Bolder Cable does a digital mod to the SB3 that has been well reviewed. Also, the other mod that seems to be popular with the SB3 is to upgrade the power supply. Again, Bolder does this and CI Audio sells a nifty looking separate power supply for the SB3. I have an unmodded SB3, but if I were going to seek improvements this is where I would start. I suggest going to the Bolder Cable and CI Audio forums over at Audio Cirlces for more info.
How would you improve the sound of Squeezebox?
I just set up a NAS music server with Squeezebox Duet. The convenience of accessing all my music collection is really a great thing. Now the question is, how would you improve the sound of the Squeezebox digital output? I heard people say that SB's outputs digital signals with much jitter, so what DAC's(~$1000) would you use to reduce the jitter? i.e. what DAC's has the better ability to handle jitter? Any other ways that you can improve the SB's SQ?
Showing 3 responses by cruz123
The Pace-Car is certainly interesting, but seems like it could be overkill given the price point. You may want to try a Monarchy DIP 48/96 upsampler as a lower cost alternative. See http://www.monarchyaudio.com/. Your post reminded me that I have one of these in storage. I'll pull it out and see if I can notice any improvement. |
I've been listening to my Squeezebox for the past week running through the Monarchy DIP upsampler into the DAC of my Opus 21 and I'm convinced the Monarchy is an improvement using the 24/48khz output setting. I tried 24/96 and didn't care for that setting - the music became thin and edgy. At 24/48 - compared to no DIP - the backgrounds seem quieter and music just seems fuller and "cleaner". I've swapped the DIP in and out of the chain several times for comparison and I comfortable the DIP is an improvement in my system. My listening is entirely with internet radio and Pandora. YMMV, of course. |