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Post by Axis on Jul 20, 2016 16:01:24 GMT -5
Go search on Amazon under "Bluetooth transmitter" - and you'll find two or three PAGES of them... with various features and price tags. I found only a couple of devices that actually do wireless USB to USB (I don't want to go from analog to digital over bluetooth back to USB), HP makes an affordable one, but it is easily interrupted by people working between it and the receiver. Pro Audio makes such a device but it's insanely expensive. I may just end up having a coaxial cable traverse the room from my XDA-2 to an end table and call it cheap and good. Are needs are different but both features could be in the same unit. There needs to be better products for this purpose in the wireless market. I know there are many that do Wi-Fi but most headphones and speakers on the market are Bluetooth. |
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Post by vcautokid on Jul 21, 2016 3:51:49 GMT -5
I am rather intrigued by the Raspberry pi. You have a great small form factor, small price, and the pi world just keeps getting bigger. I want one of these Raspberry Pi's to tinker with. So you could have some S.T.P. in your system and call it the listeners edge.  . You know Streamer,Tuner,Preamplifier. |
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Post by gzubeck on Jul 22, 2016 3:07:43 GMT -5
Hmmm, maybe I should find a wireless USB transmitter that plugs into my source and DAC. Then I could sit on my couch and control the music selection from my device. Quality would be a concern, though. I have been in search for some time now a Bluetooth AptX transmitter that does not need to be recharged but has a proper AC power supply. Also Bluetooth AptX receiver to go with it. For my needs the transmitter would only be required to take an analog signal to send. The receiver could be both USB and analog. Bluetooth with AptX, bluetooth 4.0 and above has zero latency and CD quality sound. I have a pair of the high end Sony Bluetooth headphones...try connecting to your TV via Bluetooth. It doesn't support Bluetooth audio. Yet my $78 dollar tablet does and very well. Mind boggling! |
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Post by gzubeck on Jul 22, 2016 3:14:51 GMT -5
Go search on Amazon under "Bluetooth transmitter" - and you'll find two or three PAGES of them... with various features and price tags. There is need to be able to take a Bluetooth headphone or speaker and use them with all kinds of audio equipment. I have a tabletop AM/FM radio that has headphone and aux out. I would love to take the analog audio output and listen to wireless on headphones and speaker as I walk around the house or yard. I have a little sony Bluetooth speaker that I can only use with my sony Walkman. I do not have a smart phone or anything else that transmits Bluetooth. Most gear today is only made to receive Bluetooth from your smartphone, player ect... With my DC-1 and SP-1 if I hooked a Bluetooth transmitter to the analog out I could listen to my TV, PC music or Radio on wireless headphones or wireless speaker. If it plunged into the wall for power there would be no need to recharge. A Receiver that also has a power supply could be used to connect to other audio gear. So say I wanted to transmit wireless my music on my PC that it connected to the DC-1 over to my USP-1 across the room. Gimmicky chea toy transmitters that often fail to connect to your Bluetooth transmitter. A high quality one that makes a solid connection to your apts headphones is highly desirable. Given the dearth of Bluetooth transmission in today's UHD TV's this is a must function for people who want high fidelity Bluetooth audio. |
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Post by Axis on Jul 22, 2016 15:50:20 GMT -5
Go search on Amazon under "Bluetooth transmitter" - and you'll find two or three PAGES of them... with various features and price tags. I found only a couple of devices that actually do wireless USB to USB (I don't want to go from analog to digital over bluetooth back to USB), HP makes an affordable one, but it is easily interrupted by people working between it and the receiver. Pro Audio makes such a device but it's insanely expensive. I may just end up having a coaxial cable traverse the room from my XDA-2 to an end table and call it cheap and good. Audioengine makes a Bluetooth Receiver that is 4.0 and AptX. It has a Power adapter to supply DC power. audioengineusa.com/Store/Wireless/B1-Bluetooth-Music-ReceiverThey also make a 24-bit Wireless DAC Transmitter and Receiver. Maybe something like this will work for you. Here is the description on there site. "Audioengine D2 Premium 24-bit Wireless DAC allows you to stream wireless HD audio from your computer to any music system, independent of your Wi-Fi network. D2 includes USB and optical inputs, a high-performance DAC, plus the isolation benefits of wireless. Setup is fast and simple, with no software to install and without the frustration of trying to connect to your network." audioengineusa.com/Store/Wireless/D2-24-Bit-Wireless-DAC |
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Post by Boomzilla on Jul 22, 2016 16:14:32 GMT -5
It has almost everything on my wish list...But it is missing the capability to play files from USB drives directly. I would gladly pay a little more for that.... Yeah we ALL want something added / removed / improved. BUT we all want something different... To sell the quantity that's needed to make a profit, the preamp is designed with what I think are some of the most intelligent design choices that Emotiva has ever made. After all, if you already HAVE a modern Blu-Ray / DVD player, then the player itself usually has the capability to accept USB sticks. Why duplicate a feature that the customer's already likely to have? I've no idea how the TP-100 will sound, but I think the feature set is spot-on. Just my two cents... Boomzilla |
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Post by Loop 7 on Jul 22, 2016 16:30:14 GMT -5
I deal with feature creep on a daily basis at work and, after 10 years, I consider it a disease that spreads via anecdotal edge cases.
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Post by Axis on Jul 22, 2016 16:36:36 GMT -5
I had a short little talk with Dan when they came to Atlanta. I approached him with some ideals of digital gear and he told me that he had a group of people that was very good with digital. He smiled and said there are things in the works. This is a whole new age and even though we just heard that there is going to be a BasX CD player and many people are thinking that is so old school, just give them some time and I bet that there will be a whole new range of digital products from this Audio company.
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Post by musichal on Sept 30, 2016 10:15:18 GMT -5
Personally, I think it IS pretty much the perfect budget tuner/preamp. Wide bandwidth, high-quality sound, a decent tuner, very low distortion, and extremely low-noise/high S/N ratio at $299? What more could we ask? Okay, then, what more could we REASONABLY ask?
(I, of course, mean other than changing the ST/MONO button to a step-through-FM-preset control and put the S/M in the menu. LOL. We all have our druthers!)
I'm happy camping with my PT-100, and my XSP-1.2, too!
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Post by AudioHTIT on Sept 30, 2016 11:26:53 GMT -5
I have a tabletop AM/FM radio that has headphone and aux out. I would love to take the analog audio output and listen to wireless on headphones and speaker as I walk around the house or yard. I have a little sony Bluetooth speaker that I can only use with my sony Walkman. I do not have a smart phone or anything else that transmits Bluetooth. Most gear today is only made to receive Bluetooth from your smartphone, player ect... I'd be surprised if there was a Bluetooth solution that let you walk very far outside the room with the 'transmitter' (like 'around the house or yard'). AptX may improve the sound quality (I believe using a different compression algorithm), but I wasn't aware it could improve the range (which by definition is 'short'). My main objection to Bluetooth is dropouts, it seems to occur even at short range and I find it more annoying than the degradation of sound quality. I can do what you describe, but at a high cost. I use a Mac mini as a music server, there's a 'server app' called Airfoil that runs on the Mac/PC, and a 'client app' that runs on smartphones, tablets, other computers. This combo allows the server to see the clients as 'speakers', it then uses WiFi to send music to your smartphone w/headphones. You then have much greater range than with Bluetooth and it's easy to extend if wanted, I can walk around the house, the yard, and probably at least an acre of my property with good connectivity, I can also control the music with a remote app. However, I don't use this often because I have music on my iPhone and can just listen from there. It's most useful when I'm playing music in the house, on the outdoor speakers, and also want it on my headphones. In any case, I think WiFi is a better transmission medium than Bluetooth, though it requires more hardware, and some sort of (currently) proprietary software. |
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Post by audiotrex on Jan 26, 2017 1:43:55 GMT -5
I believe the PT-100 may be the perfect modern preamp, It has a switchable MM or MC phono input; it has multiple digital inputs and an amazing DAC section as well as analog inputs, analog outputs... oh and it has a headphone preamp. And a remote. It sounds fantastic, completely silent background even from a noisy source like my HTPC which I have hooked up through both optical and USB inputs of the TA-100; inaudible noise floor, wide frequency response, great form factor. And the price point is very nice! I shopped around for a nice desktop headphone amp/DAC, but I also wanted phono inputs, analog in, with pre-outs. I stated adding up what it would cost to get all of these features from some of the other brands out there and it was starting to get expensive. Then I ran across this little gem. All the features, plus a world-class DAC, and a remote?!? Fantastic.
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Post by Boomzilla on Jan 28, 2017 5:50:34 GMT -5
IMHO, the PT-100 vies with the TA-100 as the best value for the money that Emotiva has EVER produced. The PT-100, paired with the right equipment (a solid-state amplifier, specifically), sounds like a million bucks - and that isn't even taking its features into account. Now yes, there are always more things to wish for, but considering the price, the feature set is already generous. I love my PT-100, and plan to keep it (at least until the next-gen XSP becomes available - sometime this year?). YMMV
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Post by beardedalbatross on Jan 28, 2017 12:07:22 GMT -5
The only thing the PT-100 is missing for me to recommend it almost without question are high and low-pass filters, and maaaybe a pure-direct line output.
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Post by Boomzilla on Jan 28, 2017 16:17:13 GMT -5
Hi beardedalbatross - What you're asking for is the XSP-1 preamp. It has variable high & low pass filters PLUS fully-balanced, differential circuitry. Other than the tuner & DAC, it also has the same features as the PT-100, and isn't really that much more expensive when you consider what you're getting. After all, the PT-100 is intended to be an "entry level" preamp. But I can tell you, having heard it with a pair of XPA-1 amps, it hits way, WAY above its price range. You pays your money, you takes your choice... |
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Post by beardedalbatross on Jan 28, 2017 16:20:35 GMT -5
Hi beardedalbatross - What you're asking for is the XSP-1 preamp. It has variable high & low pass filters PLUS fully-balanced, differential circuitry. Other than the tuner & DAC, it also has the same features as the PT-100, and isn't really that much more expensive when you consider what you're getting. After all, the PT-100 is intended to be an "entry level" preamp. But I can tell you, having heard it with a pair of XPA-1 amps, it hits way, WAY above its price range. You pays your money, you takes your choice... I'm aware of the XSP-1. I think the USP-1 would be a more apt comparison though that is unfortunately discontinued. Emotiva does not currently offer affordable bass management right now considering the XSP-1 is $1000 and the other option would be to go into the MC-700. EDIT: I maintain that bass management is a hole in the market. Currently it's occupied by parasound at $700 and above with the model 2100 (no dac or amp) and the Elac Element again at $700 which is tied down to the internal amp since it has no preamp capability. |
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Post by Boomzilla on Jan 28, 2017 16:32:20 GMT -5
The only "audiophile-quality" bass management available is the JL audio CR-2 for $3,000. Since that's beyond what I want to spend, and I'd rather not have to digitize my signal again via a HT processor, the XSP-1 (or the price-equivalent Parasound) are about the only games in town. Now I can get bass management (and without any additional A-D / D-A conversions) out of my Oppo BDP-105, but if I do, then I also have to use the Oppo's (digital) volume control. Kind of a two-steps-forward and one-step-back kind of a dance... Nevertheless, for the time being I'm happy as can be with my PT-100 and plan to use it with my big Crown PSA-2 amplifier. As mentioned, the PT-100 seems to like solid state amps better than tubed ones, and the Oppo does better with tubed amps than solid-state. So whatever works! If I get ambitious, I may just pull a novisnick, and set up two different systems in two different rooms. It'd probably be: Small room system = PT-100 used as a DAC and a preamp driving the Crown PCA-2 amp into a pair of Axiom M-100 speakers (I hoped that Nick would sell me his KEF LS50 speakers, but it seems he's hanging onto them) Big room system = Oppo BDP-105 used as a DAC / bass manager / preamp driving either the VTA ST120 tube amp or the Audio Research VT80 into the Tekton Pendragon speakers with two PSA-15se subwoofers. And we'll have fun, fun, fun till her daddy takes the T-bird away! Boom |
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Post by novisnick on Jan 28, 2017 16:52:25 GMT -5
Boomzilla I have so wanted to free up some dollars by selling the KEFs but I am having a very hard time saying that out load!! They really check so many boxes for what anybody would want in a speaker, tower or monitor! I am having a hard time convincing myself that I need them as well! Because they dont fill any holes in my system. ARGGGG!!!!!!
they look gorgeous!
they sound gorgeous!
they are HUGE speakers in a small box!
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Post by Boomzilla on Jan 28, 2017 17:01:47 GMT -5
Well, Nick - it ain't like I NEED them! LOL
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Post by novisnick on Jan 28, 2017 18:19:10 GMT -5
Well, Nick - it ain't like I NEED them! LOL Hence the problem, I really don't either! NEED is such an undefinable word! Don't you think?  |
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Post by Boomzilla on Jan 28, 2017 22:12:57 GMT -5
Undefinable, yes. But as the supreme court once said about pornography, I know it when I see it...
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