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Author Topic: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?  (Read 7864 times)

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Anaxilus

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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #180 on: August 20, 2015, 06:35:41 PM »
Quote from: Negura on August 20, 2015, 09:52:24 AM
It is based off an Oppo, yes. However MSB claim the audio side is entirely their own thing. It also has a LPSU, and in terms of connectivity it has AES and more importantly I2S outputs to connect it to a MSB DAC. The latter is quite key.

MSBs narrative:
http://www.msbtech.com/products/universalV.php?Page=platinumHome

Of course, that still begs the question how that Oppo sounds in comparison. More than one person asked me to see if I can also get an Oppo to hear how it fares.

Oh I have no doubt it'll sound better than the Oppo one to one degree or another. The MSB just worries me that its a compromised device as a CD transport from the get go for reasons I already stated. There's a reason portable audio hasn't caught up with desktop gear. Ultimately physics requires space unless MSB is using quantum tech in there.
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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #181 on: August 20, 2015, 06:47:24 PM »
I only buy the finest, space-tech grade audio equipment: http://www.thebestamp.com/CD_Players%20_CD_Transports/CD-101.php

Clearly, this is far from the only thing that will matter with CD players and drives, and maybe has 0 connection with sound quality, but I did find it interesting that the Asus DVDROM drive put out such a nice looking SPDIF signal: http://www.jacquesstompboxes.com/oscillo.htm

I'm still planning on whipping together a weird CDP based off this drive. Parts are cheap. Why not? Should be fun even if the SQ is ass.
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Anaxilus

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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #182 on: August 20, 2015, 06:51:53 PM »
Maybe there's a reason Boulder went with what looks like could be a PC DVDROM. Perhaps it was the best thing they could source at the time. Wouldn't doubt if they took it apart and did some internal massaging.
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Anaxilus

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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #183 on: August 20, 2015, 08:17:17 PM »
Quote from: Negura on August 19, 2015, 11:47:07 PM
While on the subject of ridiculously priced transports connected to fathomable priced DACs, I have the MSB Universal Media Transport here, feeding the 20 years old Theta V A via AES.
The CD player section is decent, but the LAN streaming seems really good: it just sounds more transparent and resolves better. The Theta sounds really great with this.

For the scope of this thread, both the CD player and LAN streaming sections of the UMT are preferable to the built-in old gen MSB Signature 384k USB.

How the Theta V A / MSB Transport sounds vs the MSB Signature 5 DAC stack / MSB Transport is a story for another time.


Btw, how about posting a review thread comparing your ESound versus the MSB transport when you get a chance?
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Negura

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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #184 on: August 20, 2015, 08:19:44 PM »
Yes, I thought of that. Too many things to hear, but I am not complaining. I'm already 70% sure the MSB is better sounding. I heard it on the Theta V A. I also prefer the AES over SPDIF into the Theta V A or Signature V. In the Signature V the I2S is a significant improvement, as it uses the super-duper DAC clock. Tremendously transparent sound.

I wish I2S was more widely available and less proprietary bsh**. Even on my old PWD2, with the old Hydra interface (which was good, but not really great; I hear the new one is better), the I2S sounded better from memory compared to AES/Spdif.
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Anaxilus

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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #185 on: August 20, 2015, 08:44:08 PM »
I2S was definitely the best input on the PWD. I was hopeful about the PWT delivering the I2S goods but it was simply a mediocre device.
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audiofrk

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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #186 on: August 20, 2015, 10:57:18 PM »
What connector was i2s tech built for, HDMI or aes/ebu?
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Anaxilus

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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #187 on: August 20, 2015, 10:59:38 PM »
Quote from: audiofrk on August 20, 2015, 10:57:18 PM
What connector was i2s tech built for, HDMI or aes/ebu?

It wasn't. That's the problem.
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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #188 on: August 21, 2015, 12:47:47 AM »
Quote from: audiofrk on August 20, 2015, 10:57:18 PM
What connector was i2s tech built for, HDMI or aes/ebu?

5 wires
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Re: Alternative transports to USB/PC or 'Spinning a disc'?
« Reply #189 on: August 21, 2015, 04:32:43 AM »
Quote from: audiofrk on August 20, 2015, 10:57:18 PM
What connector was i2s tech built for, HDMI or aes/ebu?

There is no I2S connection that uses XLRs as far as I'm aware. Annoyingly, there's never been a standard for it. You most commonly see it using RJ-45 connectors, and some of those are incompatible with each other because they use different pin configurations. Some also used DIN type connectors that resembled S-video, but wasn't. PS came up with the HDMI version and opened it for others to use, but aside from W4S, Channel Islands, Empirical, and maybe one or two others, most haven't taken them up on it.
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