Regarding the Analog vs. Digital debate I felt for a long time that the LP beat the CD. More listening has reversed this! The inherently higher noise floor, inner groove tracking problems, dynamic range limits and summed bass are serious restrictions of LP playback. Not to mention all the error-prone steps needed in LP production from the master to the vinyl pressing.
DAC Input Topology
I have a Holo May DAC KTE and all digital in is captured by a proprietary PLL (phase lock loop) circuit which uses a crystal Voltage Controlled Oscillator (VCXO) and discrete voltage regulators to eliminate jitter. They make clear that all inputs are processed the same. Is this the primary method used by most (all) DACs?
I ask because I was previously convinced that I wanted to buy a steamer with I2s out. I was under the impression that a great clock in the streamer would be passed to the DAC, but PLL doesn’t use the streamer’s clock. My fallback was USB and the May DAC KTE makes claims regarding the quality of their USB interface. In fact USB is the manufacturers preferred input. Now I’m looking at the Aurender N20. The selling point here is the OCXO clock, which is four to ten times more stable than the Holo’s clock. Many find the AES, or coax to provide the best sound. Those that prefer AES, does your DAC use the same voltage driven clock PLL design? How does the Aurenders clock provide superior sound when the sampling clock is an order of magnitude less stable? I’m trying to decide on if I’m buying a high quality USB, or AES cable. Maybe both at some point, but budget only allows one at this point.
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Like @jasonbourne52 , 1. " I felt for a long time that the LP beat the CD. More listening has reversed this! The inherently higher noise floor, inner groove tracking problems, dynamic range limits and summed bass are serious restrictions of LP playback." (I quoted since I can’t say it better.) 2. I doubt the benefits of an expensive streamer. I have an Auralic G1, which is wonderful and provides a lot of frills: nice display, reliable WiFi, built-in DSP, ease of use, and so on. I have compared a $150 streamer made with Raspberry Pi and Allo DigiOne card, and I am hard pressed to tell the sonic difference. I suppose if I listened to the same track over and over again, I might hear a small difference, but I am not sure of that. I love the Auralic, but for value, I’d recommend looking to something less expensive. ... Of course, you are looking for something with a DAC, and good DACs are getting shockingly cheap these days. That's not a specific recommendation, but just my views on the current digital market. |
I've never for one moment regretted purchasing my N20, it's a fantastic machine that can only be truly appreciated by long term in home listening. Maybe you can get some better sounds by cobbling together this and that with various computer programs but for me time is money and with the N20 I have everything at my fingertips. I could have bought the N30 but the N20 is 99% as good. While not exactly a bargain but SOTA. I have settled on this cable after trying many much more expensive ones. It's solid silver and IME much better than AES/EBU. Long burn in required.
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If you believe the dac in this streamer is better than the Holo, then there’s no reason to keep your Holo.
I seriously doubt that a streamer’s Dac will perform better than the Holo May DAC KTE. First of all, it’s a R2R design so without it or bypassing it, your digital playback will have a different sonic signature. The Holo is much more robust with a huge power supply, and uses high quality internal parts. The streamer you’re looking at can’t possibly fit this technology inside its chassis. Your Dac is much more than a dac chip. It would be foolish to not allow the Holo to reclock the stream.
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