Thx @jond @mike_in_nc
yes I believe I read about a guy replacing the stock (7260) card with the updated 8260 card. Why this card is better, or how one would go about effecting this upgrade is beyond me, however. |
@ghdprentice
just out of curiosity, what prompted the move to the Aurender? That G2 looks a good bit of kit. |
Noisy?! Cripes, that’s what I’m trying to get away from.
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Well I’m reading a lot about the mini and g2 here, not so much RE the original Aries like I just bought. I do find it curious that the mini has provision for adding internal storage whereas the full sized Aries does not. I read on another site that the G1 wasn’t much in the way of a step up in SQ from the original Aries, but of course anyone can write anything on the Internet.
in regards to the noise floor, am I incorrect in my understanding that this becomes a more critical issue as one moves into more highly sensitive speakers?
Oh and for the record... looking at units like the W20SE and Simaudio 650d makes me feel like one of the chimney sweeps from Mary Poppins 😣 |
Well, my Aries arrived today. Was actually kind of a pain in the nuts to get up and running. Phone wouldn’t connect to the unit’s network, then set it up with Ethernet in the other room, brought it into the listening room, settings gone, wash rinse repeat. Scary moment when after finally getting it on the network, I was getting no audio. I thought maybe my DAC wasn’t compatible. Tweaking some settings fixed that.
Now that I have it squared away and driving my Black Ice Glass FX DAC... HOLY CRAP! This thing sounds amazing! Night and day difference moving to the Aries from PC/USB connection. What was grainy before is now almost liquid, way more low level detail, rock solid center image, at one point I actually thought the sound was coming from BEHIND me 😄. I really couldn’t be happier; Although, I’m thinking a quality USB cable might be in order. The DH Labs Mirage currently has my attention. |
It’s kind of funny that I went this route, as my primary interest lies in analog. Unfortunately, due to space concerns in my current housing arrangement, I figured I’d get the most mileage out of a DAC/Streamer combo. No point in shelling out for a hifi turntable if it’s just going to sit next to my Technics in storage.
@mgrif104 I’m running the Aries via WiFi, which is what Auralic recommends in the manual. Experimenting with an Ethernet connection isn’t really in the cards, unfortunately, as it would probably be at least a 30 foot run from the router to to the room I have my stereo in.
Roon isn’t really something I’m interested in pursuing, as I’m extremely impressed with the LightningDS interface. Especially the Tidal integration, which was a concern I had while shopping for a streamer. |
Well, I ended up ordering TWO of those monolith cables, one each in 1m & 2m length. If nothing else, it’ll give me something to compare any other cable I may try against. |
@ghdprentice Thanks! I’ll look into that! Any particular brand you’d recommend? |
@ghosthouse maybe I’ve been spending too much time on the forum, but I have a hard time trusting the quality of a $15 cable... But you’re right, The price is low enough to take a gamble on. Thx, I think I’ll give it a shot. |
@ghosthouse Hmm... well if the optimal length is 1.5m, this cable is only available in 1m & 2m lengths...
Also, I discovered something interesting in the Lightning DS app...
It was my understanding that the one downside to moving from PC to dedicated streamer was the loss of the PC app’s ability to perform a first unfold of MQA files, which is unfortunate if one doesn’t have an MQA capable dac. Therefore, I’ve been running my Aries in FLAC lossless mode.
Today, however, I discovered the following information in my device’s settings:
”Decoding Method: AURALiC streaming devices are capable of decoding MQA files using AURALiC’s proprietary resampling and de-blurring method. You can select from the sampling rate settings for the process described here. Please note that this process is not an MQA-created or MQA-licensed process.
Auto: Your streaming device will detect the best decoding sampling rate based on the information in the MQA file. It will also detect the maximum sampling rate of a USB-connected DAC.
2x Sampling Rate: Your streaming device will always decode MQA files at 88.2 kHz or 96 kHz, depending on the original file’s sampling rate.
4x Sampling Rate: Your streaming device will always decode MQA files at 176.4 kHz or 192 kHz, depending on the original file’s sampling rate.
8x Sampling Rate: Your streaming device will always decode MQA files at 352.8 kHz or 384 kHz, depending on the original file’s sampling rate.”
Anyone know what I should make of this? |
@ghdprentice that is consistent with my layman’s understanding of noise floor. Would it be reasonable to attribute the new appearance of low level sound (i.e. softer notes I hadn’t noticed before) in the program material to a lowering of the noise floor?
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@ghdprentice I appreciate the rather eloquent elaboration. That must be the “blacker blacks” I keep reading about. I have to admit, that must be some kind of power supply you’ve got. I bet when that baby hits 88mph you see some serious sh*t!
Seriously though, I really am pleased with the sound I’m getting. Compared to when I was hooking up my cell phone via 3.5” jack to my tired old Yamaha a-1000 driving Realistic Nova-8’s, my current setup is on another planet.
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@ghdprentice no worries, friend. I didn’t get the impression that you were aspersing the Aries; as a matter of fact I’ve found your input both thoughtful and informative, and I thank you for it. Pleasant change of pace from the vitriol and condescension I’ve seen in some other threads. |
@ghosthouse So... my Monolith USB’s arrived today. It turns out that the 1m length cable was long enough, so that’s the one I hooked up. I sat down to give a skeptical listen and... WOW! The soundstage somehow seemed more focused, and more well defined spatially. Much more natural sounding presentation throughout the entire range. And this is with the cable fresh out of the box. If there’s any kind of “burn in” period, whereby the sound improves over time, I’m in for a treat.
I kept wondering if I was suffering confirmation bias, but I don’t see how that could be, as (no offense) I honestly wasn’t expecting anything out of a $15 cable other than mild disappointment.
Guess I’m officially in the “cables matter” camp. Thanks so much for the hot tip! Best $15 I ever spent! |
@ghdprentice I totally agree with you. The only other forum I’ve spent time on caters to vintage Vespa enthusiasts, and is populated by a group of genuinely helpful folks, where abusive posting will very quickly get one banned. When I first came over here I was rather shocked at some of the posts I saw.
@ghosthouse school of hard knocks indeed. Other than the Klipsch RF-5’s I bought a few years ago that were so bright it was like someone was pounding a piccolo into my ear canal with a hammer, I’ve been rather fortunate in having not made any bad mistakes in my system. In this hobby screwing up can be both expensive and demoralizing.
@calvinandhobbes yeah I looked at the pro-ject, but I’d heard mixed reviews of Volumio, and felt the price was steep for a tricked out Raspberry Pi. Ended up paying less for my used Auralic, and their Lightning DS app is incredibly intuitive. |
