 
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
|
|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
86.181.169.46
Setup Rundown:My AE7 soundcard from my PC was bought to not use the onboard ALC897 realtek chip, well, I don't know if the ESS 9018 of the AE7 is bright harsh or just the ALC897 is very dull. Anyway, I'm using analog RCA to the AVR from the PC's AE7 at the moment, but I keep thinking DAC > ADC > DAC can't be good. So using an optical connection instead of HDMI since the HDMI circuits of my motherboard must be woeful and I also read HDMI is bad in itself... Great... I also read optical is bad too... Great..... On paper, I'm without a good choice. My AE7 has 3.5mm out or optical out. I need the AE7 as it is the only soundcard on the market to offer analog out to my little PC speakers, headphones and my big speakers in one. I don't want to use an external DAC relying on my motherboard's USB ports.
More to the title:
So optical is my only good choice I think, I would buy a glass fibre cable to even the score a bit, but also, regarding my situation, if I went with coaxial digital or HDMI, they would be on a 4 metre run AND I live next to a cell tower with 2 mW/m2 of pulsed 1.8GHz, on the cable run that's like 6 mW/m2, so there's a great deal more time of that RFI to have at the signal in HDMI and digital coax on a 4 metre run.
Regarding resistance though, wouldn't optic fibre come out on top over HDMI and digital coax over a 4 metre run, in audio quality, since the optic doesn't have a 4 metre resistance obstacle?
Any other things?
I know, and I read about it, and I agree, the ligit into electric signals is more timing to the chain. BUT in my case, with a cell tower (since QED say these signals effect micro timing) does optic end up on top of digital coax because, no 4 metre resistance and immunity to POTENT (compared to most people's households) RFI? I HOPE SO BECAUSE, I want a solution to this DAC > ADC > DAC issue, (So i think) and optical is my only choice.. HDMI is also not regarded well and I don't want to use the Motherboard on my PC for the HDMI out..
I need some good news because at the moment, I'm drowning in dead ends. Unless my current analog out to the AVR with DAC>ADC>DAC is no real issue, or i need to review other sound interface options concerning my PC... oh boy. I might look at the score with these streamers, see if I can work with that alongside my PC using ethernet.
Thank you.
Edits: 10/28/23 10/28/23 10/28/23 10/28/23 10/28/23 10/28/23 10/28/23 10/28/23 10/28/23Follow Ups:
I would highly recommend the DH Labs Toslink cable....well-made, aesthetically pleasing, and quite modest in cost. I installed a couple from flat screen to soundbar, and integrated amp to DAC with great success in a customer's setup earlier this year. Excellent sound quality.
I would go optical cause your situation. I have never found any optical affected by RFI. I use both optical and coax some dacs and cd players just sound more open with coax but optical is clear and precise no coloration of sound just sound that was reproduced. Optical is more critical and you'll hear failures in recordings where ads coax no to me.
Thanks for confirming optical being a good choice for my situation.
I will go for the QED quartz i.e. ultra-fine boro-silicate glass optical fibres.
Thanks.
Its the only option that you listed that will isolate the receiver from the computer electrically. Just try a good cable, preferably glass.
Cut to razor sounding violins
Good reminder! The optic isolates the noisy PC well. And yes, glass! I need to find one. I tried looking for a qualtiy 4 metre glass cable, but the usual crowd, audioquest, QED, Chord do theirs in 3 or 5 meters, but my run is exactly 3.7 meters, I don't really want 5 meters as it would mean circling the cable, and a straight optic run is best. Damn, I need to work that one out. Thanks.
Edits: 11/03/23
FYI LIFATEC do a 13ft one if that help
Thank you. I have however now got myself a QED glass optical cable.
Here is the closest I could find with a quick usual suspect search:
http://www.lifatec.com/toslink2.html
They have a 13ft cable which I think is enough but as a dumb American, not sure how long 3.7m actually is.
Cut to razor sounding violins
Lifatec, that's one i never knew of, i use a uk shop site called futureshop, it might be on there as optics or other things, and i missed it hmm. I've heard of lifatec though.Thanks for that.
Ok, one hurt for me, sadly i worry a lot paying for a glass optic coming from America, it a lot of transport bumps and bangs for the glass, i worry little shards hurting performance. Damn. I feel like this is a sign. Nothing letting me buy an optic glass cable. It's making me really wonder... huhhhhhh.
OCD? Maybe. But glass optics to me, sounds fragile. I would have to get one made in the UK lol. I think i'm cutting my choices mighty slim here. I know QED is made in the UK, but their quartz, glass?, cable is 5m or 3m, ughh. I might need to re-measure my run at a different angle, see if 3m will do. I'm bloody here there everywhere at the moment. I'll measure my run again... eeeee.
QED's 2 choices are polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) acrylic glass optical fibre vs quartz.
Quartz one is the expensive one. Is the PMMA glass then? Not some hybrid?
https://www.futureshop.co.uk/qed-performance-toslink-digital-optical-audio-cable-graphite
The cable in question^.
Maybe this optical thing is over, hmm. Thanks again.
Edits: 11/03/23
Its not glass, but Blue Jeans Cable has one that they make up to your length and ship international. But I would try the one that you link. It will be ok to test and might be all you need soundwise.
Cut to razor sounding violins
True, I will order the Quartz one and just try it, see if 3 metres fits without slack.
Thanks.
If you are using the analog line-out of your AE7 sound card and connecting to line-in of your AVR, then you are only using the dac on the sound card. The stereo line-in input connection on your AVR is wired internally so that your AVR dac is bypassed. No double "dac"ing.
If you chose to use the optical digital output from your sound card, it bypasses its own dac 9018 chip and instead uses the dac built in your AVR, or other outboard dac, via the optical input. No double "dac"ing.
Unfortunately it's difficult to speculate which set up would sound best. Even considering your on-board PC card and HDMI cables.
Sometimes you just have to buy and try.
Is your out-board or AVR Dac better than either sound card dac? If so then the toslink connection should be the way to go.
Hope this helps.
Jonesy
"I know just enough to get into trouble. But not enough to get out of it."
Thanks Jonesy, but my AVR is doing crossover to the subwoofer i think? I have set it in 2ch direct/stereo settings on my Denon, i use stereo mode. Unless this whole time i have not been using crossover? Crossover would use the DAC?
Hmmmm... I'm not quite sure how you have things set-up to best address some of your concerns.
What would help overall for any of your current and future questions is listing the brand and model numbers of all the components in your system. This will help Asylum members provide specific information rather than just in general. You can list it in your profile and it can easily be updated for any changes down the road.
When you have any questions, provide any current component settings and cable routing you are using in your post.
Jonesy
"I know just enough to get into trouble. But not enough to get out of it."
Ok true, my bad, thanks Jonesy, I'll get to work making a signature. Thanks.
in some cases optical will sound better than coax but its situational but theory wise fiber is better
In fact, the MacBook Pro I'm currently typing on has an optical jack built into the headphone jack and offer 24/192 sample rates (PCM).However, many DACs can't handle that using TOSLINK and worse, the TOSLINK transmitter/receiver modules they install in their DACs are, in many cases, low priced, off-the-shelf, afterthoughts. :-(
My Chord MoJo may be the exception that proves the rule as it works well with the MacBook Pro using a Lifatec cable pictured above. OK, $150 for a mere 3 ft. length.
Not so good luck with my Audio-GD DAC and even when connecting the pretty decent CEC TL-5 CD Transport to my Denifrips Terminator TOSLINK was a huge step down from S/PDIF via RCA Digital Cable. And that's a mere 16/44.1 sample rate.
So...
YMMV, but it might be equipment dependent and not the the fault of TOSLINK itself.
Edits: 10/29/23
I've used Lifatec glass fibers in the past without too many concerns aside from structural robustness... though much less of a problem in the home than out. But really, USB is still what I would suggest to you, with a reclocker put in place just shy of your DAC.
For my own use, I place a Wyred4Sound ISO Recovery device on the far end of a 1.5m Supra USB (A-B) cable, then any one of a group of short USB (A-B) cables that have legitimate shielding for the final leg of a 1' or so. You can also and certainly go as short as you possibly can if you prefer to minimize the opportunity for RF ingress considering your environment.
So that is something to consider if you are not totally turned off to USB, but frankly, I wouldn't be unless you are actually, and presently, experiencing interconnection failures.
| FAQ |
Post a Message! |
Forgot Password? |
|
||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
Top of Page ]
[ Contact Us ]
[ Support/Wish List ]
[ Copyright © 2024, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
