Apple TV Streaming Sound Quality vs Streamer?

Steve from Empirical:

Does the Synchro-Mesh improve the optical out of most TVs, especially Sony?

If it's PCM, the answer is yes.  If it's Dolby Pro-logic or Dolby Digital, you need the iFi SPDIF iPurifier.

Does the Synchro-Mesh improve the optical out of the Apple AirPort Express (sadly becoming legacy)?

Absolutely.  You would go optical into the SM and coax out to the DAC.

Do you know of a high quality AirPlay streamer (source only) that can take the place of, or improve upon, the AirPort Express?

To get a higher quality streamer, you will need to change to DLNA/UPnP renderer like the Empirical Audio Interchange or the Sonos Connect with Synchro-Mesh.

The Interchange will play up to 24/192

The Sonos Connect will play only 44.1

Interchange will deliver 10-12 psec of jitter at all supported sample-rates from these outputs: S/PDIF coax, AES/EBU, I2S SE, differential I2S on HDMI connector.

https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=156409.0

Steve N.

Empirical Audio

 I have not been able to get streamed hi-res files to sound anywhere near as good as my CDs and LPs. I really wish that wasn't the case.

The streamer you use and the playback software is the usual culprit, but also FLAC encoding will never sound as good as .wav files, like the CD playback.

Steve N.

Empirical Audio

I guess I don't have the gilded ears (or revealing enough system) to hear jitter.  As much as I have obsessed over this, I have come to the conclusion if I cannot hear it (including long listening sessions), I won't worry about it.

There must be something else holding your system back if you don't hear the benefits of lower jitter.  Active preamps are the usual culprit.

The uRendu is a good choice BTW, but I have gotten away from USB after designing 6 generations of it.  Ethernet is easier to make stellar.

Steve N.

Empirical Audio

Streaming is FLAC files so far, so it will never be quite as good as wav files.  The difference I hear with wav files is soundstage and high-frequency reflections off the venue.  Whether you will hear this difference depends on your system.

I personally like owning my content rather than renting it, however it is nice to have access to a lot of new material.

If you stay with a transport and DAC, at least lower the jitter by adding a good reclocker in the coax cable, like the Synchro-Mesh.  8psec of measured jitter.

If you go with a streamer, it is critically important to get low jitter.  The kind of imaging and soundstage you are wanting has everything to do with extremely low jitter.

Here is a renderer that gets you to ~10psec at all sample-rates from 44.1-192:

https://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=156409.0

See the plots at the end of the posts.  If you find one that achieves lower than this at the end of a 4 foot coax cable, I'd like to know about it.

thanks,

Steve N.

Empirical Audio