If the bybees don´t affect the cable´s resistance, inductance or/and capacitance, as Paul suggest, then must work in other unknown parameter of the cables. Magnetizing or better said demagnetizing the system could be something related with the bybees which I really don´t know.

Anyway, the differences between cables are audible although again we are talking about, usually, cables with different resistance, inductance, capacitance. Would be interesting to test silver and copper cables with the same inductance, capacitance and resistance. Would it be possible?.

Juan

Peter,

Do you mean that demagnetizing the system eliminates the differences between cables?.

Probably all you know this article, please read the #1 The cables lie (the others are also interesting):

The Ten Biggest Lies in Audio: http://www.theaudiocritic.com/downloads/article_1.pdf

Juan

Hi Paul,

I know very well the Bybee purifiers because my Spectron amps have they installed. This is from the Spectron site:

Super-Effect Bybee Purifiers - it adds a different quality; the palpability, presence and 3D body that up to now only a tube amp, particularly SET could provide. The Super-Effect Bybee Purifiers are described in more detail by Bybee Technology (see Golden Goddess 'Super Effect' Speaker Bullets) http://bybeetech.com/products.asp. The main difference is that we install these filters between the transformer and the diode bridges where their effect is maximum.

I had a previous version of Spectron without the Bybee and what I can tell is that there is a notable difference with the latest version with it installed, now the sound is smoother and more vivid and yes more 3D (huge in fact with the monoblocks).

About silver/copper cables, I have a different experience than yours,  I yes noticed a difference, I don´t know if your different position of the Bybee in your speakers could make it unnoticeable in your system.
I´m using now copper cables, well, in fact I´m using copper for the mids/highs and silver for the bass but I´ve been using for some time silver cables in the whole system and I´ll probably return to test again the silver cables with the NOS1 USB now in the system to see how they sound.

About the price of the silver speaker cables you have tested WOW! 4k GBP is really high, how many meters you need?.  The silver cables I have have a reasonable price and I like them very much in my system, although of course I don´t know what speaker cables were you talking about and maybe there is not a possible comparison in between yours and mine:
 
Tempo Electric:http://www.tempoelectric.com/cables.htm

Clear Day cables (which I liked more than the Tempo Electric):
http://www.cleardaycables.com/

Juan

Hi Mani,

In my case I can´t see differences when the monitor is connected (via VGA) or not. Neither with the keyboard and mouse connected to a hub with an USB active extension.

But these issues, together with the one about the power supply, leads me to think that although the improvement in the software (XXHighEnd) and in the NOS1 will never end there are other important parts to which attention should be paid in order to work with synergy (remember that audiophile word?) with XXHE and the NOS1.
Maybe now, that the NOS1 USB seems to have reached a very notable grade of perfection could be the time for Peter (sorry, we all know you work tirelessly) to take the task to investigate on this hardware, i.e. the power supply he was working on or how to get the less possible impact on the sound with the different connections: monitor, mouse and keyboard. Maybe the remote in his mind will be the solution...

Juan

Hi Paul,

After two days struggling with my PC to apply the upgrades and make it works correctly I arrived to two conclusions:

1- With the SP1, all the important upgrades and none of the optional ones the sound is consistently oustanding, being the bass the most noticeable improvement which is now even tighter and deeper. I´d say that the sound is at least as good as the first time when I listened it with only the SP1. The difference is that now I get used to the sound and I´m still amazed.

2- My computer seems to work even faster and smoother now with all the upgrades.

At the end I´d recommend to give a try to the upgrades.

Thanks, Paul!

Juan

Thanks, Peter. I should have paid more attention to the Readme.txt in the Windows install.

Juan

Yes, of course...thank you, I was seeing 768 where was 705.6

Juan

I´m not sure what´s the sample rate I have to set in the Control panel. I guess that the correct one is 384.000 kHz which is the half of 768.000 kHz but when after setting that value and played music for a while I stop XXHighEnd and open again the Control panel appears the 352.000 kHz setting as the active Sample Rate.

Juan

Ok, thanks Peter. I'm now in the airport but someone is going to turn everything off in a couple of hours.

Best regards
Juan

Hi Bert, thanks for the information.

The gain in my Spectron monoblocks is 26db (20v/v). My normal playback volume is around -27db.

With the previous NOS1 I heard high bumps when I turned off the dac section but not high enough to damage the speakers. It would be a good thing if the risk decreases or disappears in a few weeks, sadly I don´t have old speakers around to test it.
This week that I´m going to be out of town I´ll leave the dac on with a burning track playing continuously but with the amps off, just in case.

Juan

2011 Holiday Buying Guide

http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/2011-Holiday-Buying-Guide/1435

Juan

Thank you Praphan, I read it when you posted it. Now I think that I´ll wait for a while to make changes, meanwhile I´ll continue reading the posts on this issue.
I use some kind of power cleaner made by a technician/friend here with transformers and RF filters and I connect to it the NOS1 and the computer, (it has two isolate parts), I connect also the computer with a Foundation Research cable that has a kind of RF also. For the NOS 1 I use a Grover Huffman pc with no further filters.

Juan

Thanks Peter,

Well, I´ll keep for a while enjoying the first recommended settings, maybe later...or maybe boleary gets a NOS1 USB and comes with one of his fantastic settings.

By the way, about switching on/off the dac, I really don´t know what to do at the end of a day/listening session because I´m afraid to those big bumps in the speakers when the PC is turned off. I don´t like to turn off the amps, nor the NOS1, they´re always on, but maybe I could turn off the PC if I could avoid the bumps.

Also, when could be necessary to restart the PC?. If I change settings like SFS or the buffer size in the control panel, do I need to restart?. Again how to avoid the big noise?, anyway is it so BIG?, I mean could it damage the speakers?.

Juan

Hi Flecko, I'm sure you will not regret. For a moderate price, taking into account the crazy prices of high end electronics, you will have a world-class component.

Juan

Well, now is my turn. I only have a few hours with the new NOS1 USB but the first impression is that it makes the best sound I never ever heard in any of my systems. Clear, with a lot of detail, nothing agressive, if fact smooth but not in the way tubes make the sound smooth (sorry, tube lovers ;-)), this is a realistic sound, with presence, like if the music was recorded with a fantastic system. A very, very good sound, indeed!.
I know that I should wait to have much more hours on it, I don´t even know if the dac is already broken in, but I´m so excited that I need to share this feeling. Besides, the first impression is also very important because it allows you to compare it with the previous sound before your ear get used to the new sound.
Thank you Peter and congratulations to you and to all the people, me included  who are lucky enough to have one of this wonder.

Now a few technical issues:

The DC offset Peter sent me was -08.2mV/-06.3mV. I can get -08.8mV/-10.7mV. I´ve tried several times and always I get the same. I guess that´s correct.

I tried a shorter (1,5m.) USB cable (Peters´s is 2m.) with golden connectors and the sound seems a little darker, if it´s true or placebo I don´t know, Peter´s cable is just perfect, I can´t imagine better sound with another cable and I don´t feel eager to test it either.

I tried a few different settings, just with SFS at 350 and the Buffer size in the Control panel to 2ms but so far I like more the recommended 8ms in the Control panel and 15ms in XXHighEnd settings.

Now I´m going to try to stay for as much as I can with these settings and enjoying music. DON´T TOUCH ANYTHING JUAN !!

Hey, tomorrow I go to the Canary Islands for a week of winter sun, it's sad that it's too late to break the tickets and keep me locked in my dark cave listening to music.

Greetings!

Juan