Digital Transports - USB Solutions, CD and SD Players, DAPs, and More!

Discussion in 'Digital: DACs, USB converters, decrapifiers' started by Hands, Oct 11, 2015.

  1. haywood

    haywood Friend

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    Use a remote app on your phone or tablet to control the software running on your computer (Audirvana, Jriver, etc.) which outputs to your dac? Ymmv if you have a noisy computer I guess but you can buy a basically silent MBP for the price of that Auralic.
     
  2. Chris F

    Chris F Boyz 4 Now Fanatic - Friend

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    A few months ago I tried TASCAM DA-3000 AES vs MBP USB/Audirvana+ on Yggdrasil. The TASCAM is a high quality 2ch ADC with SD/CF card which can also act as a DAC or digital source.

    On paper the TASCAM is clearly the better choice however I felt the difference in actual listening was within the realm of placebo with slight advantage to the TASCAM. The laptop absolutely needs a quality bitperfect/integer playback software solution like Audirvana. Take away that and the TASCAM is way better.
     
    Last edited: Dec 12, 2015
  3. SoupRKnowva

    SoupRKnowva Official SBAF South Korean Ambassador

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    I don't know why more people don't use Raspberry Pi 2s, since that little marvel came out, it's super cheap, and not particularly hard to setup if you use one of the more friendly audiophile distros for it(aka anything besides Archphile), and then you can use whatever MPD client you want on your tablet or phone. All in for like 70 bucks, add a linear power supply if you feel like doing that too, though that will increase cost significantly
     
  4. Cspirou

    Cspirou They call me Sparky

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    I also have a kit to turn a DVD-ROM into a standalone CD Player. I tried it with a spare CD-ROM and it worked until the CD-ROM crapped out. However that was not with a digital output and was only through the headphone jack coming out the front. I plan on buying a cheap ASUS and pairing it with a digital output kit from hifidiy.

    http://shop2.hifidiy.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=8_12&products_id=42

    I also have a project with a raspberry pi and the HiFiBerry digital output to make a standalone player.
     
  5. Bourne Perfect

    Bourne Perfect Friend

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    I'm just waiting for a Schiit Server. And I want it like, yesterday. Call it the Schiit DNGLBRY: Digitally Napschterd Giga Library.
     
  6. Judeus

    Judeus Facebook Friend

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    yep, ive said it, and ill say it again

    1. schiit multibit dac/amp for phones

    2. schiit digital transport/server

    3. high end tube amp

    giff em now!!!
     
  7. Luckbad

    Luckbad Traded in a unicorn for a Corolla

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    Audio-GD has a new (currently) limited-release converter called the DI-U8. It's based on the XMOS U8.

    http://www.audio-gd.com/Pro/dac/DIU8/DIU8EN.htm

    I'm asking Kingwa how much improvement I'd see in my Master-11 w/ Amanero as well as which input/output would be best to use.
     
  8. Smitty

    Smitty Too good for bad vodka - Friend

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    Yeah, @schiit could whip up a P-P 845 amp, nothing could go wrong /s
     
  9. Andre Y

    Andre Y Friend

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    Just got my Raspberry Pi + Hifiberry Digi+ set up last night with Volumio: it was surprisingly easy and straightforward, and mostly just worked. The only hiccup was a bunch of static overlaying the music when I first connected it to the Yggdrasil via USB (Toslink was perfect), but that went away after a reboot and some input switching. Not sure what made it happen or go away.

    There are some limitations: MPD can't handle more than 10000 tracks (not a problem for me right now), and can't play some lower-bitrate Internet radio stations.

    Anyway, hopefully, I'll have it ready as a portable source to bring to the next SoCal meet. It's nice to carry a harddrive with all of your music on it, and be able to connect to just about anything. Next step is to figure out how to do adhoc wifi so I can control it with my phone when I'm outside my home network.
     
  10. julian67

    julian67 Facebook Friend

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    I also just set up a Raspberry Pi. Here it is in all its High End glory:

    [​IMG]

    Top to bottom:
    generic Asynchronous USB DAC (SA9027 + ES9023 24BIT/96KHZ )
    Raspberry Pi Model B running minibian
    powered USB hub
    very classy Lepai amp

    The amp drives a pair of Roth OLi 20 bookshelf speakers.

    I'm sorry to report that it all sounds quite nice.

    The powered hub is important as the Pi's USB ports are genuinely crappy. They can't manage a steady 500 ma to power a simple DAC reliably so it's best to run a high quality powered hub and use this to both power the Pi and to connect any USB accessory. I have the Pi's onboard sound driver disabled and all audio out is direct to the USB hardware. The Pi runs an MPD server (files on a remote nfs share) outputting audio to the amp and also lossless and lossy http streams so I can listen to my music when I'm not at home. It is also an audio UPnP renderer (gmediarender). It was very slow and tedious to set up such a low powered device but now it should just function like an appliance.
     
  11. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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  12. Andre Y

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    @rott That's the guide I followed too. Good luck!
     
  13. IndySpeed

    IndySpeed Friend

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    Depending on what audio features you might use on a BDP-103 in the future, you might want to read my thread on the BDP-103 to see if any of this might effect your usage/enjoyment. Thread link: www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?thread/oppo-bdp-103.599
     
  14. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    Thanks for that. Your comments about the 103 in this thread already made me a bit apprehensive. The multiple disc playing aspect is still important for me, but so is file playing performance. I'm even fine with no streaming and just using an attached USB drive, and I might try it out for myself sometime. Depends on how things go with the Raspberry Pi. Just ordered all the components for that.

    But $500 for the BDP-103...right now for me it's beyond justification.
     
  15. IndySpeed

    IndySpeed Friend

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    Oddly enough I did have problems with just playing flac files on an attached USB drive too. I have no problems with DVDs, Blurays, or even streaming video files. I also use it to display pictures on my TV. That's all I use the BDP-103 for anymore which I guess is still worth the $500 until I have all of my discs imported into the computer... I use a Linux laptop now as my audio source because of all the audio problems I had with the Oppo.
     
  16. rott

    rott Secretly hates other millenials - Friend

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    I did see that the latest BDP-103 firmware provides Tidal service, controlled by the phone/tablet app.
     
  17. IndySpeed

    IndySpeed Friend

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    Yeap, I have that firmware loaded although I have never used the TIdal service. Their media control app for the BDP-103 is really nice. At least for Android, I don't have any iProducts...
     
  18. zonto

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    Tidal works great on the BDP-103D.
     
  19. Luckbad

    Luckbad Traded in a unicorn for a Corolla

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    I know this has been discussed to death in various threads, but I'm the worst person ever at searching.

    I'm trying to decide what to do for my Audio-GD NFB-2.32.

    Since it's my less expensive work DAC, I'd like to keep the budget under $200. I already have good cables and such, so I'm specifically targeting getting the USB signal to my DAC.

    I was going considering using my brand new ESI Juli@ XTe, but I'd rather not install that on my work computer secretly. So, instead of even opening it after its long journey from Germany, I'm going to sell it and use the proceeds for this (hence the $200 budget, as I expect to get about that for an unopened Juli@ XTe).

    The first question:
    A) Use a USB isolation/reclocker and continue to use the NFB-2.32's USB32 input.
    B) Use an external USB->S/PDIF converter to go into the DIR9001 Coaxial input.

    I'll probably get yet another Regen if Option A is ideal. One caveat is that this does not have the TCXO upgrade, but I might be able to buy that off a Head-Fier for $20 and install it myself. The Regen cleans up my intermittent issues with the USB32, but I only have one right now and I decided to keep that one at home.

    If Option B is ideal, what's the best option for under $200 for USB->Coax? Bonus points for I2S (preferably HDMI) to test it on my Audio-GD Master-11, but not a problem if it doesn't have it.

    Breeze Audio DU-U8? hiFace Two? Gustard U12? HiFime UH1? Used Melodious MX-U8? SMSL?

    Relatively simple DIY projects are also an option. I have a good soldering iron and a bit of experience.

    Thanks much. Hopefully this doesn't devolve into a debate, but it's my fault if it does. Preferably, I'd like to just get pros/cons of anything you're familiar with.
     
  20. Mshenay

    Mshenay Barred from loaner program. DON'T SEND ME GEAR.

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    I'm curious about this as well, I've got my eyes on the Master 11, with all the bells whistles an upgrades, going to grab some cables first. Maybe Schiits $20 USB for schiits an giggles, and I might even get some power cables built at cost from a buddy of mine [he's curious about em to] not sure on teh power cables

    Still if I'm working with the Master 11, would the Wyrd be advantageous
     

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