Bricasti M1 DAC vs PS Audio Direct Stream DAC
I went in to settings in JRiver and changed the Pre buffering from the recommended 6 seconds to the maximum of 20 seconds. This appears to have fixed the problem. I can now play DSD 2X. Al does this alter the sound at all.From a technical standpoint I can't envision any reason why doing that would affect sonics, Jeff, but I don't have directly relevant experience that would enable me to say that with certainty. Best regards, -- Al |
Jwm 12-25-2017OK. So then the network switch suggestion is applicable. And I see no reason why inserting it into the wired path between the router and the DAC would have any impact on what you presently do wirelessly, or on anything else other than possibly providing a sonic benefit. Fsmithjack 12-26-2017This is a good analogy. As I said earlier, the signal that would be sent by the switch to the DAC is generated by the switch, and while it would have the same data content as the signal sent by the router, the waveform and noise characteristics of the signals sent by the two devices will differ. BTW, the GS108 switch that was suggested comes in both "managed" and "unmanaged" versions. As Joe indicated earlier, IMO the less complex and less expensive unmanaged version would be the way to go. Also, that device provides 8 ports, and you only need two, so I would suggest the 5 port GS105 rather than the GS108. You would simply connect it and its power supply (or an upgraded power supply), and be good to go. Regards, -- Al |
Jwm 12-25-2017Jeff, thanks for clarifying that your router-to-DAC connection is wireless, which of course makes the suggestion of inserting a switch between them inapplicable unless you decide to try a wired connection. But if you were to try a wired connection, regarding your question please note the following statement in the first of my posts in which I seconded Fsmithjack’s suggestion, and attempted to provide a technical rationale supporting its plausibility: ...RF content of that signal may find its way around the ethernet interface in the DAC and affect DAC circuitry that is further downstream.By "find its way around" I mean "bypassing." My point is that no matter how good a job the DAC does in cleaning up the signal it receives, and no matter how good the design of the DAC may be, signals and noise don’t necessarily just affect or entirely follow only their intended pathway. And the waveform characteristics and the noise characteristics of the signal that enters the DAC will affect how and if RF energy present in that signal may to at least a small degree find its way via unintended pathways to unintended circuit points "downstream" of the ethernet interface and the internal reclocker you referred to. "Unintended pathways" may include things like grounds within the receiving device, parasitic capacitances, power supply circuitry, or even radiation through the air within the component. "Unintended circuit points" may include the D/A circuit itself, resulting in jitter, and/or analog circuit points further downstream in the component, where audible frequencies might be affected by noise that is at RF frequencies via effects such as intermodulation or AM demodulation. As I see it Fsmithjack has made a well-intentioned suggestion of an inexpensive tweak which he and others he has referred to have found to be efficacious. And what I am basically saying is simply that from a technical standpoint it makes sense, IMO. Regards, -- Al |
Hi Jeff, What is it that you are saying is "running wireless"? If you are saying that the computer that is running J-River is wirelessly connected to the router, that would have no relevance to Fsmithjack’s suggestion or to what I have said in regard to his suggestion. If you are saying that the DAC is connected wirelessly to the router, I was not aware that the DAC provides wireless connectivity. If the computer is connected wirelessly to the router and the DAC is connected to the router via an Ethernet cable (which I was assuming is the case), then I believe Fsmithjack’s suggestion and my explanations of it do in fact make sense. And regarding Joe’s comment just above, I would not liken Fsmithjack’s suggestion to daisy-chaining cables or analog components. In this case the network switch would be regenerating the signal, and the benefit it might provide would be more akin to (although not the same as) what a reclocker does. Regards, -- Al |
Hi Jeff, All the switch would do would be to hand off to the DAC data packets it receives from the router that are addressed to the DAC. And vice versa for communications that are sent from the DAC and addressed to whatever source is being used via the router. In doing so, however, as I mentioned above the waveform and noise characteristics of the signal received by the DAC may be different than they would be without the switch, since that signal would be generated by the switch rather than by the router. Which in turn could make a difference in the DAC’s sonic performance, for better or worse depending on the particular router and the other variables I mentioned. And based on Fsmithjack’s experience, more likely for the better than for the worse. Regards, -- Al |
Jeff (Jwm), I could be missing something but I don’t see why Fsmithjack’s suggestion wouldn’t work in your application. Communications between the router and the DAC would occur no differently than they presently do, if a network switch is inserted between them. However I would expect the benefit that might result, if any, to depend on the particular router and perhaps also on the ethernet cabling that is being used, as well as on the particular switch and DAC. Presumably any sonic difference that might occur would result from differences in the waveform characteristics (e.g., risetimes, falltimes, and distortion) and also the noise content of the signal received by the DAC. Which in turn may affect the degree to which the RF content of that signal may find its way around the ethernet interface in the DAC and affect DAC circuitry that is further downstream. Seems to me to be a suggestion that is worth trying, and costs very little. Happy holidays, and best regards, -- Al |
