vdgraaf

Just an FYI, that if you have the older Wyred4sound DAC1 and plan to use it on Windows 10, latest August or October update, it will NOT work anymore. That is in WASAPI mode. Microsoft has changed something and the async drivers provided by Wyred4sound do not work anymore. Needless to say, the vendor is not updating their driver but is suggesting to upgrade(read $$) to a newer model. Too bad as the latest updates from MS provide native USB 2.0 audio drivers, that unfortunately this particular DAC does not work with them either, so you you are stuck in using other modes, like Kernel streaming...etc

Yep, I gave it a quick test and I did not notice any difference between a regular USB port and the DAC-UP port. I wish someone in Vancouver would have a PPA card for test to hear this miraculous card:)

I am not sure about advantages over what you have right now, but I've been told that having a DC only supply feeding my motherboard should produce less interference with the USB path. At the same time, I cannot say 100% that my setup has improved the drastically the sound I was getting from my previous regular PC setup: only a side-by-side test would show that, or some measurements with equipment that I don't have. I am a happy camper, but if you don't NEED to upgrade your PC I wouldn't do it..lol I was coming from an 8 year old PC, so I had other reasons for the build. The PS is rated 250w, but it was designed to handle 300w with no problems, if required. And my setup barely reaches 150w...

Yes, I did. I had a batch of bad memories from G.Skill , but now I got replacements and the the fun begins. So far I have not stressed the PC at all and the CPU temperature hovers nicely around 36-40C. The USB output from the mainboard seems to be very good, as I've noticed much better instrument separation in the music played from this PC, but again there are so many new things that I've changed that it is hard to say for sure which one made the biggest difference: the DC power supply, the USB DAC-UP ports?? Who knows, but so far I am very happy

As a side note, this kind of USB card makes even less sense when coupled with a DAC that does NOT require a powered USB connection for handshake or regular operations. This new motherboard seems to have even a more elegant solution for this type of situation, as you can turn off completely the power that goes to the USB port, all from the BIOS...very curios to see any audible effects of this feature: still building my PC, so I cannot test it right now

On my quest to get the best sound out of my PC, I've decided to finally build my own:) My last PC was built 8 years ago, so a lot of things have changed since them and because I wanted to be future-proof for the next 5 years or so, I probably spent a bit more that necessary: 1. HDplex H5 powered by an external 16v adapter(inside it has a 250w dc module) 2.i5 6500 processor 3. 32GB RAM- DDR4 4.Gigabyte z170 Gaming 3 5. 250 GB SSD Samsung EVA 850 drive I've decided against using any external USB card (my DAC is USB) as the mainboard claims to have a special USB port that is isolated by the main power circuit( GIGABYTE USB DAC-UP provides clean, noise-free power delivery to your Digital-to-Analog Converter. DACs can be sensitive to fluctuations in power from the other USB ports, which is why GIGABYTE USB DAC-UP takes advantage of an isolated power source that minimizes potential fluctuations and ensures the best audio experience possible.) Anyway, the case I chose seems to be popular with music server builder, so I thought to try something new and gave it a try: oh boy what tons of surprises this case brought me! 1. The build quality seems amazingly good to the last details 2.The actual looks fit perfect in a HT environment 3. The instructions to build it need tons of work!! It took me 7h and tons of swearing to get to a point that looks fully assembled but still NOT functional: most of the time I've spent around the power connector that doesn't seem to have proper screws that can be used: in the end I had to glue the adapter to the plate provided:( The other main complaint I had was the position of the HDD trays: no clear indication of how far towards the front of the case I can mount them without having interference with the hinge system... So right now everything is in the right place but of course the PC doesn't want to start at all: I suspect some power cables are not probably seated, so part2 of this mini-review tomorrow:)

Interesting perspective but not really supported by any actual measurements or otherwise. In my rudimentary tests, using the same async DAC, the source did not matter almost at all: the USB path didn't seem to influence at all the actual sound. I've seen that recently someone actually measured the jitter and so on and found the same thing: no difference between various sources. Archimago's Musings: MEASUREMENTS: ODROID-C2 with Volumio 2, and USB digital music streaming. For now, I will save my money and just use a good quality mainboard that is very stable for HTPC functions and forget that LPS and dedicated USB cards exist..lol..no pun intended, I still appreciate forums like this, where I can learn more about this wonderful world of audio.

I am building an HTPC and I am not convinced that a separate USB card will add any clarity or make any difference when the USB ports on the mainboard already provide almost the same functionality: GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket 1151 - GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 (rev. 1.0) "GIGABYTE USB DAC-UP provides clean, noise-free power delivery to your Digital-to-Analog Converter. DACs can be sensitive to fluctuations in power from the other USB ports, which is why GIGABYTE USB DAC-UP takes advantage of an isolated power source that minimizes potential fluctuations and ensures the best audio experience possible." Have anyone used one of those mainboards and can comment about them vs the PPA card?

This is BEFORE launching Jriver...

Yes, indeed.

Yep, with the USB charger that came with the stick. Mine starts without a problem without any monitor/TV attached...

Interestingly enough after reading and applying all the steps from this thread I still have over 44 processes and 900mb memory usage. Not sure why...

Hi everyone, I've read tons of info from many people on this site and others and I have to say that I am very much on the skeptic side with all the claims about various esoteric components that can make the sound "better": special SATA cables, USB filters..etc. IMHO a modern PC combined with a recent DAC that does async USB and a decent USB cable (less than $50) works just perfect without the need for any extra equipment. Yes, I know there are many people out there that would say I am wrong: I have tried quite a few configurations that proved to MY ears that barely anything matters if the conditions above are met. I've tried various OS tweaks and audiophile players and again: if your PC is able to do bit-perfect streaming using Wasapi,Kernel Streaming or other similar technologies, all those extra steps and programs would not matter. Fast forward to a few weeks ago, I was looking to replace my main Windows PC for music with something smaller, quieter and that uses less electricity. Enters Meegopad T03 PRO stick mini-PC: MeeGoPad T03 Fan Cooled Cherry Trail Stick The specs can be seen above, but with a minimum Windows 10 install and disabling tons of features/services I was able to get the memory usage to around 900mb. I am using Jriver as my media player mainly due to its amazingly powerful library management. The mini-pc is connected to my NAS via Wifi and to my DAC via a regular USB port. No monitor attached to it as I can control it remotely from my phone/laptop. To my "surprise" (sarcasm implied) the sound coming out of my speakers was pretty much identical as when I using my old big PC....lol Remember that nothing else runs on this small PC but Jplayer, as the resources (2GB of RAM and 1.4GHZ processor) are not that great for multitasking. For under $100 this little device(or some other newer models) might work for a lot people that maybe do not have a "golden" ear which requires $1000 USB cable:) If you have any questions about this setup please let me know: I am interested as well to do some blind testing in Vancouver, BC area with other people that have systems that want to test it against it.