[bcwang]

Quote:

Fascinating to read about which filter people prefer and why; we all hear different, looking first for deep bass, pure treble, transients, detail, hating other aspects like sharp treble, boombass, etc. etc. I'm convinced even two people loving the same music and listening to the same hardware will hear the same; one of them  f.i. bobs his head on the rhythm, the other is enjoying the lovely tonal qualities of the singer, another loves the beauty of the melody fore all...
Did some more experimenting and I'm back now to filter 5; it gives more dynamics, better stereo sound stage and details then filter 2 and to my ears the purest treble of all filters; in return filter 2 gives a rounded off sound that can be pleasant with the voice more in the foreground, but with some grain.
Compared to my former Audio-GD REF5 the Rega is on most accounts better, and certainly more enjoyable (the only thing that really really counts, I buy this things for my pleasure) but the Audio-GD was much clearer then the Rega, which seems to have a veil, more background noise.
I'm suspecting using the supplied lead, Khollister clearly stated it makes a big difference in his system and I remember my Apollo suddenly sounding a lot cleaner after I installed the vd Hul Mainsserver, a 'filtering' power cord, that certainly made a difference. Perhaps I'll buy one again, I'll experiment some more after I receive my C5-IEC adapter; I wish Rega would have gone IEC in the first place, slightly chancing the board or cage so that it would fit, can't be that much real estate.

You're talking about redbook here right?  What about for hi-res, which filter do you prefer?
 
Interesting that you find the Rega veiled, which interface are you using on it?

 

[lmf22]

dura,
My impressions of Filters 2 and 5 are similar to yours and I still prefer Filter 5.  I plan to get the Pangea AC14SE power cord soon.  Maybe I can post impressions in the next few weeks.  By the way, do power cords need burn in?  How many hours? 
 
khollister,
I noticed in your signature that you have the PS Audio Power Plant Premier.  Does it make a big difference with your components?  I live in an old apartment building and I'm guessing the electricity is quite "dirty" (sometimes my Entech Powerline Analyzer picks up a buzzing sound, but very little noise).  So I've been thinking about get a power regenerator like the Power Plant Premier.  Do you think it's worth it?  I saw some on Audiogon that sells for about $1100-1200. 
 
~Wenson

 

[dura]

You're talking about redbook here right?  What about for hi-res, which filter do you prefer?
 
Interesting that you find the Rega veiled, which interface are you using on it?

Yes, redbook, I do not have many hi-res files, and haven't given them much attention.
Interface? None, see sign.

Hi LMF22, looking forward to your impressions with the powercords. I don't know if they need much burn in.

 

[bcwang]

Quote:

Yes, redbook, I do not have many hi-res files, and haven't given them much attention.
Interface? None, see sign.

Hi LMF22, looking forward to your impressions with the powercords. I don't know if they need much burn in.

Oh, squeezebox touch, so not USB then.  I read somewhere that the Rega Dac is affected by power cords and noise in the powerline...specifically that the squeezebox touch switching power supply plugged into the same strip as the Rega will negatively affect sound.  By moving it to another outlet the sound was improved.  Maybe something you could try and see if it makes any difference.
 

 

[dura]

Hi, yes, read that too.
But they are already on different mains, and the Touch PS is behind a filter.
I'll definetely experiment with powercords/filters, once I got my adapter.

 

[khollister]

While the power cord certainly makes a difference, lack of clarity is also a primary symptom of jitter. It is also my observation that components that sound brighter also appear to be clearer or more transparent, even when it really isn't. The SB Touch is convenient and pretty good in stock form, but it is not the equal to a good USB converter such as an Evo, Audiophilleo or Off Ramp. I got another jump in transparency with my Evo when I used a higher quality power supply.

And to the earlier poster asking about the PS PPP, yes it makes a significant difference but in a way different than you might be expecting. I used to have very large swings in sound quality which I proved to my satisfaction was low frequency interference on the power line ( with an industrial Elgar power regenerator and a spectrum analyzer I borrowed from work). The PPP doesn't make things sound a a lot better than when the stereo had that magical quality at 3 AM, but I now have consistency - it always sounds close to optimal.

The hardest quality to achieve in high end audio is that magic sense of transparency (the reach out and touch the performers thing) without unnatural brightness or timbre alterations. In my experience, tubes and low jitter in digital sources are two primary contributors. getting sound to be warm, full-bodied, delicate and detailed ain't easy.

I think the Rega is very transparent and resolving (some would say in spite of my HD650's and Cardas Golden Cross IC's), but the Evo, CIAudio PSa and USB and S/PDIF cables were what got me there. The sound Dura is describing is very similar to how I would describe what I heard driving the Rega via Toslink directly out of my Mac Mini. There was a "hashy" quality and lack of being able to hear into the soundstage that went away with a lower jitter feed from the Evo.

I have never heard the AudioGD stuff ( apparently the only person here that hasn't based on the number of threads about them ) but I am willing to bet the tonal balance is quite a bit brighter/leaner and this lends an apparent sense of clarity.

 

[khollister]

Touch owners might want to try the software mods here:

http://soundcheck-audio.blogspot.com/2011/01/soundchecks-squeezebox-touch-toolbox-20.html

 

[dura]

Hi, thanks for the tips. I already experimented with the soundcheck touch software mods, but find the difference insignificant.
This weekend it occurred to me that the veil/noise was greatly reduced. And since everything here sounds better in the weekend and the worst sound is on weekday evenings (also when I'm free, no personal condition) I think it is very likely mains pollution is the main culprit.
Also, jittery sources sound more dull, bland, while the Rega sounds crisp and dynamic, but in my case sometime with noise. And the Touch seems to have a very clean SPDIF output. Perhaps I shouldn't have used the word veil since that indeed points to jitter?
But jitter affects the signal itself, removing detail, this sounds more like background noise to me. 
As soon as I get the c5-iec adapter I'll try a filtering power cable like the vdHul mainsserver, which sounded great on the Apollo (and rather bad on most other sources) giving a much cleaner sound with less noise.
 
 
UPDATE: the adapter came in today; I replaced the standard cord with a fat Belden cable I had laying around and the sound got cleaner and more weighty.
Compared to the supplied cable, the Belden has more copper in it and is very well shielded, I've my doubts if the supplied cable is shielded and if so, how much.
Perhaps not the best match, the Belden is more a poweramp cable, but now it is clear to me that the Rega DAC is sensitive to chances concerning the power supply; as Khollister already stated.
I might get myself a more suitable cable some time if I ever feel the need, but for now I'm enjoying the extra -good quality- bass.

 

[khollister]

Good to hear - I was rather amazed at how much worse it sounded with the stock power cable.

 

[dura]

Me too! In my experience components are usually not that sensitive to powercables.
But the Rega DAC, and before that, the Rega Apollo, are big exceptions.
Perhaps the way they design the powersupply gives the Rega gear that nice sound but also that sensitivity?
After a few hours of relaxed listening the difference between the stockcable and the Belden is rather significant, the Belden being superior, sounding cleaner with much purer treble and made me loose my last reservations about the sound. Filter 5 stays favorite, giving a smooth and pure sound, with #1 being a second now, sounding energetic.
BTW, it is not an expensive cable at all, paid €30,- at the local hifi shop. Rega should supply one as standard, it gives a really good return of investment, in my system, at least.

 

[vert]

If the DAC is sensitive to power cords, once you get used to the sound of a nice aftermarket cord, it's nearly impossible to go back to the stock cord.

 

[bcwang]

Anyone try the Rega Dac with an iPad camera connection kit to see if it works?

 

[lmf22]

Quote:

Anyone try the Rega Dac with an iPad camera connection kit to see if it works?

 
I tried it.  The Rega DAC works with the iPad 2. 
 

 

[HumanMedia]

Quote:

I tried it.  The Rega DAC works with the iPad 2. 
 

!
How exactly does it work?
Takes a 44.1K digital stream from the iPad over USB?
Details?
 
 

 

[bcwang]

Quote:

 
I tried it.  The Rega DAC works with the iPad 2. 
 

Glad to know that is the case.  With the recent IOS update I read about, maybe more DACs that weren't supported before will work as well.
 
Now here is an interesting idea: anyone ever try two Rega DACs and daisy chained them to see if the second one sounds better?  Why?  Well the digital outputs are supposed to be cleaned up (reduced jitter) versions of the digital inputs.  So it's like giving the second Dac a better signal to start with thus maybe performing at the level of one of the low jitter usb to spdif converters.  It would be interesting to try if someone had access to two of these Rega DACs.