That is great information from your friend Edumke. Thanks. I also look forward Audioengr to your findings. By the way, Audioengr, do you have a Mac laptop to test your mods on? I would think there would be a great market for Mac specific needs, since we have less flexibility that the PC people have. |
Folks - first many thanks for taking the time to share your findings - it is much appreciated.
I am also looking for a great sounding solution to go from iTunes on a iMac G5 to my Ack!Dak DAC. The S/PDIF modded Airport Express seems like it would be just what I need technically - but whether I go this route primarily depends on the sound quality.
Audioengr - I'm really looking forward to your experiences with this.
Many thanks,
Neville |
Thank you. I look forward to your review. |
Bought an AirPort Express and I will be modding it soon... I will let you all know if it is as good as the Transit on a PC. |
One thing about the Transit - I use it with Foobar player and ASIO plug-in. These are critical on a PC to get the quality out of it. I also playback exclusively with 24/96 through my DAC. This makes all the difference. Leaves all transports in the dust.
I am thinking hard about buying an Airport Express and modding it to have a S/PDIF coax out. This might be the best solution for iMac, although I prefer a wired USB connection. |
I have a friend who switched from the Transit to a Waveterminal. He is using a powerbook and a MSB DAC. playing Apple Lossless files.
After switching to the Waveterminal he said "So that's what the music is supposed to sound like, it's like unfogging your glasses."
He also said he liked the way music sounded with the Transit, but he really likes how it sounds now.
Ed |
Thanks for the information Edumke! What adds so much to it is that you said that initially you liked the Transit. I recently plugged my headphone amp and AOS Piccolo DAC into a Nakamichi CD player (although 10 years old), and noticed the same thing. The Transit was good, but when I heard the standalone CD player, the laptop setup seemed to be missing a natural and musical sense of space. Not a huge difference but definitely a difference. This is what has inspired me to see if I can upgrade the system. My amp, cans are good, and the Piccolo DAC is source dependant and a great little unit for the money. It seemed that the Transit was the weak link.
I would greatly appreciate it if you could setup your waveterminal when you get back. I really think I am approaching the point where I will buy one of these two units. Could you also give us some impressions on the size of the two units. From the pictures, it seems that the waveterminal might be smaller. Since I like to throw my audio gear in my computer bag when I travel and when I go to and from my office, portability is a nice bonus.
Thanks again for your insights. |
Right now I have two systems set up. One with the MiniDAC, the other with an Edirol UA-25. They both sound fantastic. Both are fed by Apple computers playing Apple Lossless files through iTunes.
We thought the Transit sounded great until we compared it to a high end CD transport. We then realized that much of the music was just plain missing. It is not subtle. We replaced it with the UA-25 on one system, and the MiniDAC on another. We are using anolog out on the MiniDAC and digital out on the UA-25. Both sound devine and easily compete with (if not exceed) the high end CD transport. I was surprised that it could make that much difference.
The Waveterminal is still in the box, but I will set it up late next week when I return from travels.
This is incredibly exciting to get this quality out of a computer. I am sure the traditionalists will stick to one CD at a time, swearing that it sounds better than a "computer". Lets face it though, these days most CDs are mastered on computers. |
If I were using the analogue out for these cards, I think the quality and what you pay would pretty much determine it.
Where I am unsure, is if you are just passing the signal through to a DAC, can these units make that much of a difference in sound quality? It sounds from Edumke that the answer is definitely yes. I love the description of the Transit as castrated, that's a good one :)
Edumke I am glad you are able to do some testing for us, how would you describe the waveterminal and edirol sound, as compared to the M-audio? (I would assume the mini-DAC would blow these away because it is five times the price.) I like the sound I am getting now with my Transit, because I don't know anything different, but I would love to get a little more space in music. I mainly listen to classical music. I am getting great detail now but would love a tiny bit more soundstage.
If we were there, would you think that we would throw up our arms, disown our Transits and immediately order an Edirol or Waveterminal? Is this a fairly no brainer upgrade?
Sorry for the length, but you are the first person I have found that has had access to these units and has been able to do some comparison.
Cheers, |
Steve,
I tried the Transit on two separate Apple systems myself, and had several friends come to the same conclusion on different systems.
My tests were on a Powermac dual 1.42 G4 to the Transit, then in to a Monarchy DIP/DAC.
Also a Powerbook G4 to the Transit, then to a McIntosh MDA1000 DAC.
In both cases the music sounded like it was castrated.
Ed |
The Edirol is probably the best choice for iMac. An AES/EBU interface can easily be added to the Edirol with mods, as well as improving its jitter performance. Just a short cable hanging from it with a XLR connector attached.
BTW - Edumke - Did you try iTunes with the Transit with an iMac?
Steve N.
Empirical Audio
Manufacturer |
I have been doing research on this as well. The only way I could figure to get the information is to start throwing money at the situation.
So far I have used the the Monarchy Dip/DAC, Edirol UA-25 feeding a Mcintosh MDA1000, the M-Audio Transit, the Waveterminal, and the MiniDAC. (Also compared them to high end McIntosh CD transport - the computer won).
I set these up on two identical systems (one is mine, one a friends): Apple Mcintosh playing Apple Lossless files to DAC to Mcintosh MC1200s to Mcintosh XRT 28s.
The only real standout so far was that the Transit sounded BAD on several different Apple Macintosh systems, and the MiniDAC drops the USB signal about six times a day (Apogee says it is my computer). I will do more in depth listening next week.
The consensus seems to be that it is best to avoid SPDIF and toslink connections. Does anyone know of a high quality USB device that will supply digital output via an XLR balanced connection? |
We sell the waveterminal. It's used with our professional test kits. I use the waveterminal on my PC. It's very good and I've had others buy it and exclaim it's the most fantastic thing ever. I don't know about it being that fantastic, but there is no comparison to the sound cards in my computer--it's in a totally different league. Unfotunately, I can't offer you direct comparisons to the other options you mentioned. |
Thanks Dschea_32665. I know it's all subjective, but without the equipment for my own comparison, it's hard to know if spending my hard-earned bucks (graduate student) on various DACs would reap the rewards of improved sonics.
So far, my GMA Europa speakers has made the biggest difference. The SACD player made a nice improvement. Having it modifled also was a nice addition. The Cayin amp also improved the sound and dynamics; I had an old NAD receiver before. I've also heard an improvement with better interconnects.
Will adding an external DAC with my computer HD as transport and music jukebox improve the sound even more? If so, at what price point? What equipment is needed to have that "better" sound? For the buck, where will I hear the most noticeable improvement? |
I would really love to hear the answer to this myself because I have been trying to find information on this exact situation. Can't seem to get many answers. |
