HeadleyLamarr
New Head-Fier
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2015
- Posts
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- 11
This is my first post on this forum, and the Explorer2 is the first external DAC that I have used. I am hoping it will improve the sound output of my 2013 MacBook Pro and 2014 iMac Retina. The output of the Explorer2 drives a pair of self-powered desktop speakers (Sony SRS-88, surprisingly good), or Sennheiser Momentum headphones, or occasionally my main Hi-Fi system (mostly vintage gear: Counterpoint SA-3000 preamp, Aragon 4004 amp, Acoustat 3 full-range electrostatic speakers).
So far I am a bit underwhelmed by the performance of the Explorer2. The audible difference between it and the native DACs in my Macs is very subtle. Some music sounds better through the Explorer, some pieces sound better through the native DACs. I can hear a bit more clarity when listening to very well-mastered material. But to my ears, adding the Explorer2 is not an "OMG!" improvement on all recordings. I have certainly heard far more significant differences when upgrading speakers, amps, and phono gear.
Currently I am testing 44.1k/16bit digital files downloaded from the iTunes store, and others backed up from my CD collection. I have also tried music from the Tidal streaming service (using their one week free trial). I have not tried files with higher sample size or sample rate. Are there sources where I can obtain high-bit rate FLAC or ALAC files without having to purchase entire albums? Are there any MQA demos available for download?
Meridian's set up instructions for Mac recommend selecting an appropriate sample rate in the Audio Midi Setup application. If I am only playing 44.1k files, is there any reason to choose a higher rate in this app? I understand that the Explorer2 resamples a 44.1k stream at a higher rate. Is there any advantage to doing the resampling in the Mac or in the Explorer2? If I aquire some files coded with higher sample rates, is it necessary for me to change the setting in Audio Midi Setup whenever I switch between high and low rate files?
If I play a CD in the optical drive of a Mac, is there any advantage to using Explorer2? In this case I don’t know whether the Mac relays the digital data directly from the disk or runs it through an internal DAC stage (and then converts back to digital before sending it out the USB port).
Meridian announced that they are partnering with Tidal, who will be streaming MQA content. People who purchase the Explorer2 will receive a three month subscription on Tidal. Has anyone received instructions on how to activate this?
So far I am a bit underwhelmed by the performance of the Explorer2. The audible difference between it and the native DACs in my Macs is very subtle. Some music sounds better through the Explorer, some pieces sound better through the native DACs. I can hear a bit more clarity when listening to very well-mastered material. But to my ears, adding the Explorer2 is not an "OMG!" improvement on all recordings. I have certainly heard far more significant differences when upgrading speakers, amps, and phono gear.
Currently I am testing 44.1k/16bit digital files downloaded from the iTunes store, and others backed up from my CD collection. I have also tried music from the Tidal streaming service (using their one week free trial). I have not tried files with higher sample size or sample rate. Are there sources where I can obtain high-bit rate FLAC or ALAC files without having to purchase entire albums? Are there any MQA demos available for download?
Meridian's set up instructions for Mac recommend selecting an appropriate sample rate in the Audio Midi Setup application. If I am only playing 44.1k files, is there any reason to choose a higher rate in this app? I understand that the Explorer2 resamples a 44.1k stream at a higher rate. Is there any advantage to doing the resampling in the Mac or in the Explorer2? If I aquire some files coded with higher sample rates, is it necessary for me to change the setting in Audio Midi Setup whenever I switch between high and low rate files?
If I play a CD in the optical drive of a Mac, is there any advantage to using Explorer2? In this case I don’t know whether the Mac relays the digital data directly from the disk or runs it through an internal DAC stage (and then converts back to digital before sending it out the USB port).
Meridian announced that they are partnering with Tidal, who will be streaming MQA content. People who purchase the Explorer2 will receive a three month subscription on Tidal. Has anyone received instructions on how to activate this?