New Cary DMS 700

Yes music played from SD Card is as good as the DMS-600. Forgot to mention that the resolution of the front display is much higher as well. 

Was hoping it would be a noticeable improvement. Thanks for checking 

I personally think Cary Audio has made its outstanding success in designing and manufacturing top rated streamers starting DMS-500 as the fundation. We all know the DMS-500 is still an awesome streamer actively in the used market, it certainly can be enjoyed many more years considering its full pack of high end chipset and audio features (especially the hard-to-find well implemented DSD upsampling feature). And Cary audio has been clearly making substantial "improvements" in DMS-550, DMS-600 and now up the game to DMS-700. It’s very tough to "better" the already "excellent" designs and this intention does involve high investments both financially and intelligently. Otherwise you and i today wouldn’t be investing our hard earned monies and became proud owners of Cary streamers and take our time sharing our experiences here.

Again, I am very glad that i have made the decision to upgrade to DMS-700. It’s one of the very best streamers in today’s competitive market. I come from Asia and Cary brand streamers have earned super high regards from music lovers in Asian markets, same as in the USA. Now i reside in Western Canada but unfortunately we have zero audio dealer carrying Cary brand product here so only very few consumer know about the brand. Anyway, you can only love it or hate it, in this case i truly appreciate it !

Guys! Let’s take this information from a true customer, not a salesman and trust me, I completely understand sales and how it is bias along with how it works. Unfortunately, that’s for another thread if you dare want to discuss! I’ve had the top of the line Lumin as well as the previous top of the line Cary Audio. I still have the Cary Audio DMS600. It completely sounded better than the Lumin X1 Flagship model. I’ve compared them on the same system with no prejudice. I wanted the best possible sound with the gear I’m using. For example:
* Wilson Audio Maxx 2 speakers 
* McIntosh MC2301 Monoblock amplifiers 
* Audio Research REF250 SE Monoblock amplifiers
* Krell Evolution 402e amplifier 
* Chord SPM 6000 Monoblock amplifiers
* Chord SPM 12000 amplifier
* Jeff Rowland Model 12
* Cary Audio CAD805 AE (Anniversary Edition) Monoblock amplifiers
Cary Audio SLP05 preamp with Ultimate upgrade and Kimber Cable wiring with tube rolling 
Audio Research Reference 10 Anniversary Edition preamp 

a lot more gear but you get the point. I’m very fortunate to go through these items to help me make a decision that was best for me as a consumer. After my decision, I sold the gear that didn’t make the cut for the sound I was looking for. The Cary DMS600 is still in my system along with the Cary SLP05. It was a tough decision but the Cary was much more flexible and sounded better especially when it comes to 4-6 hours of listening. No listening fatigue at all. The sound was smooth and warm with very good detail. It complimented my overall system. I’m still a huge fan of Albums, Reel to Reel tapes and SACD/ Redbook but I like where streaming is heading as far as sound quality. It still has a ways to go but that’s digital technology. As far as to where Lumin is made and who owns the company, never compare how long a company will last in the US especially where a company is in China. You better hope that the distribution company in the US hangs around. Also to note, there is a heck of a lot of Lumin for sale, about 180+ streamer/DAC’s.

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Happy listening from a consumer, not a salesman 

My thoughts exactly when it came to Cary DMS 600   Can listen forever. No fatigue ever. Install an EtherRegan in front of it for a nice bump in SQ. 

EtherRegan? I will check that out. Didn’t know that. Thanks for the tip.

What about an opticalrendu? Some say that they are getting great results from it. Here is the link. I’m still researching it.

https://forum.psaudio.com/t/opticalrendu-preliminaries/11106/4

Lots of info here


https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/topic/57686-the-etherregen-thread-for-various-network-cable-power...

Curious if anyone has had the opportunity to try the new Spotify Connect functionality and if the quality is the same as Spotify in the native app?  I went from a DMS-500 to DMS-600 and have been very happy with the sound of the DMS-600.  Using it directly to Pass Labs XA-60.5.  Bested PS-Audio BHK pre with telefunken tubes and Luxman DA-06 DAC and crushed the Auralic G1 streamer, which sounded dead in comparison.

I ran my 600 directly into a pair of Odyssey Kismet extreme monos and it sounded pretty damn good but knew I was losing bits under 80 or so on the volume control.  Inserted a Rogue Rp-7 and boy did the system blossom. The lower end really improved and the tube pre really brought on the magic. The direct volume setting still allows you to adjust the gain to match your system  as it is not a fixed 2volts as with most dacs   

I wasn't happy with direct to amp until I put in Synergistic Orange fuses in the amps and switched to Stage III cabling.  I can't imagine that anything extra I gain would be worth the cost of the additional power chord, interconnect and pre.  I will buy the DMS-700 but I imagine my next step after that would be a Bartok or Bricasti (and hopefully, Qobuz catalog has caught up to Spotify by then)

Also, I have never tried the opticalRendu, but just bought the opticalModule and huge thumbs up.  Using it to etherRegen with Sablon 2020 ethernet cable.  The Sablon was so much more detailed than my previous Sotm dcbl CAT7 cable.  Tried the Synergistic Galileo ethernet cable and could not tell the difference between that and the Sablon.

Awesome! Thanks for the info. I will be purchasing them for my system.

@crowe300

How did you integrate the optical Module?   Router> ethernet cable> Optical Module> Fiber cable>EtherRegan> Sablon> Dac ?

I currently have the Sotm dcbl CAT7.  You really like the Sablon better?
I will give it a try.  

That is exactly my path.  I am using a generic Belden cable from my router.  Before I got the optical module, I experimented with the JCAT LAN isolator and adding multiple generic d-link bridges and it seemed the more bridges, the cleaner the sound was.  The optical module eliminated the need for all of those devices.  I was using the EtherRegen strictly from the "A" ports.  I found that "crossing the moat" actually reduced the dynamics and flattened the sound a bit, but oddly, just using the "A" ports still cleaned up the sound.  Not sure if the EtherRegen is still providing any additional benefit now, but it does have a fiber port!

The best sounding ethernet cable in my system was the Shunyata Omega, but I could not justify the price difference for the 10% refinement.  Also note that I have Sonus Faber Cremona M speakers, so any decisions I make should be in the context of the Sonus Faber/Pass Labs combination.  I can imagine if you have Magico/Soulution, you may have different results.  The Sablon is killer for the price.  I also tried their Prince power chord and really liked that as well.

Anyone using a Synology NAS? I’m trying to get a DMS-700 to connect with my NAS and can’t get it to work. I already have admin and user permissions set up on my NAS. Neither will get the Cary to connect. My server name shows up in the "NETWORK INPUT"screen on the Cary software. When I select it the software asks for login username and password. When I enter either user or admin information, working circle shows up and after a second or two goes back to the login window. I’m using an ipad pro with the latest Cary app and hard wired network (Ethernet). My Macbook recognizes the DMS-700 in my network. Streaming and USB work fine. Any suggestions are welcome Thanks!

Wish I could help you out Garry.  Cary support is usually pretty good. 
Feeling your frustrations. 

Sorry I can’t help but if you call Cary, they are great at getting back to you and they can walk you through the process

Thanks guys.  I already talked with Daryl at Cary.  He asked me to put together some screen shots and information to show him what I'm seeing.  He called me back within half an hour of leaving him a message!  Hopefully I'll get this resolved soon.  I have a LOT! of music on my server.

Have you ever thought about subscribing to Roon?

I have my best of the best on a 1tb SSD plugged in to the Cary. Other than more storage what would be the advantage of a Nas if I was only accessing from the Cary?

Cool feature
The DMS-700 has expanded the function of the 3 USB-A and SD Card Slot inputs to be accessible from a networked computer. This means when the DMS is powered on, any storage connected to the DMS will act as a NAS Drive (Network Attached Storage). This allows you to copy your music file directly onto the USB or SD Card from a network computer without needing to disconnect them. This simply turns any USB drive or SD Card connected to the DMS into a NAS drive. Playback from these drives can be direct (computer-less) or monitored and controlled from a computer-based server i.e., JRiver, Twonky, etc., or even via Roon. What’s more, if you have more than one DMS you can play files from one DMS to another

I have a Cary DMS-600 and I can connect fine to my Synology NAS.  Have you tried turning on the Media Server in your NAS?  The Cary can find the media server without logging in.  What's more, it doesn't have to index all the metadata again.  I did just try using the PC share only and I can access it while logging in as well.  I just put in the IP address of the NAS.  Logging in fine with a non admin account.

So on the 700 you can combine playlist from Qobuz , Tidal,USB, Network etc ?
that’s huge. 

Thanks everyone for all the information and suggestions.  I'm still working through my NAS issue and may switch to a local SSD soon if I can't get things working.  In the meantime I thought I would let you all know what I think about the 700.  Before buying the Cary I used an Altair (gen 1).  It sounded good but was fatiguing compared to my TT.  I have a Cary Xciter DAC in my retired equipment closet and just for the heck of it I decided to run the streaming output of the Altair into the Xciter DAC. Big difference!  More analog and enjoyable listening to my ears.  I believe the Xciter uses the same AK DAC family as the newer Cary streamers.  So that's what got me looking into the DMS-700.  Now onto the DMS-700.  When I first fired it up I noticed more detail and truer instrument tones.  Acoustic instruments sounded significantly more real.  Low end was more solid and balanced in the mix.  Timing was improved too.  It wasn't until the 4th day of ON time that I starting hearing acceptable image, focus and air.  I'm on day 7 of running in and the DMS-700 is now exceeding my previous digital system in all aspects.  It's also giving my class B analog equipment some competition too.  I'm really enjoying it.

crowe300.  Thanks for your help.  With your information and a couple of hours on youtube I was able to get the DMS-700 communicating with my NAS!!!!!!

Hi there, has anyone upgraded from the DMS-600 to the DMS-700 that would care to comment on any SQ differences? Thanks!

I upgraded from the DMS-550 and I am about 140 hours on my new DMS-700 (ran the first 100 hours on a repetitive PSAudio burn-in CD). Daryl at Cary Audio has been awesome to work with. I have the DMS-700 connected to a T+A PA3000HV integrated amp with a PSAudio PW CD Transport connected to the DMS-700 via digital XLR.

I find, that the DMS-700 has an exceptionally natural sound signature with no sense of listening fatigue, especially compared to some of the equal or higher priced competitive products that I have tried in my system (Lumin and Aurender). Listening to my reference material on the DMS-700 reveals greater resolution, a larger more transparent sound stage with a wonderful analog warmth and smoothness. One area the DMS-700 excels is its ability to reproduce very heavy deep bass. The implementation of the AK4499EQ DAC chips (R2R ladder DAC) with FPGA technology has significantly improved the performance over the DMS-550.

Some great new features on the DMS-700 include the ability directly copy files over the network to the SD card and USB drives that are attached to the DMS-700. All in, I think Cary Audio has created an excellent digital source - streaming - pre-amp - DAC.

Mine is coming tomorrow. See how it stacks up against the 600. Have an SR orange fuse waiting. : )

Joe do you find the SD being your best sounding source?

Wow you bit the bullet and did the upgrade - congratulations! It will be very interesting to hear your thoughts on how it compares to the 600.

Yes - the SD card is my best sounding source. I keep my highest resolution material (128/256 DSD and 192/24 352/24 PCM) on a couple of Lexar Professional 633x 1TB SDXC UHS-I cards (formatted to NTFS).

I am amazed that other manufactures don’t include SD Card capabilities, I wish Cary Audio would have included two slots.

Will you also use an upgraded power cable?

Yea I have an Audience AU 24Se power chord on the Cary. Also an EtherRegen in front of it. Sitting on Stillpoints Ultra Minis.  Everything adds up. 

+1 for the EtherRegen. I am also using a Sonore OM upstream of that with Fiber to the EtherRegen. And a BG7TBL clock for the EtherRegen ($100 well spent - see https://audiophilestyle.com/forums/topic/59419-master-clock-for-your-etherregen/#comments)

^ .. and an Uptone LPS 1.2 for the ER .. and another LPS for the Clock ... custom Ghent power cables .... down the rabbit hole we go!

My DMS-700 continues to improve and now exceeds SQ of all sources in my system.  I've been using Tidal, NAS and USB input on the front with a Sandisk 256Gb flash drive.  The USB has best SQ.  Benzman have you found the SD to be better than USB?  I haven't tried any of the Ethernet upgrades either.  How much of an improvement do you get out of an Etheregen?

The EtherRegen in my system is as simple as it gets. Router > EtherRegen> SoTM dCBL-CAT7 cable > Cary DMS 600.  I think it gets me within 5% of the attached drives. Of course the attached drives have Higher resolution files than on Qobuz and Tidal so that may play a part. I have heard that with and LPS and Fiber you can actually surpass locally stored files. The weather delayed the 700 till tomorrow.  It looks so close to the 600 that I thought I could could slip it by the wife. I came clean today and feel like a new man. :) 

Hello Benzman. Can you give me an exact list (EtherRegen, SoTM dCBL-CAT7, etc.) of items I need to purchase for my Cary Audio DMS600 to increase the sound quality? For my Ethernet cable, I’m using the Audioquest Vodka. I’m also thinking of getting the Cary Audio DMS700. Let me know what your thoughts are. 
Thanks

EtherRegen is sold out until mid-March. I saw a unit for a good price in US Audiomart if you want to get one sooner.

Since you already have a good Ethernet cable, that’s all you need to get started. Perhaps later on you can buy a good quality linear power supply for EtherRegen 

Agree w/thyname. You can add all the other goodies down the road. Sablon is another good cable. Supra is pretty nice in the $ 50 dollar range. 

Sure! What’s the link?

I found it. Also, I forgot to mention that I have a Roon Nucleus. Will I still need it?

Hey Gary. Hard to put a number on it but the EtherREGEN is a solid upgrade for the 640 they are asking. But you can then spend another 1,000 on a LPS and a boutique Ethernet cable. Head over here:   Audiophilestyle.com.  Look for the Uptone sponsored forum   All the info you need and more. 
Have the 700 installed. Sounds pretty good out of the box. Will report after a few days. The app is a big upgrade but was hoping I could have all sources in a DMS playlist but looks like just local attached files . Would have been cool to have Tidal,Qobuz,USB and SD in one playlist. 

Benzman, Thanks for the info. I’ll look into it. Give your new 700 at least four days before you start any critical listening. Image focus and depth really locked in around day 4.  I've noticed additional improvements in detail and ambience up through day 12.  I can create playlists using Tidal, USB and NAS. When viewing the playlist page, icons for each source are in the bottom left corner of each album art. This is how I compare SQ of each source to each other. Same song from Tidal, USB and NAS. Makes it really convenient and fast.

I am about 220 hours in on my new 700. At 200 hours I noticed another layer of resolution, depth and clarity opening up. The one thing I have realized as a major difference between the 550 vs 700 is on lesser quality recoding's, not the digital resolution per say by the actual recoding itself. The increased resolving power of the 700 highlights and creates a high level of noticeability around the music's production flaws.   

I hear ya Joseph. They say that you listen more attentive to new equipment and maybe thats why there is a perceived improvement. You don't have to listen very hard with the 700. That's going from the 600, so from the 550 you must really be digging it.
    

Excellent thread and info. Greatly appreciated but now you guys finally convinced me to pull the plug on the 700, ordered on today.
Yippee....after reading all the potential ethernet upgrades I guess it is silly to ask but I will anyway.....has anyone tried the 5 G wifi connection to see how much sound quality suffers? 
Also,  I have my 800 or so cd’s all ripped to flac on a usb ssd and plan on attaching them to the 700, any issues with that ? I absolutely love my vinyl on Rega P8 and am hoping the 700 will help bring my digital to a similar affection in my system.

@joseph and benz....agreed the only unfortunate side effect of upgrading to better equipment is the highlighting of poor recording/mix/production flaws....alas it is not a perfect world...ha

I understand up to 7or 8 TB attached storage for USB. Not sure how big a card you can get for SD.  You should have no issues.
 I am hardwired at 2.4 ghz.  Everything runs and sounds pretty damn fine.
I have had streamers from Bryston, Auralic,Aurender, and streamer/ dacs   from Aurender ( A10), Lumin (T2),  and the Cary 600.
The Lumin T2 had wonderful transparency and detail but would get tiring after a while. The 600 did not have quite the transparency but was close and you can listen all day.
The 700 I feel ( 5 days in) has the transparency of the Lumin but the smoothness of the AKM chipset. Really liking the vocals . I would really like to hear the Lumin X1 vs  the Cary 700. Even though the Cary is 6k list cheaper I think it would give it a battle.  I am going to give it a few more days and the install the SR orange fuse. In the past the SR fuses have made a bigger jump in the pre and power amps than in my digital equipment. We shall see  

My ssd’s are 1 TB so looks like that is no problem.

My thinking on the 5G is that if I have no ethernet cables etc that there is no way to introduce additional noise (and $ to me upgrading everything). My 5G router from verizon gives me north of 100 Mbps so if the Cary antenna can pull that in reliably all should be good. Will have to experiment and see.

Has anyone played with the upsampling yet?
let us know how the fuses go.

Upgraded to DMS-700 from DMS-600. Breaking in now. Liking that Pure Audio Mode works for both 2V and 3V max outputs as I am using 2V to my BHK Signature Preamp. Fingers crossed for Roon certification soon. Using Tidal or 1TB external SSD Drive until then. Benzman you are planning to open up the unit to replace the fuse then? - I noticed there is no fuse holder by the power supply.