iFi Audio IPurifier3.0
May 24, 2019 at 12:35 AM Post #241 of 442
Are these two devices onto something improper :gs1000smile: ?
I have to flip the PC upside down because one of the coupler is oriented wrong but I also just realize I can use a single USB female type A/male type A adaptor to replace the 2 USB coupler and that would show also shorten the path further and can flip the PC back upright. Will order one and see.
Are these two devices onto something improper :gs1000smile: ?
hmm, initially was not sure what you meant? But while I was trying to reconnect the 2 boxes tonight with some difficulty, while trying to put the female end to the male end.... hmmm....
 
May 24, 2019 at 12:43 AM Post #242 of 442
Yea this is akin to my setup pre-Corning albeit with one isilencer. I would still suggest the Corning for it's 10m length gives that flexibility with distance with no sacrifice in quality and has good noise management both ways where the data lines are protected via optical and the power lines is cut via vbus off. From there, you can plug the isilencers on a free port. And you may choose to upgrade the power lines quality with idefender + external power.

In my case with the Hugo2, yea I still have to externally power the DAC end just purely on handshake purposes. Which is messed up coz why would I be hearing such huge quality gains if the vbus is only needed for handshake and the Hugo 2 gets it's power from batteries or via another route on it's charging port. Imagine testing DIY 8 core vs 16 core CAT 8 cables makes a difference. And this cable test is only 1 out of 7 DC cables making an influence on the sound. Which means that one cable only contributes 15% to the sound among the others in the chain but the difference is significant. I had a friend try it out on Isaac Hayes' By the Time I Get To Phoenix and he heard the difference on the first bass note. Even before the counter went to 00:01. It's just fuller, more follow through and complete with the 16 core vs 8 core. I'm now having a 24 core DC cable made for science. I also made a DC cable out of that Schaffner power cable but still burning it in.
Ok, you are now convincing me to try the Corning opticalUSB which is what I kind of need - Galvanic isolation with no reclocking. Impressive that it no longer requires Isilencer meaning the jitter is so low that isilencer is not needed.

So I should be able to do this:

PC --> Corning USB ---> (? isilencer)--> Regen USPCB -- DAC

From the PC I already have USB bridge with external LPS which can supply the power to the USB cable. Also I can't use idefender + ipower because that stops the handshake for some strange reason, idefender without external power is fine.
But does Regen USPCB make a difference ? I remember the Corning USB does not even carry a VBus that is strong enough, as it is only for self powering.
 
May 24, 2019 at 1:42 AM Post #243 of 442
PC --> Corning USB --> Regen USPCB -- DAC

Yea 8 months of tweaking with isilencers and it got booted off with 1 Corning.

U still need the extra measure of USPCB Vbus off for extra performance. This is confirmed with the Matrix x Spdif 2 where it's internals cuts off vbus when it detects external power. Yet, I get huge gains when I do Vbus off on the USPCB. Go figure.

In terms of the iGalvanic. It doesn't re-clock. That impressions you had on the highs with the iGalvanic is it doing it's thing properly. But this can only be verified when you get the Corning. And if even on the Corning you are experiencing the highs similar to the iGalvanic, I'll tell you the solution later once u get the Corning. And as a reminder, the iGalvanic recycles the same dirty power and the electrical connection on the data lines can still get contaminated as verified with the optical conversion with the Corning.

Personally, the re-clocking I hear makes the leading edge too pronounced, edgy, shouty. Rarely does the re-clocking make the leading edge towards realism IMHO as so far with the HUGO 2 that's why u had to do away with it. Perhaps reclocking accessories like these only helps when it has a better clock than the DAC/SOURCE.

Kindly expand on this USB bridge and LPS. It wasn't shown in the photos yea?
 
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May 24, 2019 at 2:31 AM Post #245 of 442
My source is a Dell XPS 15. My work laptop that turned into a audiophile source that's yet to beat. Dual boot with windows 2012 + audio optimizer + fidelizer. Disabled stuff on the BIOS level. One core, disabled the other cpu tricks.

A recent fluke discovery which only paired well once I got the Corning was the Dell 18000 power companion (an external laptop battery). When my monitor goes to sleep, it kicks in this improved SQ that is yet a wider soundstage, ease and coherence. Better than battery (2nd best sound). Perhaps the external battery power still goes through filters that was meant for the wall wart. I just modded my Dell wall wart and did a wire transfusion to integrate the Schaffner closed ferrite thing and the XPS didn't like it and even gave a hum! It boggled our minds coz we still used the same Dell barrel plug. Since it didn't work out, we resoldered the original cable of the Dell and was properly detected again.

Curious between a Zotac or a NUC. I still couldn't get myself to make the jump for an ultrarendu since I've sworn myself to not deal with Ethernet since it's components is too noisy and impossible to clean. This was verified with the Hifiberry Digi+ and Allo USBRIDGE. :frowning2:
 
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May 24, 2019 at 2:38 PM Post #246 of 442
Interesting update. I got 2 more the Schaffner power cables installed for the power conditioner and the UPS plugged to the wall and it cleaned up the sound even more. Then I had another one modded as a DC to DC plug. From here, I tested configurations on my chain again and I actually like this the best for now with my MQA test:

Phone-> otg ->idefender + dxpwr + Schaffner cable -> corning -> USPCB -> DAC.

The minute details on hearing the separate keys on a piano playing a chord is more coherent vs having a dual idefender setup before. This setup makes more sense too in why it would sound superior. Before this upgrade, I was about to criticize on that Chlara EVO sessions MQA album sounded tweaked and unnatural vs other albums and how maybe engineers did some compensation but now, it's actually exemplary. The DC Schaffner cable exceeds the 16 core CAT 8 cable where it just sounds simply natural. 16 core CAT 8 was no slouch but it relatively sounds a bit clubby and I intuitively knew the sound at that time could open up a bit more especially with my criticism on the Chlara album.

So at this rate, I pared down to simply just the Corning (no Idefender) and wow, it's not THAT far considering the other option is at least 900usd upgrade. With just the Corning it sounds a bit grainy and the sound has that subtle undulating phase that interferes the smoothness of the music in just under a second intervals. I never could figure that out. Also the micro-dynamics are flatter / less dimensional. -shrugs-
 
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May 24, 2019 at 8:22 PM Post #247 of 442
Interesting update. I got 2 more the Schaffner power cables installed for the power conditioner and the UPS plugged to the wall and it cleaned up the sound even more. Then I had another one modded as a DC to DC plug. From here, I tested configurations on my chain again and I actually like this the best for now with my MQA test:

Phone-> otg ->idefender + dxpwr + Schaffner cable -> corning -> USPCB -> DAC.

The minute details on hearing the separate keys on a piano playing a chord is more coherent vs having a dual idefender setup before. This setup makes more sense too in why it would sound superior. Before this upgrade, I was about to criticize on that Chlara EVO sessions MQA album sounded tweaked and unnatural vs other albums and how maybe engineers did some compensation but now, it's actually exemplary. The DC Schaffner cable exceeds the 16 core CAT 8 cable where it just sounds simply natural. 16 core CAT 8 was no slouch but it relatively sounds a bit clubby and I intuitively knew the sound at that time could open up a bit more especially with my criticism on the Chlara album.

So at this rate, I pared down to simply just the Corning (no Idefender) and wow, it's not THAT far considering the other option is at least 900usd upgrade. With just the Corning it sounds a bit grainy and the sound has that subtle undulating phase that interferes the smoothness of the music in just under a second intervals. I never could figure that out. Also the micro-dynamics are flatter / less dimensional. -shrugs-
Another dumb question. Where do you get this "Schaffner power cable" ? from the web it looks like they only sell factory parts that you need to assemble yourselves, unless I got into the wrong web ? I see they may have an ankled IEC plug that may be useful so I can get a shorter USB connection from DAC to the PC. The current horizontal plug is in the way.
 
May 24, 2019 at 9:43 PM Post #248 of 442
You can get it at the Digikey website.
https://www.digikey.ph/product-deta...c/IF13-SE-H05-3100-WF-200/817-2295-ND/9450878

You have to terminate the ends yourself which is good coz you can use high quality parts. I got some nice Viborgs Rhodium plated pure copper plugs. This 'mouse in the snake' of theirs has a higher performance than the other pre-terminated products. And also finally, when I pull out my one of my 2 AC iPurifiers out of the shared power strip, I can hardly hear the difference. Before adding the two new Schaffner cords, the difference is quite huge when I pull out the AC iPurifier.
 
May 24, 2019 at 10:05 PM Post #250 of 442
You can get it at the Digikey website.
https://www.digikey.ph/product-deta...c/IF13-SE-H05-3100-WF-200/817-2295-ND/9450878

You have to terminate the ends yourself which is good coz you can use high quality parts. I got some nice Viborgs Rhodium plated pure copper plugs. This 'mouse in the snake' of theirs has a higher performance than the other pre-terminated products. And also finally, when I pull out my one of my 2 AC iPurifiers out of the shared power strip, I can hardly hear the difference. Before adding the two new Schaffner cords, the difference is quite huge when I pull out the AC iPurifier.
You are so resourceful! Amazing. Get right to the factory products not meant for Hi-Fi often leads to best deals and may work best! So this is some sort of filtered AC power cable ?
From the pic of the link it shows end already terminated you think it actually comes without termination or I should get one without termination?
 
May 24, 2019 at 10:26 PM Post #251 of 442
OK finally got some testing to compare:

PC--> USB 2 cable (0.5M) ---> USB 3 coupler x1 ---> isilencer ----> Regen USPCB -- DAC vs

PC--> USB 3 coupler x 2 --->isilencer ----> Regen USPCB -- DAC


USB cable - https://silversonic.com/products/digital-cables/mirage-usb/

I got it for $160 sale (200) for 0.5 M, but now it is only available in 1 M . (why ???!!)


The final verdit is that USB cable got beaten by just 1 Chinese USB 3 Coupler

It was close battle but not that subtle if one listens very carefully.

There is definite more naturalness and analogue flow/smoothness to the USB 3 coupler.
The sound with the USB cable is a bit harsher/harder/more grainy, but has a bit more warmth.
The USB 3 coupler is slightly clearer/more transparent, esp on the piano tone, but a bit cooler (only by comparison) and more high tones, giving a fuller top notes but not the shrillness.
I think the USB cable has a bit of color (warmth) that has been noted before already.

How can a cheap adaptor beat a USB cable ? Of course it can I suppose, as it is so much shorter than the cable, as you know sound degrades with length so every cm counts. For electric USB signal the shorter the better.
This is nothing new, the Regen guys sell their adaptor for this very reason!

But the Corning USB is likely a different animal, as there is probably much less jitter as well as galvanic isolation, immune to EMF etc... and with optical, the length does not matter much like optical fibers for internet.

I would definitely try the Corning next very soon
But I am curious if I replace the USB coupler with another Regen USPCB would that help more ?

Thanks agaoin to 801evan for sharing his various non-hi-fi gadgets/products!

(note the USB cable for Hi-Fi is really a marketing ploy to try to get people to buy expensive cables so they can charge for shielding etc by making it longer than needed. etc... it is hard to find any cable 0.5M or less)
 
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May 24, 2019 at 10:48 PM Post #252 of 442
You are so resourceful! Amazing. Get right to the factory products not meant for Hi-Fi often leads to best deals and may work best! So this is some sort of filtered AC power cable ?
From the pic of the link it shows end already terminated you think it actually comes without termination or I should get one without termination?

Trust me on that link. When I got the product, my face turned white coz it was literally like the photo where the leads are exposed!! Haha. I thought it was a sample cross-section like how audio cables do it. But it was a fortunate mistake where I got the Viborg plug and terminated it with a HQ part. It was only after and scanning the specs sheets that the unterminated one gives the best performance.

Yea I think it's a closed dual ferrite design and that's all I know. :frowning2: I was so lucky bumping into this product when I was just scrolling for parts for ideas. Super lucky coz it's a 15usd cable that I can stack up and the performance is non-diminishing. So imagine 3 of these cables to the HDPLEX and two AC iPurifiers. Way too much cleaning needed to get clean power when advertisers claim only one of their product is the solution and gives measurements for such. Well the isilencers and the AC ipurifiers are the only ones I know where they claim the more units you buy, the better it gets and it's true.

I agree with non-audiophile solutions being the best value and performance. I think I was looking for hospital grade power cables and I came across this cable by luck.
 
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May 24, 2019 at 11:35 PM Post #253 of 442
OK finally got some testing to compare:

PC--> USB 2 cable (0.5M) --->isilencer ----> Regen USPCB -- DAC vs

PC--> USB 3 coupler x 2 --->isilencer ----> Regen USPCB -- DAC


USB cable - https://silversonic.com/products/digital-cables/mirage-usb/

I got it for $160 sale (200) for 0.5 M, but now it is only available in 1 M . (why ???!!)


The final verdit is that USB cable got beaten by just 1 Chinese USB 3 Coupler

It was close battle but not that subtle if one listens very carefully.

There is definite more naturalness and analogue flow/smoothness to the USB 3 coupler.
The sound with the USB cable is a bit harsher/harder/more grainy, but has a bit more warmth.
The USB 3 coupler is slightly clearer/more transparent, esp on the piano tone, but a bit cooler (only by comparison) and more high tones, giving a fuller top notes but not the shrillness.
I think the USB cable has a bit of color (warmth) that has been noted before already.

How can a cheap adaptor beat a USB cable ? Of course it can I suppose, as it is so much shorter than the cable, as you know sound degrades with length so every cm counts. For electric USB signal the shorter the better.
This is nothing new, the Regen guys sell their adaptor for this very reason!

But the Corning USB is likely a different animal, as there is probably much less jitter as well as galvanic isolation, immune to EMF etc... and with optical, the length does not matter much like optical fibers for internet.

I would definitely try the Corning next very soon
But I am curious if I replace the USB coupler with another Regen USPCB would that help more ?

Thanks agaoin to 801evan for sharing his various non-hi-fi gadgets/products!

(note the USB cable for Hi-Fi is really a marketing ploy to try to get people to buy expensive cables so they can charge for shielding etc by making it longer than needed. etc... it is hard to find any cable 0.5M or less)


You're very welcome and glad people are picking up on my experiments. Tragically my LPS 1.2 conked out coz it didn't seem to like either the cables I used or the HDPLEX. -shrugs-. But oddly I got a better performance without it coz the cabling feeding the idefender and dxpwr is all the Schaffner cables and wow, I've been missing out on these highs and better release. It goes back to my criticism on audiophile albums where it doesn't sound that great. This was auditioned with all cat 8 cabling and one (not 3) Schaffner power cable. Pianos and decay still sounded off. But I didn't exactly think my setup was off which is the important thing to consider. I didn't think my setup was off coz it was the best thing I've heard by far. I just reckoned the pianos were too boring for my liking. But the Schaffner cables then showed me how things can actually improve beyond my imagination. Those audiophile albums has higher precision in something that can make the system sing if done right.

The thing with cables is that length is the enemy and cost of materials. I need to open up a spare coupler and see if there's even a wire going on or is it just metal to metal contact (yes, wires are metal too...but a thinner version). But I can imagine a chain of couplers can sound better than a cable. Haha. The best wired cable was the IFI Mercury and at a point in time it's value seemed worth it. Corning can't exactly be in the same classification if u know what I mean. But check out the lush^2 usb cable with at least 250 combinations. It's an example of the shielding , grounding, impedance game cable manufacturers do. Lush^2 shows how grounding and shielding is the enemy and proves how the Corning just beats everyone coz the data line can't get contaminated by the grounding cable interference over distance. Lolz.

From my latest experiment, it seems like getting the Schaffner cable gives better benefits than the USPCB seeing that I took out the 3x USPCB + coupler in the chain after my upgrade. Finally adding the 3x USPCB + coupler lifted the noise! So odd! Literally just the other day, it was lower the noise and stretching out the details of the music and making things more coherent and gooey and yummy. Magic I tell yah! Though I'm now super curious how an ipurifier v3 would sound now after all these clean up. Hmm.

Oh yes, thank you for explaining it well about the high tones opening up but no shrill! For the first time in my life I don't feel my shoulders shrug from the highs. I get no ear fatigue now. I didn't think it was possible and you can imagine people like me would slightly gloat 'well, I just have sensitive ears, man.' but yea, you got to witness where you maintain the highs but reduced the noise.
 
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May 25, 2019 at 12:19 AM Post #254 of 442
OK finally got some testing to compare:

PC--> USB 2 cable (0.5M) --->isilencer ----> Regen USPCB -- DAC vs

PC--> USB 3 coupler x 2 --->isilencer ----> Regen USPCB -- DAC


USB cable - https://silversonic.com/products/digital-cables/mirage-usb/

I got it for $160 sale (200) for 0.5 M, but now it is only available in 1 M . (why ???!!)


The final verdit is that USB cable got beaten by just 1 Chinese USB 3 Coupler

It was close battle but not that subtle if one listens very carefully.

There is definite more naturalness and analogue flow/smoothness to the USB 3 coupler.
The sound with the USB cable is a bit harsher/harder/more grainy, but has a bit more warmth.
The USB 3 coupler is slightly clearer/more transparent, esp on the piano tone, but a bit cooler (only by comparison) and more high tones, giving a fuller top notes but not the shrillness.
I think the USB cable has a bit of color (warmth) that has been noted before already.

How can a cheap adaptor beat a USB cable ? Of course it can I suppose, as it is so much shorter than the cable, as you know sound degrades with length so every cm counts. For electric USB signal the shorter the better.
This is nothing new, the Regen guys sell their adaptor for this very reason!

But the Corning USB is likely a different animal, as there is probably much less jitter as well as galvanic isolation, immune to EMF etc... and with optical, the length does not matter much like optical fibers for internet.

I would definitely try the Corning next very soon
But I am curious if I replace the USB coupler with another Regen USPCB would that help more ?

Thanks agaoin to 801evan for sharing his various non-hi-fi gadgets/products!

(note the USB cable for Hi-Fi is really a marketing ploy to try to get people to buy expensive cables so they can charge for shielding etc by making it longer than needed. etc... it is hard to find any cable 0.5M or less)


Wow on that write-up on the Mirage USB! Imagine the cheap tin non-shielded couplers performing better than silver plated and isolated wiring. Yowza. We definitely sound crazy after a write-up like that. Haha.
 
May 25, 2019 at 2:33 AM Post #255 of 442
Wow on that write-up on the Mirage USB! Imagine the cheap tin non-shielded couplers performing better than silver plated and isolated wiring. Yowza. We definitely sound crazy after a write-up like that. Haha.
The Mirage is still a very good cable and it does have a warm/sweet tone but that may just color, not sure. Another reason why perhaps the Coupler can beat the Mirage USB is that I have used VBus off for the Regen USPCB, so essentially the shielding for Vbus power on the MIrage is useless. Though I still think the length is the enemy.
 

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