@lalitk, "Now I am looking forward to streamer upgrade."
Why are you not satisfied with your current Merging player? By adding one of the Aurenders, you will double the player in your system.
Please let us know about your choice.
Grimm MU1 Streamer - Really "The Best"?
I've recently become interested in the Grimm MU1. While reviews of top end players from Innuos, Aurender and Antipodes and others are typically all very positive, the tone of the many pro reviews of the Grimm MU1 go far, far beyond, with some reviews resorting to using superlatives and gushing of positive system transformation and not being able to stop listening to material, etc.. HiFi Advice and Steve Huff (actually calls it "magic") have such reviews.
Given the delay in availability of the Innuos Pulsar which I'm told will be better than my current Zenith Mk3 + PhoenixUSB reclocker, I am interested in replacing my streaming setup with a one-box solution that includes a high-precision clock. The new streamer will continue to feed my Gryphon Diablo 300's DAC module, which I have no interest in replacing.
I'm actually a fan of Innuos, after they improved the sound of my Zenith with firmware updates and after I added their PhoenixUSB reclocker. I appreciate this commitment to improving sound quality which is why I was so interested in the Pulsar.
The trigger for considering an upgrade is not for improved sound, but rather, to solve some issues I have with too many Audioquest power cords coiled and clumped together. I will get to lose one of them and one of my USB cords with a one-box streamer. I've noticed my sound is very sensitive to positioning of my AC cords and find I often need to re-adjust the PC feeding my amp to get proper sounding vocals at center stage. One of my subs also seems to be picking up AC noise when the crossover is set above 60Hz. The second trigger is simply system simplification, removing one box. All that said I don't really have any complaints regarding sound, and the PhoenixUSB reclocker truly did improve the sound of my Zenith.
While the Grimm MU1 has it's 4X upsampling up it's sleeve with reviewers absolutely glowing over this feature and it's extreme ability to separate tones to the left, right, front, and back far better than the rest, I don't see that Grimm has gone to any lengths with regard to power supply management in the way other brands do including Innuos. The MU1's ultra-simplistic interior doesn't bug me, but the lack of transformers and power management makes me wonder....
Are there any updates from folks who have directly compared the MU1 vs similarly classed streamers from the competition? Did you find it to be as revelatory as the pro reviewers found it? And, how does it compare to other streamers with it's 4X upsampling disabled? Does it sound like it suffers from it's lack of power management? I do see that the clock should be very good...
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“My MU1 just got better.” I did read somewhere that MU1 is immune to external switches and fancy Ethernet cables. Once you settle down with cables on the way, I would encourage you to try Network Acoustics Muon Pro Filter Kit. I think you will hear appreciable improvements with Muon Kit. |
The ROON player inside the Merging DAC is a fine performer. The reason for me to consider Aurender is two folds, the superb Conductor app and possibility of pushing streaming performance even further through a transport like N30SA or W20SE. There was no contest when I compared ROON player with Aurender N20 slaved to Merging +clock, this combination smoked the ROON player. Also, Aurender supports RAVENNA protocol, which means I don’t need to rely on finicky USB or outdated legacy protocols like AES/SPDIF. I can stream files upto DSD256 natively to my Merging DAC over Ethernet. Once you hear a digital system fed by external master clock, you won’t be able to go back to anything else. The sound you hear with a precise master clock like Merging +clock is crisp and clear, yet rich and expansive of the highest quality with such exquisite transience and depth. Bass notes go deeper, imaging is better defined and there is more detail to the music. IME, a precise digital master clock can make good digital equipment sound great and almost like analogue. |
@lalitk thanks for the tip on the network filter. Doing some more testing, I would disagree with Grimm’s position that high end audio network cables shouldn’t be used. I would also disagree with the notion that the MU1 is “immune” to things like Ethernet switches. I tried switching to an Amazon network cable. At first I thought it sounded better than my Audioquest Diamond Ethernet cable. Vocals were better formed and clearer. But very quickly I realized almost all instrumentation was reduced to being thin and 2 dimensional. Actually a big difference. It’s funny how almost all HiFi gear companies say not to use fancy power cords and in this case network cables. With the PhoenixNET I tried going back to it a few times to further analyze the differences. I realized that the focus and control may be improved with it, however paired with the MU1 it adds a sense of controlled restraint to the sound, and vocals and mids become slightly recessed and the sense of scale is reduced. In short I think it’s not that the MU1 is “immune” but rather that the PhoenixNET is simply not a good pairing. I think the PhoenixNET would do wonders for anyone struggling with “hot” or harsh mid and upper frequencies in their system. |
I agree with your assessment on PhoenixNet with MU1. I also believe that PhoenixNet is a purpose-built ethernet switch that is designed exclusively to enhance the performance of all Innuos players except their flagship, Statement. You have a very good AQ ethernet cable on hand, don't think going back to a generic ethernet cable is an option anymore. Given your current system configuration, I highly recommend giving Muon Pro Kit a shot, it will be an icing on the cake :-) |
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