Guess most people are using spikes / feet already but I saw no earlier topic on it so I would like to mention it.

In my setup I noticed a clear improvement in sound quality when I did put the NOS1 DAC on 3 spikes.

Sound improvements are:
 - improved space around instruments / voices, they are more seperated
 - better bass definition, uncanny realism & detail in double bass jazz rifs.
 - broader & deeper soundstage

The H shape of the DAC makes it a bit difficult to use only 3 spikes, 4 would be more stable. I used perspex spikes, not the metal ones.
A brand of these kind of spikes I came across is Quadraspire (I have no commercial interest), however I use small cylinders made from perspex. I did never compared these with the original Quadraspires that gave me the idea to use this material...

Hi Music33,

The 'snake oil' part is mostly regarding the extreme prices of topline high-end cables, sometimes even exceeding 10-20 kEu. I can't imagine that the actual material and processing costs are THAT high. So sales margins are extreme. This is also notable in the steep price decrease of these cables in the second hand market...

With regards to DIY, been there done that. Although it might be possible, I have yet to hear the DIY cable that really matches the sound quality and balance of a good highend cable.

Not sure if I understand your suggestion with the direct lines... Can that be done with standard audio component or do you need to modify these?

Tried in the past high grade electrical wire as speaker cable, but was not really happy with the sound, especially in the high's.
Lot's of sharp SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS sounds.


Cheers.

In the search of getting a more and more detailed and realistic sound, each audiophile has gotten in touch with the audio cable industry.
In a demo, they take out some hideous expensive snake thick cable which sounds (much) better then the bell wire they used before.

I felt for this trap long ago and have had numerous upgrades in my cabling. Starting with some, DIY's and noname IC's, I entered the expensive world of Siltech, MIT, NBS and Senzati.  These all produce cables that sound great but IMNO there is no way they can justify their rediculous high prices, even second hand (as I usually buy these).
There is a huge 'snake oil' factor especially in this part of the audio industry.

I was wondering if anyone has found a normal priced alternative that would match the performance of the 'great'.

Would 2 low rpm disks (5400, so low noise) in a raid 0 configuration be an interesting alternative? They are faster then a single Veloraptor (and have higher capacity for lower price).

Hi Mani,

just curious, do you have posted somewhere a description on how you builded up (what components used) your (almost) total silent PC?

Thanks,
Quint

Ah, I see.

I was thinking of (as experiment) direct driving my main-amp with the NOS1 DAC. Does this distortion pass the volume settings of XXhigend? (I get nightmares by the idea of blowing up my speakers that way....)

Anyway, hopefully the USB ship will arrive soon...

Cheers,
Quint

Hi Peter,

I have sometimes a very heavy distortion on the right channel playing in unattended (not sure if it has to do with that). Selecting a new song (alt-n) solves the problem.
Replaying also.

Best regards,
Quint

Interesting thread....

I looked at the web and there are several chips used for Gainclones:
- 1875
- 3875
- 3886
- 4780

Does anyone know what the sonic signature is of each of these?

For instance, would it be an idea to use for bi-amping 2 different kind of gainclones?
F.i. a 3886 for the bass section and a 3875 for mid/high?

Hi Chris,

thanks for your advices, I will try.

Cheers,

Quint

Hopefully their devices are better then their English... 

Yes, that's the theory.
With the test version I ripped a CD with dbpoweramp which I earlier had ripped with EAC, both secure mode and Accurip, no cache. I agree, the UI of dbpoweramp is nicer but with the checkups, it took me over 15 min to rip the CD  (Adele 21).
EAC was approx. 30 min.  Both compressed to FLAC.
However, it seemed that in the playback the dbpoweramp had a very light amount of brightness added, making it slightly more 'digital'. I know I'm at dangerous grounds here (placebo, beer etc.). It would be interesting if anyone else can affirm this (or disagree).

 

Hi Praphan,

I added some to my signature...

Cheers 

Hi Mani,

I'm probably pretty late joining this topic but my 2 cts would be for a second setup to go for a boutique kind of amp, SET or OTL (I used to drive my quads with an Aitos 803 OTL) to create a whole different musical experience.

If you would like to stay at solid state, another brand you might consider is KARAN. Soulution and Dartzeel may make the 'best' high-end amps according to many magazines, but for sure they have a the 'best' marketing, which also makes them extremely expensive.


- Quint