Abruce, exactly what is that difference. I have ripped using both as well.
I just basically installed the same front end as Grannyring, save the power supply which I am going to build myself. Also use XLD and a Wywires cable (dealer disclaimer). I use Audirvana which allows you to bypass ITunes save the UI, which I like.
For the rest I am either going direct into the USB input of the Resolution Audio Cantata (another dealer disclaimer), or using the Audiophilleo1 with Pure Power into my Lessloss DAC 2004 MKII. I just set up the Mac Mini this past weekend so I need more time to evaluate but as of now the updated Mac Mini at the minimum is on par with both the CEC TL-51X slaved to my Lessloss, and the CD drive in the Cantata.
I have a fairly light CD collection as I primarily listen to vinyl and analog tape. I was pretty much in denial for a while regarding the merits of computer audio. Thought I would never give up my transport. Now as I type this I am using the remote app for iPad to select songs.
I can now see where Grannyring and many others who have gone down this road before me are coming from. I will admit though a good DAC is a key to getting the optimal sound. If only they could make the front end set up easier than setting up a turntable or tape deck :) |
Bill, I can see where the PS upgrade would probably generate the biggest improvement. I would consider the Mojo but was not too enthused with some of the bickering I read between Mojo and Core Audio, so they were eliminated. That left Red Wine and Paul Hynes and neither are cheap so I figure why not try and build one. Who knows if it works maybe I can dress it up and sell it.
Did you find installing the PS to be straightforward? I understand that one of the reasons Nugent recommends the late 2009 is that the PS upgrade is easier to carry out. BTW - I also did the Larry Moore mods.
Personally the main difficulty in going down this road was the selection of the front end. So may servers, USB converters, wifi devices, etc. out there. One reason I settled on the Audiophilleo1 is it can be plugged directly into the SP/DIF input on the DAC thereby eliminating a cable. However, I have to say that the Sonore Rendu was a close second. Having the ability to run Ethernet or Ethernet to the Rendu and then connect to he DAC was intriguing. Going to keep my eyes on those Sonore folks. |
Thanks Bill I will hopefully sort this out over the next few months. In the meantime I am enjoying this set up quite a bit. |
I built a CAPS and now use a Mac Mini. Followed Nugent's advice as well. Have to say both are very good and could have lived with either. I just prefer the Mac OS. That being said Sonore Audio has the right approach with Linux. |
The Sonore Rendu is on my list of things to buy. I am quite impressed with Sonore and the development of their products.
Won't splurge on a Lampi though. Can't justify that spend on digital no matter how good it is. I am an analog guy. Digital is the equivalent of my third string QB.
I must say though this computer audio has been kind of interesting to me of late. |
I just saw the Wave Editor link on Steve's site and was curious about it. I am using JRiver and currently upsample 44.1 to 88.2. I will take a closer look at Wave Editor to learn how they accomplish the 44.1 to 96. From my past experience it seemed more practical to upsample in even multiples, but perhaps Wave Editor has a new twist to the process. Won't hurt to try it since it is initially free.
While I am very happy with JRiver I have also considered trying Amarra so I can test out the room correction features in it. Maybe I will try both at the same time. |
I recall when I was using Audirvana that the Izotope SRC was imbedded into it. Seemed to work quite well, although for the same reason as I have yet to try Amarra, I prefer not to be tied to iTunes. So that is why I am now using JRiver. I do not believe they are using Izotope for the SRC.
I do prefer 24/88.2 of all the upsampling frequencies I have tried to date with original 44.1 recordings. We will see how 24/96 turns out. |
I have worked Concert Fidelity rooms for 4 years now and have heard them with the Kaiser Kowero speakers and some others. In my opinion the TAD CR-1 speakers made for the best pairing with their electronics. This CES was my favorite CF set up.
Charles, if you were at RMAF in 2011 we crossed paths back then as I worked that room. Would be interested in your thoughts on the Kaiser's versus TAD. |
Best room at The Show was Zesto Audio with the Merrill TT. Having George Merrill there himself didn't hurt either. Found him quite entertaining. Like JWM found the Lampizator room average. That said nothing touched the Highwater Sound room at the Venetian. Okay a little biased as they used our 300B's, but I was working the Concert Fidelity room and while the TAD CR-1s were quite good, those Cessaro's are to die for. |
Charles, nice meeting you and JWM and thanks for the compliment. I appreciate the time you guys spent in both the Concert Fidelity and Highwater Sound rooms. |
JWM, I actually enjoyed the presentation of the Cessaro's better from the upper listening position. Same with the TAD in our room. Not that the lower level was bad, but after listening to music non-stop for 8 to 10 hours a day it's nice to get a little further back from the sound.
Bruce Edgar is a friend of ours and we have a couple sets of his speakers lying around. Preference is to sit a little further back and no toe-in. His speakers can really push some air.
Back to the original topic. I can see why Bill prefers the Offramp. I have to say I much prefer having a USB converter as the interface rather than going direct into the USB input, but in my case I bypass the SPDIF cable altogether and just plug the device into the digital input. One less cable to get in the way. |
What's wrong with flat? To me that means no artificial emphasis of any frequency. You want emphasis or de-emphasis get an equalizer or something with tone controls. The TADs let you hear exactly what is coming from the source through your associated electronics. Not what everyone likes to hear though. I will admit TADs are unforgiving, but like JWM felt all the rooms I heard them in sounded very good. Nothing like judging for yourself.
BTW - Andrew Jones held court one evening at the TAD reception. Amazing guy and quite a history. Not sure how but we quickly morphed from a discussion about speakers to classic cars. |
Bill, click on this link and scroll past the photos. http://lampizator.eu/szop/szopproducts/LZ-TRANSPORT/Lampizator%20transport.htmlYou will see two sections, one called Example of System Set-up and one called Example of New System. The latter describes use with a MacMini. This should give you a good idea of what is involved. Basically the Lampizator transport is middleware like the Offramp. Just some different methods to connect everything together and from what I can tell only handles 24/96. IIRC, someone on this thread was mentioning Sample Manager as a software tool to convert bit depth and resample rates using Izotope. I just cloned my library and converted anything 16/44.1 to 24/88.2. Now I just play the files natively in JRiver bypassing their SRC. So far so good with the results. |
Andrew, I heard the Laminar streamer in it's infancy about 3 years ago at RMAF. It certainly has some promise, and I thought it sounded good going through a DAC 2004. However, I fear it will be grossly overpriced given the technology used. In fact at this point I am still not certain it is a finished product. I think they had one at the NY show recently and had it covered up.
I have been using a Lessloss DAC for 6 years now and find it is still hard to beat. Multi-bit DAC chips (alas nearly all are 1-bit now) and direct coupled at the output, as well as battery power on the output stage. It is well designed. Their concept of mating it with a CEC TL-51X in order to use the 256f clock output of the DAC to slave the CEC to it made a lot of sense.
With the Laminar they are taking the approach that the clock in the streamer is more important. Personally I think it's a marketing move as the DAC 2004 is no longer manufactured and they want sell streamers for use with any DAC. I believe there is also some debate about other aspects of the design and saw some comments Gordon Rankin made regarding the design approach.
In my current configuration my DAC is slaved to the clocks in the Audiophilleo USB converter that I use. While I think the sound is very good. I still wonder what I might gain if I can find a middleware solution that would allow me to slave it to the DAC. The solutions I have encountered so far use a PLL which is not necessarily optimal but gets the job done.
Keep an eye on SOtM. They were at CES and I heard their sever/DAC in the ESS Labs room. Very good and well built. I think over time they will be a leader in computer audio. |
In looking over some things I find myself revisiting Gordon Rankin's Crimson and Cosecant USB DAC designs. Some nice work from one of the pioneers of computer audio. |
