To Lalik and a few others lets frame this discussion, that for 99.9% of the market that is looking for a Statement or other serious state of the art music servers, most people are going to be actually using either USB or Ethernet connections.
The other interesting point we would differ on from Lalik is his viewpoint that most dacs are optomized for 16/44k really?
Most of the worlds top digital manufacutures are all producing dacs that can handle very high data rates, other than older dacs with chipsets or inputs that can't handle the higher resolution files this is the case.
Look at DCS, Esoteric, EMM Labs, Light Harmonic, T+A, Rokna, Aqua Hifi. MSB, and many others, they all have access to be able to play high resolution files. Does that mean that an older dac that can't play those files isn't good of course not, but we live in a world of 4k TV doesn't it make sense if you are purchasing a brand new state of the art TV to purchase one which can access those files even if true 4k content is limited?
Then you have the ability for many TV's or projectors to upconvert an image to a 4k standard even when feeding the TV or projector a 2k image, if it looks better to you do you care that the image isn't native?
The reason that many modern dacs only offer ethernet or usb is really simple: asyncronous data transmission and ethernet packeted data are the best ways of miminimizing jitter going from a server to a dac.
Spdif, Aes/Ebu and Toslink are really not up to the task beyond conventional data rates.
With Ethernet and Usb you have the advantages:
You have the option of accessing: Naitve DSD files, MQA files
Also you have the additonal option of being able to upconvert 16bit 44k pcm to higher data rates 24bit 192k, 384k and above depending on the server and dac.
Many Dacs that we sell actually do seem to sound better with upconverted data files even if the standard files started out in 16/44.
If you consider that Innous specifically built the Statement to provide the best sounding data from Ethernet and USB and they spent considerable money on making sure those pathways are the best sounding and optomized it makes sense.
We sell multiple brands of severs, and dacs because one size does not fit all. If you are adament about having more or different digital outputs then USB and Ethernet then you are free to purchase a unit which has those features.
Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ Innous dealers
The other interesting point we would differ on from Lalik is his viewpoint that most dacs are optomized for 16/44k really?
Most of the worlds top digital manufacutures are all producing dacs that can handle very high data rates, other than older dacs with chipsets or inputs that can't handle the higher resolution files this is the case.
Look at DCS, Esoteric, EMM Labs, Light Harmonic, T+A, Rokna, Aqua Hifi. MSB, and many others, they all have access to be able to play high resolution files. Does that mean that an older dac that can't play those files isn't good of course not, but we live in a world of 4k TV doesn't it make sense if you are purchasing a brand new state of the art TV to purchase one which can access those files even if true 4k content is limited?
Then you have the ability for many TV's or projectors to upconvert an image to a 4k standard even when feeding the TV or projector a 2k image, if it looks better to you do you care that the image isn't native?
The reason that many modern dacs only offer ethernet or usb is really simple: asyncronous data transmission and ethernet packeted data are the best ways of miminimizing jitter going from a server to a dac.
Spdif, Aes/Ebu and Toslink are really not up to the task beyond conventional data rates.
With Ethernet and Usb you have the advantages:
You have the option of accessing: Naitve DSD files, MQA files
Also you have the additonal option of being able to upconvert 16bit 44k pcm to higher data rates 24bit 192k, 384k and above depending on the server and dac.
Many Dacs that we sell actually do seem to sound better with upconverted data files even if the standard files started out in 16/44.
If you consider that Innous specifically built the Statement to provide the best sounding data from Ethernet and USB and they spent considerable money on making sure those pathways are the best sounding and optomized it makes sense.
We sell multiple brands of severs, and dacs because one size does not fit all. If you are adament about having more or different digital outputs then USB and Ethernet then you are free to purchase a unit which has those features.
Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ Innous dealers