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DAC Shootout (audiocircle.com) https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/emm-labs-vs-killer-dac Just an FYI. You might be surprised. It's the implementation that matters most.

Got it.

I'm trying to get an interest check on selling the DAC. It has bested DACS over $50K, in fact, the shootout is on the net. Thanks in advance.

Has anyone compared a Ciunas USB converter vs an audiophile USB card? Has anyone used an audiophile USB card + an external USB to SPDIF converter? Is the benefit additive? Thanks.

Thanks very much.

Thanks again for such rapid responses. I really appreciate this help. Regards, Mike

Thanks for the replies. This one is to AudioPhil: Don't I need Standard to run Optimizer? I thought I read that in a previous post? Thanks for the help. Regards, Mike

Hi everyone. Sorry if this is a real newbie question, but I haven't used servers for music before. Do I need 2 copies of WS2012 Standard for a dual PC set up, or can I get away with Essentials for the control PC? Thanks.

Has anyone seen this? Any thoughts on how good this might be? thanks. https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/cerberus-multi-media-pc#home

Hi everyone. Is there a consensus (yet) as to which provides better audio quality, Win 7 or 8? Or the same. Thanks.

I'd like to chime in. Most people forget that the most important factor in sound in the person. 'Sound" exists only in our brains. It is literally a construct that the brain creates to represent the energy conducted in sound waves that is detected by our ears. It is already hard wired into our brains. But, the cross links of the auditory cortex with other parts of the brain are numerous and not yet fully defined. So all sorts of different parts of the brain affect the perception of sound, to varying levels, and in inconsistent ways. This makes subjectivity to sound the true 'art' that it is. This would seem to support the 'it ain't there if I can't measure it' gang, but there are problems with that. I'm sure everyone by now is aware that we are only able to observe, measure and predict 5% of the total mass+energy in the known universe. The other 95% is (almost) undetectable to us. That means that there is a vast amount of matter-energy all around us that we cannot see nor measure, but we have observed that it definitely has an effect on our 'universe'. Is it so far fetched to believe that we cannot define nor measure all the things that could effect perceptual differences? Legitimate factors that could account for individual differences amongst people in sensitivity to technical variations. And.... some people just have better, hearing simple as that.

I think much of these types of disagreements stems from a lack of understanding how human hearing really works. First off, nobody knows 100% how the process of hearing really works; from the sound wave hitting the tympanic membrane to it's final form and place in storage, first in temporary, then into a "permanent" form in the auditory cortex. There are a incredible number of elements that have a direct influence in real time (and after the fact) on the perception of this sound. <br /> <br /> (FYI, I'm not an ENT nor audiologist, but I am a physician in practice nearly, yikes, 30 years).<br /> <br /> One easy example of our inability to measure an obvious aural phenomenon is tinnitus. As I'm typing this, the loudest sound I hear is ringing in my right ear. But, my hearing tests normally and there is no way to measure/quantify my tinnitus objectively. So using audiophile-logic, I can't possibly be hearing this. In fact any hearing test is just the recorded responses/non-responses to generated tones. There is no way to objectively measure what the auditory cortex is really sending to the frontal cortex for its consideration, ie, what one is hearing.<br /> <br /> Sorry if I've left gaps or confused anyone, but one has to understand that the ear is not a mic and the cortex is not a hard drive. There is no "bit perfect" in any of the human senses. Many audiophiles understand this; many not.<br /> <br /> I bring this up to illustrate my belief that we cannot hear all we can measure, and we cannot measure all we can hear.

My kids keep claiming they can hear a 16kHz tone, but I know it's B.S. because I can't hear it. And I should know, I've been listening to fine audio gear for 40 yrs now.

Thanks barrows.

Hi Chris. I did, but either it isn't there, or I'm blind. <br /> <br /> Regards, Mike