Hz. That's not a bad thing

Dave and troy

Audio Intellect NJ

US  importer 432EVO servers

Audiotroy has had my post removed: I just pointed out that 432 EVO is virtually unknown over here in Europe and that digitally converting recordings made at 440Hz tuning doesn’t seem particularly audiophile. Go figure…

“Audiotroy has had my post removed”

@antigrunge2 

It’s what I call damage control 😊

This is an old review from one of my favorite reviewers:

432 EVO Music Server | HFA - The Independent Source for Audio Equipment Reviews (hifi-advice.com)

Christiaan is very responsive to questions so it might be worth reaching out to him.

@antigrunge2 : your post is still here on that. Nobody can remove anything other than Admin. People can report a post to the admin, but cannot remove it. But your post is still here.

At this point, I think there is plenty of info for everyone to draw their own conclusions based on this PF review and the subsequent discussions and comments. I know I already drew my own conclusion. And as with everything, there is no substitute to trying for ourselves, and not just rely on published reviews, professional reviews or not. So here is that.

axpona update

from stereophile:

A Krell amplifier also helped set the fifth-floor Audio Intellect room on fire (proverbial only; no actual fires were set). Anticables connected a Belgian-made 432 EVO streamer (modular design; prices range from $3,500 to $16,000) to a DAC-equipped Krell K300i integrated ($9500; see Jason Victor Serinus’s Stereophile review), which drove a pair of just-introduced, blond-wood Alta Audio Adams ($18,000). Listeners got tight, prodigious bass from surprisingly small woofers, making music in tandem with the Adams’s ribbon tweeters. Saxes and trumpets were brassy, airy, and real. Other duties called; I had a hard time tearing myself away.

Dave and Troy

Audio intellect nj US. importer 432EVO music servers

another update:

absolute sound current issue May/June 2022 page 138  by andrew quint

the 432EVO Aeon  :the best sounding server I have listened to at length."

Andrew loved the server so much he purchased the Aeon,

Dave and Troy

Audio Intellect NJ.

US. importer 432EVO Music servers.

While searching for the Absolute Sound review I ran across this review of the 432Evo Master that just came out in High Fidelity in Poland: http://highfidelity.pl/@main-1165&lang=en . 

I was considering the Aeon last year but ended up getting a Mojo Audio Deja Vu server. I am very happy with the Deja Vu but still remain somewhat curious when reviews come out. 

The optimized usb is nice, many relatively high priced competitors can't even do this.

recent updates:

Update:1 Aeon rave review

May/June Absolute sound page 138 Andrew Quint

"the 432EVo Aeon is the best sounding  music server i have listened to at length a product that deserves the highest recommendation"

we visited a dealer and did a direct comparison of our $7,500.00 Aeon

vs a $15,000.00Innous Statement the conclusion the Aeon sounded as good as the twice the price Statement.

the kicker is the Aeon can at any time be upgraded to our flagship Master.

the Master is one of the best sounding digital sources out there 

Dave and Troy

Audio intellect NJ

US. Importer. 432Evo Music servers.

I went and heard the Aeon this morning.  This was in the dealer's shop using my DAC so it was really for me to decide if the sound was intriguing enough to warrant a home trial.  I liked what I heard.  There was tremendous detail in the presentation without any digital harshness.  The sound was relaxed and very listenable.  I wanted to hear more.

The electronics used were nothing like my home setup.  I've decided I want to explore more and will update when it's set up in my home.

I will stick with my Innous Statement for now but I am interested in seeing a independent review for sure. 

Gentlemen - I’m interested in getting a streaming / server front end to feed my digital system.

I am considering the Innuos MkIII or Statement and a 432 System. Hard drive and specific 432 model isn’t determined at this time.

For me, a deep, wide soundstage with 3 dimensional images is critical. I also do not prefer a presentation that is pushed up in front of the speakers but one that occurs both in front and behind the speakers - presented as the recording engineer created the recording.

I use live music as a reference. What might sound more pleasing and more enjoyable to listen to doesn’t always coincide with what real music sounds like. I state this because, with well recorded music on a system that is dialed in and presents the music as it was performed - the emotion of the musician is conveyed and the experience is unmatched. On most recordings, the performance is behind the speakers, on some - the audience is in front of the speakers and on a very few - sounds come from the sides and even behind the listening position! Just my humble experience :-).

I’ll also have to look into audiophile grade Ethernet switches and Ethernet and USB cables, something I have NO experience with. So if anyone can contribute THEIR EXPERIENCE would be greatly appreciated. Please - no contributions without experience.

I’m interested in getting feedback from "firstgrowth" with his 432 Aeron. Very interested.

Finally - let’s everyone contribute our experiences and findings nicely. We don’t have to attack each other but can rather say something like "I experienced something different. This is my system and what I was listening to and what I experienced."

If there’s no direct experience, not to be rude - but I don’t find that useful in evaluating a product for purchase. And let’s not argue - it accomplishing nothing constructive.

Kindest regards to all, TJF

Well then, the ground rules have been laid. I’m interested in replies to this request. As the OP, I still have yet to hear the EVO so those who have, fire away!

Ok, I had the server in my system for a couple of hours this morning and here are my impressions.

It comes with dual power supplies, one is a 9v and the other 12. Hopefully I got this right but the 12v is the main power supply and the 9v is for the motherboard.

It took a good 20 minutes for the server to warm up from a cold start. We tried it with 2 different USB cables, I don’t recall the brands used but there was a big difference in price. One was $1200 and the other $3000. I played it with both but much preferred the more expensive cable. It focused the soundstage and made it bigger.

I only used Roon since the ripped files weren’t mine and I wanted familiar music for the audition. Tracks I played were Norah Jones "Come Away with me" Tom Waits "Looking for the heart of Saturday night" America "Sister golden hair" Grateful Dead from Barton Hall 5/8/77 "Scarlet Begonias" Alison Krauss "The lucky one" Steely Dan "Babylon Sister" and Paul Simon "Late in the evening". There were huge differences between recordings and I chose the America track due to it’s lack of quality. It sounded pretty lousy! The rest sounded at least as good as my Modwright/Oppo spinner setup but most sounded better. There was more detail and the bass took on weight. My speakers are open baffles, Spatial audio X3 which sound on the thin side with my regular CD player used as a transport. There was none of that here. The sound covered the spectrum. With the upgraded cable the players had a much more specific place on the stage. Not much changed tonally but I found the sound more engaging. The added flexibility of being able to stream is a huge bonus for me. I pulled the trigger.

I don’t write reviews for a living so I apologize for anything I might have missed. If anyone has any questions I’m capable of answering please ask. I’ve given up on waiting for the transport I ordered. I’m not getting any younger and I wanted to get on with my life.

Jeff

Thanks for the report @thyname.  If I understand you correctly, you compared the 432 Aeon (into which Dac?) to your Modwright OPPO (which model?) and liked what you heard using a $3,000 USB cable enough that you ordered the Aeon? 

You found your system sounded richer while also providing more detail and sounding more engaging through the Aeon.  Do I have that right?

What were you using to stream to the Modwright OPPO, or were you playing CDs?

Would you have ordered the Aeon with the $1,200 USB cable?

Thanks for any additional info.

I think you are confusing me with someone else @tomcy6 , I have not had the chance to try any EVO 432, neither do I intend to do so anytime soon. Sorry

@firstgrowth Did you operate it in 432hz mode or 440hz?

It's me he's referring to.  I know it's apples to oranges but the Modwright/Oppo 205 combo is a CD player I used as a spinner.  

I liked the sound with the less expensive cable but like it more with the more expensive one.  I hate the whole cable game but I trust my ears and I'm not going to delay my satisfaction over a little bit of money.

The sound was much more robust with the streamer.  It's not really a fair fight based on price but the ears want what they want.

To your question about whether or not my system sounded better over all, yes it did.

@thyname if it's not broke don't fix it. I am the same with my Innuos Zenith and Statement. Moon 680 and 280D  dac's and I am in heaven.  Adding a couple of Audiolab DC Blocks to see what these do. 

Also have a LessLoss Echo's End on the way for a DEMO with the LessLoss firewalls and footers. More to follow.

 LessLoss Echo's End R-2R DAC| Atelier 13 Audio (atelier13-usa.com)

Just love EU Audio Gear and NA gear.