Basic switch....should I upgrade?


I'm using a D-Link switch into a EtherRegen (with an AfterDark PSU & Clock) via a Signature Ethernet Cable. Coming out of the EtherRegen I use a basic fiber optic cable into my streamer. (All connects/cables not mentioned are upgraded.)

Simply put, should I upgrade the switch or does the fantastic EtherRegen clean up the switch's audio shortcomings?

Please don't tell me to get a TT!  

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From Darko review of the Telegartner M12 switch:
 

The manufacturer won’t disclose any details apart from this [presumably machine translated from Japanese]:

‘Our M12 Switch Gold is not bound with those specifications of data transfer and electrical characteristics as a switching hub. Therefore, it is difficult to evaluate by a simple comparison with those for commercially available ones.

PCs, various network boards, switching hubs and routers are network equipment that transmits and receives various data, but become a signal source of transmitting and receiving unnecessary radio wave and noise (= subtle current) simultaneously. A very high level of consideration is required to sweep these negative aspects. The M12 Switch Gold uses aborbers and suppressors for that reason.

The negativeness in various aspects such as EMI/EMC, electro-static field, induction, noise caused by subtle vibration of the chassis is taken into consideration, and the model design including various mechanical features and its assembly procedure is determined.

To realise these, absorbers and suppression parts are adopted in the model, and torque management takes place in various spots during the assembly. The round M12 X-coded connectors added a positive effect.

These are aimed for getting rid of a negative influence from the M12 Switch Gold to other pieces of connected network equipment such as supurious emission and transmission noise generated by the M12 Switch Gold, as well as for protecting the switch itself if an external inductive or electro-static influence comes in.

Our thought that the M12 Switch Gold could be used for network audio came from the above-mentioned features.’”

@kennyc

Choosing an audiophile network switch is confusing. - Not at all.

Researching switches sonic performance based on empirical comparisons seems the only way I can judge price/performance - Bingo! This is the only way to know if a Ethernet switch / filters makes a difference or not.

IMO, best explanation on what an audio specific switch does (or claims to do, if you are on the zeroes and ones camp) is from Uptone: 

 

‘Truth be told, it was the very first audiophile switch, and very successful. The rest of the manufacturers, took note, and came up with their own switches, often way more expensive. Granted, these audiophile switches obviously do nothing according to the network technicians, so I wonder who buys all these expensive switches 😉

 

 

@thyname +1! Thank you for that post.  Should settle a fair amount of the debate over whether we can, or are 'scientifically' able to hear what we hear.

@thyname well, the article is way off the mark. Especially the first paragraph where it says it applies to all digital connections. What they are talking about can apply under some circumstances to asynchronous digital connections without error detection and correction. 
 

Ethernet is synchronous, and has error detections, but that is just one layer, the next layer also have error detection, call IP, then you have TCP, also have error detection and correction, and lastly, you have the application layers, also have error detection and correction. So it doesn’t apply.

Second, no human card here a different of 1 ns. You need to get into 300 to 400 ms, or 300,000 or 400,000 times larger difference before human hearing can register an issue. 
 

and, clock rates don’t work like that in switches. If you want to learn about that very low level detail, have fun, here is a place to start: