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Auralic Aries w NOS DAC

Hi folks,

I'm intrigued by the new Auralic Aries server/streamer device. I love the idea of streaming lossless digital content from Tidal, etc direct to my Red Wine Audio DAC, and I love its ability to pull music from a hard drive over wifi as well. But here's the thing: I have the NOS version of the Red Wine DAC and zero need/interest in upgrading to the high-res version, and the Auralic Aries seems very focused on enabling 192k DSD content. I get that, I admire it, but it's not relevant for me. Would the Aries be total overkill with the Red Wine NOS DAC? If so, does anyone know of a cheaper option with similar functionality and great sound quality? I know that Sonos basically offers this functionality, but I'm looking for true audiophile sound quality.

Thanks as always.
lousyreeds1

Showing 4 responses by lousyreeds1

lousyreeds1's avatar
lousyreeds1 OP
286 posts
 
Mas1951: many thanks for the synchro-mesh recommendation. I currently use a Pure i-20 digital iPod dock as transport, and inserting the synchro-mesh could be a good, cheaper alternative to switching over to an Auralic Aries. Interesting thought!
lousyreeds1's avatar
lousyreeds1 OP
286 posts
 
Right - and one of the questions is whether there will be a major difference between the two Aries models if you have an NOS DAC that's not capable of hi-res. Would be interested to hear if anyone has thoughts on that.

Also, has anyone compared the Wyred 4 Sound Remedy reclocker against the Empirical Audio Synchro Mesh? Same functionality, $200 price difference.

It seems to me that there are four good options here at different price points, and I'd appreciate thoughts on the level at which one will "max out" a good NOS DAC:

Wyred 4 Sound Remedy (Apple TV/Pure i20 as transport) - $400
Empirical Audio Synchro Mesh (Apple TV/Pure i20 as transport) - $600
Auralic Aries LE - $1000
Auralic Aries - $1600
lousyreeds1's avatar
lousyreeds1 OP
286 posts
 
Hi Margot,

Have you actually compared the W4S and Empirical Audio? If so I'd be interested in your notes. Without any of the upgrades, the W4S and Empirical Audio appear to be exactly the same thing with a $200 price difference...
lousyreeds1's avatar
lousyreeds1 OP
286 posts
 
Thanks, Wisnon. Is there any consensus yet on whether the Aries sounds different through the different outputs? I would happily just use coax if there is no difference in sound quality. If I'm just using the coax output (which I think already utilizes a femto clock?), is there any point to the $600 upgrade on the Aries? I also should be able to use the built-in battery supply in my DAC to run the Aries, which means I have no use for the upgraded wall-wart.
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