I’ve been thinking about getting a DDC to go with my Pontus ll and I was wondering what will I need to connect a Hermes to my system?
@curiousjim When buying an HDMI cable for i2S it should be as short as possible as the i2S signal degrades quickly with distance. I’ve read a foot or less is best, so the closer you can get to that the better. There is someone else here who added an Iris to his Pontus II using a DH Labs 2.1 HDMI cable and reported a significant performance increase. I also added an Iris — bought it used in case it didn’t do much but it’s not going anywhere. Just fyi.
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@curiousjim the connections are very straightforward and easy. It gets a little complicated as some HDMI cables require settings adjustments between DENAFRIPS DDC and DAC. There’s a great video from Alvin from Vinshine on how to adjust settings. I posted last week asking if it was worth adding a DDC and got overwhelming yes responses. The sound improvements are significant from all replies and all reviews I’ve read. That’s why I did it. I have the Pontus II 12th and just added the Hermes. I did have a slight noise issue but thanks to the good folks here I may have figured it out.
I’ll post my thoughts this weekend after I sit down for some serious listening.
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@kingbr
Thanks for the reply. It sounds easier than I had thought.
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@curiousjim you’ll need an I2S cable to go from Pontus to Hermes. All other components go direct to Hermes.
Here is my setup:
Eversolo DMP-A6 Streamer (USB cable to Hermes)
Elite CD Carousel (Coax cable to Hermes)
Brennan B2 (Toslink cable to Hermes)
I2S (HDMI cable from Hermes to
Pontus)
Pontus set to I2S
If you go with a DENAFRIPS DDC you’ll also need a power cord as they do not come with one.
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I’ve been thinking about getting a DDC to go with my Pontus ll and I was wondering what will I need to connect a Hermes to my system?
Thanks
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@fthompson251 the good thing is I have 2 USB cables. I have a Synergistic Foyndation and DH Lab Mirage. I have the Foundation from Eversolo streamer in to Symphony and the DH Lab Mirage from Symphony out to Hermes. So if it is a bad USB I can always try the other. Sticking with DH Lab Mirage first though😊
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I haven’t touched the system in over a week, and when I noticed the noise (I had been listening for a while before I noticed it which is why when I did it threw me for a loop), I played a couple of other songs and only heard it on 1 or 2 of them. I then played a couple songs on CD and Brennan and did not notice it…Even Alvin from Vinshine thought it was I2S, but like you said I didn’t notice it on Coax or Optical.
Tomorrow I’m going to dive in head first and get to the bottom. I’m going to start by going direct with USB and then go from there and replay the same song(s) I noticed it…
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Gotcha @fthompson251! Ok, I will try that first. Thank you so much for all the support. Appreciate it my friend. It just sounded like maybe it was the config with the advice above. But you’re right USB re-route would be super easy, so I’ll def start there…appreciate you👍🏻
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@kingbr I don't think you are following me. Do not change your pin out configuration, it's not the problem because the other two sources RUN THROUGH YOUR HERMES and that I2s cable sound fine. It can't be the pin out or they would present the same problem as the streamer/usb. Swap the USB cable out of the gizmo and go direct to the Hermes, I expect that will fix it and it's easy to do. Let me know because it can also be a bad USB cable, but you have two to try. Unless you are having the problem with ALL sources.
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Thanks @fthompson251. I am away and won’t be home until tomorrow. That’s when I’ll try the config on I2S and/or go direct with USB cable…I initially didn’t think it was the config due to it only happening on certain tracks. Kinda quirky which is why I was so confused.
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I honestly don’t think the pin out is the problem because you said it ONLY happens with the USB connection from your streamer. The other connections (Coax and optical) to your Hermes play fine yet ALL of them go through the I2s from Hermes to your DAC. Secondly I don’t understand why it is taking so long to make a changes in a USB cable and see if that changes it.
I didn’t notice this using Coax (CD player) or Optical (Brennan B2). Just on the streamer and again only certain tracks...
These are your words above.
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Thank you again @cforsythe. I also use DH Labs 2.1 HDMI...Very helpful indeed. I'll start with 001 on Pontus and go from there.
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I initially used a Blue Jean hdmi and then I upgraded to a DH labs Reference HDMI. I believe I have the Hermes set to ‘000’ and the DAC set to ‘001’ and this worked for both cables. The DH labs cable was a nice upgrade for $110. I got a little bit better instrument separation which is the biggest difference I noticed going from AES/EBU to i2s.
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@cforsythe Thank you! That is super helpful as it sounds exactly like what I am getting! That is great to hear and I’ll try that first actually. Alvin from Vinshine also thought it was the I2S settings. What HDMI cable are you using?
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I just got a Venus DAC, and it took some time to get it configured with my Hermes. Apparently, the pin lay out on HDMI cords is not standardized, so you have to configure the pin lay out using the controls on the DAC until you find the right one for your particular cable. If you go to the Denafrips website there’s a video where Alvin explains the steps needed to configure the pin layout for both the DDC and the DAC. I followed the steps and set the DDC to ‘000’ and then changed the settings on the DAC until I found the right pin combo for me it was ‘001’. I kept running a phase test after each change it made, but I did have a similar experience to you where the phase test was correct but I was getting a slight crackle in one of the speakers. You’re close but you have to change one of the pins. I hope this helps!
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@gkelly Thank you! Good info. That is awesome you met Bill. He seemed great, answered every question/email right away!
@audioman58 Thank you for the info. I did set Hermes to 000. I never set Ontis as everything seemed to be playing fine and the test tones for left and right, and phase all seemed fine. I am using DH Labs 2.1 HDMI/I2S. This cable specified I2S on their website.
I think I’m going to try going direct with my USB to Hermes and bypassing ADD Symphony. See if that helps then go from there…
Thank you All for taking the time to respond. So hoping it’s just a fluky thing and maybe USB bypassing will work as I’ll still have my Ethernet cable going through Symphony…
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@kingbr the crackling I had wasn’t a constant noise, it was intermittent, but I don’t remember it only being present on certain tracks, or all tracks.
For what it’s worth, I also use DH Labs Mirage USB between streamer and Iris DDC which has been fine. My HDMI link between Iris and Pontus 15th is an AQ Carbon
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Yes on Hermes did you go into setup and then the 2 nd button from the end I believe optical hit the buttons until all 3 led go out then hit setup button again
listen at low volume if thst doesnot work try with1st Odeon the other 2 LEDs out
I2S I pin out is not a standard what brand cable
95% are hdmi cables with 75% video cables in it ,Tubulus Audio the only true
dedicated Solid core Silver Closest to air dielectric I2S cable are their digital cables are very good from the Argentus on up.
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I always leave mine on high as well. I just Remember working with a WIIM mini with a SCHITT modi DAC and when we would run it on higher bit rates would get pops at the beginning of a song had to lower it To a lower bit rate. That is where that idea came from. Sure hope it isn’t the symphony as I like Bill Stierhout and his philosophy on sound. Met him at the first Pacific auto Fest three years ago, was one of only a few vendors who had a product you could take home. An ElectraClear eau2. Also got a POWR bar, so I’m starting to build up my arsenal of ADD POWR.
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Thanks @gkelly I always leave the Symphony on high setting. I have never switched it to low or medium. Are you thinking that maybe a low or medium might help?
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One question, does this happen when you’re using all three settings and/or the off setting on the symphony?
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Thank you @soix! Another vote for less is more - definitely going to start there. USB cable (DH Labs Mirage) direct to Hermes..
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Yeah, take the Symphony out and just let the excellent Hermes do its thing. Sometimes less is more.
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Thank you @gkelly for the link to the article!
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OK good, let us know if that helped.
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You know I hate inconsistency! Like if the static was there all the time, great. The intermittent inconsistent stuff is what keeps me up at night🤦🏼♂️😂
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Thank you @fthompson251! Also very helpful and a good read. It didn’t say anything about any negative side effects, but I totally am on board with the “too much of a good thing”. Makes sense. And I had thought of bypassing the USB as I also run my Ethernet cable through the Symphony. Maybe I’ll go direct from Eversolo USB to Hermes and see…
Very helpful! Appreciate the responses😊
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Well your call, take it out and see if it improves, if not then try your USB cable. Sometimes too much of a good thing turns out to not be so. It appears to be some kind of filter for ethernet but I don;t understand why a person would run more USB cables through it. If you are just take that connection out and run straight to the Hermes from the eversolo.
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What is a ADD-Powr Symphony? Could you have a bad cable between it and what it’s connected to or a bad USB cable? Usually a pin out problem will be consistent as it has nothing to do with the source beforehand.
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Thank you @painter24! Very helpful! Were you getting the noise on all tracks or just some? That's why I'm a little perplexed. I know the I2S can be quirky...
I can certainly play with the settings on Pontus and see if that eliminated it, but before going down that rabbit hole I wondered if anyone had similar..
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Not familiar withe the Symphony, but maybe remove from the chain to eliminate it.
Saying this, I experienced similar when initially connected my Iris to my old Ares 12th-1; I thought I'd hit on the correct configuration (010, 000, 100 etc) but I hadn't. Even though I was getting music, I was experiencing the same static type pops and crackles, tried configuring again via the Ares front panel buttons and finally found the correct pin combo.
I now have the Pontus 15th connected to the same Iris, and had no such issues and didn't need to change the configuration
Hope you solve this 👍
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