I have a Tambaqui of sorts on order :) Talking about the Kula, should arrive some time next week. Can't wait to hear what all that buzz is about as I have never had the chance to experience it so far. Currently using the NAD M33 and I have to say, the convenience of having just one box taking...

Most DDCs require USB input making them pretty useless with a TV that only has HDMI and optical outputs.

That's correct, I need A8's user friendly remote and eARC input. For critical listening I can use D&D's internal streamer in Roon. Not interested in any solutions, simply need to find out from an A8 owner if the device can output TV sound to USB or coaxial outputs via eARC.

Those aren't streamers and don't have HDMI input, let alone eArc. Quite familiar with ADIs, owned one a few years ago. The solution has to be civilian (aka wife) friendly, I'm quite content with D&Ds being a Roon endpoint.

Could someone please advise me on eARC? I am looking at buying an A8 to output coaxial (with AES/EBU transformer) or USB (through an X-SPDIF 2 DDC) to a pair of D&D 8C speakers that accept only AES/EBU digital input. Want to avoid sending XLR analog signal to the speakers at an additional ADC...

I've found that BluOS sounds better with my local library and Qobuz than Roon, so not sure I'll renew my annual subscription. Plus, BluOS simply flies between the folders located on a Roon ROCK acting like a NAS for my NAD M33 streaming amp. Roon? Crawling at times, and useless if the internet...

Just one last question on this: if shielding is irrelevant, what makes the difference between say CAT5 and CAT8? What makes up for that massive bandwidth increase? Number of wires and copper conductors look pretty much the same to me.

Which part of "I like the looks of my CHEAP CAT8 cables" wasn't clear? :beyersmile: Price in AUD, about 3 and a half freedom buckaroos! https://www.msy.com.au/product/cablelist-flat-cat8-sstp-rj45-ethernet-cable-1m-67031

I know that, of course. The idea is that higher CAT rated cables have better shielding, that's all. Anything CAT 6 and above will do shielding wise, but CAT8 are inexpensive and look great, so why not?

Yes, that's exactly right. Two 108s between your router and the streamer, with the iSilencer either at streamer end or at the input into the second streamer. Keep your streamer alone on switch 2. To my ears the iSilencer had better impact when used between the switches. I use cheap CAT8 LAN...

I got two switches and the iSilencer just before switch 2 that feeds my M33 integrated amp. The effect on the sound when compared to the iSilencer alone is shocking.

The whole mod (2 x switches, CAT8 cables) cost me less than I paid for one iSilencer. Already had a great dual power supply that was sitting in the garage since I downsized my system to one box, NAD Masters M33. According to the guys from Alpha Audio, the little D-Link switch is pretty quiet...

Watch these two videos: and

Forget expensive, "audiophile grade" switches. All you need is two D-LINK DGS-108 Desktop Switch with good power supplies between your router/wall LAN plug and the streamer.

That's right, you don't need a switch, you need two! From the router, cable to first switch, with the iSilencer at the switch end. From there, cable to the second switch and from there cable to your streamer. Connect anything else to the first switch only so the second is used exclusively for...