XXHighEnd - The Ultra HighEnd Audio Player
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76  Ultimate Audio Playback / Playback Tweaks and Source related subjects / Re: PCIe USB 3.0 host card on: May 29, 2012, 11:12:57 pm
Great choice for the pcie controller. I was going to get the much more expensive Buffalo card.

I see that nobody tried to power completely the card from an external (linear/battery) PSU.

The ground separation was an interesting idea but i think is better to cut all power lines and power externally, but i dunno if:
1- the card is still recognized, depends on pcie pinout which i dunno.
2- the power will be enough. the older version of this controller or a different one may be required to achieve this.
77  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your thoughts about the Sound Quality / Re: XXHighEnd Model 0.9z-4-1 on: March 08, 2011, 05:00:14 pm
Telstar if i am right you have the OS on SSD?

 Happy

Yes, and I will never put on a spinning disc because of the noise.
78  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your thoughts about the Sound Quality / Re: XXHighEnd Model 0.9z-4-1 on: March 07, 2011, 05:18:04 pm
I know it's a bit complicated, but you should leave the RAMDisk out as the first thing ...
Don't call that proper A-B or something (for this version). The RAMDisk makes it worse.
SSD The same, though YMMV here.

You are saying that the fact that ramdisk software is running makes z4.1 (installed somewhere else) sound worse?

Will put it on HDD - yes this i have to try.
79  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your thoughts about the Sound Quality / Re: XXHighEnd Model 0.9z-4-1 on: March 06, 2011, 02:45:14 pm
I'm having troubles finding the best sound from this version, or at least one that does better than z3 on my dedicated pc.

So far z3 with:
on ramdisk (copy to xxhe enabled)
scheme3
SFS 200mb
scheme3

sounds cleaner and more "right" than z4.1 with:
on SSC (copy to xxhe enabled)
scheme3
SFS 200mb (cant make it higher)
MC (mixed only sounded horrible, SC cant do 200mb unless i raise ram and/or remove the ramdisk but then i cant compare AB)
clock 1ms

I CANNOT disable services or it shuts down console.jp and i get no sound at all. So I think that for systems with much more memory and no layer something like 500mb SC and all services down, z4.1 CAN sound better.

Edit: the differences are subtle, both my and my SO cant say what's different but we both prefer the older version.
80  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your thoughts about the Sound Quality / Re: XXHighEnd Model 0.9z-4-1 on: February 24, 2011, 08:48:22 pm
Time to install more memory, at last Happy
81  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your thoughts about the Sound Quality / Re: XXHighEnd Model 0.9z-4-1 on: February 24, 2011, 08:42:49 pm
Hmm... The right things for me, turned out to be the last things that I found. I think I found every version since z2 better than z2 at their release and in the end I always returned to z2. So my statistic with first impressions is not so good unfortunatly.

With an OS DAC I also like z2 very much, and I didnt update on my studio pc.
82  Ultimate Audio Playback / XXHighEnd Support / Re: Software x-over function in XXHighEnd on: February 09, 2011, 11:03:17 pm
There are different kind of digital filters, google "linear phase", "IIR" and "FIR".
Good reads!
83  Ultimate Audio Playback / XXHighEnd Support / Re: Software x-over function in XXHighEnd on: February 09, 2011, 12:59:03 pm
It doesnt require big processing power IF the XO/EQ is done at 44.1k or 48k, but this forbids the use of Arc Prediction (i.e. with a filterless DAC the HF noise gets to your amps and speakers). and you have locked sampling rate. I'm living with this for two years now.

Second, dedicated amps are not cheaper if you aim for the best. Consider just the cost multiplied by the number of ways. But dedicated means that you can use what works best (i.e. my recipe is class D for the subs, a current amp for the woofers, the amp that you like the most for midrange and a class A 0 feedback for the tweeters).

Third, the 8channel NOS1 is needed (Peter I need some ETA please!)

If the XO is done in xxhe, all the better, because the sampling rate will be flexible and the filter is applied in the WAV files outputted, or better, the filter is at the native resolution of the file and it is upsampled together with the output. By means of drivers and xxhe settings this can be done in the most trasparent way (i.e. avoiding another layer, which is usually ASIO).
But it will take a lot of work so the wait is long.
84  Ultimate Audio Playback / Playback Tweaks and Source related subjects / Re: Where to put the power filter? on: February 06, 2011, 09:08:05 pm
Quote
Simple answer: to the computer
Yep, that is exactly where my filter was placed after the listening test!
Thanks!

Happy But you know why?
Because you have to protect the OTHER components from the noise distributed on the line by the switching PSU.
Filters always work both ways, so you are filtering OUT the noise from the pc.
85  Ultimate Audio Playback / Playback Tweaks and Source related subjects / Re: Where to put the power filter? on: February 06, 2011, 12:57:42 pm
Simple answer: to the computer Happy
86  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your thoughts about the Sound Quality / Re: 0.9z-4-0 on: January 27, 2011, 01:15:56 pm
(not Brian, he has a sterilised mouse).

 rofl
87  Ultimate Audio Playback / Playback Tweaks and Source related subjects / Re: Windows 7 editions for use with HighEnd on: January 27, 2011, 01:10:57 pm
Well, Business and Enterprise have features that are not needed and that we just remove so they would be a waste (besides problems that could happen sometimes).

Ultimate will work with anything, it has anything, lots of skimming needed but who cares.
Home Premium is what I use on my music pc. It's cheaper, doesnt have extended network stuff (I dont use a LAN or internet AT ALL).

Avoid Basic which is too much crippled. Not sure if there's another version. Ultimate or Home Premium are safe bets.

PS: if you dont have a retail version from the shop, ultimate is easier to work with.
88  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your questions about the PC -> DAC route / Re: Software DSP-Bass Bump Problem on: January 27, 2011, 01:06:46 pm
Just reading this post and I have a question about reducing a bass node in the 50-60 Hz region. On my Mac G5 I use Amarra's paramteric EQ and can reduce this problem, although it looks from the posts above that you guys are recommending against this?

How would you reduce a bass bump such as the one using passive measures?

If it is quite not extended, the BEST way would be to build a tuned helmholz resonator,then it would have to be integrated in the room for WAF reasons Happy

Active EQ is not that effective, but it is COST-effective when you have a rollercoaster in your LF and not just one peak.
89  Ultimate Audio Playback / XXHighEnd Support / Re: New system : Distortion only - Any experiences anyone ? on: January 19, 2011, 12:43:26 pm

Intel Virtualization Tech - Disabled.
Note : ACPI 2.0 - Disabled (default)


Not sure if disabling the above two was a good thing. Does your computer sleeps without ACPI?
Virtualization is used in (horror) WMP, so it MAY be used to our advantage for audio

just my two c.
90  Ultimate Audio Playback / Your thoughts about the Sound Quality / Re: 9-Z3 on: January 18, 2011, 01:23:07 pm
If this is all true, and you all will be perceiving 0.9z-4 the same as I do, I really will have a problem. It will mean that I must start to apply illogical things to make the sound better again. My quest for the 1:1 has been reached and now turns out to be wrong, and now I'll have to find a way back. I don't think I will be able to.

Here is where digitally tampering the sound does come handy to make more pleasant what horrors have been registered in the CD.
AP does a great job but sooner or later i was afraid that it wouldnt be enough. I'm not by principle against applying some filters in REVERSE mode of what has been done to the signal at the beginning (compression, but not just that), but I know that you were. Happy
But I think that it has to be left to the end user what and where to adjust (i.e. as simply as a treeble DEboost), because in truth is album-based.

I'm also afraid that when all albums sounds great, there IS second harmonic added, be it by the OS, the player, or another part of the chain (that latter is ruled out in your system).

For the records, I use z2 with my studio PC, where i have a pretty bad OS dac and it does sound easier to my ears than z3, and it's more responsive, which i NEED when i'm working at the same time.

Lastly, remember the priority thing about W7? Maybe it is JUST THAT the cause of unpredictable SQ from one day to the other?
Or they fixed it in the SP1 (which will be retail 2-3 weeks btw)
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