USB Nervosa Thread Decrapifiers, pro interfaces, and bears oh my

It's a bit early to say for sure, but I think I prefer USB into the Yggdrasil over having the Regen in between. Just sounds more natural to me with my speakers.

I'll wait for the Schiit USB Gen 4.

 

Maybe it's just me but using USB as the source of the data stream and then converting it to another format just combines the foibles of both formats.
And if you spend enough money then those foibles can be minimized.
Or spend even more and bypass USB altogether.

But thus far the Dbl Wyrd approach is the most for the least, at least from my experience.

JJ

 

I have 2 wyrds and the mutec 1.2 blows it out of the water. Not in the same league. I was also a skeptic. Must hear to believe.

My guess is that the USB input on schiit dacs is not as good as spdif inputs that Mike has perfected over the years.

 

That's good to know.
What dac are you using?

JJ

 

I am running this on the Gungnir Multibit.

 

Even a sub-$100 Raspberry Pi 2 + HifiBerry Digi+ SPDIF out makes my Gungnir Multibit sound better (soundstage and bass improvements, primarily) than USB.

 

I changed out my cheapie surge protector for a Furman PST-8D today, and the faint background noise I was hearing with USB when volume cranked high is now gone completely. Fwiw, my PC power supply, LCD, and printer are plugged into the "digital-ultrasonic noise filtered" outlets of the Furman, while Bifrost Multibit and Elise are plugged into the "linearly filtered" outlets. Have not heard such a black background with this amp before.

 

Mine, too.
With the Schiit stuff, SPDIF, Aes Ebu or Bnc are all better, by far in my setup. A raspy 2 (not 3) and the digi+ makes it so easy to compare. When I ran the usb through my micro idsd to convert to Spdif it was slightly better, but in all 3 instances (usb, digi+ Spdif and usb to ifi to Spdif out) usb came last. You get more depth, more volume nuance, more rounded images, vs flat usb. For any schiit owners that have only tried sub, borrow a pi so you can to try a non usb source, it's guaranteed to sound better.

Not sure why bnc sounds thinner than Rca Spdif on my Gungnir Multibit, yet, and I've not read anyone else say they heard this.

 

The Mutec 3 f**k whatever I just received last week has constituted nothing short of a clear leap forward in sonic bliss. Perhaps because I'm a pleb who resorts to a PC as a source, or because I'm too busy as a PhD student (bad excuse actually) to look into alternative methods, the USB transport to BNC Gungnir Multibit via Mutec has blown my f'ing mind. It really depends on your DAC and your source, but for the R2R Gungnir Multibit with shitty USB inputs and my 8 year old-PC, the Mutec cleaned up any problems very quickly.

The best analogy, which is inherently flawed, is this: you have a difficult to drive transducer hooked up to a subpar amp for several years, and eventually you save up for that amp that strikes a perfect concordance with your transducer. When you hook that shit up, you can feel the satisfaction from knowing that transducer is finally being adequately driven according to its capabilities, perhaps a nice TOTL tube amp with a high impedance Sennheiser, for instance. The amp grips that driver and throws it around like it's nothing. This feeling is how I could best (but inadequately) approximate a description of my impression of the Mutec mating with the Gungnir Multibit. The Mutec authoritatively grips the digital file, reclocks it with its absurdly potent German schwang, and feeds a clear signal via Blue Jeans BNC to the Gungnir Multibit, through its well-constructed 75 ohms outputs. I shudder to consider the sonic orgasm people with capable vinyl rigs, let alone higher end DACS, are splurging to, because the Mutec and Gungnir Multibit pairing is absolutely "reclockulous."

 

I've been reading about Pi/Digi+ transports and wondering if it would make any difference feeding S/PDIF into my micro iDSD. I'd forgotten that it is itself a USB-to-S/PDIF converter. This is probably a stupid question, but is it even possible to feed the iDSD a USB signal, loop the S/PDIF output to the S/PDIF input, and get audio out as if I was inputting S/PDIF?

Edit: Just found the answer to my question. the coax S/PDIF is "intelligent" in/out, so no go.

 

Yeah, its just one jack so you can't jack yourself, eh, at the same time. I read a while back the Marv used it so i was curious how good it was, its better than a Rpi2&Digi+ combo fed from a PC. It was also better than the Rpi2 feeding via USB to the ifi Micro Idsd to RCA SPDIF, all of this to a Gungnir Multibit. Why my pc sounds better feeding the iDSD, I have no idea.

Here's another thing: because the Spdif section in the ifi Micro iDSD seems to run well enough off the USB power for 44/16, try running it without turning the power on. The separation and depth increases, at the expense of some dynamics, but not much. This doesn't work when you run a higher sample rate through as the song slows and the pitch is lower than is normal, and when you turn it on it, picks up. But the sound is spooky at 44/16.

I have a bunch of stuff coming in the next two weeks, and i can compare more extensively then, but the Gungnir Multibit is a damn heck of a lot better than the price suggests. If Schiit made a converter like Berkeley Audio did (and separate the USB) these things would sell out so fast, it would make Stephen Curry seem like a slug.

 

Awesome, makes me look forward to the experience. What parts in what you heard changed, you think? I am curious as i find identifying what is different helps me see what was weaker in my setup. Just more getting to know your ears and yourself (bias and preferences).

 

Sorry for being vague and overly enthusiastic last night. I was really enjoying the entire experience.

The precise areas of improvement are difficult for me to describe, but the best way I can put it is the following:

• Above all else, in my system at least, images seem to pop out of space more vividly and, as a result, instruments and voices convey noticeably more three-dimensional texture. While this was always a feature of the Moffat propriety filter that I could hear the first time plugging in my Theta DAC, the realistic imaging and spacing around sounds, intrinsic to the filter, has appeared to improved with the Mutec in my system. I am not sure if this is due to lower noise floor, less jitter, and/or because the BNC connection on the Gungnir Multibit is that much better than the USB input.
• Staging, especially in terms of depth, has improved.
• May be related to the first point, but everything seems tighter and more controlled, less hazy and loose. Perhaps this also means transient response is more defined as well.
• Also related to the other points, the background is blacker.

These are the major points that stick out to me at the moment, but let it suffice to say that I no longer have the urge to "upgrade" to the Yggdrasil from the Gungnir Multibit, at least for the foreseeable future. Hands and MisterRogers may have been right when they said they'd rather have a Gungnir Multibit + a solid transport than an Yggdrasil with a shitty transport.

 

Yep.

For us common folk with a USB DAC that costs <$400, i have a hard time doubling that price or more just to fix the USB.

The Regen, on the other hand, seems entirely worthwhile.

 

Yes, Regen (and Wyrd) is nice for the price and presumably even better with an lps. You could always try to save for the Mutec 1.2 as well. Still not exactly cheap but I would guess a better value per dollar than the 3+ USB. It is a painful purchase to make because it seems peripheral to the DAC. But I think it is important unless using a different transport that bypasses USB altogether.

 

Skyline, I have to agree with Artasia. I think it would be wise to look into the total amount versus results, and they vary by use case, but unless you have the final numbers to compare, its hard to say which is better. I think on paper its stupid to put a $1800 converter before a $1400 DAC, but i would, because together they sound like a $5000 combo, to me. But it might not to you, but the Regen/Wyrd/Intona chase may not get you there. So $200 that won't scratch the itch, and you can keep looking. That's why Marv swore off digital.

That's why i said try the F-1 might work , which you can drive with the power from the Regen in the USB connection, the only problem is it takes a while to get them from China. http://www.shenzhenaudio.com/f-1-xm...-xu208-chip-high-end-u8-upgraded-version.html

Its out of stock right now, but reviews should come out in a few weeks, as people have started to receive them. Hope that helps.

 

For the Mutec devices, specifically the 1.2, is there any benefit to inputing Toslink and outputting SPDIF RCA or BNC? Does any kind of reclocking take place? I ask in the context of my personal observation that Toslink is inferior to RCA/BNC when connected to Gungnir Multibit.

 

I feel your pain, too. That's a wyrd through two Regens and the ifi Micro iDSD. To a Gungnir Multibit.

And no, I do not listen this way. I just did it when the loaner program rolled around, because I could.

 

... a wyrd into regen into regen into... into...

Wow so it's finally happened. I was expecting to see it on shadier parts of the web, but the song has foretold the coming of...