@grannyring (Bill), thank you very much for taking the time to detail all the products you've evaluated (owned in most cases) in pursuit of better and better streaming SQ. It helps so many of us evaluate our options.
Like Mitch2, I've come to know Bill and very much trust his ears. He modded my Lyngdorf 2170 and 2-way floor standers with simply outstanding results. He chose the parts (caps, wires, resistors, inductors) but explained to me the rational for each. Prior to doing the mods, he described the ways in which the SQ would improve and by how much. Each mod turned out exactly as he described or, if anything--better. I have Bill's Acoustic BBQ brand power cords, a usb and Duelund speaker wires also.
I've been doing some homework on ENO Ag this week and will be placing an order for the filter and possibly the cable too. I have a Zenith MK3 and think it sounds incredible, but there seems to be a consensus forming around the notion that steamers sound even nicer when noise is removed from the network (if that is the right way to say it).
Also, thank you very much to @lalitk for his advice. Messaging him about ENO was part of my 'homework'. He gave great guidance based on his experience.
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Yes the ENO filter is right before the Innuos server. The EE 8Switch was added first and I really liked it on its own. Better than the SOTM switch I sold and better than the EtherRegen. The ENO after the 8Switch really was the game changer. The two work great together based on my experience. |
Very much so, noise and switches. Switches are great, they do partially isolate noise from an input to an output, they are your friend. An ENO filter on the output of the switch to your streamer is the ultimate place.
You can buy from us directly on the website. Free postage. 30 day returns. We’re open to suggestions for a good US distributor.
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Thanks for the clear answer Rich, and for weighing in on this forum. I am actually using 15M of fibre optic for my main link between my router and my system. There is one converter at the system, which I power with a large (overkill) LPS and then a very short Ethernet/CAT8 cable from the converter to the streamer/server. When you say, All active devices emit noise, including optical to RJ45 converters. I assume you include switches too? Therefore, what I believe I hear is the optimal set-up is to have the ENO be the last device prior to the streamer - correct. I have gotten to know Bill over the years through these forums so I do have a level of trust in what he hears, which is why this thread interested me. Where would be a good place to purchase the ENO in the USA? |
If I may, the OpticalRendu is the only device I know of that has an optical SFP port actually built into it, so that you can plug an optical cable directly into it. I’m sure there are others.A fibre optic interface that uses two media converters going from RJ45 to optical and then back to RJ45 to the streamer is a different thing.
All active devices emit noise, including optical to RJ45 converters. We have users with these media converters that get a big improvement, as eloquently described by Bill, by adding an ENO filter between the media converter and the streamer. |
So the ENO is basically an RF reduction device that uses chokes to filter the input. In the post by @arafiq below, he reports that the ENO designer told him a fiber optic interface does basically "a similar job" of noise reduction as the ENO.
That comment leads to my question of whether any ENO users have directly compared it to
a fiber optic interface - and how did the two compare sonically?
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@grannyring I see that you also have an English Electric 8Switch in the chain, which I'm assuming was added prior to the ENO. I was just wondering whether you noticed any noticeable improvement in SQ when you first added the 8switch. If yes, how would you rate the 'wow' factor compared to the addition of ENO later on?
Also, have you tried to remove the 8Switch from the chain to evaluate the ENO on its own? |
Another vote for ENO Ag Filter and Ag LAN cable. Rich is a class act, nothing but great customer service experience.
I want to give a shout out to @mwgreene for introduction to ENO. |
Boo on SGC. They couldn’t ever get a UltraRendu to stream anything. Sent it back after wasting time.
+1 On the ENO. I went with the CU. Hand wound OCC. Definite improvement. When I went with ViaBlue AG RJ-45’s it took the music to another dimension. I grabbed a VisBlue USB A/B too.
Made me question buying 3 new carts in the last year. A cartridge in this price range doesn’t make anolog sound as good to me. |
Hi Alex. I also sold my EtherRegen. In ENO sounded best and by a good margin in my system. Hooking the EtherRegen ahead of the ENO in series did not sound nearly as good as the ENO alone
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Try www.small green computer.com |
+1 for the ENO Ag. I added the matching Ag cable which is the best I've ethernet cable I've had in my system as well. Great product and allowed me to sell my EtherRegen which was giving me dropout issues. I now paired with a Gigafoil V4 no longer have connectivity issues and better SQ.
-Alex |
Yes, I have to agree that shows Rich at Network Acoustics is a man of integrity. |
I love it when well-educated and seasoned audiophiles gush about a new product. You know that there’s real substance behind the accolades and not merely newbie exuberance. Very well written review indeed!
I want to give a shout out to the owner (Rich Trussell of Network Acoustics) for exemplary business ethics. I use a Sonore opticalRendu streamer in my digital chain where the opticalRendu utilizes a fiber optic interface for noise reduction. I sent an email to Rich a few weeks ago asking him if ENO would add value. He basically told me to save my money since the opticalRendu is already doing a similar job. How refreshingly honest! |
