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

Great to read you hit satisfaction. Just confirming that I read your post right, just the Intona industrial is enough with the intona alone or intona->Mutec 3+? That would be really good to know, cost wise. I agree with you on source sensitivity, and newer usb implementations on the receiving side seems to matter a lot, also.

 

I may be wrong, but didnt you try two 3+USB connected to each other?

 

I did try two MC-3+USB in series and didn't hear any improvements. Maybe I'm just not sensitive enough, but nothing has improved the Mutec MC-3+USB beyond one of them alone, and the MC-3+USB is the first converter I've ever felt gave super obvious improvements.

I initially grabbed a unit with the plan to review it and return it because who the crap would spend 3 figures on a USB to S/P-DIF converter?

Then instead of buying one, I bought two.

 

Going the cheapy route and buying a XMos xu208 usb bridge for the Gungnir Multibit via bnc. Already have a wyrd/furman and see how much more I can squeeze out of the Gungnir Multibit before jumping to the Yggdrasil or Audio-GD. Will report back soon.

 

This looks to be the same thing as the Singxer: http://www.shenzhenaudio.com/melodi...khz-dsd-xmos-usb-digital-audio-interface.html

 

Nope, it uses the previous generation XMOS.

 

Yeah, that's nothing like the Singxer internally.



vs


(http://www.jplay.info/#!blank-2/fbb2v)

There's a comparison of sorts between the Mutec and the Singxer F1 (with LPS) in that head-fi thread but not directly and I'd like to see a SBAF take on it.

 

If you are talking about the XMOS 208 F-1 you won't be disappointed. The main Ebay seller is having massive stock problems right now though. He got mine to me in 4 days about a month ago but now people are waiting weeks.

 

Soon after the announcement of USB-to-S/PDIF (and I2S/DSD) conversion board "F-1" with the latest XMOS XU208, it has attracted a great attention with praise in Head-fi.org forum, which has become one of the hottest topics there.

" 'F-1 is for DIYers without housing'. SU-1 is a stand-alone product announced at the same time. "

My god how big is the case if it can make a home for DIY'RS and is Jude evicting people now?

 

For many the journey is acquisition, then sound, then music. Watches, cars, cameras...all fuel the same base needs. I'm relieved I love music enough to pull the brake on my own compulsions.

 

It's dick in a dick... pretty sure I posted the song for that last week sometime.

 

I'm tired of dicking around with usb too. Monday i will order this http://www.marian.de/en/products/seraph_d4 to feed my Yggdrasil. Obiously not everyone can use pci-e but why spend time defuckifying usb when you can just skip it all together. This one can also disable the SRC so in theory it should do nothing to the signal just pass it along, no conversion to usb format or whatever else is going on.

 

Would love to hear what you think of the card when you get it. I had been using a Linux based music server for about a year and a half so I never tried any of these cards because Linux drivers were not readily available. I have switched back to Windows based so I am looking at some cards from Digigram and Lynx.

The good thing about all the usb stuff is that you can sell it all at near cost after you try it.

 

No worries, i'll report my findings in the pci interface thread. I'll be ordering from Thomann and they offer 30 days money back no question's asked and no restocking fee. My Yggdrasil also needs more warmup time so i reckon those 30 days are needed.

 

People futz around with USB / SPdif 'gheyness' because digital through USB sucks. I'm not sure anyone does it for the sake of 'defuckiying', though weirder shit happens.
If one is lucky to find everything he likes in vinyl , then he's a happy man. I listen to A LOT of music, and A LOT of it I just can't find in vinyl or CDs, or sound sucks bad with the infinitely bad new Premium pressings (for whatever reason) which, to add insult to injury, costs an arm and a leg.

However, I do want to listen to the music in a satisfying way, which, dick eyed USB spoils. Just my two cents.

 

Burning in the XMos xu208 usb bridge Gungnir Multibit via bnc. All I gotta say is wow, what a difference over usb. Everything just jumps out of the dark, with no trace of digititis.

 

Where can I find out more about these xmos bridges?

 

The best source is probably the thread on head-fi where a guy talks about them and has put together a long chain of decrapifiers as the ultimate tool against evil. He recently said head to head the Mutec 3+ was better than the F1 plus LPS (but had previously said big chain o' crap > Mutec).

One of the things in his decrapification arsenal is a USB -> Ethernet -> USB range extender which provides galvanic isolation among other things. A few people there have also touted the Focusrite Rednet Ethernet audio series which allows one to do away with USB altogether so that's the next step on his road to enlightenment, stay tuned.

The F-1 is around $200 on eBay or Alibaba, and the SU-1 which comes with more output options and a built-in power supply is around $400. The Mutec 3+ and Focusrite Rednet 3 are $1000ish.

 

Ethernet audio will be coming down in price as more prosumer gear adopts it. I think the cheapest MOTU unit with AVB is about $600 right now.