[Amberlamps]

so let me understand, your assertion is that the dave for instance can never be improved or updated?...hmmmmm

Dave can be improved, one could use the screen for album art and track name.

If thought through correctly, we could live stream tha hub on dave's screen, that alone is worth dave's £8500 entrance fee.

Seriously though, why does dave not have an hdmi port ?

 

[llamaluv]

RF is so variable based on so many in home factors.

I also wonder if the mScaler RF discussion is due to:

1. An MScaler is a signifanct piece of machinery in the chain where as most digital set ups are only DAC/Amp.

2. As Chord fanboys, we all appreciate the insane transparency and accuracy their DACs provide and this it makes RF more noticeable.

that said, the Wave Cables and keeping my mScaler and TT2 a few feet apart have my system running like magic.

Or, dare I suggest, 3. The FPGA is doing an insane amount of number-crunching relative to any other digital audio product (12 watts' worth), and is feeding a commensurately large amount of noise into the signal chain.

Would love some objective data to disabuse me of this (speculative) notion, however.

 

[mt-hifidelity]

Is anyone here running an M Scaler with a Hugo 2 and can comment on the experience and benefit to SQ? I'm considering this for a transportable source, paired with my existing Broadway amp.

 

[Ragnar-BY]

so let me understand, your assertion is that the dave for instance can never be improved or updated?...hmmmmm

DAVE could be improved. But not with software update.

 

[jlbrach]

not as presently built it couldn't

 

[dac64]

Wraped a wire around BNC connector? Did you ground DAC too or HMS only?

No, for the external RFI. One has mentioned copper tape helps to reduce the RFI within the BNC cables.

Maybe I will try it one day onto my ferrited BNC 's.

AS for the foils, there was a gap between the HMS and Qutest therefore I just taped six layers of foils onto the desktop between the two.

And short the foils and Input BNC of the HMS to the same ground.

Why six but not five, four, three...

My friend has blocked his hp from microwave using three layers of foils, and since foils were easily available and cost nothing therefore I have six!

And why foils in between the two? This was because someone had mentioned 5m was the minimum distance between the two...

 

[dac64]

Gotcha @Triode User

I like the fact that PS Audio offers code updates that can refresh and improve the sound quality. I don't believe that's an approach that Chord embraces.

I also constantly received updates for the HMS/Qutest!

 

[jarnopp]

DAVE could be improved. But not with software update.

Exactly. I think the idea is that there is a a perfect reconstruction formula, but it’s infinite in length. So it’s not unknown and therefore doesn’t need improving. But it is hardware limited, and so improvements can only come with greater hardware capacity. My impression. Rob, hope that was not misstated. The other improvements would be in output stages, power supplies, etc.

 

[mlxx]

Exactly. I think the idea is that there is a a perfect reconstruction formula, but it’s infinite in length. So it’s not unknown and therefore doesn’t need improving. But it is hardware limited, and so improvements can only come with greater hardware capacity. My impression. Rob, hope that was not misstated. The other improvements would be in output stages, power supplies, etc.

Forgot Rob's recent reply to you?

But the real interesting stuff is when you take a sinc function and try to meld it to suit the real life requirements of limited processing - or getting more sonic improvements from finite resources. Then it becomes very interesting indeed, with lots of careful listening tests, lots of evaluating and changing of parameters to create ones own windowing function.

WTA is always evolving (for 20 years) as there is no correct answer how to do this.
The theory is impossible in the real world and using just a truncated sinc doesn't work so well.
It needs massaging and tender loving care (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Window_function).

I can see why Chord didn't go down this road. The FPGA is already maxed out and tied to the hardware to a degree.
It would add more complexity to allow for updates and probably make the source code more vulnerable to copying too.
It was Ted's first DAC I believe, so may explain why there are big improvements (steep learning curve) and why they offer updates.
But if Ted can get measurements like those to sound good, he could indeed be some kind of genius.

 

[jarnopp]

Forgot Rob's recent reply to you?

But the real interesting stuff is when you take a sinc function and try to meld it to suit the real life requirements of limited processing - or getting more sonic improvements from finite resources. Then it becomes very interesting indeed, with lots of careful listening tests, lots of evaluating and changing of parameters to create ones own windowing function.

WTA is always evolving (for 20 years) as there is no correct answer how to do this.
The theory is impossible in the real world and using just a truncated sinc doesn't work so well.
It needs massaging and tender loving care (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Window_function).

I can see why Chord didn't go down this road. The FPGA is already maxed out and tied to the hardware to a degree.
It would add more complexity to allow for updates and probably make the source code more vulnerable to copying too.
It was Ted's first DAC I believe, so may explain why there are big improvements (steep learning curve) and why they offer updates.
But if Ted can get measurements like those to sound good, he could indeed be some kind of genius.

Thanks for the reminder! Yes, it may be more than the sinc function itself. But it still may be mostly worked out, either in formula or Rob9s mind. Still, I think the limitation - at least for Chord’s/Rob’s implementations - is the hardware.

 

[Amberlamps]

Forgot Rob's recent reply to you?

But the real interesting stuff is when you take a sinc function and try to meld it to suit the real life requirements of limited processing - or getting more sonic improvements from finite resources. Then it becomes very interesting indeed, with lots of careful listening tests, lots of evaluating and changing of parameters to create ones own windowing function.

WTA is always evolving (for 20 years) as there is no correct answer how to do this.
The theory is impossible in the real world and using just a truncated sinc doesn't work so well.
It needs massaging and tender loving care (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Window_function).

I can see why Chord didn't go down this road. The FPGA is already maxed out and tied to the hardware to a degree.
It would add more complexity to allow for updates and probably make the source code more vulnerable to copying too.
It was Ted's first DAC I believe, so may explain why there are big improvements (steep learning curve) and why they offer updates.
But if Ted can get measurements like those to sound good, he could indeed be some kind of genius.

Maybe Rob makes his next dac out of an Asus RoG motherboard and quad nvidia sli 2080ti's.

Just think, he could call it a PC.

 

[Triode User]

RF is so variable based on so many in home factors.

I also wonder if the mScaler RF discussion is due to:

1. An MScaler is a signifanct piece of machinery in the chain where as most digital set ups are only DAC/Amp.

2. As Chord fanboys, we all appreciate the insane transparency and accuracy their DACs provide and this it makes RF more noticeable.

that said, the Wave Cables and keeping my mScaler and TT2 a few feet apart have my system running like magic.

RF noise is certainly NOT just a Chord thing and it is a universal issue. I know this because of dealing with owners of other kit. For instance yesterday I went to listen to a fairly old Arcam D33 DAC (nice though) connected to a BlueSound Node 2i streamer (also nice). We went through all the same RF isolating and reducing measures that I use with my chord kit and the MScaler and the D33/Node2i responded with the same sort of improvements. ie it was less fatiguing, had a more detailed but less harsh top end, improved mid range and tighter bass. That old D33 dac does not have, to quote you, insane accuracy and transparency but it was still clearly affected by RF noise.

 

[Triode User]

I work in the software industry. Continuous improvements are inherent to the business. Just like chords tt2 improved on the original tt. Additional features, a better filter, more taps perhaps. It's not all just hardware updates but also the code executing on the fpga. You may not like the ps audio product but the fact that they offer free upgrades is not a sign that it is somehow malformed.

I seem to recall Rob saying that he often maxes out the coding of his kit so that there is literally no more room on the chip for any more instructions. Having said that, I think there are often slight non audible improvements to the firmware during the production life of some chord digital kit because I have had repaired kit sent back to me which has been updated to the latest firmware in the factory (not that I noticed any differences in sound or functionality).

One other factor in this might be that the ps audio digital range is relatively small compared to what Rob Watts has designed and is still designing for Chord. It would be a full time job trying to code updates for existing Chord digital equipment and might mean the flow of exciting new stuff doesn’t happen so quickly.

 

[Amberlamps]

I seem to recall Rob saying that he often maxes out the coding of his kit so that there is literally no more room on the chip for any more instructions. Having said that, I think there are often slight non audible improvements to the firmware during the production life of some chord digital kit because I have had repaired kit sent back to me which has been updated to the latest firmware in the factory (not that I noticed any differences in sound or functionality).

One other factor in this might be that the ps audio digital range is relatively small compared to what Rob Watts has designed and is still designing for Chord. It would be a full time job trying to code updates for existing Chord digital equipment and might mean the flow of exciting new stuff doesn’t happen so quickly.

I'm listening to the Hill Street Blue's soundtrack, not just the theme and it sounds gorgeous through the mscaler and TT2, it was done by the london philharmonic orchestra.

I have no idea why I'm listening to this schite, qobuz just kinda found it's own way there, but it feels like I'm in Frank Furillo's office, or some run down cop shop in the bronx.

Having never been in the bronx, I can only assume that it sounds like this.

I wonder, are there any Bronx residents here ? If so, when you step outside, do you hear the hill street blues theme tune ?

As for free updates, why update something when you can build something else and sell that to the masses instead ?

Oh, Miss Davenport's theme just came on, it must be related to her as it sounds like the closing credits.

 

[Amberlamps]

I also constantly received updates for the HMS/Qutest!

Updates from bluebird on how long you had to wait for the mscaler to ship to the states ?