sorry I missed seeing this earlier....
I keep seeing this note about DACs having issues locking onto the Hiface signal as the higher present voltage might be to tall. I’ve not heard it said it was as the result of too much jitter.
In fact I think given past exp that if jitter is the single most deleterious factor in gaining great sound, the Hiface does an exemplary job of at least NOT increasing it’s presence. It does seem to reduce it but I’ve only ears with which to make that assessment. It does yield a cleaner, clearer, less edgy and brittle sound.
I’ve not tried it with every DAC made though… and who has?
I feel therefore any presumed scenario is as much speculation as anything else, UNLESS first hand trials AND measurements were taken in which ever assembly of hiface to DACs occurred. Thus undeniably pointing to the actual reasoning for any noticed or accounted poor outcome when using the Hiface.
Then and there of course, and as valid, it says don’t use the Hiface with ‘such & such’ DACs, is all.
I ran it straight into each of my two receivers using the attached Oyaide BNC cable and plugging in the Hiface directly to my pc (s). A Sony es series 444, multi ch discrete receiver w/24/96 DAC chipset. A Onkyo TXSR 805 DAC 24/192, and of course my Bel Canto e one DAC 3. I used 3 diferent PCs. 2 XP Pro, and one Vista laptop. Using Fubar, and Media Center 14, and now 15, latest ver as of Jan 18, ’11. I used Direct sound, Kernel Streaming, and WASAPI. Lossless files, lossey files, ROM drive playback too. DVDA and DVD SD audio. Both on disc and hard drive as ripped music.
Additionally, I found online either free or by purchase, higher sampling rate music, with which to playback. An assortment of 24/96 to 24/176.4, to 24/192 were available for playback… eventually and since.
In every case as the quality of the DAC being fed by the Hiface unit, even with adapters in place at the end of the Oyaide BNC wire, the result was improved upon, everytime. I didn’t use the Hiface with my Stereovox XV2 cable as the Oyaide was simply a better sounding wire.
I wish I had still more stand alone DACs with which to try the Hiface, but that must come from those other’s out there who own different dAC and a Hiface.
With the Hiface & Oyaide conducting the signal to a DAC, all the outcomes were noted as being appreciably better with each step up in hardware. The only limitations were the outboard DACs build quality, and sampling rate decoding abilities of those associated DACs.
The Sony’s limitation was due to it’s age… over 11 years old, and only a 16/44 to 24/96 range. The Onkyo had no limits and developed the full spectrum of digital conversion to 24/192. The Bel Canto DAC 3 had a overlooked by the factory shortcoming of 24/176.4, and can be remydied were I to send it along to Bel Canto for the chip replacement… which I very likely will do, increasing it to it’s standard top limit of 24/192. That issue alone was the main reason I even used the Onkyo at all as a DAC. Otherwise I’d not have known if the Hiface was at fault or the problem was elsewhere. Both receivers show the rate being sent into them on their front displays, BTW, the BC DAC 3 does not display such info.
With the BC DAC 3 the only way you know if the DAC is not processing a certain rate is it simply won’t make music. It will make other irritating noises though.
I also feel some more prominent accounts of the Hiface unit aren’t exactly transparent articles. Their findings and my own are so vastly dissimilar I have to point towards a faulty Hiface unit, or poor synergy with cabling and or, as one case intimates, bad ju ju with their weiss and/or Berkely DAC. Both my reference system and those of several others accounting of the Hiface, are or were, on par with one another so I can’t place any of the reviewing systems as the reason for any reputed ‘lackluster’ or dull performance, as was conveyed in at least one, online account of the Hiface’ sound.
AS some time has since passed, and my curiosity has gotten the better of me, I’ve added into my mix of electronics a Lynx AES 16 PCI Express sound card and Gotham AES cable. I configure the Lynx card to output using it’’s ASIO option.
I can not say exactly why things are as they are presently…. BUT I must input here as I did in my review of the lynx card, also posted both here and at CA, it is indeed superior in sound quality to the Hiface unit, though again, not in any way as demonstrated by the CA article on the Hiface 24/192 unit. I found quite differing results from the Lynx + gotham, to the Hiface + Oyaide scenario. I say it that way as the cable does make for a difference in the reproduced sound everytime… as well as does the type of interface. I’ll leave the why’s of that to some others… all I know is what I hear and I’ll always try to convey my findings as honest and sincere. I’ll also point out the obvious anomolies I perceive.
ON a lighter note is this…. I often read about assertions that a better conversion or outright audio converting DAC is one that does not use Drivers… and rather is ‘plug & play’ only.
It amuses me to no end, that those same people use devices such as the Lynx card which also MUST employ uh… yeah… drivers and proprietary software..
Get er done is my way of thinking… drivers or not. Plug & play, who cares. It’s a simple enough task and ordinarily is quick and painless. I should point out as well on the Lynx interface, that I had to prevail upon Lynx support to properly configure the software once it was installed, as it was simply beyond me to do without a lengthy learning curve, and lots more time being devoted to it’s understanding. They set up the ASIO functionality, and set both Fubar and Media Center for it’s use with my XP pro box.
But I digress. My Lynx + Gotham AES 7ft interface yields for me, a greater insight into the musical presentation than does the Hiface. In a nutshell, it’s depiction is more natural. More real. More info is being conveyed within the soundstage and from the instruments, which makes sense too. There is a skosh of leading edge sharpness which seems to be alleviated, albeit, I find it negligible and more congruent to what maturalness in the sound should possess.
Does that make the Hiface strident or aggressive sounding? Only by immediate comparison. Which is one other reason I find fault with some other accounts of the Hiface wherein a Lynx aES 16e was used as the default or reference. So again, if the Hiface is anything less than or more so than, it surely isn’t dull sounding even by comparison. Not at all. It is quite the contrary in fact.
I’d submit the issue is in how and to what the Hiface is being connected. USB cable? How long of an USB cable. What make of USB cable? Which RCA or BNC? What RCA or BNC cable? What DAC?
I feel the latter is the least concern for many hobbyists. It’s doubtful too, though surely possible, someone out there will stick a Hiface in the mix to supply their $5K or up DAC. Maybe. Who knows? It could happen!
How it’s done I feel is more the key to things than is the Hiface’s inherent traits. I think the Hiface is an excellent choice for anyone to get a job done very well and economically. I don’t think it’s the last word on pc to DAC interfaces… just a very good one. There is better… and better almost always costs more $$$$.
I’ve done enough mixing and matching of gear to realize now, wires matter. Interfaces matter. BNC betters RCA. I’ve proven that to myself. Be it less Jitter, a better voltage match or what, the combination of Lynx AES 16e & Gotham AES interface, handily outperforms the Oyaide DB 510 BNC silver cable & Hiface USB converter. Hands down. Noticeably. Regardless the sampling rates. IMHO… as well it should too!
Hiface + Oyadie BNC = $400 MSRP
Lynx AES 16e + gotham AES interface = $900 MSRP.
Is there $500 worth of difference? Obviously.
Is there $500 worth of improvement?
I’lll say nope. But value is in the eye of the listener, as it were.
Adding the Lynx card shows the value of the Hiface as well. It did to me. I still have my Hiface. It’s doing quite well in my bedroom outfit. I am trying to get a USB cable so as to attach it directly to the Sony receiver, so I’ll indicate whatever changes I see there when that happens. UPS mis-dilevered the Gold series cable Belken sent me last week. Either that will be soon resolved, or I’ll buy some other USB extension cable from some other maker.
The Lynx AES 16e + gotham cable however, is now the reference around here.
Results will vary I’m sure. From one rig to some others, certainly. Vastly so? I thihnk that is doubtful. The Hiface has far far too many positive responses being noted online, mine included, to make me think otherwise. Or to hang my hat on just one bad review. For me, it shines more a light onto that accounts author than it does a poor light onto the Hiface. IOW… can one article be right and hundreds of others be wrong? I don’t think so and my own exp says otherwise, agreeing with the majority in this instance.
I keep seeing this note about DACs having issues locking onto the Hiface signal as the higher present voltage might be to tall. I’ve not heard it said it was as the result of too much jitter.
In fact I think given past exp that if jitter is the single most deleterious factor in gaining great sound, the Hiface does an exemplary job of at least NOT increasing it’s presence. It does seem to reduce it but I’ve only ears with which to make that assessment. It does yield a cleaner, clearer, less edgy and brittle sound.
I’ve not tried it with every DAC made though… and who has?
I feel therefore any presumed scenario is as much speculation as anything else, UNLESS first hand trials AND measurements were taken in which ever assembly of hiface to DACs occurred. Thus undeniably pointing to the actual reasoning for any noticed or accounted poor outcome when using the Hiface.
Then and there of course, and as valid, it says don’t use the Hiface with ‘such & such’ DACs, is all.
I ran it straight into each of my two receivers using the attached Oyaide BNC cable and plugging in the Hiface directly to my pc (s). A Sony es series 444, multi ch discrete receiver w/24/96 DAC chipset. A Onkyo TXSR 805 DAC 24/192, and of course my Bel Canto e one DAC 3. I used 3 diferent PCs. 2 XP Pro, and one Vista laptop. Using Fubar, and Media Center 14, and now 15, latest ver as of Jan 18, ’11. I used Direct sound, Kernel Streaming, and WASAPI. Lossless files, lossey files, ROM drive playback too. DVDA and DVD SD audio. Both on disc and hard drive as ripped music.
Additionally, I found online either free or by purchase, higher sampling rate music, with which to playback. An assortment of 24/96 to 24/176.4, to 24/192 were available for playback… eventually and since.
In every case as the quality of the DAC being fed by the Hiface unit, even with adapters in place at the end of the Oyaide BNC wire, the result was improved upon, everytime. I didn’t use the Hiface with my Stereovox XV2 cable as the Oyaide was simply a better sounding wire.
I wish I had still more stand alone DACs with which to try the Hiface, but that must come from those other’s out there who own different dAC and a Hiface.
With the Hiface & Oyaide conducting the signal to a DAC, all the outcomes were noted as being appreciably better with each step up in hardware. The only limitations were the outboard DACs build quality, and sampling rate decoding abilities of those associated DACs.
The Sony’s limitation was due to it’s age… over 11 years old, and only a 16/44 to 24/96 range. The Onkyo had no limits and developed the full spectrum of digital conversion to 24/192. The Bel Canto DAC 3 had a overlooked by the factory shortcoming of 24/176.4, and can be remydied were I to send it along to Bel Canto for the chip replacement… which I very likely will do, increasing it to it’s standard top limit of 24/192. That issue alone was the main reason I even used the Onkyo at all as a DAC. Otherwise I’d not have known if the Hiface was at fault or the problem was elsewhere. Both receivers show the rate being sent into them on their front displays, BTW, the BC DAC 3 does not display such info.
With the BC DAC 3 the only way you know if the DAC is not processing a certain rate is it simply won’t make music. It will make other irritating noises though.
I also feel some more prominent accounts of the Hiface unit aren’t exactly transparent articles. Their findings and my own are so vastly dissimilar I have to point towards a faulty Hiface unit, or poor synergy with cabling and or, as one case intimates, bad ju ju with their weiss and/or Berkely DAC. Both my reference system and those of several others accounting of the Hiface, are or were, on par with one another so I can’t place any of the reviewing systems as the reason for any reputed ‘lackluster’ or dull performance, as was conveyed in at least one, online account of the Hiface’ sound.
AS some time has since passed, and my curiosity has gotten the better of me, I’ve added into my mix of electronics a Lynx AES 16 PCI Express sound card and Gotham AES cable. I configure the Lynx card to output using it’’s ASIO option.
I can not say exactly why things are as they are presently…. BUT I must input here as I did in my review of the lynx card, also posted both here and at CA, it is indeed superior in sound quality to the Hiface unit, though again, not in any way as demonstrated by the CA article on the Hiface 24/192 unit. I found quite differing results from the Lynx + gotham, to the Hiface + Oyaide scenario. I say it that way as the cable does make for a difference in the reproduced sound everytime… as well as does the type of interface. I’ll leave the why’s of that to some others… all I know is what I hear and I’ll always try to convey my findings as honest and sincere. I’ll also point out the obvious anomolies I perceive.
ON a lighter note is this…. I often read about assertions that a better conversion or outright audio converting DAC is one that does not use Drivers… and rather is ‘plug & play’ only.
It amuses me to no end, that those same people use devices such as the Lynx card which also MUST employ uh… yeah… drivers and proprietary software..
Get er done is my way of thinking… drivers or not. Plug & play, who cares. It’s a simple enough task and ordinarily is quick and painless. I should point out as well on the Lynx interface, that I had to prevail upon Lynx support to properly configure the software once it was installed, as it was simply beyond me to do without a lengthy learning curve, and lots more time being devoted to it’s understanding. They set up the ASIO functionality, and set both Fubar and Media Center for it’s use with my XP pro box.
But I digress. My Lynx + Gotham AES 7ft interface yields for me, a greater insight into the musical presentation than does the Hiface. In a nutshell, it’s depiction is more natural. More real. More info is being conveyed within the soundstage and from the instruments, which makes sense too. There is a skosh of leading edge sharpness which seems to be alleviated, albeit, I find it negligible and more congruent to what maturalness in the sound should possess.
Does that make the Hiface strident or aggressive sounding? Only by immediate comparison. Which is one other reason I find fault with some other accounts of the Hiface wherein a Lynx aES 16e was used as the default or reference. So again, if the Hiface is anything less than or more so than, it surely isn’t dull sounding even by comparison. Not at all. It is quite the contrary in fact.
I’d submit the issue is in how and to what the Hiface is being connected. USB cable? How long of an USB cable. What make of USB cable? Which RCA or BNC? What RCA or BNC cable? What DAC?
I feel the latter is the least concern for many hobbyists. It’s doubtful too, though surely possible, someone out there will stick a Hiface in the mix to supply their $5K or up DAC. Maybe. Who knows? It could happen!
How it’s done I feel is more the key to things than is the Hiface’s inherent traits. I think the Hiface is an excellent choice for anyone to get a job done very well and economically. I don’t think it’s the last word on pc to DAC interfaces… just a very good one. There is better… and better almost always costs more $$$$.
I’ve done enough mixing and matching of gear to realize now, wires matter. Interfaces matter. BNC betters RCA. I’ve proven that to myself. Be it less Jitter, a better voltage match or what, the combination of Lynx AES 16e & Gotham AES interface, handily outperforms the Oyaide DB 510 BNC silver cable & Hiface USB converter. Hands down. Noticeably. Regardless the sampling rates. IMHO… as well it should too!
Hiface + Oyadie BNC = $400 MSRP
Lynx AES 16e + gotham AES interface = $900 MSRP.
Is there $500 worth of difference? Obviously.
Is there $500 worth of improvement?
I’lll say nope. But value is in the eye of the listener, as it were.
Adding the Lynx card shows the value of the Hiface as well. It did to me. I still have my Hiface. It’s doing quite well in my bedroom outfit. I am trying to get a USB cable so as to attach it directly to the Sony receiver, so I’ll indicate whatever changes I see there when that happens. UPS mis-dilevered the Gold series cable Belken sent me last week. Either that will be soon resolved, or I’ll buy some other USB extension cable from some other maker.
The Lynx AES 16e + gotham cable however, is now the reference around here.
Results will vary I’m sure. From one rig to some others, certainly. Vastly so? I thihnk that is doubtful. The Hiface has far far too many positive responses being noted online, mine included, to make me think otherwise. Or to hang my hat on just one bad review. For me, it shines more a light onto that accounts author than it does a poor light onto the Hiface. IOW… can one article be right and hundreds of others be wrong? I don’t think so and my own exp says otherwise, agreeing with the majority in this instance.