2. digital
  3. 1228808396

dCS Puccini Clock

I had yesterday the oportunity to hear for first time the Puccini clock.

I must admit that I was a little sceptical. The system consisted of:

Howland preamp HP-200 SE
Howland amp RADIA SE
Avalon Indra
Transparent power cleaner / station ?
I can't tell which cables

Well the effect is quite amazing and you can easily recognize it in a blind hearing. If I have to describe it I would say, you become aware of the hall / the space in which the recording has been done. The difference is very noticeable when you switch the clock off, suddenly the music sounds dryer, shorter and the space all around the whole music desapears.

I heard:
Luiz Bonfa plays and sing Bossa Nova (Verve)
Bruckner 4th by Jaap van Zweden (bad SACD & interpretation)
Bruckner 4th by Günter Wand (the last recording)
Ports of Call by Eiji Oue (Ref. Rec. bravo Prof. Johnson you are a great sound engeneer!)

One of these days I will take it home and have a test on my system ... and will make some blind hearing with my wife ;-)

I will report then about the experience.
clavil
elberoth2's avatar
elberoth2
1,223 posts
 
Blackstonejd - how does the U-Clock compare to Squeezebox ?
kops's avatar
kops
478 posts
 
Clavil I expect my clock after the new year and i have gathered the following cables to test with: Stereovox, Nordost silver shadow, Stealth Varidig. I'll let you know when i have news.
blackstonejd
153 posts
 
Elberoth2- I haven't made an actual comparison with the Squeezebox yet because the U-Clock is not yet available. My dealer had a "CES" demo and they were actually still breaking it in when I heard it. The U-Clock was actually being fed by the Puccini one box player, not a music server. The A/B comparison was with the Puccini with and without clock.

My understanding is that dCS did not have this USB technology readied in time for the launch of the Puccini and Paganini lines. The Scarlatti Upsampler and Puccini U-Clock are two new devices designed with music servers in mind. My dealer left me with the impression that a USB computer and U-Clock would be better than the SPDIF Squeezebox in the same way that a word clock synced transport would be.
jb0194
476 posts
 
I've had the Scarlatti Upsampler in my system for about 10 days now. It is a wonderful piece, more liquid than the Purcell yet as resolving. I still have a CD based system and cannot comment on the USB input performance, but do use the Scarlatti Master Clock sync'd to an Antelope Audio Isochrone 10M. Such master clocking has improved the realism of my CDs to the extent that I cannot believe the best vinyl rig is audibly superior. I bought my first lp in 1962 and greatly admire analog "sound". The new dCS Scarlatti line gets you there, and I trust much of the magic is present in the Puccini/Paganini lines. Hope to hear from those who will soon receive their U-Clock!
arthursmuck
447 posts
 
Can you DCS guys give me some description of how the full stack (elgar+ or Delius) sounds sonically? Maybe throw in some other digital front ends it is similar to in signature and how it betters/doesn't competitors....

Also, where does the Puccini with clock stack up against say an Elgar+ stack?

Thanks all, just trying to get a handle on the sound before pursuing an audition.
More to discover