[Designsfx]

@Gazza
Unlike most here I’m not running a headphone system- I‘m in the 2 channel world of floor standing speakers. I should fill out the system details as it helps folks know where your coming from- but I’m rarely on this forum so I just passed that part up.
My system consists of ARC amp and preamp- GS150 and REF6. I use a Naim Uniti Core w/x2 Samsung Evo drives and a Lumin U2 Mini streamer. My speakers are Dynaudio 30th Anniversary Sapphires. The Naim and Lumin are pushed to either the Aqua La Scala Optologic MKII or a Lampizator Golden Atlantic TRP 3 Balanced. I use an Oppo 105D as a CD transport. DSD playback is from a MacBook Pro via USB or via network to the Lumin.
I spend most of my time here following the tube threads as I’m always seeking people’s experiences on tubes and how they sound with different gear. It helps when researching tubes to try with my Lampizator. I saw this thread and was interested to hear about the La Scala, it has been my go to for the last few years but I’m working on getting the TRP into shape to replace it (for the most part).

 

[Gazza]

@Gazza
Unlike most here I’m not running a headphone system- I‘m in the 2 channel world of floor standing speakers. I should fill out the system details as it helps folks know where your coming from- but I’m rarely on this forum so I just passed that part up.
My system consists of ARC amp and preamp- GS150 and REF6. I use a Naim Uniti Core w/x2 Samsung Evo drives and a Lumin U2 Mini streamer. My speakers are Dynaudio 30th Anniversary Sapphires. The Naim and Lumin are pushed to either the Aqua La Scala Optologic MKII or a Lampizator Golden Atlantic TRP 3 Balanced. I use an Oppo 105D as a CD transport. DSD playback is from a MacBook Pro via USB or via network to the Lumin.
I spend most of my time here following the tube threads as I’m always seeking people’s experiences on tubes and how they sound with different gear. It helps when researching tubes to try with my Lampizator. I saw this thread and was interested to hear about the La Scala, it has been my go to for the last few years but I’m working on getting the TRP into shape to replace it (for the most part).

That's a fantastic system. Must sound lovely. And I'm with you re: mainly listening to speakers. These days I listen to speakers 95% of the time as I much prefer enaging with my music that way.

 

[Designsfx]

@Gazza
Thanks for the compliment- its been a great thing to have in my life and I love spending as much time listening as possible. I noticed on your gear listing you show a DDC. Does that interface directly to your La Scala and if so are you using I2s?

 

[Gazza]

@Designsfx Yes, it goes directly into my La Scala. It's a USB regenerator/reclocker so it's only USB in and out. I have my PC going into it using Roon (my Innuos Zen Mini is the Roon Core and acts as my NAS) which then gets cleaned up for my La Scala.

 

[Designsfx]

@Gazza
That‘s interesting to me purely because it sounds as if you’ve moved primarily to USB. Are you listening to a lot of music that exceeds 24/192 and did you implement the reclocker immediately upon moving to Innuous or was it added at a later point because you felt it a necessity?

I’ve only used USB when going out of my MacBook Pro- thought about trying it with my streamer (I rely on AES) but only stream Qobuz and it’s not like there is a lot of really high resolution stuff there. If Native DSD came up with more titles I could get into I’d probably invest more energy into USB.

Another question. Are you using Roon for its file management interface or are you adding signal processing in your playback chain as well?

 

[Gazza]

@Gazza
That‘s interesting to me purely because it sounds as if you’ve moved primarily to USB. Are you listening to a lot of music that exceeds 24/192 and did you implement the reclocker immediately upon moving to Innuous or was it added at a later point because you felt it a necessity?

I’ve only used USB when going out of my MacBook Pro- thought about trying it with my streamer (I rely on AES) but only stream Qobuz and it’s not like there is a lot of really high resolution stuff there. If Native DSD came up with more titles I could get into I’d probably invest more energy into USB.

Another question. Are you using Roon for its file management interface or are you adding signal processing in your playback chain as well?

The majority of what I listen to (digitally that is) are CDs that I ripped to my Innuos Zen Mini, with the rest being Qubuz and some internet radio. I do use Roon to manage everything.

I don't care about high-res as the recording quality matters far more than the bitrate/resolution. Most of my CDs sound better than anything I stream. The PhoenixUSB is purely about making digital sound better and more natural and life-like, which it does with aplomb and is vital in my opinion.

I used to use my Zen Mini via the Innuos Sense app to manage and play all of my music (fed into the Phoenix) but as I use my PC quite a lot (gaming, streaming shows, watching Youtube, etc) I decided to connect it straight to the Phoenix so that way everything would sound amazing, not just my music library.

Maybe, maaaaaaybe one day I'll get the matching dedicated Aqua streamer, the LinQ but I feel it wouldn't be an appreciable upgrade vs my current digital chain. The money would be better spend upgrading my vinyl set-up honestly.

 

[Designsfx]

I agree with you on the Lin Q, I tossed that one around for quite some time when thinking about a streamer. I think they’re kind of expensive for what they are- even though there are occasional deals to be had on the used market. I never put a lot of time into streaming- just to check out an artist before making the decision to buy the CD and I was always on Spotify. Another forum member suggested I pick up a U1 Mini transport for streaming and switch to Qobuz- the U2 had just came out and I decided to go that route. I also wanted to invest in another dac as well hence the Lampizator. Like you I prefer to keep mostly to CD’s- they sound great on my setup and are easily acquired. I‘m not sure of how far I’ll invest into the streaming platform- I know guys that have Taiko Xtremes and Grimm setups and that adds up to a lot of $$$$. Maybe someday..

 

[Gazza]

Honestly, I feel like with digital once you get to a certain level (say the La Scala for example), increasing performance comes at a massive investment cost. The laws of diminishing returns hits the hardest with DACs/streamers et al and makes you reconsider where the money would be better spent.

Which is why I'd rather spend the money on vinyl upgrades as due to the mechanical nature of the medium the better you make it (better tolerances, greater accuracy) the better sound you can wring out of the grooves. The sky's really the limit and you hear very appreciable improvements with reasonable investment.

In my case I'm planning to upgrade the tonearm on my turntable rather than chasing further improvements to my digital chain which honestly sounds fantastic.

 

[Designsfx]

@Gazza
I know many that have followed the path you outlined above and are more than satisfied- they consider digital more of a convenience than anything. I on the other hand am not in that situation as I made the decision to sell off my vinyl back in the late 80’s, it’s been CD’s ever since. There have been a few times that I’ve thought about starting another collection but when I consider the cost of building that ability back into my system I always pass. As one who appreciates turntables have you seen the video of Ken Fritz’ system? My wife and I were watching it again this morning as there was an announcement that his system is being auctioned off (I’m assuming by the surviving members of his family). There is a short section where he explains how he went about the construction of his table system- very smart man to say the least.
Ken Fritz System