2. cables
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Ethernet cables

Long time audiophile here but, more of a rookie regarding streaming. My basic question is should I upgrade my ethernet cables and what price point would be reasonable for my application.

The streamer is in a secondary system and is used only for casual listening. The streamer is hardwired to the system. At this point I do not have a streamer in the main system.

Below is a list of the gear in system 2.

The streamer is a Node 2i with the power supply upgrade from LHY (a DIY kit) sourced from Beatechnik out of Singapore. Not using the internal DAC but, feeding the digital signal to an outboard DAC.

DAC - Luxman DA-06

Preamp -  Simaudio P5.3

Amp - McCormack DNA-500 (yes, way overkill power wise for the system but, I love the very relaxed sound of this amp)

Speakers - Dynaudio Contour 30i

Cables - Primarily Transparent Ultra mm2 generation.

Internet is from my cable provider via coax cable.

There are three short cat 6 ethernet cables (5'). One going from the modem to the router, one from the router to the wall connection for a 100 foot cat 7 run in the attic and one at the system end wall connection to the Node. The short cables are Amazon Basics cat 6. The 100 foot cat 7 was sourced from Amazon with one of those never heard of names - Snanshi which, seems to be fairly decent but, I wouldn't really know.

So, do I upgrade the Amazon Basics cables and if so, what would be a reasonable choice?

 

 

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macg19
911 posts
 

I didn’t believe in audiophile Ethernet cables either (just 1’s and 0’s right?) - I had Blue Jeans, and thought I’d try a returnable Cardas Ethernet which surprisingly did sound better, so I ordered a DH Labs and tried them side by side and sent the Cardas back. $200, I felt was well spent. My take was as I know I have a noisy environment, the shielding helped and the connectors are really well made.

I would not bother for a background music set up though.

I tried the Everstar filter, waste of money, sent it back, but I’m going to try the iFI filter as I only have the Cox Panoramic device and I’m sure it’s noisy.

I’ll send it back if no improvement.

mikhailark
246 posts
 

Think about twisted pair, coaxial, fiber, satellite, multiple servers, firewalls, bridges, routers, optical/electric conversions, and back again between your house and the streaming server. Data is sliced into packets, transmitted via different routes, reassembled back at your router.

Will another 10 ft make a difference?

Ethernet does not lose anything. Anything lost is retransmitted and recovered. Nothing is changed or anyhow lost. Else your legal documents in remote cloud could change during transmission :-)

mclinnguy's avatar
mclinnguy
447 posts
 

@macg19

I tried the Everstar filter, waste of money, sent it back, but I’m going to try the iFI filter as I only have the Cox Panoramic device and I’m sure it’s noisy.

I’ll send it back if no improvement.

Exactly. Zero risk. I recall Alex at Uptone saying that with his 30 day money back guarantee he had sold over 3000 etherregens, and had just 3 returns. If that isn't proof the filter works I don't know what is.

tksteingraber's avatar
tksteingraber
612 posts
 

@macg19 check out the SmoothLan ethernet filter thread started by ozzy.  Also, I just received a Snubway filter from Verafi Audio and it absolutely made a significant improvement.  I didn’t expect that kind of improvement. Removes switched power supply noise in your environment. Decware forum has a thread with all positive feedback.   

macg19
911 posts
 

@mclinnguy Thanks for the reminder about Uptone - I think last time I looked they were not shipping.

@tksteingraber Thanks, will check out the thread and take a look at Snubway. I have a Purify and a SDFB although it really belongs with your amp. I had it converted for my DAC because my current integrated has an internal fuse and no specs in the manual. Mark is great.

I don’t think Snubway will address my primary mains concern though which I’m pretty sure is 60Hz noise. (I’ve got a lot plugged into a single 20 amp duplex and no easy way to add a dedicated circuit - rented house).

I hear a faint hum from my DAC and onboard MC phono module (both single ended / RCA only). Zero hum from my GoldNote phono using the balanced output but it died and I’m waiting on its replacement from the distributor.

 

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