Lumin U2 mini vs Mac laptop sound test

@sisserman 

Great post. I def hear a diff in DAC's and possibly the strength of the DAC which reclocks and cleans up the data stream is the reason the streamer is harder to hear when changed. 

I am deep into tubes amps these days. Have Aric Audio 2A3, Elekit 300B and going to build an Audio Note Kit PP EL34

JH

@soix 

Me too!!  That is why I had a friend listen for a diff blind.  

Have you heard a significant diff in streamers?

JH

@sandstone 

Ventura 13.3.1

I left all the open programs running on the mac.  Never shut anything down and there was a setting when you are in tidal and switch output on the icon to stream from the mac.  I clicked "more settings" and selected let tidal control volume 

This is confusing to me and I feel like I spent money on the U2 mini when a Blue Sound Node would have worked for much less money??

@designsfx 

The volume was different until I switched the button to allow Tidal to have full control of the sound and "adjust volume with another program".   

It was a significant probelm when I first did it. 

@wlutke 

I am glad you heard a diff and that is what I was expecting.  I am surprised by the results.  If anyone is in the Indianapolis area I woiuld love to do this experiement and have them listen

@12many 

Yes! Welcome.  I am doing another test today lower volume really listening deeply to see if I can hear a difference and will post the results. However, when I was setting things up this morning, it is absolutely not night and day.

I did another test today. I carefully listened to the Mac/USB/SPL Director DAC combo for a while before changing to the Lumin.  What I "think" I am hearing is more depth in the sound stage, more details on decay of symbols, more ambient feeling like hearing the room of the instruments echo a bit indicating they are not in a treated studio but a live club.  I did confirm that the differences require close listening to be heard. This again today was not night and day differences, in fact the differences in my DAC's, amps, even speaker cables reveal more of a sonic difference than the streamer experiment which remains boggling. I have watched/read reviewers say they hear sonic traits/differences in streamers but I may need more training to hear significant differences.  That said I am going to continue playing around and borrowing any streamer I can to continue this experiment.  Welcome all thoughts and comments.  

Thanks JH

@wsrrsw 

I have the U2 Mini connected by ether cable then to the DAC in the Director. For comparison the mac was connected via wifi then into the Director. The reimyo was not in the chain for comparison

@wsrrsw 

System other than streamer

SPL Director pre/DAC

SPL S1200 Power Amp

Reimyo 999 main DAC

Kirmuss speaker cables 

Audio Solution Figero M speakers

My ears?  Maybe. I am better than I used to be at hearing things in the music but my mentor could hear this and say he hears a huge diff!

@wsrrsw 

Using only XLR cables no RCA.  They are Mogami and another japanese brand so they are solid.  The USB cable was a cheap one that came with my scanner!  This should be a stark audible difference. Could be my room or other things but as mentioned I "think" I am hearing more diff in depth of soundstage with the Lumin. 

@yage 

Yes I agree but I listened to the owner of Antipodes interviewed on Darko podcast and he explained that the packets are always sent complete and any incomplete/corruption is erased as the system re-sends the packets.  He said the crucial part of data is the timing information for playback.  He said noise from a computer etc will cause timing issues and smearing of the square wave which I think is from jitter. Anyway he makes a very good argument on why a streamer would matter so I was shocked to not hear an absolute night and day difference!

JH

@yage 

I think he was saying the information via packet is easily and perfectly transfered via USB.  He was referring to the timing information for playback that is crucial to good sound.  I would have to go re-listen to it but the guy is making and selling streamers in Australia.

Thanks for the website will try and find a way to listen to it over my system or will use headphones. The jitter was easily heard on my ipad!  

jh

@designsfx 

I never said I was using Tidal for volume control. There was a volume diff that I was able to fix but turning on a setting in Tidal that allows it to control but volume has been and always is controlled by the Director preamp.  Leedh is also off on the Lumin and again the director adjusts the volume

I verified sound levels with a DB meter. 

JH

Final Update

Had another friend come over and he did 100% hear a difference between the mac computer and Lumin streamer.  The difference he heard was immediate and it was what I "thought" I was hearing.  It was removing a cloud from the music. It sounded more present and alive and real than what the computer as a streamer presented. 

JH

@lanx0003 

Yes!  The main finding for me was how close it was from a really "bad" source to almost 2,000 x better source!