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Post by localnet on Sept 25, 2023 19:15:54 GMT -5
The DAC landscape is highly competitive. Nice to see the XDA-3 a reality. Even sold out it seems. I am curious how it compares to the Eversolo Z8 DAC. Same exact money. View AttachmentNow how on Earth would anyone know which sounds better before Amir gets an XDA-3 to test? Your not suggesting that people should listen to them to determine the answer are you?  Ha Ha! They trashed my PS Audio Gaincell DAC/Preamp, and this thing is the bomb, it replaced a Venus II 12th DAC! This XDA-3 has me intrigued, to say the least... If Amir and his crew trash it, I'm a buyer! |
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Post by localnet on Sept 25, 2023 19:19:18 GMT -5
Anyone plug their XDA-3 into some vintage audio gear?
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Post by Audiobliss on Sept 25, 2023 19:23:43 GMT -5
Yeah, but a better cable with shielding can keep out noise and prevent interference with other none power cables.
Every little helps.
Thanks to you guys that made suggestions, good to see I have lots of choices. I ordered a c7 plug to just rewire one of my other power cords.
The unit is burning in nicely, (if you believe in that)
It really sounds very good, I can't believe Emotiva sells it for the price they do, plus gave me a 10% discount.
I have had many much more expensive dac/preamps, with less features, that didn't sound any better.
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Post by GBoogie on Sept 25, 2023 19:27:40 GMT -5
I just received my XDA yesterday. I've been waiting for this since it was announced. It was an easy way to HDMI Arc to my 2-channel room Where I play my PS5 Series X and listen to music. Unfortunately, I having major issues with HDMI Arc input. The audio keeps dropping out. it appears to having handshake issues. It's not occasional, it happens every 30 seconds or so. I ordered a new HDMI cable and I'm praying that the old one is the culprit, but before the XDA 3, I was using the Emotiva MC 1 in the setup and that HDMI arc was flawless before that I used a Marantz NR1200 and before that I used the HDMI arc on the Bluesound Node. There were no issues. I'm really sad, I don't want to ship it back and wait for a replacement and then that works. |
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Post by GBoogie on Sept 25, 2023 19:32:02 GMT -5
I just received my XDA yesterday. I've been waiting for this since it was announced. It was an easy way to HDMI Arc to my 2-channel room Where I play my PS5 Series X and listen to music. Unfortunately, I having major issues with HDMI Arc input. The audio keeps dropping out. it appears to having handshake issues. It's not occasional, it happens every 30 seconds or so. I ordered a new HDMI cable and I'm praying that the old one is the culprit, but before the XDA 3, I was using the Emotiva MC 1 in the setup and that HDMI arc was flawless before that I used a Marantz NR1200 and before that I used the HDMI arc on the Bluesound Node. There were no issues. I'm really sad, I don't want to ship it back and wait for a replacement and then that works. Just curious, did you change your TV audio settings to output PCM? That could be the resolution you seek. If you leave it on Auto it could be putting out Bitstream which I believe this unit cannot handle. Try it and let us know if it works for you. |
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Post by Audiobliss on Sept 25, 2023 20:31:58 GMT -5
I really don't see the reason for hdmi ARC on a two channel
Dac or preamp. My previous dac had one also and I never used it. I use the optical out from the TV. I don't need the tv to turn on the stereo system every time the wife want to watch tv,or the system turning on the TV.
I tried it once and the sound quality was no better than the optical. It doesn't even work with the hdmi audio out from my Sony bluray player.
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Post by geebo on Sept 25, 2023 21:48:38 GMT -5
I really don't see the reason for hdmi ARC on a two channel Dac or preamp. My previous dac had one also and I never used it. I use the optical out from the TV. I don't need the tv to turn on the stereo system every time the wife want to watch tv,or the system turning on the TV. I tried it once and the sound quality was no better than the optical. It doesn't even work with the hdmi audio out from my Sony bluray player. It will not work with normal HDMI outputs. It will only work in an ARC connection and and HDMI audio out does not qualify. |
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Post by Audiobliss on Sept 25, 2023 22:06:18 GMT -5
Yes I know, it would just be more useful if it did.
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KeithL
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Post by KeithL on Sept 26, 2023 11:18:16 GMT -5
There are still a lot of people who have a high quality stereo music system but don't actually care about home theater. And, these days, there are also a lot of people who use the apps in their TV as their video source... And some of them may also have a cable box, or a Blu-Ray player, connected directly to their TV, but still not have an AVR or pre/pro... The HDMI ARC input allows them to send audio directly from their TV to their stereo system. (It's an alternative to using the optical output on the TV... which some TVs may not even have.) It's a very handy feature... if you happen to need it. (Just look at it as one more type of digital audio input... which you may or may not use.) I really don't see the reason for hdmi ARC on a two channel Dac or preamp. My previous dac had one also and I never used it. I use the optical out from the TV. I don't need the tv to turn on the stereo system every time the wife want to watch tv,or the system turning on the TV. I tried it once and the sound quality was no better than the optical. It doesn't even work with the hdmi audio out from my Sony bluray player. |
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KeithL
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Post by KeithL on Sept 26, 2023 11:24:13 GMT -5
Electrically an "ARC Input" is entirely different from an "HDMI Input"... When you use ARC with an AVR or pre/pro you are actually sending audio backwards... from an input on the TV to an output on the AVR or pre/pro. So the HDMI ARC Input on a device that has one is wired differently than a normal HDMI Input. Yes I know, it would just be more useful if it did. |
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Post by geebo on Sept 26, 2023 11:31:30 GMT -5
Electrically an "ARC Input" is entirely different from an "HDMI Input"... When you use ARC with an AVR or pre/pro you are actually sending audio backwards... from an input on the TV to an output on the AVR or pre/pro. So the HDMI ARC Input on a device that has one is wired differently than a normal HDMI Input. Yes I know, it would just be more useful if it did. Wouldn't it be more like wanting to use HDMI 2 output of the XMC/RMC as an HDMI input? Is it even possible for an HDMI port to be both an HDMI input and and Arc input at the same time? |
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KeithL
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Post by KeithL on Sept 26, 2023 13:55:28 GMT -5
Exactly... the ARC audio signal goes into an HDMI output. As I understand it, the pinouts for an HDMI input and an HDMI output are actually different - so they are NOT interchangeable. (The ends of the cable are interchangeable - but it is connecting inputs to outputs and vice versa.) (HDMI is not at all like USB - where the port itself is specified to be bidirectional.) It is theoretically possible that someone could make an HDMI jack that was "soft programmable" to be either an input or an output. (But it would be really hard to do and I've never seen it done.) Electrically an "ARC Input" is entirely different from an "HDMI Input"... When you use ARC with an AVR or pre/pro you are actually sending audio backwards... from an input on the TV to an output on the AVR or pre/pro. So the HDMI ARC Input on a device that has one is wired differently than a normal HDMI Input. Wouldn't it be more like wanting to use HDMI 2 output of the XMC/RMC as an HDMI input? Is it even possible for an HDMI port to be both an HDMI input and and Arc input at the same time? |
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Post by PaulBe on Oct 7, 2023 9:47:25 GMT -5
Toslink optical inputs used to be limited to up to 24/96K. Still is on some DACs. The XDA-3 spec is up to 24/192K for both coax and optical inputs. Is this an upgrade to past limitations on the optical input?
The USB input limit of 32/768K is very high. What is the functional use of input bit depths and sample rates this high? What sources have these specs?
I was using WASAPI for the driver in my JRiver media player. Switched back to Direct Sound and let the player output 24/192K. I mostly use the Toslink optical input to the XDA-3 from the computer. It works just fine at 24/192K. The USB input doesn't offer any improvement with PCM. I don't play DoP or DSD.
Still trying out the filters. So far, at 24/192K, I like #2 linear phase slow and #4 minimum phase slow. The difference is subtle. I suspect choices could be different with other sample/bit rates.
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Post by emotimmo on Oct 7, 2023 9:53:45 GMT -5
Every DAC I have supports 24/192K on optical
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Post by PaulBe on Oct 7, 2023 10:13:10 GMT -5
Every DAC I have supports 24/192K on optical The Benchmark DAC3 lists a limit of 24/96K for it's Toslink optical input. I've seen this on others but don't recall the products. I've read some blog discussion about this Toslink optical limit. Perhaps it's more of an audio myth and a nonissue. |
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KeithL
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Post by KeithL on Oct 12, 2023 14:44:59 GMT -5
The Toslink inputs on most modern gear can do 192k (if the other inputs do). However that 96k limitation was pretty common on the optical inputs on a lot of older gear. Every DAC I have supports 24/192K on optical The Benchmark DAC3 lists a limit of 24/96K for it's Toslink optical input. I've seen this on others but don't recall the products. I've read some blog discussion about this Toslink optical limit. Perhaps it's more of an audio myth and a nonissue. |
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Post by PaulBe on Oct 13, 2023 7:34:33 GMT -5
The Toslink inputs on most modern gear can do 192k (if the other inputs do). However that 96k limitation was pretty common on the optical inputs on a lot of older gear. The Benchmark DAC3 lists a limit of 24/96K for it's Toslink optical input. I've seen this on others but don't recall the products. I've read some blog discussion about this Toslink optical limit. Perhaps it's more of an audio myth and a nonissue. The USB input limit of 32/768K is very high. What is the functional use of input bit depths and sample rates this high? What sources have these specs? My JRiver software added a SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] audio device to its list of Tools > Audio Device options. Or, I didn't see it when I installed the program. I think it was added. I decided to use the USB connection with the SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] Audio device. Still playing and experimenting with the XDA-3. I would like to find a way to play stereo audio Hi-rez Blu-ray discs with the XDA-3. I haven't been successful yet. I have some Pure Audio LSO Blu-ray audio discs that include downloadable stereo files in DSD, Hi-rez FLAC, WAV, and MP3. Recording provenance is stated on most of the discs. IF I have extra time this winter, I will try some of these downloadable files. These are accessed with a network connection, a browser, and mShuttle. It appears Pure Audio and LSO made a small number of different recordings like this and are not adding more. They were sold with both Hybrid SACDs and a various format Blu-ray in the package. The recordings were relatively inexpensive. Too much of a good thing? |
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Post by geebo on Oct 13, 2023 9:14:08 GMT -5
The Toslink inputs on most modern gear can do 192k (if the other inputs do). However that 96k limitation was pretty common on the optical inputs on a lot of older gear. The USB input limit of 32/768K is very high. What is the functional use of input bit depths and sample rates this high? What sources have these specs? My JRiver software added a SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] audio device to its list of Tools > Audio Device options. Or, I didn't see it when I installed the program. I think it was added. I decided to use the USB connection with the SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] Audio device. Still playing and experimenting with the XDA-3. I would like to find a way to play stereo audio Hi-rez Blu-ray discs with the XDA-3. I haven't been successful yet. I have some Pure Audio LSO Blu-ray audio discs that include downloadable stereo files in DSD, Hi-rez FLAC, WAV, and MP3. Recording provenance is stated on most of the discs. IF I have extra time this winter, I will try some of these downloadable files. These are accessed with a network connection, a browser, and mShuttle. It appears Pure Audio and LSO made a small number of different recordings like this and are not adding more. They were sold with both Hybrid SACDs and a various format Blu-ray in the package. The recordings were relatively inexpensive. Too much of a good thing? Have you considered HDMI ARC? Or something like DVD Audio Extractor that works with BD Pure Audio. That will allow you to rip the multi-channel and/or stereo hi-res tracks. |
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KeithL
Administrator
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Post by KeithL on Oct 13, 2023 10:39:01 GMT -5
At the moment there are precious few actual sources for 24/768k digital audio content. I did manage to find one album download and a few samples from it to test the XDA-3 with. (These days 24/192k files are becoming relatively commonplace... but anything above that is pretty scarce.) And let's not get into the bigger question of whether there is any audible benefit of sample rates even above 24/96k. Another benefit is that the higher sample rate enables the XDA-3 to support DoP and native DSD at higher rates as well. (You need the USB BIT-RATE provided by 768k to support DoP at DSDx4 and native DSD at DSDx8.) And, again, let's not get into whether there is any legitimate audible benefit to being able to do so. There actually ARE a few places you can download high-rate DSD files these days... And a few programs, like HQPlayer, can optionally upsample or up-convert to them. The fact of the matter is that the latest DAC chips and USB interface chips support those really high sample rates... So it wasn't especially difficult for us to include access to them in our XDA-3. There's no reason why a hi-res audio Blu-Ray disc couldn't include "hi-res stereo PCM" as an "audio option" on the disc menu itself... And, if it did, that should be available in stereo PCM at the Coaxial output on your player... (But I haven't seen that option on most of the current Hi-Res Blu-Ray discs lately...) The Toslink inputs on most modern gear can do 192k (if the other inputs do). However that 96k limitation was pretty common on the optical inputs on a lot of older gear. The USB input limit of 32/768K is very high. What is the functional use of input bit depths and sample rates this high? What sources have these specs? My JRiver software added a SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] audio device to its list of Tools > Audio Device options. Or, I didn't see it when I installed the program. I think it was added. I decided to use the USB connection with the SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] Audio device. Still playing and experimenting with the XDA-3. I would like to find a way to play stereo audio Hi-rez Blu-ray discs with the XDA-3. I haven't been successful yet. I have some Pure Audio LSO Blu-ray audio discs that include downloadable stereo files in DSD, Hi-rez FLAC, WAV, and MP3. Recording provenance is stated on most of the discs. IF I have extra time this winter, I will try some of these downloadable files. These are accessed with a network connection, a browser, and mShuttle. It appears Pure Audio and LSO made a small number of different recordings like this and are not adding more. They were sold with both Hybrid SACDs and a various format Blu-ray in the package. The recordings were relatively inexpensive. Too much of a good thing? |
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Post by PaulBe on Oct 13, 2023 13:30:10 GMT -5
The USB input limit of 32/768K is very high. What is the functional use of input bit depths and sample rates this high? What sources have these specs? My JRiver software added a SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] audio device to its list of Tools > Audio Device options. Or, I didn't see it when I installed the program. I think it was added. I decided to use the USB connection with the SXW CTUAD768 PRM-A [WASAPI] Audio device. Still playing and experimenting with the XDA-3. I would like to find a way to play stereo audio Hi-rez Blu-ray discs with the XDA-3. I haven't been successful yet. I have some Pure Audio LSO Blu-ray audio discs that include downloadable stereo files in DSD, Hi-rez FLAC, WAV, and MP3. Recording provenance is stated on most of the discs. IF I have extra time this winter, I will try some of these downloadable files. These are accessed with a network connection, a browser, and mShuttle. It appears Pure Audio and LSO made a small number of different recordings like this and are not adding more. They were sold with both Hybrid SACDs and a various format Blu-ray in the package. The recordings were relatively inexpensive. Too much of a good thing? Have you considered HDMI ARC? Or something like DVD Audio Extractor that works with BD Pure Audio. That will allow you to rip the multi-channel and/or stereo hi-res tracks. No I haven't. For all I do know about audio, this area is a blind spot for me. I have never used ARC for anything. I hardly used my computer as a player to play back ripped CDs until I bought the XDA-3. Now, my entire CD collection is ripped to computer. I upgraded my old JRiver software to the current version. JRiver remembered me after years of non-use and I received the upgrade price. I now use the XDA-3 for all ripped CD playback, some ripped LPs, and a couple of Hi-rez downloads. But, none of this goes to the RMC-1L and HT yet. I insisted on using all physical media and fell behind the learning curve. If I do rip multi-channel audio, I still can't play it anywhere - Another blind spot. I have a few household things to do before winter arrives... |
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