Upgrade Ethernet when and how?
Upgrade Ethernet when and how?
I have read what I can and am still as unsure as when I started. I have an ISP provided “panoramic” modem/router combo unit that I currently run ethernet to a distribution panel which has standard rj45 lines running to the standard wall rj45 box with two data ports and a phone port. I can fairly easily run a single 25’+/+ run directly from router to MB50 or other streaming device. I need a game plan to optimize SQ of course. Would a high quality short ethernet cable from the wall to the streamer be adequate with my description or something more? Also, the MB50 requires an adapter and I have a Monoprice $15 one. Is the adapter going to be weak link?
I’ve read reference to other option below, but not sure if they would apply to my system and I am not clear on implementation.
FMC Fiber Optic
HS-Link
Please consider taking a look and the web link which is an interesting ethernet cable shootout which was confusing to me. They go in length about each cable and the winner was Audioquest Vodka. The testing appears to incorporate “The HS-Link connection is the LVDS protocol via Ethernet RJ-45 cable that Accuphase uses for communication between the DP-720 SACD transport and the external DG-58 DSP processor.”
The conclusion of the article references using a Node2 as second experiment and no significant difference were found from cable to cable. It seems that test would be more similar to my set up?
http://www.audiodrom.net/en/special-edition-reviews/104-ethernet-rj-45-cables-shootout
Thanks for the response. Yes I know ethernet is fine, I'm just trying to determine the best way forward SQ and cost wise to cover the 30' from router to streamer. Either 30' straight run which can be cost prohibitive, or last 3 feet with nice cable like AQ Vodka. The fiber optic route looks like a reasonably priced solution?? |
I run a 22.5 foot Ethernet cable from my Aurender N10 Music Server to my router and the streaming sound quality is excellent. The more important question is that excellent sound quality REQUIRES all your components to be working 100%. This includes the music streamer, hard drives, modem, router, switch box, Internet cable signal strength (meaning cable signal operating in the correct range), all other external ISP components, external ISP amplifiers, DAC, cables and everything else. Unfortunately, if some of these components are not working correctly, you are going to get poor sound quality. Streaming issues concerning instability, or poor sound quality usually mean something is wrong with your network. For example, I had serous streaming sound quality issues due to my router not handling the packets correctly (many signal drops) and, EVEN worse, my ISP Internet cable signal strength was out of range (a very serious issue). Streaming requires these parts to be OPERATING at full capacity. Once your network is correctly operating, you should be able to successfully stream these services. I am now streaming Qobuz perfectly with no drop outs or related cable signal issues. My streaming sound quality is excellent. |
For a low cost I would explore the Sonore SystemOptique for Fibre optical connectivity and the EtherREGEN for RJ45 cleanup. Read the thread on NETWORK SWTICHES on A'gon or of you want a deeper dive head to Computer Audiopphile web site. I want definitely will get a Sonore Signiture Rendu SE Optical as an upgrade to my Sonore microRendu which has served my Ethernet-2-USB streaming needs for 4 years perfectly (RJ45 Ethernet). https://audiophilestyle.com/ca/reviews/sonore-opticalrendu-signature-rendu-se-optical-review-part-2-r846/ I will also spend about $200 to buy the following Fibre Optical capable network switch, https://www.ui.com/unifi-switching/unifi-switch-8-150w/ |
Thanks for all the feedback, at this point I am leaning toward a decent 25' cable like the Supra cat 8 and a better quality cable the last few feet. Simplest approach I think. I should have mentioned that I have no sound quality issues running WiFi or ethernet, but amazon hirez will not play over wifi and dropouts are too common on ethernet with the 24 bit files. So upgrading ethernet cabling is a first step, then will look into the router /modem. Are there quality ethernet couplers? Both cables would be pre terminated, so a wall box plug won't work. |
