AURALiC G2 series digital components (ARIES G2, VEGA G2 and etc) information

[Wang Xuanqian]

Hi, guys:

 

Firstly I would like to appreciate everyone from CA community for continuous feedbacks and suggestions. All your voice helped AURALiC developing the Lightning streaming platform and making it better. It has been more than three years since AURALiC launched its Lightning streaming platform and now we are going to bring the G2 (Grade 2, not Generation 2) series of digital components for better sound quality and more powerful functions. Since the existing ARIES discussion topic is already more than 160 pages, I would like like start a separate topic to discuss everything related to G2.

 

G2 is a series of sophisticated digital source equipments with AURALiC's latest technology, there are four models currently planned: Streamer, Processor, DAC and Super Clock. They can be used individually or together as a powerful digital source system through AURALiC's recent developed interface called Lightning Link. One thing I want to make clear is that G2 is a upper level product line, the models in this product line are not suppose to replace any of current product but as you may image from the name: since we have G2 (Grade 2), there could be G1 in the future. 

 

The price of G2 series products are still TBD. As an upper level product line, they will sure be more expensive than current models. However, AURALiC has no intention to make over-priced HiFi gear, so they will be reasonably priced and worth their value as usual. We are targeting to ship the streamer (ARIES G2) and DAC (VEGA G2) around September this year with the processor and super clock coming by around November. 

 

I will use this topic to explain our technology implement of each product in the future as well as answer your questions on a weekly basis. If you are attending HighEnd Munich or LAAS show in May and June, our team and I will be there to answer all questions about it.

 

Xuanqian Wang

 

 

[rickca]

Really interested in learning more about the processor and super clock.  Very intriguing.

[alice]

This is going to be exciting, although please change the chassis if you are going to charge more.

This currently looks very plain and boring like the Aurender.

I like the Aries look.

[mjb]

Very nice! 

[mikey8811]

Looks like the Aries G2 has an I2S input.

 

It has more of a rounder old Naim look than Aurender.

 

What do you mean by a G1? Is that an even higher version than G2 or lower?

[deuch]

Thank your for sharing information !

 

I've some couple of questions please :

 

- For the Super Clock, will we need one Super clock per product, like one for the DAC G2 and one for the Aries G2 or just one for the both (one super clock shared by many product) ?

- What kind of features the processor will support (Room correction, high end upsampling algorithm ...) ? It will be a device between the Aries and the DAC or something totally different ?

- The Vega G2 will be based on a ESS Sabre, a AKM or maybe a R2R ?

 

Best regards,

Deuch

[skyline]

14 hours ago, alice said:

This is going to be exciting, although please change the chassis if you are going to charge more.

This currently looks very plain and boring like the Aurender.

I like the Aries look.

 

Looks like a traditional Naim box. Which I've always loved.

[The Computer Audiophile]

Photo from Axpona today. 

[sbilotta]

1 hour ago, skyline said:

 

Looks like a traditional Naim box. Which I've always loved.

+1

[rhmmmm]

16 hours ago, deuch said:

Thank your for sharing information !

 

I've some couple of questions please :

 

- For the Super Clock, will we need one Super clock per product, like one for the DAC G2 and one for the Aries G2 or just one for the both (one super clock shared by many product) ?

- What kind of features the processor will support (Room correction, high end upsampling algorithm ...) ? It will be a device between the Aries and the DAC or something totally different ?

- The Vega G2 will be based on a ESS Sabre, a AKM or maybe a R2R ?

 

Best regards,

Deuch

 

Re: Super Clock:

 

I'm curious about the clock and processor, as well. I'm going to make an educated guess here and say that only the DAC (and maybe the processor) could utilize the clock - you can barely see what looks like a word clock input in the lower center rear of the DAC, but I do not see a clock input on the Aries G2 in the pic at all. Maybe it's just a pre-production unit and the real one will have it...or not?

[deuch]

Thought the same thing, there is a BNC connector to the VEGA G2 for the clock. For the processor, we do not know ...

 

But i would like to know the architecture of the DAC, because the price will be high (about 5000€ il think, the actual vega cost 3200€ in France ...). Plus the clock, the processor etc ... and it will cost the same thing than a Totaldac in R2R 

 

 

[mjb]

Yeah, not really an Aries mk2, but instead a whole new line. I had hoped for an "affordable" Aries mk2, perhaps in a Vega style box, with an internal HD bay.

[deuch]

It seems too, that the box are in plastic unlike the original vega ... It looks like the aries mini. Maybe it's not the definitive design ? High-end components in plastic sounds weird 

[George Hincapie]

4 hours ago, mjb said:

Yeah, not really an Aries mk2, but instead a whole new line. I had hoped for an "affordable" Aries mk2, perhaps in a Vega style box, with an internal HD bay.

Just buy the Aries Mini which has everything you need. I have both, and honestly the performance difference isn't worth 3 times the cost.

[George Hincapie]

I would like some justification from Auralic. What does the new streamer do that the Femto Aries doesn't? I want to understand what my money is going to buy me.

 

I am an Aries Mini and Aries Femto owner so I love what you do, but you had better work that ass if you want more of my cash; a new box with unnecessary display won't do it.

[Wang Xuanqian]

On 4/22/2017 at 2:22 AM, mikey8811 said:

Looks like the Aries G2 has an I2S input.

 

It has more of a rounder old Naim look than Aurender.

 

What do you mean by a G1? Is that an even higher version than G2 or lower?

It does not have I2S input, AURALiC use HDMI physical connector to carrier a private signal chain which called Lightning Link, to daisy chain all equipments.

 

The G1 will be lower and there maybe G3 in the future, more expensive?

[Wang Xuanqian]

15 hours ago, George Hincapie said:

I would like some justification from Auralic. What does the new streamer do that the Femto Aries doesn't? I want to understand what my money is going to buy me.

 

I am an Aries Mini and Aries Femto owner so I love what you do, but you had better work that ass if you want more of my cash; a new box with unnecessary display won't do it.

 

Details to come next week, but the simple answer is:

 

1, The chassis is from a whole piece of aluminum

2, Internal storage, like ARIES MINI and ALTAIR

3, HD resolution display on front panel

4, A learning type of IR receiver and on machine buttons for full operation including setup and music playback

5, 50% faster processor, 100% more memory (2G) for larger memory cache

6, Built-in better power supply rather than outboard one

7, Latest physical isolation technology for better sound qualify both digital and USB outputs

8, Lightning Link (The HDMI connector) which allows yo to daisy chain all devices in this series together and control using Lightning DS.

 

And more...

[Wang Xuanqian]

20 hours ago, deuch said:

Thought the same thing, there is a BNC connector to the VEGA G2 for the clock. For the processor, we do not know ...

 

But i would like to know the architecture of the DAC, because the price will be high (about 5000€ il think, the actual vega cost 3200€ in France ...). Plus the clock, the processor etc ... and it will cost the same thing than a Totaldac in R2R 

 

 

 

There is a clock input on the back of VEGA G2 to receive external master clock. The VEGA G2 is a complete new design, you can consider it as a digital recorder computer, it will receive the signal from input, buffer it then output to the DAC. This means it does not need to lock to any of income signal, the DAC always works as master, so there is no PLL at all, it is what we called 'jitter-free' operation.

 

The VEGA G2 is using an off-market DAC chip customized by AURALiC, and more exciting technology, more detail to come next week. 

[photonman]

My heart almost sank when I saw this post as I just got myself an Altair and am loving the single box solution for streaming.  This is great news and developments but what is next for Altair?

[mjb]

2 hours ago, photonman said:

My heart almost sank when I saw this post as I just got myself an Altair and am loving the single box solution for streaming. 

 

And I'm sure it still sounds fantastic... 

[Booster MPS]

On 4/22/2017 at 0:12 AM, alice said:

This is going to be exciting, although please change the chassis if you are going to charge more.

This currently looks very plain and boring like the Aurender.

I like the Aries look.

 

Sharing some background on the Aries if my memory serves me correctly.  The trade off for having an internal antenna on the current gen Aries/Aries LE was that the enclosure could not be metal as it interfered with reception.  This was just a limitation of the wireless technology which probably led to the plastic implementation, and the design.  With the G2 they are pulling the power supply inside the enclosure which takes the current form factor off the table.  Also, there were some disappointed with the build quality of the current gen design and wanted a metal enclosure.  This design change addresses that but the trade off is that there are external antenna.  

 

I am not knocking either choice, just recounting what I remember.  Maybe others can fill in blanks where I might have mis-stated something there.  

[r_w]

Will the new G2 DAC have HT bypass and flawless volume control, so the preamp can finally be ditched?

 

That's the deal breaker for me.

[guymrob]

Hi Wang Xuanqian,

 

The streamer looks interesting, can it control all the necessary functions, like music search and settings without using the Lightning DS software? Can it be control via a remote control?

[Stereophonic]

On ‎24‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 5:32 AM, Wang Xuanqian said:

 

Details to come next week, but the simple answer is:

 

1, The chassis is from a whole piece of aluminum

2, Internal storage, like ARIES MINI and ALTAIR

3, HD resolution display on front panel

4, A learning type of IR receiver and on machine buttons for full operation including setup and music playback

5, 50% faster processor, 100% more memory (2G) for larger memory cache

6, Built-in better power supply rather than outboard one

7, Latest physical isolation technology for better sound qualify both digital and USB outputs

8, Lightning Link (The HDMI connector) which allows yo to daisy chain all devices in this series together and control using Lightning DS.

 

And more...

Please Wang !!!!!

Put a second HDMI output to my Esoteric D02X !!!!!

[tallica1]

Hi Xuanqian: AURALIC has certainly been VERY busy.... (4) new surprises. I know you will save most of the details for Munich High End 2017 in 22 days...   G2 Streamer, Processor, DAC and Super Clock.. 

 

QUESTION

How would explain the purpose for the G2 processor in this (4) piece chain.  Wouldn't the VEGA G2 already have a processor WITH only a possible need to UPGRADE for the Super Clock?

 

QUESTION

AND is that a High Definition OLED display on the VEGA G2 ?

 

QUESTION 

ON a different level. Why have you developed a system of (4) separates. How would you summarize the sonic advantages in Auralic digital audio vs some competitors all in one?

Thank you, SL