@kereru Sonore OpticalModule>OpticalRendu>Audioquest Diamond usb. AfterDark optical cable, OM to Teradak LPS, OR to Uptone JS-2, Mundorf silver/gold DC cables.
I'm ok with usb for now, at some point I'll get around to I2S, not in any hurry.
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@sns your USB implementation looks pretty sweet, some nice gear there, I wouldn't be in any hurry either. By contrast I need to up my cable and PS game a little and agree the U18 whilst solid is far from the last word in I2S, the Audio-Gd DDCs with regenerated power on the order hand, they're pretty special.
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@kereru Forgot about Audio-gd, the DI-24SE very interesting, and price point very nice. |
I picked up a Denafrips Hermes DDC about two weeks ago and it's working quite well with the Laiv Harmony. The Hermes now receives a coax input from a TEAC 701T CD transport and a usb input from a Bluesound Node 130. The Harmony receives an I2S input from the Hermes. Previously the Harmony received coax from the transport and usb from the node. The improvement in CD sound is primarily spatial, with a slightly deeper and wider soundstage, and also better bass extension and definition. Without resorting to a lot of "reviewer speak", I think CDs with the Hermes in place just sound more enjoyable. The really big bump up in audio performance comes with streaming from the Bluesound Node: everything sounds better from this very modest streamer with the Hermes in the signal path. Bass is deep, full, and tight; soundstage is precise with lots of air around the musical sources; and the overall presentation is very natural and smooth. I'm very happy with the Hermes and the Harmony is too. |
@smweber2 i had a similar experience when I added a Hermes between my streaming source (MacBook pro) and my Pontus II. It made a noticeable difference in all the same areas you mentioned as well as transient response. |
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