Is it time to ditch USB?

[Mike]

Yes, full blown MQA. I suppose one could purchase a DAC that could make it sound better, but the DAC I listened to was very good, at least to my ears.

Mike, I'm not sure of the brand of DAC, but the point was that with that DAC, I listened to the same tracks in MQA and DSD and Redbook and MQA came close, but not quite as realistic to me as the other formats. Perhaps if I had listened to other tracks, I might have had a different conclusion, but I don't think so. I didn't listen so much for dynamic impact, or timbre, or details, etcetera, I listened with "what sounds most lifelike, less artificial" as my criteria.

Thanks Steve.

 

[slowgeezr]

One thing that might have had an impact was that the MQA files were created from streamed files. Perhaps the streamer wasn't the best? Perhaps streamed MQA files don't sound the same as non-streamed MQA. As with everything in music reproduction, everything matters, right?

 

[rbbert]

I have to agree with these comments. I have listened to MQA streaming and compared to the Redbook equivalents and preferred the Redbook versions. Also compared the MQA streams against hi-rez and found I preferred the hi-rez. It was pretty close and definitely good enough to listen to and I support it's use for streaming, as the smaller file size allows near Redbook quality to be streamed, however, I remain unconvinced it is as good as Redbook or hi-rez music.

It shouldn't be surprising that some (perhaps many) listeners have this opinion. Whatever claims are made for or against MQA, it is DSP, and just like any other mastering process, some people will like the result and others won't. The mere fact that most or all of today's dynamically over-compressed and often over-processed releases are "artist approved" should demonstrate that.

 

[Marslo]

" The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated."
Your Faithfully
Usb cable

http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews2/stavessence/1.html

PS I use the orange one, Salamandra .

 

[Zaheer]

Hello
Very interesting thread
Some arguments
1. From personnal experience , I have used USB from Auralic Aries , and AES to a Chord DAVE
2. I have tested USB , and AES from Lumin U1

I should say that the AES does sound better ..ON THE DAVE

May be with another DAC it could be different : who knows

The thing is that Computer music is prcessed by the CPU , and some way or the other the cheapest output will be USB
In case of some products, the AES is reclocked , or the USB is galvanised for isolation
What's the point then ?
I guess that USB will not be ditched , for economic reason
More computers on earth than high end streamers ...
Then I can easily understand that AES or I2S or SPDIF may be a better solution
Will it be ditched ... ONLY in the ultra high end arena

Cheers

 

[Mrppv]

I am big fan of Schiit but that post is 3yrs old. During all these yrs, I am sure Mr Moffat have found a way to be had more from the USB. With the new Schiit's Gen 5 USB board, things might change

Has anyone here tried the Gen 5 upgrade from Schiit?

I've stayed away from USB because there seem to be so many products out there trying to de-crapify or improve its performance, which you don't see with SPDIF.

But if the Gen 5 is as great as some say, might it be better than BNC or AES/EBU? Trying to decide if I should upgrade the (currently unused) USB on my Yggdrasil dac, and try USB for a change. It would also open up some options for trying music servers that are USB only.

 

[VoicesInMyHead]

One can always debate what is better than the other (and that's part of the fun eh?), but in the end I think it comes down to implementation at several steps. When USB was introduced into the music chain people assumed just because it was digital 1's and 0's they could just use any old printer cable, with time we have learned a lot about the USB interface and we now know that cables matters, source matters, the target input matters and the clocks matters etc etc... maybe USB was/is quite flawed in it's original pure form, but it's also a format that has been heavily improved upon for the last years, maybe more so than any other format, and I doubt we're done yet...

I think what the UpTone Audio guys are doing for USB development is just incredible. If one has a DAC where USB input is preferred (a majority these days I would think), then I would highly recommend to try the latest ISO Regen product from UpTone in the chain, I would be VERY surprised if you would not hear quite a dramatic improvement. I think it's easily one of the cheapest and best improvements when it comes to streaming or digital music playback one can buy today, especially if the source is a computer, NUC or similar, but in the end, most streamers are as well...

As someone who enjoy's trying every little tweak there is though, I can say it can easily get out of hand and I would recommend avoiding adding fixers after fixers, it's like medicating the side-effects caused by the original medication. try to keep it simple, and that's also why I removed my ISO Regen when I upgraded to the UltraRendu.... but, TODAY I think at least one of these devices is a requirement in the USB chain and if one were just to go with one without making too much changes, the ISO Regen would be my absolute recommendation (if you have tried their original USB Regen, it's time to upgrade!). Depending on all the other equipment, the effect will of course be different, but only in very few and rare cases, not audible at all.

 

[Jim Smith]

Has anyone here tried the Gen 5 upgrade from Schiit?

Yes.

 

[Mrppv]

Yes.

Would you elaborate? Any opinions about it compared to earlier USB or other types of connections? Thanks.

 

[Jim Smith]

With my earlier Yggy, I did not care for the USB, in comparison to the AES input, when supplied by the Berkeley Alpha USB converter and AQ Diamond AES cable.

When I had the Yggy Gen. 5 USB update installed, I was frankly surprised to find the Gen. 5 to be more musically involving than the Berkeley rig.

Having just added the Uptone ISO Regen with LPS-2 power supply, it further improved the Yggy USB input.

The problem is that everyone may listen differently and we have different systems, with many not optimized to the room.

So please take it as my opinion for my system, and not a guarantee that it will suit you.

 

[Mrppv]

I understand every system / listener is different, but it's helpful to hear your experience. Not much info about Gen 5 out there yet.