Apologies for the long post but please bear with me.
I sidestepped the first FPGA update for my Venus II based on some negative comments and went straight to the more recent 3.5 release that had better user feedback.
Update went ok and reported success but on reconnecting the DAC in my system i was greeted by a sound full of distortion, it was awful. I use a Hermes DDC and I2S connection.
After panicking that something had gone horribly wrong i tried USB. All was fine so i breathed a relief that the FPGA update process wasnt the issue. This led me to play around with I2S config on the Venus thinking there was a chance this may have changed or need resetting post update. Dont recall seeing anything about this in the instructions.
On changing the I2S pin config on the Venus i found 3 settings that played without distortion, i am not sure what the original setting was on the Venus as it worked straight away with the Hermes without having to do any config changes.
The 3 settings that played without distortion all had vastly different sound characteristics, something i didnt expect. One was devoid of midrange and bass and one bloated, thankfully the one was fine (011 if i recall correctly).
So if you are using I2S bear this in mind. It may also help to have some guidance from @alvin1118 about this if possible. I know HDMI cables can differ but didnt expect more than one setting to work.
In terms of the sound via 3.5 (and the better I2S config!) i can sum up the sound -bigger, deeper, more decay and background detail, tighter and more detailed bass, better treble clarity and improved focus. My jaw was on the floor with respect to the bass depth and transients, shockingly good.
There is a major downside that others have noted and that is instrument body, vocal feeling and emotion have disappeared. This is a big issue as others have noted.
It was at this point my mind went back to when i first bought my Venus II, it was thin sounding and almost tinny at times, it nearly went back! I was aware of extended burn in times so thankfully persevered to enjoy the gorgeous fleshed out sound i had prior to doing the FPGA update.
This recollection got me thinking. Posts are talking about burn in required after FPGA update. Based on my recollection of the Venus sound when i first had it and how it developed over time, i believe the main components at play here are the oscillators and time to settle in to operating temperature and stability. I am no expert in this but would seem feasible based on other posts re burn in.
The reason i mention this is whether others had to do what i did, disconnect and power down the DAC to perform the update. I wonder if the posts specifying burn in being required relate to the oscillators having to re-stabilise after being powered down. Just a thought based on my recollection of the out of the box Venus sound.
I am hoping that the fleshing out experienced from new will happen again - if it does, even 50% of it back, then this FPGA update would be nothing short of miraculous.
