[tschanrm]

I've been eyeing up a JVC RX-D201 receiver for a while, as it support USB input. I was waiting to get one because I didn't know what formats it would support; being a mainstream player probably meant only MP3. Today I finally found the user manual for it, and the receiver acts as a soundcard, so I can play whatever format I want into the receiver!

The downside is that I can't access files at the receiver, but I could care less, the fact that this thing is treated as a soundcard to my computer is cool. I think I'm going to order one and find out the audio quality.

It suppports 32, 44, and 48khz sample rates only, along with Dolby Digital and DTS through the USB. Goto JVC.com and download the manual if you're interested.

Oh, and the model above this one, the RX-D301, has wireless conncectivity, but since I can't find the user manual I have no idea how it interacts with the computer.

EDIT: here's some info I found out about the D301 (translated from a dutch site), it seems that the wireless version uses a proprietary signal, similar to 2.4ghz wireless phones:

"With a transfer speed of 2 mbps on a frequency of 2.4ghz even ongecomprimeerde files without loss can be transferred. THE DSSS (direct Sequence Spreading spectrum) modulatie send ongecomprimeerde (probably means uncomprimised) audio with an excellent indicator/ruis-verhouding, for an excellent sound quality."

 

[Jon L]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tschanrm I've been eyeing up a JVC RX-D201 receiver for a while, as it support USB input. I was waiting to get one because I didn't know what formats it would support; being a mainstream player probably meant only MP3. Today I finally found the user manual for it, and the receiver acts as a soundcard, so I can play whatever format I want into the receiver! The downside is that I can't access files at the receiver, but I could care less, the fact that this thing is treated as a soundcard to my computer is cool. I think I'm going to order one and find out the audio quality. It suppports 32, 44, and 48khz sample rates only, along with Dolby Digital and DTS through the USB. Goto JVC.com and download the manual if you're interested. Oh, and the model above this one, the RX-D301, has wireless conncectivity, but since I can't find the user manual I have no idea how it interacts with the computer. EDIT: here's some info I found out about the D301 (translated from a dutch site), it seems that the wireless version uses a proprietary signal, similar to 2.4ghz wireless phones: "With a transfer speed of 2 mbps on a frequency of 2.4ghz even ongecomprimeerde files without loss can be transferred. THE DSSS (direct Sequence Spreading spectrum) modulatie send ongecomprimeerde (probably means uncomprimised) audio with an excellent indicator/ruis-verhouding, for an excellent sound quality."

Do give it a try, though it's bumber about no support for 88.2-192kHz, a la foobar resampler.

As far as wireless D301, I understand it only supports compressed formats like MP3, so for me there's no point in getting the 301 instead of 201 for this feature. Also, 2.4 ghz is what current 802.11 b and g uses, so I expect JVC will have the same problem of probably losing connections if a 2.4 gHz phones are used in the vicinity. Happens all the time for my 802.11 b/g wireless hub.

 

[tschanrm]

Quote:

As far as wireless D301, I understand it only supports compressed formats like MP3, so for me there's no point in getting the 301 instead of 201 for this feature. Also, 2.4 ghz is what current 802.11 b and g uses, so I expect JVC will have the same problem of probably losing connections if a 2.4 gHz phones are used in the vicinity. Happens all the time for my 802.11 b/g wireless hub.

Really? That would be kind of a bummer, do you have a link for this info?

Edit: Ok, I can see how you might jump to that conclusion, from this sentance in the old press release:

"The RX-D301S/302B offers features and technology comparable to that of the RX-D201S/202B, but adds JVC’s new wireless USB-PC link so users of the iTunes® Music Store and other online music stores can play their files back through their component audio system using the RX-D301S/302B."

 

[mojolo]

hi tschanrm,

did you decide to go for one of these? if so, please do let us know all the good stuff about the PC connectivity.
Quote:

The RX-D301S/302B offers features and technology comparable to that of the RX-D201S/202B, but adds JVC’s new wireless USB-PC link so users of the iTunes® Music Store and other online music stores can play their files back through their component audio system using the RX-D301S/302B

from reading this, it sounds like it is more geared towards AAC than mp3. However, I would find it to believe that this receiver decodes AAC. Most likely it's just marketing talk b/c iTunes is the "in-thing".

As far as the 201/202 goes, the manual makes no mention of mp3 or any other compressed formats. my assumption from reading the manual is that your SW audio player would decode the compressed mp3 or AAC or whatever and send a PCM stream over USB to the JVC. In this case, this receiver should be independent of whatever compression formats you use for audio. the JVC seems to use a USB 1.1 link which has a max throughput of 12mbps. I believe two channel PCM is usually around 1536kbps.

Now, back to the wireless of the 301/302, a max throughput of 2mbps is pretty darn lame, and is pretty close to PCM's bitrate. I definitely could foresee problems with a not so perfect wireless connection. For this reason, the JVC may actually only accept compressed audio over wireless.

Another question though, is whether it could decode a compressed AC3 or DTS stream over USB, which would be a really cool feature!