Jump to content

cclragnarok

High Rollers
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    506

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Posts posted by cclragnarok

  4. Schiit Bifrost

    in Home Source Components

    Posted

    They mentioned that they were working on a DAC when I talked to them during the last Bay Area meet. These guys have a lot of experience making nice DACs, so I'm sure they know what they are doing.

    The only thing I'm not sure about is the following in the FAQ section:

    For audio, USB still doesn’t offer the performance of SPDIF, which is a dedicated digital audio interface.

    This is surprising coming from people selling a new Async USB DAC. I would like to know why they think their Async USB (and Streamlength, etc) is still inferior to SPDIF. :blink:

  10. Post the last thing you bought!

    in Off Topic

    Posted

    Oh, damn, it looks like you just missed the claim date. And now I don't see MBP as being listed. But I'm certain listed it was in December. I believe it was the Nvidia NVS135M chip. If yours has this, you could still easily find stuff all over the web referencing overheating problems with this chip, and maybe get a sweet deal from Apple? This thing fried my motherboard or neighboring chips 3 separate times in 2 years, and Dell replaced my laptop for free.

    The Nvidia GPU on my sister's Inspiron 9400 died a while ago. Since the computer was out of warranty, I just bought a compatible ATi GPU on eBay and replaced it myself. Didn't know about the settlement until I saw this. :palm:

  17. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    It is very fast indeed. I'm getting about 7.5MB/sec for torrent downloading and it isn't maxed out... :D

    If you change the pads, do go for the Mk2 earpads. I for one wouldn't go back to the Mk1's even though I have quite a few sets.

    I have DSL, and the upload speed sucks (maybe ~40KB/sec for torrent uploads). When I do a large torrent download, I have to upload for days to keep my upload/download ratio high....

    Unfortunately, I have 2 pairs of new SR-007 earpads, and 0 pairs of SR-007 Mk2 earpads. :(

  19. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    Turns out they are even better with SR-007 earpads. The brown pads also match perfectly with the tan plastic... :)

    Is it easy to install the SR-007 earpads on the SR-1 ~ SR-5 chassis?

    Maybe I can put new pads on my SR-007 and use the old SR-007 pads with my SR-5 gold. It'll probably look very ugly, but at least the comfort should be improved.

  22. Wyred 4 Sound (ESS Sabre) DAC

    in Home Source Components

    Posted

    So the Absolute Sound reviewed this in its current issue, and I gleaned a rather interesting piece of information from it (!) -- the asynchronousness isn't really asynchronous, it is -- at the same time -- both better and worse. What they do is figure out where the leading and tailing edge of the (digital!) signal is, then sample it "in the middle", then reclock what they get. (Oversimplification, but I hope it's understandable. And by "signal", I mean the peak associated with a single bit of information.) They've obviously done a lot of research into exactly what kind of problems they're going to get on the input, and tried to come up with a solution that solves most if not all of them. Even better: does not need a proprietary driver on the computer or transport side.

    I just checked the feature list again, and right under "24-bit 192kHz Asynchronous USB input" is this:

    "Proprietary drivers for 32/64 bit Windows XP, Vista, 7 and Mac OS 10.4, 10.5 ,10.6"

    :confused:

  24. Wyred 4 Sound (ESS Sabre) DAC

    in Home Source Components

    Posted

    So the Absolute Sound reviewed this in its current issue, and I gleaned a rather interesting piece of information from it (!) -- the asynchronousness isn't really asynchronous, it is -- at the same time -- both better and worse. What they do is figure out where the leading and tailing edge of the (digital!) signal is, then sample it "in the middle", then reclock what they get. (Oversimplification, but I hope it's understandable. And by "signal", I mean the peak associated with a single bit of information.) They've obviously done a lot of research into exactly what kind of problems they're going to get on the input, and tried to come up with a solution that solves most if not all of them. Even better: does not need a proprietary driver on the computer or transport side.

    I have to say -- my interest is now beyond "piqued" and well into "intrigued".

    Oh, also: volume control.

    And they did confirm that the modular design was intended to future proof it.

    Are you talking about the Wyred 4 Sound DAC-2? The feature list of the DAC-2 says:

    "24-bit 192kHz Asynchronous USB input"

    I'm not sure I understand what you are describing, but it doesn't sound like asynchronous USB. It sounds like a reclocking scheme. :confused:

  25. The Headcase Stax thread

    in Headphones

    Posted

    An odd question perhaps,

    Could one use an amp like the Sanders ESL Sanders Sound Systems ESL Amplifier

    To directly drive a Stax headphone without using a transformer? A bias supply would have to be added in somewhere in the box which changes from speaker to 5-pin connector obviously.

    The description says:

    "It will drive the most difficult (low impedance and reactive) loads without strain or damage, which is why it is ideal for driving electrostatic loudspeakers."

    The power rating (360 watts RMS into 8 Ohms and 600 watts RMS into 4 Ohms) also suggests that it is voltage-limited at 8 Ohms. Isn't that (~54 volts RMS) too little voltage headroom for Stax headphones?

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.

  I accept