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DAC Regenerator and Reclocking Devices

Hi,
Recently I've been looking at a few different devices to upgrade my signal between my Mac and my Ayre QB 9 DAC DSD. SOtM makes a reclocking / regenerator as does Ideon Audio and IFI. The IFI micro 3.0 is apparently the newest of them and looks like a great price when compared to the SOtM tx USBultra. The Ideon 3R USB Renaissance is the more affordable and was engineered strictly for sound quality. Does anyone have experience with these devices? Also, I want to mention that I've been adding Akiko Audio tuning sticks and tuning chips and I prefer their additions so far. Some good orderly direction would be greatly appreciated. 

128x128goofyfoot
nordicnorm
313 posts
 
@dlcockrum 

I stand corrected. My apologies.
lalitk's avatar
lalitk
5,431 posts
 
"adding a USB to SPDIF converter to run AES/EBU between it and the DAC is not much different than adding the USB gizmos"

Dave, one exception in your scenario; the Aurender USB Audio 2.0 to SPDIF ( COAX ) Converter does not require external PSU compare to ISO Regen. That's one less gizmo in big scheme of things :-)

I have no experience with ISO Regen or Aurender USB Converter but since you own N100H, only you can determine which one of these gizmo sounds the best in your setup.  
dlcockrum's avatar
dlcockrum
2,190 posts
 
Well said Lalit. Thanks.

Dave
jon2020's avatar
jon2020
986 posts
 
USB vs spdif (AES/EBU, coax, optical), it depends where the DAC manufacturer chose to focus investment. Some (many?) of the latest DAC builders/sellers seem to be placing their main emphasis on superior USB circuitry. Some have effective galvanic isolation built in. Some even use FPGA technology to eliminate the traditional role of clocks in the DAC (Exogal Comet for example) and thus sensitivity to noise riding on the signal.

IMO, adding a USB to SPDIF converter to run AES/EBU between it and the DAC is not much different than adding the USB gizmos. Counter to Forest Gump’s wisdom ("One less thing."). That is unless your DAC cannot handle USB from your USB-only Linux-based server/renderer/streamer in which case it is likely to be "the lessor of the evils" solution and thus a smart one.....


+1, Dave.

A lot depends on whether your dac is designed primarily for usb or ethernet.
goofyfoot's avatar
goofyfoot OP
1,368 posts
 
And in my case, the Ayre QB-9 DSD strictly houses a single USB input. 
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