Best way to A/B two different streamers
I just purchased a new dedicated streamer after streaming tidal from my computer. I'm using USB to stream from both. Has anyone ever tried using a USB A/B box to switch between streamers to evaluate the differences? I know it would possibly degrade the signal but I'm only looking to hear the differences. My other problem is I only have one high quality USB cable but could use 2 cheaper cables just to hear differences. My DAC and streamer are both in a rack where the cable is hard to reach.
You should also stream the same song at least three times in succession to ensure that your connection is good. Pay particular attention to sound stage as opposed to frequency response. If it wanders with the streamer, get a better connection [NOT cable] or streamer. I’ve had streamer demos where that was not the case. IMO, PC streaming is not worth mentioning. |
@willywonka so…anything to report? Winner? No difference? |
@audphile1 I had to move my system and haven't had a chance to compare the two yet. I'm absolutely positive it's an improvement. One immediate thing I noticed is its less fatiguing to listen to over longer periods of listening. This was a problem and I'm glad this is resolved. I'll report back when I get more time to compare the two. Thanks for everyone's comments and suggestions! |
It’s not that complicated. Compare two ways and decide. Then compare to other options as needed. Yes, do play a variety of music of interest to you. Resolution of source material matters. The one that sounds best sounds best. A sound meter in addition to your ears to help shed light and assure similar SPLs is always worth it. Massed strings is a useful check to help sort out the champ. In many cases a quick a/b compare will immediately shed light on the differences. |
@willywonka less fatiguing is definitely one of the improvements I’ve noticed as well. Pretty sure you won’t be going back to streaming using your computer. |
