@audio-b-dog and @kirkwallace I posted a thread on how to add pictures to the forum discussion in case you guys are interested
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/posting-pictures-in-a-forum-discussion
Does anyone have a digital system that is as involving as their analogue front end?
I have a good analogue front end. Not stratuspherically good but good enough for this comparison. VPI Prime Signature 21 turntable, Pass Labs XP-25 pono preamp, Pass Labs XP-30 preamp and Hovland Radia amp. It has a lovely, very involving sound. On the right recording, I just drop everythng and am drawn in to listen.
My streamer, on the other hand, is decent but not spectacular. It is better than my CD player, but it is not jaw-dropping like my analogue front-end. My question is this: does anyone have a high-end, tier-one streamer (dCS Bartok Apex, Lumin X2, or something like them) that can rival a good analogue system?
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Sorry for being silent for so long. I got locked out of Audiogon and just figured out how to get back in. I have posted a photo of my system. So, here is where I am at in terms of getting a pretty solid inteface with my iPad and the Meitner MA3i. I find that Qobuz connect is the most stable interface for me. I called Eero and had them change my protocol to Open DNS. That helped with drop outs. I was having a problem with drop offs when my air conditioning came on, and Open DNS seemed to fix that also. I have two last bugs to fix. At the end of tracks there is a slight pause because my fiber hub, which is also a router, and the Eero and fiber hub compete to cut over to the next track. I have a way to fix that. BTW, gapless works perfectly on Qobuz connect. The one last little problem is to get Qobuz connect to default to the Meitner rather than my iPad. AI gave me a fix on that, which I'll try later. |
@audio-b-dog I’ll be honest I’m puzzled by the dns setting changes addressing issues with drop outs when AC kicks in. I’d say it has nothing to do with it. The drop outs are probably voltage fluctuations. If this has never happened with vinyl, can you try powering the Meitner off the same circuit where you currently have your vinyl rig plugged in? How long are these dropouts normally? Over a minute? It could be also the circuit the router is plugged into. The AC will pull large amounts of current on start up and if the router gets affected that could explain the dropouts. It will restart. Meitner will use up its buffer and stop until the router restarts. And until you restart the playback. |
I am puzzled too, because AI says it should make no difference. But I have been watching carefully after changing to open dns and there have been no drop offs for any reason when I am using Qobuz connect. Plus gapless works flawlessly. The whole networking thing is so complex, I just want to make it work by experimentation. For me, Jplay is much more unstable and Mconnect is old and clunky. At least I have my answer. Now I know why the Meitner MA3i was so inexpensive for the quality of sound it gives. They invested their money in that sound quality rather than in a seamless interface like other high-end manufacturers. I have all of my audio equipment plugged into a Shunyata Venom 16 which seperates analogue and digital equipment. The Venom is plugged into an isolated plug. I think the dip in electrical voltage interrupts the handshake between the iPad and the Meitner. I'll keep experimenting. |
@audio-b-dog I’m certainly glad it’s better! But I’m also sticking to my theory :) yes the Meitner is all about minimizing compromises. Streaming card is high quality and the DAC is top notch. |
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