Mynaim,   Many thanks for posting that Linux output,  cf   cat/proc/asound/card1/stream0 with the V-Link:   cat /proc/asound/VLink/stream0 Musical Fidelity Musical Fidelity V-Link at usb-0000:00:02.0-1, full speed : USB Audio   Playback:  Status: Running    Interface = 1...

Thanks for the link, I dropped JKeny an email via his site to ask if he has any interest in incorporating the Hiface Two in his products.    Only one person on that thread mentions XMOS, but based on what?

Quote: Hmm,  £140 seems a low price for a XMOS based device.  Hopefully real world use might provide some feedback on this.  And there's always Jkenny whose DACs etc are based on modded original Hiface. I wonder if he will have any interest in the new Hiface Two.

Quote:   We know the new, and more expensive, V-link 192 uses the XMOS RISC processor, but I'm not clear if it has any from of  galvantic isolation, the original V-Link had neither.   We also know the Stello U3 is based around the XMOS RISC processor and has galvantic isolation, but...

Quote: Really, I don't think you need to worry about sound playback where bit padding from 16bits to 24bits takes place.  Mixers and software volume controls are a concern, and do degrade playback SQ.  But it's not just so you can play 24/96, it's the magic bullet of "async USB" you'll be...

Quote: Now I see what you meant. That is correct.   AFAIK all Envy24 based cards end up being referenced as a "plughw" device in ALSA as the ICE chipsets work on a 32 bit format. So in my case 24/9600 and higher rez files still need linear PCM format conversion if I send playback via...

  Quote: While I probably should have said "then in Linux it might  be addressed in ALSA as a plughw device" , I believe your own statement is incorrect. It's not just a case of what format a particular Linux sound player supports (MPD, mplayer etc.) but also if this matches what the...

Quote: About point 3 above. If it's true that the V-link hardware requires a 24bit format, then in Linux it will be addressed in ALSA as a plughw device, as format conversion  (not the same as sample rate conversion) is required to match the audio format to what the hardware needs. Yes...

JetBlackStar,   Thanks for your post. As a Linux user myself it's good to have confirmation that the MF V-Link works under Linux. I use KDE distros rather than Gnomed based Ubuntu. But it's really commands at the CLI that will allow you to see how the V-Link is functioning.  It's curious...

That statement doesn't make much sense to me.  As far as I can tell, there is only one xtal on the V-link's pcb. It's a 6MHz oscillator which acts as the  master clock of the TAS 1020B USB stream controller whose internal logic generates all other frequencies. It's the TAS1020B that controls the...

HiFace v. V-Link ? ... I'm all ears. This is the comparison I'm waiting for. Anyone tried the V-Link with Linux yet? There are plenty of Linux LiveCDs around to give it a go. Interested to see what "lsusb -v" at the command line reports, and how it works with ALSA etc. It should be OK as the...

Your are probably right not to be too obessive about component costs etc., but I 'd like to think that taken as a whole the V-Link was fair VFM.     The big plus is that the V-link effectively needs no OS drivers,  Musiland or the new KingReX 192 convertor all seem to have had/have their...

IC3 is some kind of eeprom - a 24LC????.. The single 6MHz xtal on the pcb (H6.000L0) is connected to the TAS1020B USB stream controller. So computeraudiophile were wrong and the MF marketing blurb is basically correct. But as to it being an "ultra high precision clock" is another question.  ...

Wood is listening over ESL63's ... I'm impressed.   Anyway, look's like someone somewhere got their line's crossed on the "two oscillator" thing.   I cannot make out the marking on the top of the xtal, and being an electronics numpty doesn't help. I notice the blurb on MF's website says ...

Thanks for the pic Wood.  Unless it's hiding, there does seem to be only one xtal, but it looks like it's labeled XT2, which is curious.  What number is written on the Xtal's metal case?   Now  I'm wondering where that info about "two separate clocks came from". Surely review version of this...