The Dark Side; Digital audio equipment recommendations and setup.

Hemotep said:
Hopefully you can recoup it in a sale unless it's beyond hope without their repair. Sorry to hear either way.
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I could try but the PS Audio service rep thought it might be a bad Stellar Gain chip. I think I wouldn't get too much for it and I'd also have to disclose the popping issue which might be something else that needs to be fixed. I can't fault the seller as everything worked decently, minus the popping, when I first received it for about 10 months. The ironic reason I'm back on the Adcom again is I have been going through records that I no longer listen to or feel good with parting with to raise some money to fund a new projector I want to get to replace our 10+ year old one. I had to use the Adcom to listen to my turntable so I was switching audio cables with my mono block amps. Tons of fun. Now, it's all back in one place. I have to say, this Topping really is a great deal for how little I paid for it.
 
I'm also finding no issues when I play DSD files through the Topping. Even at higher volumes there could be clipping with the Stellar Gain. Just so weird. I know the reason I got the Stellar Gain was to try to get one unit to handle everything which I guess is where I went wrong. On certain DSD files, I would get the same popping that I would hear on FLAC files played too loud. I could never find anything online to help me alleviate those issues.
 
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TrainFan73 said:
The wiim will have a phono stage and room correction. Will be interesting to see what the price point is like and how all of that sounds.
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It does have preamp capability akin to a headphone amp but also has a sub-out and as you mentioned a phono stage.
It shows how far Yamaha was ahead of the curve with the WXC-50 streamer/preamp and the WXA-50 which added an amp.
Good streaming app and amplifier.
WIIM has done a lot in a short time
For me the WIIM app seems like one of its best attributes
 
Middle Earth said:
The WIIM Ultra at $329 is an upgraded WIIM Pro Plus with a screen and room correction as noted herein
If I were looking for a streamer I would consider it

www.crutchfield.com

WiiM Ultra (Space Gray)

Streaming music player and digital preamp with Wi-Fi®, Google Cast, Bluetooth®, and 3.5" touchscreen
www.crutchfield.com www.crutchfield.com
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Still waiting for WiiM to make a cheaper version of the FiiO R7. I want Apple Music baked in, instead of streaming to it from my computer or phone
 
jamieanderson1968 said:
Still waiting for WiiM to make a cheaper version of the FiiO R7. I want Apple Music baked in, instead of streaming to it from my computer or phone
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I had zeroed in on a FiiO R7 and was literally going to buy one just a click away and I happened to see Advance Paris WTX Stream Tubes for $300 Euros and just clicked that button on a whim or a wiim instead. The FiiO is spendy comparatively.
 
Middle Earth said:
The WIIM Ultra at $329 is an upgraded WIIM Pro Plus with a screen and room correction as noted herein
If I were looking for a streamer I would consider it

www.crutchfield.com

WiiM Ultra (Space Gray)

Streaming music player and digital preamp with Wi-Fi®, Google Cast, Bluetooth®, and 3.5" touchscreen
www.crutchfield.com www.crutchfield.com
Click to expand...
Kinda wish it had USB out or I2S to connect an external DAC for DSD playback. Maybe I’m just missing something though
 
MikeH said:
Kinda wish it had USB out or I2S to connect an external DAC for DSD playback. Maybe I’m just missing something though
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It does have “…coaxial and optical digital outputs for connecting to an outboard DAC or an amplifier or preamplifier with digital inputs.”
I am pro USB but typically I see SPDIF in lieu of a USB out on components.
It does not state that the RCA out is a pre-out or if it is line level.
If it is merely line level it really is not a preamplifier.
I am surprised that WiiM did not saturate the YouTube reviewers pre-release, with test units like Fosi did with the V3 Mono-blocks.
Fosi got a lot of pre-release beta testing by the reviewers and is reacting to the problems identified and fixing before they hit the street and a lot of love from the reviewers.
Amir had a SINAD orgasm.
Wiim is far more secretive and Fosi is smarter in that regard.
 
Middle Earth said:
It does have “…coaxial and optical digital outputs for connecting to an outboard DAC or an amplifier or preamplifier with digital inputs.”
I am pro USB but typically I see SPDIF in lieu of a USB out on components.
It does not state that the RCA out is a pre-out or if it is line level.
If it is merely line level it really is not a preamplifier.
I am surprised that WiiM did not saturate the YouTube reviewers pre-release, with test units like Fosi did with the V3 Mono-blocks.
Fosi got a lot of pre-release beta testing by the reviewers and is reacting to the problems identified and fixing before they hit the street and a lot of love from the reviewers.
Amir had a SINAD orgasm.
Wiim is far more secretive and Fosi is smarter in that regard.
Click to expand...
Says the following so wasn’t sure if an external DAC would be able to play DSD instead of PCM.
  • coaxial and optical digital outputs for connecting to an outboard DAC or an amplifier or preamplifier with digital inputs
    • supports resolutions up to 24-bit/192kHz via coaxial
 
MikeH said:
Says the following so wasn’t sure if an external DAC would be able to play DSD instead of PCM.
  • coaxial and optical digital outputs for connecting to an outboard DAC or an amplifier or preamplifier with digital inputs
    • supports resolutions up to 24-bit/192kHz via coaxial
Click to expand...

The unit doesn’t support DSD across the board, using either its own DAC or an external one. Honestly I’d be surprised to see it supported at this price point, it’s more big money audiophile catnip.
 
Joe Mac said:
The unit doesn’t support DSD across the board, using either its own DAC or an external one. Honestly I’d be surprised to see it supported at this price point, it’s more big money audiophile catnip.
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That’s what I figured but my Aries mini streamer lets me go USB out to an external DAC with DSD which is nice. And my Singxer is attached to my desktop setup so lets me use DSD out too I think…
 
Middle Earth said:
It does have “…coaxial and optical digital outputs for connecting to an outboard DAC or an amplifier or preamplifier with digital inputs.”
I am pro USB but typically I see SPDIF in lieu of a USB out on components.
It does not state that the RCA out is a pre-out or if it is line level.
If it is merely line level it really is not a preamplifier.
I am surprised that WiiM did not saturate the YouTube reviewers pre-release, with test units like Fosi did with the V3 Mono-blocks.
Fosi got a lot of pre-release beta testing by the reviewers and is reacting to the problems identified and fixing before they hit the street and a lot of love from the reviewers.
Amir had a SINAD orgasm.
Wiim is far more secretive and Fosi is smarter in that regard.
Click to expand...
I’m surprised they have it listed somewhere before the reports out of Munich started.
 
AnthonyI said:
Life is good on the digital side of things, the Denafrips Ares II is a beautiful piece of kit, sounds amazing. After a few hours of pushing CD's through the transport, we connected the Chromecast Audio and relaxed streaming from my Plex server.............happy as a clam :)

Serenity Now ☺️
View attachment 202818
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It really is a nice DAC isn’t it?? It’s made me tempted to upgrade to the Pontus at some point…
 
MikeH said:
It really is a nice DAC isn’t it?? It’s made me tempted to upgrade to the Pontus at some point…
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As with anything you kind of have to take the hype with a grain of salt, especially with claims of sound coming close to what you would here from vinyl. That said, it really does take that digital edge off both CDs and streams, such an easy, smooth listening experience. Really glad I pulled the trigger on the deal :)
 
Joe Mac said:
I’m 18 months without an upgrade now and as much as I still like to look that actually makes me very happy…
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Oh, it's been quite a while since I bit on anything. Ya, the looking has been fine and I literally tripped over this Denafrips or I'd still have my Multibit connected to the transport. You can't sleep on good deals/opportunities.

That said, we're back to just window shopping here and there, I'm with you, not buying and or upgrading for long stretches is a wonderful thing.
 
AnthonyI said:
Oh, it's been quite a while since I bit on anything. Ya, the looking has been fine and I literally tripped over this Denafrips or I'd still have my Multibit connected to the transport. You can't sleep on good deals/opportunities.

That said, we're back to just window shopping here and there, I'm with you, not buying and or upgrading for long stretches is a wonderful thing.
Click to expand...

Yes I’m really happy with my system and while there are things I’d like to try I think it won’t happen unless bits fail. The stuff that interests me isn’t stocked by locals for trade in and I don’t really need to have multiple bits on hand that I’m not using. Plus it’s nice to be able spend the cash on other things!
 
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