Do I still need a DDC in between?

@sls883 

I was convinced that the Wiim Ultra / Gustard U18 combo performs quite well. Along with the Harmony Micro DAC and upgraded cabling, the system's sound can be described in three words: effortless, transparent, and depth-dealing. I like it very much and I believe it actually outperforms many higher end streamers.

One thing I’d like to check with you—and I hope you can confirm—is this: remember I mentioned the 'static' noise that occurred when the U18 was initially connected to my system? I finally figured out that it’s caused by the I²S channel not receiving a signal while idling. As soon as music starts playing and a signal is present, the noise disappears and the background stays quiet and dark until the unit is powered off and on again. I was advised not to worry about it, but I’d appreciate it if you could confirm whether your U18 ever behaves this way. Please let me know.  I may need to swap it out with a brand new, trouble free one.

@lanx0003 mine has never done that.  Not even once.

I'm going Gustard to Gustard, so the I2s connection was easy. 

@sls883  Could be, but it could also be defective, since I had no issue with the other DDC.

@lanx0003 for sure.  I think I'd ask for a replacement. 

@mattw73 I was using a Ugreen before the LanShack. Hopefully you will perceive the improvement I did.

This time, I’m not sure if I hear a discernible difference. In any case, both are better than the unshielded Cat 5e. The cable is beefy and well-constructed—just a bit stiff due to the solid conductors.  Nevertheless, I will possibly ’downgrade’ to Cat 6A, which uses a maximum bandwidth frequency of 500 MHz, instead of 2000 MHz on cat 8, as the latter is more prone to EMI/RFI if not properly grounded on one end. LanShack offers cables with similar specifications.