Speculating
Ifi Zen Streamer plus upgraded power supply - the streamer to beat??
Hi Fellow Audiophile nerds,
I know everyone likes to put a plug in for whatever products they happen to have in their system. I'm no better. But, I thought it would be worth sharing my experience with the ifi Zen Stream paired with an upgraded linear power supply, because it sounds great and seems like a really good value for what you get.
The ifi Zen stream is a small device, purpose built, with USB output. It cost me $400 USD on Amazon. Has been favorably reviewed by many including Absolute Sound, Audio Excellence Canada, and others. Some reviewers mentioned issues connecting to wifi, but I haven't had any problems. Ifi claims the product downloads firmware updates automatically. Streaming via Tidal Connect has been rock solid for me thus far.
I added a linear power supply from a British company called McRU - recommended by the British Audiophile. McRU makes a power supply for the Zen Stream and it costs around $350.
So, with this $750 combination, it seems I have a streamer with most of the features that you would find in high-end streamers from Auralic or Aurendor, and they retail from something like $3500 and way up. What I don't yet have is I2S output and a really good internal clock to reduce jitter before going into my DAC. But, Denafrips offers 3 digital to digital units, with their entry level Iris going for about $550 USD. So that's another option for those wanting to improve performance further.
How does it all sound? Going from a Bluesound Node 2i using coaxial output into a Denafrips Ares II, to the Zen stream with upgraded power supply USB output into the Denafrips Ares II the upgrade was very significant. More clarity, darker (less noisy) background, better instrument separation, and overall the sound seems to have a bit more weight to it.
Just thought I'd share this, and would love to hear others' opinions and experiences.
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- 33 posts total
@joshindc Seems like your buddies over on DIY Audio don't share your enthusiasm and BTW don't tell people that it's better than an Auralic or Aurender unless you have personally demoed them side by side with your wonder box. |
Hi @lordmelton. I did not say the Zen Stream plus an LPS would sound better than an Auralic or Aurender - it's true I haven't heard them in my system (have you?) - I only said it seems like this combo gives you all the features you would expect from a high-priced streamer from those two brands at much lower cost. But I'm sure people will disagree. That's one of the things that makes this hobby interesting. |
@joshindc I apologise, you were only comparing features, my bad. To evaluate the quality of streaming you're getting compare it to a cd or a recording on your HDD or SSD. A good DAC is essential, if you get one with an Amanero USB board/input you won't need a re-clocker and it'll have I2S but USB should be fine. |
I didn't feel like running into the same issues I did before with the ifi unit, so I ended up getting a referb Cambridge cxn v2 off ebay the other day. Might even do the modwright upgrades too if I really like the Cambridge. I use roon, so the software side of things don't bother me but the ifi was such a pita in that it would lock up, wouldn't connect to anything other than roon (no spotify or airplay), lights would go out and then you would have to reboot it etc..... |
- 33 posts total