David N

The Chesky 192/24 wav files on DVD-R's are available outside of the USA. Caxton audio in Brisbane Australia sells audiophile recordings including Chesky and RR. They also sell the DVD-R's from Chesky and RR. They run a Mac Book Pro with a variety of computer Dac's including the Weiss Dacs and can demonstrate the hi-res files. I was impressed by the difference between 16/44.1,24/96 and 24/192. David N

Every few months this topic comes up but under a different a different topic heading. To answer all your issues on this subject check out the thread titled HD Tracks posted by ryan_d on Wed 12/30/2009. David N

Credit card fraud is a serious problem for an international online business. There is no guarantee of payment if a trader accepts a foreign credit card. Major online traders such as Amazons do not accept credit card payment from Australia.However they do offer an alternative payment method in Pay Pal. Pay Pal gives both the seller and buyer a secure method of payment. Maybe HD Tracks should state on the payment page that Pay Pal is the only payment method available for international customers or maybe it is a loophole that foreign customers can exploit for now. HD Tracks do offer a great service and I highly recommend them. David N

I use the Pay Pal payment option not the credit card payment option to download from HD Tracks in Australia. It seems that it is a security issue to accept credit card payments from customers without a US issued credit card. Pay pay gives them a guarantee of payment from their customers living outside of the USA. I have been downloading from HD Tracks for over twelve months using the Pay Pal option. HD Tracks provide an excellent service and I highly recommend them, but you must use the Pay Pal payment option if you live outside of the USA. David N

The 6Moons review of the Stello U2 is a bit misleading. The reviewer suggests without lifting the circuit board that the unit uses the PCM2704 chip which is limited to 16/48 then upsamples to 24/96. The clue is when he states that the computer sees the device as a "TE7020 audio w/SPDIF-USB" The U2 is using the Tenor TE7022L chip.It will accept native 24/96KHz. Maybe Chris can check it out at the show. David N

Received my copy of Snow Leopard today and installed it on my MacBook Pro. The MacBook Pro was purchase in July 2009 and has a SS drive.It is used only for music. There does not appear to be any glitches.The Weiss DAC 2 operates in firewire mode and the CA sample rate software operates as before. Apart from the Audio Midi Setup having a changed appearance nothing seems to have changed. As yet I do not have Amarra so I can't comment on Amarra. Does it sound better?Not that I can tell at present. David N Australia

For international customers of HDtracks try using the PayPal payment option rather than the credit card payment option. I must admit I have not' tried it myself. David N

Daniel, Very exciting news. The Rowmote will add an extra dimension to the only one box solution,plug and play DAC capable of playing bit perfect Hi-Res files such as the 24/176 Reference Recordings digital masters. David N

VincentH, The Weiss DAC2 in the volume control mode has an attenuator with 250 steps. The AES push button becomes the down volume control and the spdif push button becomes the up volume control. More accurate than a single volume control knob. We just need to convince Daniel to add a remote control volume control for the Weiss DAC2/ Minerva. David N

I'm curious as to why a well designed digital volume control in a modern DAC will degrade the sound. When Chris recently reviewed the BADA he much preferred the results when using the digital volume in the DAC and bypassing the volume control in the Pre- amp. In fact he suggested bypassing the Pre-amp and feeding the output of the DAC directly into the Power amplifier. The thinking used to be that decreasing the level in the digital mode reduces the bits and therefore the sound quality. Do the current digital volume control designs still reduce the bits and reduce the sound quality? I'm just curious David N

Chris, If only the Weiss Minerva had a remote control for the volume settings. I have been following the discussion of the Rowmote on the Proton thread.Seems interesting especially the wifi part.Would the Rowmote operate the volume levels on the Minerva? Or would Daniel need to do a software update to make it happen?Maybe Daniel can help out on this one. Chris,your sample rate solution is installed and working perfectly on my Macbook Pro. You have a most informative and balanced site. keep up the great work. David N

Cgrossi, I'm anxious for your comments when you implement the Weiss software upgrades to add the volume control. Has any other Weiss Minerva/DAC 2 owners out there done the software upgrade? What was your experience? When Chris posted the BADA review on 12/11/2008 his comments were 'Possibly the most underrated part of the Alpha DAC is its ability to bypass a pre amp and connect directly to the power amp." Chris recommended the BADA be used in the volume control mode with the pre amp bypassed. The Weiss DAC in the volume control mode is a positive improvement in every dimension. David N

Cgrossi 1. I,m not familar with you amplifier.I downloaded a copy of the owners manual from the net to obtain that information.I suggest to contact your local audio dealer that sold you the amplifier or the manufacturer. Maybe a fellow CA reader with your amplifier can help out? 2. Daniel has a downloadable update to the owners manual that explains the process on the Weiss Minerva page of the Weiss website. By pressing the power button longer that 1.5 seconds will change modes. I'm surprised that Chris has not done an update to the CA Weiss Minerva review as in my view the software upgrade is that dramatic . David N

Cgrossi, I note your Advangarde model 3 Intergrated Amplifier has an optional (internally configurable) Audio AV Direct Input on Input 5.This will bypass the preamp,volume control section of the intergrated amplifier and the Minerva will control the volume. Your other inputs will operate as normal through the preamp section. The AV Input is unbalanced,but the advantages of using the Minerva directly into the power amp section of the amplifier will out weigh it not being balanced .(XLR) Once you have done the Minerva software upgrade the Minerva becomes switchable between direct out (no volume control) and variable output so it can still be used in direct out as you are using it at present. I look forward to your comments David N

In December Daniel added a software upgrade for the Weiss Minerva and DAC 2. The software can be downloaded to the Minerva via the firmware link on the Weiss website. Part of the upgrade is the addition of a volume control for the Minerva. This enables you to bypass the preamp and go directly into the power amplifier. I'm aware that the volume control is implemented in the digital mode and to some this is a negative but the results are not subtle.It will take your system to the next level and beyond. There will be a significant improvement in dynamics with a lower noise floor and the ability to detect subtle cues in the mix.The sound-stage will expand in every dimension and the ability to hear the recording space will be more apparent. Your 24/176.4 Reference Recordings will now sound like the digital masters that they are. Your Audio Research LS26 has a processor input that will enable you to use the Weiss Minerva in the volume control mode and you preamp to act as normal for your other input sources. If only daniel would do a software update to add a volume remote control to the Minerva. I also agree that upsampling 16/44.1 to 24/176.4 with the Minerva is a revelation. Try listening to Raising Sand "Robert Plant/Alison Krauss" in the upsampled mode through the Minerva. The CD disc played on a quality CD player is a disappointment by comparison. Enjoy your Weiss Minerva. David N