Recent content by GSOphile

Lots of interest in switches, including in fiber connectivity, especially with DACs that support direct fiber connection. As with most cable related products, the enemy is noise.

The D-10X didn't seem to catch on. Will be interested to see how the D-100 does against similarly priced Esoterics. Question: Does Luxman make the SACD transport used in the D-100?

broderick, interesting. I have what I believe to be pretty good XLR interconnects between the solo and my K-01XD. Do you use the ESLA feature in your Grandioso stack?

Just a brief note on the C1X solo used with some Esoteric DACs: After break-in I found Esoteric's proprietary ESLA link protocol (over standard XLR interconnects) between the solo and the K-01XD to be a significant improvement over the standard XLR link protocol.

Another comparison of interest will be the Studio vs. the new Esoteric Grandioso N1 (no SACD transport, but the most used functions for most are there).

Gazza13, welcome! I replaced a Shunyata Alpha NR V2 PC on my K-01XD with an Alpha-X PC. BIG uplift in performance in every way - bass, dynamics, tone, detail, sound stage. If you can afford an N1, please don't kneecap it by skimping on PCs. (I'm also a C1X solo guy!) Looking forward to...

Absolutely magnificent! Thanks for posting, Mark.

For all you elephants: AI Overview Elephants typically hear frequencies from approximately 17 Hz to 12,000 Hz, though some studies show a broader range, including as low as 3 Hz or 5 Hz. Their most notable ability is to detect low-frequency sounds known as infrasound, which fall below the human...

The answers to many of your questions are in the Everest-X Tower & Shelf Model User Guide available on the Shunyata website.

broderick, congratulations on an exceptional system. Intrested in your digital cable setup, choice of interfaces. For example, do you use ethernet, switches, filters? I assume your Grandioso stack includes a separate clock?

Yeah. I'm not a $50K SACD transport guy. For me the DAC is where the value is. An SACD transport, Grandioso or not, needs a substantially lower price tag. Otherwise, a CD transport may have to do in a mixed marriage with an N1. Or maybe just use a K-05XD as a transport.

So essentially an updated Grandioso version of the N-01XD SE? On the surface, a very appealing offering. The SQ of the new DAC will be the real key. Would love to see a reasonably priced single box partnering SACD transport.

Beethoven would be my #1. The other two most most often heard members of classical music's 'big three' are Mozart and J.S. Bach. High on my list after Beethoven would be Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky, and Handel.

In terms of sound quality, I'd go with #2. If I were looking for a Gryphon solution, the Stereo Revelation with a used Pandora pre would be where I'd look first. (Side note: The Zena was announced Fall 2018.)

I am aware of the issues you mention. I used favorite classical orchestral music files (compression issues for this genre are unusual) for comparison and researched provenance via Discogs. The results have been pretty consistent.