I use the classic wirelessly with no issues. I use the digital outs into the DAC of my Opus 21 and it sounds great.
As to the jitter issue, there are as many opinions about jitter as there are products that claim to reduce it. I use a Monarchy upsampler between my Sqeezebox and DAC and its effects are nominal if at all. I have been intrigued by the Pacecar and would like to try it, but I remain a bit of a skeptic and the Pacecar is not a cheap experiment. I tend to believe that jitter is not a huge issue with modern reputable DACs, but I remain open to any evidence to the contrary. If you try it, please report back with your opinions. |
I have a squeezebox 3 (wireless) into Benchmark DAC and absolutely love it. Changed the way I enjoy my music. One long playlist of favorite tracks...without leaving me listening chair. |
I use a SB3 with a Lavry DA-10 DAC and get excellent results. After trying a number of different alternatives (including a Transporter) the past several years I've run the above setup for over a year and a half and really settled into it. It just has a natural ease to the sound and the upgrade urge is completely absent. |
I have a RedWine Audio modded sb2 and have not played my cdp for a couple of years. I have tried outboard DAC's and the inboard DAC and I don't see a great difference. Of course, alot of the mod was in DAC portion of the sb2, so the improvement over stock is pretty great. Also the power supply is a battery so noise is non-existent. |
I use a tri-vista with mine and coudn't be happier. |
I also love the older squeezeboxes..... |
It's sure obvious from your comments that wireless is effective and a good way to remove those long cable runs. Most of you are hooked to name-brand DACs and that too is a key to quality reproduction. I would be going directly into the Krell HTS 7.1 processor and letting it do the DAC work. Your comments have convinced me that wireless is the way to go. Guess I would not be inclined to try the reclocker equipment until first experiencing the system without it. The only other alternative would be to put the iMac within 3' of the processor and run a short cable. Very limiting. Thanks much from each of you for your comments.
For Larryrx7 - what are you using for the battery power supply? Is it for your DAC or the RedWine Audio?
For others of you that have commented: Are you using battery instead of wall power? What about USB vs Toslink into your DAC or Processor? |
I have a heavily modified Bolder Cable SB2 with the Nirvana Ultimate Power Supply. I had both the digital and analog mods done on it. I run it into an Anthem Statement D2 processor using the analog outs. I prefer the SB2 DAC to the DACS in the Anthem. I have about 2300 CD's ripped in lossless on two 500GB 2.5" HD's that hang off of a Vulcan Flipstart UMPC music server. I love the convenience of having my entire library at my fingertips; no more digging through racks of CD's for me. |
I use a SB3 with a Welbourne Labs after market power supply running into a non-USB Benchmark DAC with both Toslink and SPDIF Silver cable and both methods sound wonderful to me running wirelessly to the SB3/Dac combo from a Dell Quad Core PC over a DLink DI-628, Version C router. Router rarely blips, PC runs rock steady with WIndows XP, and Squeezecenter runs great for me. Only time I have an issue is when Dominion Power decides to blink once in a while. Otherwise I love the setup, runnning it all day long streaming music to our system. The Welbourne Labs aftermarket power supply made backgrounds much blacker by a substantial amount to my ears and only cost @$200. The wife and I still like spinning Vinyl at night with a nice bottle of wine, but for everyday, 12 hours a day household listening the SB3 Combo is SCHWEEEEEET for the money, and convenient.
Enjoy the Music. |
The Boulder Cable 5 volt regulated power supply is a recommended upgrade to the SB 3, also, taking it one step further, Red Wine Audio produces a battery power supply that reviewers seem to like. Additionally, there is 6.2 Firmware for the SB3 (I'm not the least bit familiar with it) that one reviewer felt was essential for upgraded performance.
Both Prpixel an Rootmann have mentioned upgraded power supplies that I will explore. Apparently this is an essential upgrade. |
Puerto, have you confirmed that Red wine makes a battery power supply for the sb3? They don't advertise one on their website, etc. |
Red Wine can still provide a battery system I believe. I am not sure if they will do a 5 volt system that is native to the stock and the Bolder Cable mods. |
I did read in a review about Squeezebox that Red Wine manufactured a battery power supply that would work with SB. I'll have to see if I can find it and post it here for you.
Let me ask one more question here: If one gives up the convenience of wireless would a simple USB 2.0 or Toslink direct from the computer to the processor do the job? The Toslink connection is digital if I'm not mistaken. If so, one would be going "around "the computer soundcard with pure digital out. Then, you could let your Processor or external DAC do all the DAC work. I know this off the thread but some of you may know the answer or already tried that. |
Puerto,
Yes, you can run toslink directly from the computer to your processor. Also, if your processor/DAC has a usb input, then you can run a USB cable from your computer to it. The advantage of the Squeezebox is that you can put the computer, with its noisy fans, in a different room from the sound system. OF course, if you have a truly silent PC/Laptop then disregard the previous comment. |
Thanks Prpixel: My processor does not have USB "in" so it would have to be Toslink. I have been told by a knowledgeable individual that there are no surround sound pre-amps on the market today that employ quality DAC systems which leads me to believe that the better option might be something like the Benchmark USB DAC 1 in between the computer and the processor. Just when I thought it was all figured out!! |
Puerto,
I would disagree with the statement "there are no surround sound pre-amps on the market today that employ quality DAC systems." I think that the DAC's in my Anthem D2 are very respectable. As I said in my previous post, I prefer the sound of the DAC's in my modded SB2, but considering that I've spent around $3000 on those mods, I would hope that they did sound better. It's a matter of personal preference, and I'm sure that the average "phile" would be more that happy using the DAC's in the D2.
Over the years I've owned a few surround processors and have had the privilege to audition many more; some in my own system. Having owned both the Anthem AVM2 and AVM20, I can say that they both have respectable DAC's. I prefer the AVM2 over the AVM20; more "tube" sounding. Having recently had the opportunity to audition the Denon AVP-A1HDCI, Marantz AV8003 and Integra DHC-9.9 processors, I can say that they are all respectable processors at their price points. The Denon was the best of the bunch, but at 3X the cost of the other two, it should be. The sleeper of the group was the Marantz; very good sound for the money, but the interface and remote was a disappointment.
If you really want to go down market, the Outlaw Audio 990 is a real bargain at $700! It's not in the same league as the big boys, but one hell of a bargain. I thought that the buttons on the face were cheap, but considering the price, I can't complain. Also, they are coming out with a new model, the 997, that will have all of the latest formats and HDMI switching for $1400. Outlaw processors are based on the same designs as the Integra units.
I've also had the pleasure of playing around with Lexicon, Theta and the big Mark Levinson processors; all very nice and I lust after the ML processor. Incidentally, both the ML and Anthem D2 use Gennum video processors.
As for the Benchmark DAC1, I would audition it before committing to a purchase. You can order it from Benchmark and they give you 30 days to return it for a refund. I ordered one and thought the presentation was a little to forward for my taste, so I returned it. I'm currently using a MHTD Paradisia Tube DAC in my office system. |
Prixel: Thanks for your response - I was disappointed to hear the comment about SS amps thinking I had made a mistake in search for acceptable levels of sound quality. You have given me new hope!! Your experience with a variety of processors is formidable so your opinion is valued for sure.
what I don't really know, due to lack of comparisons, is whether or not my Krell HTS 7.1 employs a quality DAC - I have nothing to compare it to. Since the budget and WAF do not allow for your level of experimentation, I will first try to work with what I have and go direct from the iMac to the processor with Toslink or use my (still in the box) Cyro Parts Pop Pulse USB/Coax converter.
My equipment is located in our winter home in Mexico so I can't do anything until we can get back there. I did like the specs on the Benchmark USB DAC 1 but maybe I'm jumping the gun. Thanks again for the insightful response. |
