[naynay]

2. Remove M Scaler from the chain. This fixed the crack immediately.

Does this not tell you 90% BNC cable issue?

 

[zenlisten]

Continued testing the crack noise on the right-hand side of M Scaler today, after the USB and BNC cables have been separated as much as possible. I have also followed the advice by @Deano1974 and carefully adjusted the cables as much as I could.

Results: The crack noises happen less frequently. I started timing the cracks via a stopwatch first but it was very soon clear that they happened less frequently. They sound like they are even less loud but I am not sure as I didn't want to keep listening to the same track again and again. The cracks appear consistently on the right-hand side, even after the cables have been exchanged.

Tomorrow I plan to move the system to another room on another level, and see what happens. I have also ordered the WAVE cables. Can't wait to try them.

 

[mightyKyn]

Chord should create a custom backpack with lion batts for TT2MSC.

IM AM NOT KIDDING

I would buy it and go for evening walks or gentle hikes.

 

[Christer]

Continued testing the crack noise on the right-hand side of M Scaler today, after the USB and BNC cables have been separated as much as possible. I have also followed the advice by @Deano1974 and carefully adjusted the cables as much as I could.

Results: The crack noises happen less frequently. I started timing the cracks via a stopwatch first but it was very soon clear that they happened less frequently. They sound like they are even less loud but I am not sure as I didn't want to keep listening to the same track again and again. The cracks appear consistently on the right-hand side, even after the cables have been exchanged.

Tomorrow I plan to move the system to another room on another level, and see what happens. I have also ordered the WAVE cables. Can't wait to try them.

It seems very likely that your problems are stock BNC cable related.
During the first 4 months of travel in Asia setting up my Qutest /HMS in a new hotel quite regularly I had plenty of similar problems and even complete dropouts sometimes. And if I kept my HD800 headphone cable very close to HMS that would also cause dropouts and annoying clicks.
Since getting the Wave BNCs I have not experienced any such problems at all.
And other digital noise issues have become much less of a problem as well.
But I can hear a small difference noise wise between optical and usb with my mbp and cd players and HMS.

My next avenue of exploring differences between cables will be trying the Lush usb recommended by Raydude and others.
I can now firmly say that not only do rca cables and their quality influence SQ,and sometimes dramatically.

But also that BNC cables can sound different as well with HMS.

Apart from the stock cable I have only closely compared two, Wave Storm and Stream, and both clearly improve SQ over stock. And they also sound clearly diffferent to me in my system.

I don't understand why. But I can clearly hear it.

PS. And the battery powered psu also makes a clear difference compared to the stock smps with my Qutest.
Qutest does not have any supercaps like TT2 and with Wave BNC cables and the battery psu my Q/HMS are simply much more enjoyable than in their stock versions.
Cheers CC

 

[rkt31]

I got custom digital Coaxial cables made out of furutech FX alpha ag bulk cable with furutech locking type RCA plugs. i also used a layer of copper tape over these Coaxial cables to reduce the emi and RFI effects further. it was a very easy and cheap tweak. But it made cables a bit stiff so the rca to bnc adaptors provided a bit of cushion also these rca cables can also work as regular rca coaxial digital cable in future. So far the connection is very secure and no dropouts etc.

 

[apmusson]

Does anyone use a SOtM sCLK-OCX10 master clock (via SOtM 200ultra or neo) as a source for their mscaler? If so does it make a big difference?

I watched the video below and it got me itching......

 

[ray-dude]

My next avenue of exploring differences between cables will be trying the Lush usb recommended by Raydude and others.
I can now firmly say that not only do rca cables and their quality influence SQ,and sometimes dramatically.

But also that BNC cables can sound different as well with HMS.

Apart from the stock cable I have only closely compared two, Wave Storm and Stream, and both clearly improve SQ over stock. And they also sound clearly diffferent to me in my system.

I don't understand why. But I can clearly hear it.

PS. And the battery powered psu also makes a clear difference compared to the stock smps with my Qutest.
Qutest does not have any supercaps like TT2 and with Wave BNC cables and the battery psu my Q/HMS are simply much more enjoyable than in their stock versions.
Cheers CC

If you really want a head spin, get an ISO Regen and LPS 1.2 on trial, and give them a go. Aside from cleaning up the USB signal going into HMS, it will also inject clean power into the USB receiver on the HMS. Crazy how much of a difference it makes, and head spinning to grasp at what the mechanism might be.

When you're ready for next level madness, get something like the Matrix Audio XSPDIF 2 digital to digital converter (USB in, TOSLINK optical out). Even with this, I hear a big difference with the ISO Regen, Lush^2 with different shielding configs, and LPS 1.2 (LPS 1.2, through the ISO Regen, is powering the Matrix XSPDIF 2).

My preferred setup right now is NUC endpoint (USB) to Lush^2 (you'll be amazed how different different shield configs sound) to Uptone Audio ISO Regen (powered by Uptone LPS 1.2) to USPCB adapter (comes with ISO Regen) to Matrix XSPDIF2 to optical toslink to Hugo mScaler (powered by PowerAdd Pilot2 battery or unmentionables) to Opto•DX to DAVE

 

[JaZZ]

If you really want a head spin, get an ISO Regen and LPS 1.2 on trial, and give them a go. Aside from cleaning up the USB signal going into HMS, it will also inject clean power into the USB receiver on the HMS. Crazy how much of a difference it makes, and head spinning to grasp at what the mechanism might be.

Why is it – then – that I'm unable to hear a difference between Toslink and USB without any of the above cleaning measures? Of course different hearing sensitivities might be an explanation, or different RFI intensities from the sources (a normal desktop computer in my case).

 

[ray-dude]

Why is it – then – that I'm unable to hear a difference between Toslink and USB without any of the above cleaning measures? Of course different hearing sensitivities might be an explanation, or different RFI intensities from the sources (a normal desktop computer in my case).

That's part of why this stuff is head spinning maddening. So much is system/home dependent, and I think to a lessor extent, ear dependent. These are all tactics to try and see if they make a difference for you. I wouldn't lean into any of these tactics without an in home trial (or the ability to easily return things).

Good news (for me) is that Uptone Audio has a very generous 30 day return policy (no questions asked) (ISO Regen and LPS 1.2), and I was able to use a $30 Chromecast Audio to toslink to hear a big difference in my system. That gave me confidence to invest in a used Matrix Audio XSPDIF2 ($250 used). I was able to try things out with very little financial exposure.

 

[HumanMedia]

Why is it – then – that I'm unable to hear a difference between Toslink and USB without any of the above cleaning measures? Of course different hearing sensitivities might be an explanation, or different RFI intensities from the sources (a normal desktop computer in my case).

Here is something I’ve noticed over time. 15 years ago I had my amp on a balancing transformer, thinking it was a good idea. I couldn’t tell the difference between cables and tweaks and poo pooed that power cables could make any difference. But I wasn’t happy with the sound and borrowed many cables and tweaks to fix it but nothing did. Turned out putting my amp on a balancing transformer was the problem and gave my system constrained sound. I moved the amp off the transformer and directly into the wall. Wow constrained sound fixed.

And then I could clearly hear powercord and interconnect differences. It was a revelation.

My gut feel is that obfuscating the effects of the RFI furnace of a standard desktop computer, that the sound will improve and you will then start hearing the next smaller obstacles to improved sound.

 

[JaZZ]

No such thing as a balancing transformer here. I think my system has a really high resolution, but I could never hear an effect from different power cords or filters. I used a PS Audio Ultimate Outlet until three or four years ago when it died, but didn't miss it one bit afterwards. Well, that wasn't with my now components (DAVE, M Scaler), but the original Hugo.

In turn analogue cables make a clear difference and always made, in fact I'm even particularly sensitive to them. In contrast to ferrite cores on DAVE's power cord and the USB cable from the computer.

 

[dmance]

I’m not sure if it’s traveling through the power cable since I have the Zen on a linear power supply and a heavily shielded Ghent Audio DC cable and the Mscaler is always on a Pilot Pro Battery with the same DC type able.

RF noise isolation requires optical signal connection and battery power connection. Then once you have done this and you still hear upstream differences, the only path left is free air. I took the bait and have done all the measurement to fully convince myself that DACs (well chord DACs in my testing) are sensitive to proximate RF noisy digital component. I was aghast, incredulous ...but please trust me it's true.
If you can put as much of your digital chain upstream of your DAC inside a RF isolation chamber then sound quality dependence on tweaks goes away completely.

 

[mightyKyn]

Kann Cube optical out into Mscaler + TT2 into LCD 24
Nice.... everything gets sampled up to 768 with the mscaler due to the opti at 96k... any issues with this? I cannot seem to detec diff between 705 from USB and 768 from opti when i switch back and forth

good portable setup.

 

[mightyKyn]

had the ex ex listen to the 4z on mscaler + tt2 tonight

she was floored... felt that everything she heard to this point in her life was like listening to tin cans.

 

[mightyKyn]

try this on the mscaler just found on Roon... wonderful

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidc...it-their-hits-with-an-orchestra/#7c01885f76b6