How good of a DAC is the Logitech Transporter

Hi Spencer:

I had the same setup. SB 3 with a upgraded power supply, Digital output to a Tri-Vista 21 as one digital source and it was quite good in critical listening setup in my system.

I have been using now for 2-weeks a transporter and find the comparison the same.

The transporter does native 96/24 and the SB-3 upto 48/24 and again out through the Tri-Vista 21 that will upsample to 24/96 I find listening to downloaded Hi-Res no difference between the two source.

I consider headphone listening the most accurate and detail listening experience and really testing sound reproduction.

Testing results I used a AKG K1000 which is considered the best headphone on "planet earth", connected to one of the best sounding Amp, a Cary SEI with 300B Western tubes.

IMO keep your SB 3 as your musical server source. The transporter is a great device if you need to have a DAC and in your case your Tri-Vista 21 tube DAC is better than the transporter internal DAC.

Enjoy,

Harold

I use a stock Transporter. Also have a TacT 2.2XP and a EMM labs DCC2 SE (my digital stuff).
Lets just say the Transporter DAC breaks new ground imho at this price bracket. You will need to spend a LOT more to get a LITTLE better sound. It's certainly not the last word in DAC, but for the money, it's the steal of the century. (not to mention the entire SqueezeCenter platform is just fantastic... flexible + quality)

Harold,

Thanks, that's exactly what I hoped to hear. Cheers,

Spencer

Hi Spencer:

You are welcome, I think it is only fair that true testing of the components are measured with our experience and the best accuracy that we have available to us and then share results and fact finding among each other like yourself.

This really put us closer to the real world and help us all understand the determination and madness we audiophile geeks have for this passionate hobby.

One thing for sure we spend allot of time and money consequently trying to extract and squeeze for the reproduction of sound as intended during recording without and making it to clinical and believe you me that will certainly be tackled in a near thread to come... hint, "PWD"!

I have been doing this over 30 years and still prefer my Vinyl listening, but must say Digital has come along way, and find myself being able to listen longer with less fatigue.

Finally I must say from this thread it has shown the values and worth of the Transporter.

I personally must say thank you to Rich sharing his own experience of the Transporter.

It is an excellent investment for all the things it does with so many features and true benefits.

It is really hard to find a single component that lends so much. With the Squeeze Center interface and occasional firmware update has certainly, outside of vinyl turned my listening experience to another level, especially with 96/24 hi-res downloads.

Enjoy Music!

Harold

Gentlemen,

I love my Transporter. It has taken a bit of work but its finally at a point I can enjoy its convenience. I chose not to mod it. IMHO its probably worthwhile but I chose to "tweek" the sound. I chose a highly shielded power cord that improved its performance and made sure its isolated with the right material, and thats critical. Purchased a power strip that has built-in AC noise conditioning. The key was adding Alan Mayer design Power Reference II on the main AC outlet along with the surprising tweek that should get the Audio steal of the century, the DIY filter.

Final analysis, its a keeper until I decide on which DAC to try. This discussion is highly appreciated and all opinions good or bad are welcome. Dynamics is never a problem with this player as much as refinement.

The sound improves as you lower the volume. I do my critical listening at 4:30am in the morning so very little AC noise, neighbor noise, TV or other incendiary distractions to chew on.

Note: Red Wine Audio Signature 30.2 Battery power supply
Grover IC SC (patented emi/rfi shield
95db efficient speaker ..So noise is not tolerated AC or otherwise.
Alan Maher design AC filtering treatments and custom design isolation for the Transporter.

Luis