Good theory, Violin, as all theories should be. |
Kops,
As per my last post, thanks for the advice too about the power cord. The Jorma is not available where I live. Cheers! |
Jfrech,
Nice to know you are willing to experiment a bit - that's what this hobby is all about. Happy listening!
Jon, |
Kops,
500 hours burn-in for the Puccini? Well, I am barely halfway there now. This is going to be a more exciting ride than I thought. Looking very much forward to further improvement in the sound as I gradually get to 500. Tell us what you have heard improve along the way - soundstage, timbre, bass, midrange, treble, etc.... |
Hi Lenny,
Have you experimented with the Puccini direct to the Ayre MX-Rs bypassing the Nagra pre-amp? You may want to try it and tell us your preference.
I used to have an ARC Ref 3 pre-amp but bypassing it altogether enhanced clarity, transparency and resolution of the system. Having said that, there is the other camp that says that an analogue pre-amp fleshes out the sound with more dimensionality and a wider, deeper soundstage. I guess it is the type of pre-amp that would make the difference. The ARC made it sound worse. |
Guido,
Yes, I am an ecstatic lover of Die Muzick. Best speakers I have had in my system. They will keep anyone happy for many, many years to come. Cables are Kimber Select for analog interconnects and Tara Labs for speakers, and Shunyata power cords for the amps, MIT and Synergistic Research power cords and Hydra for the digital components.
Here's wishing that you get to experience Die Muzick in your home sooner than year end.
Cheers! Jon. |
Lenny,
Thanks for sharing your experience. It's true that with every 6dB of digital volume attenuation, there is a loss of 1 bit in resolution. But somehow with my system synergy(and maybe sheer luck), the volume is usually set at less than -6bB attenauation and it sounds great, better than through the ARC. It would appear that the Nagra does a better job as a pre-amp than the ARC.
Guido,
I have emailed dCS to which they have promptly replied about a firmware update. The version I got is the latest (just purchased mine in Feb this year)and they also provided me with a key to unlock the upsampling option to DSD for the RCA inputs. My experience with the upsampling path may mean that if you power OFF, you may need to go through PCM first, then to DSD, even if you left it at DSD upsampling before switching OFF. If the unit is awakened from SLEEP, the DSD upsampling remains as is. Try this and let us know if this is the same for you too.
Your take on the King Cobras sounds tempting...hmmm. May give them a try one day. And again, may Die Muzick sing in your home soon! Viva le music! :) |
Alexis,
Congrats on getting the new Debussy. Tell us how you connect your Mac server to the Debussy - USB or toslink? - and how you configure the Mac and itunes, and are you using Apple TV? I am thinking of doing the same with my Mac. Thanks in advance. |
Guido,
My apologies. You have the Esoteric front end, not the Puccini. My bad - what was I thinking? That's what happens when you get too intoxicated by music, dead drunk, that I am! |
Thanks, Alexis, that's a lot of hardware. May try it one day when I have the time. |
Thanks for the suggestions. I currently use Harmonix feet under both the Puccini and U-clock, and they do sing with these. As for power cords, I will try to get them for a home demo first. Cheers! |
Lenny,
I replaced my old MIT power cords with the PS Audio PerfectWave AC-12 as I find it to be more bang for the buck than the twice as expensive Shunyata Anaconda CRZ(VX discontinued). It is 8-Gauge pure crystalline copper and it sounds great. You are so right about power cords making a big difference. Thanks for the advice. Cheers! |
Kops,
Thanks for the heads-up. Would you get the same level power cords for both the Puccini and U-clock, or just the Puccini? In other words, how would you prioritise - Puccini first, then U-clock or the other way around? |
Kops,
Looks like I have to go with 2 power cords of the same grade, which means more dollars out of the wallet but I guess it would be worth it. will keep you posted. |
Thanks to all for your input. I shall try to get samples from Shunyata and Jorma for a home comparison with the PS Audio PerfectWave AC-12 that I have just purchased. At the moment, I am extremely happy with the AC-12. The sound is beginning to bloom with more and more hours of burn-in. Will keep you guys posted. |
I tried something new with the Harmonix feet today. Well, I have 2 sets of them with each set comprising 4 pieces. When the Puccini and U-clock arrived, I had to retire 2 pieces as these 2 components have only 3 footers each. But my hands got itchy today and I tried placing 1 Harmonix foot(inverted, base down) on the top centre of each of these 2 components and lo and behold!..... Instruments gain body, weight, airiness while decay of notes sounds more natural. Go figure....... |
Kops,
The Harmonix SYN 100. Since they cost me an arm and a leg, It would be a pity to not use all of them. So there, the 4th piece sitting pretty on the source components and all is good! |
Interesting question.... I run the Puccini balanced directly to my Bryston 28B SST monoblocks. The balanced circuit is recommended for these amps as they are designed from the ground up as such for optimal performance. I may be wrong but I am guessing it is the same for the Puccini. I haven't made an A/B with single-ended connections because I don't have the same grade interconnects for comparison. I use Kimber Kable Select 1130 XLR interconnects and won't pay for the SE equivalent to find out if they are better and then re-sell them if they are not. If you can get home demo cables for comparison, do let us know the result. Any component that is designed truly balanced from the ground up and recommended by the designer to be played as such should probably sound better balanced. |
Something interesting happened today. That's what I like about this hobby-there's always some new experience to share. After about 6 months enjoying the sound from the Puccini/U-clock, I start to feel that the presentation is becoming a little less involving- a little less musical with less toe-tapping and head-bobbing. So, I tried an experiment.
I switched off the U-clock to sort of reset things as I have never switched it off since Day 1. When I switched it off, I felt the sound did not change very much which means that the U-clock wasn't making much of a difference to the sound. Then I switched it on again and lo and behold!... The sound improved in every way to another level as it should and I began to start bobbing my head and tapping my toes again just as I did at the very beginning.
It would seem that switching the U-clock on and off somehow reset the internal circuits in such a way that the performance of the clock was re-optimised. That is only my theory. Any thoughts from anyone? |
The naysayers may be negative about anything but it is not based on evidence from a truly personal listening experience. The best way to enjoy this hobby is to have an open mind about everything. Cheers! |
I just got a good silver USB cable from Oyaide to set up music via the U-clock's USB input. Using my laptop running Windows 7, setting things up wasn't as formidable as I feared it would be. I have downloaded the JRiver media player and a sample of 96/24 flac files from the HDTracks website. Compared with native Redbook, 96/24 is indeed way better. But 44/16 played back through USB is no where near the CD sound from the Puccini. I would be happy to hear from those who have compared the sound from the USB input of the U-clock with the Puccini to that of other USB-based systems. |
Well, I have learnt a few unfortunate things about USB-based audio via the U-clock.
1) There is no support for the WASAPI driver which gives the best sound from a PC
2) The Puccini and U-clock do not support 192/24 files
3) For WASAPI and 192/24 support, the U-clock needs both hardware and software upgrade which is chargeable(unit needs to be shipped back to UK)
4) It would be easier to go through a Mac which with PureMusic software will let you play files up to 96/24 without need for the WASAPI upgrade
5) However,192/24 files will still need the hardware and software upgrade
Any thoughts from anyone? |
Klinsmanner and Kops,
I would be very grateful if the both of you could describe in greater detail the difference in sound quality after the upgrade? Also, if you are using the U-clock for computer audio, what are you using for your computer hardware and software? Many thanks in advance. |
