BMCG

Joe - given that Francisco (Microstrip on WBF) has both the full stack and an Extreme...be worth pinging him. https://www.whatsbestforum.com/threads/taiko-audio-sgm-extreme-the-crème-de-la-crème.27433/post-610079

Might want to update on the dCS experience... having owned Delius/Elgar/Scarlatti and now the Vivaldi DACs......musicality has been a distinct gain through those generations.... I would not slam the Scarlatti ...but it is valid to point out that its hardware design is now a decade in the rear view.....

And Amir bravo on your opinion...but I will counter that dcs can muster microdynamics....indeed I have such in abundance from a Vivaldi stack feeding spectral and Avalons.... you must fettle / craft a system to evince such nuance.. hence generalizations about single components are very likely to be too broad...a point Chris alludes to with respect to the Yggy music alights from a system NOT individual components...

For the music server soup...would seem that the roster of key "audiophile differentiating" ingredients is established... microvolt ripple level LPS power... low ppb OXCO clocks at key instances on the motherboards/USB/Ethernet timing/dispatch material EMI/mechanical/vibration isolation OS fettling/focusing.......whether Win 10/2016 or Linux... and as seems "normal" in our land...we've quite the price disparity on the solution provision.... contrast Trifecta/SR7 vs SGM vs Memory Player or ~$4k vs $16k vs (almost) $64k....

with win 2016...you have to choose Core or GUI mode at OS install...you can't switch between these modes later...as you could previously with win 2012 and the AO ServiceTool.. cf: https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/28455-audiophileoptimizer-beta-thread/?do=findComment&comment=661588

+1 ...indeed that would be of distinct interest.

Local dealer will be running an interesting A/B....shortly Mutec Ref 10 vs the Abendrot Stute.... Each will do duty as the 10 MHz reference for a dCS Vivaldi Clock.... Now I've run the Abendrot Stute with my dCS Vivaldi Clock & DAC. The enhancement to microdetail was not subtle....listening to the 24/96 version of the Doors "The End".....and the enhancements to the opening cymbals were a stand out...Sense of realism stepped up pointedly...and it is not like the base dCS combo is usually construed as lacking in detail.. Moreover, i wanted the "40k USD Stute" to disappoint.... it didn't So colour me intrigued as to whether the Mutec can match up. (given the price disparity ...rather hope it can)

Yes ... should be there Sunday ... son also coming ... seeding the next Gen audiophile [emoji854] Sent from my iPhone using Computer Audiophile

to borrow a phrase : "(still) big in Japan"... to quote from dCS SDIF is an older standard that is still popular in Japan. It transmits two serial data streams in unbalanced form over two coaxial cables terminated in BNC connectors. When used for PCM, each data stream contains up to 24-bit data for one channel, messages (to identify the data), status flags and synchronisation pulses (which can be used to extract the word clock). When used for DSD, the two cables carry DSD data only. The ‘Channel 1’ cable carries left channel data, the ‘Channel 2’ cable carries right-channel data. SDIF data streams are different to both AES3 and S/PDIF, they are not compatible. For reliable operation, the output stage impedance, the characteristic impedance of the cable and the load impedance at the receiver should all be 75 ohms. This interface is DC-coupled and carries a DC offset of typically +1.25V – it will not work if coupling capacitors or transformers are inserted in the cable. To avoid interference from other appliances, the screen wires must be securely connected to chassis at both ends. There are 3 common forms of SDIF: SDIF-2 PCM, SDIF-2 DSD and SDIF-3 which is for DSD only. These variations make it difficult to extract a word clock reliably, so it is common practice to use a third cable to carry word clock – dCS equipment requires this. A balanced version of SDIF is sometimes used in multi-channel systems, a multi-pin connector is used.

Chris - Any indication from dCS as to when the upgrade will be available for the Scarlatti Upsampler?

So say we all... Clays Postulate. Move along...all done....nothing further to see.

Chris - Am curious as to how the Weiss compared with the Debussy or Paganini? Are you able to shed light on the relative merits?<br /> <br /> Particularly since the former seems to have been on hand during your evaluation.

The folk at dCS - no affiliation..other than owning a couple of their pieces of kit - have posted their "Guide to Computer Audio" It can be found in Reader format at: http://www.dcsltd.co.uk/page/support A quick scan, shows links to this site..and what appears at first glance to be some rather thorough setup directions. Lynx AES16, J River, Mediamonkey, Foobar, ASIO, WASAPI, Win7.. all get mentioned....

Chris - well done, very much appreciate you working through the Windows 7 setup options for JRMC 14.<br />

My voice in appreciation for stepping up.<br /> <br /> Exactly the sort of detailed, informative comparison that yields you an advantage.<br /> <br /> Suggest you template this approach for your reviews.<br />