[ROBSCIX]

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I just received my M2tech Evo from TweekGeek. Ships w a regular 9V wall wart. (I'll upgrade that asap).
 
Comparing it to my HiFace - the Evo is a significant step up in SQ. I run it straight into my PS Audio PW Dac. With the Hiface, there was no contest - my PWT Transport had way more depth, wider soundstage and more bass. With the EVO (Illuminati D60, XLR), the difference between the Transport (running I2S) into the PWD becomes MUCH smaller. (So much that my Transport is up for sale -lol). This is without "break in" and the standard wall wart.
 
If you have a fairly resolving system and running a HiFace, I would recommend giving the EVO a try.

Have you had a chance to try a battery based supply?  Battery supplies have been known to improve the output signal quality of such devices.
You notice a major upgrade from the Hiface to the Evo?

 

[SP Wild]

 
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finally I picked up the EVO today.
 

 
I've been using the HiFace with a laptop running WinXPP SP3 because it wouldn't work on the desktop PC running Win7 - due to some new AMD chips or something. the EVO works on the desktop PC flawlessly.
 
I'm stating the above because I don't know if the different PC, OS, etc...  have something to do with it, but I find the difference between the HiFace and the EVO remarkable. really good improvement in the sound. very, very pleased so far.
 
the system is getting better and better... lucky me. I wonder by upgrading the dac how much better can it sound...

Have you checked the fuctuinality of the AES balanced output to make sure that it indeed works?  A few reports in computer audiophile forums of this feature not working whatsoever, this has kept me from purchasing one until I am certain that they've ironed it out. 
 
It seems to me dual clocks, one for 44.1 multiples and one for 48khz multiples is an essential feature - as well as bypassing USB power.  So far only this product meets my requirements at a reasonable budget, and it throws in Async USB.

 

[Lenni]

SP Wild- my dac does not have a digital AES input and I don't have a balanced terminated digital cable either, unfortunately 

 

[johangrb]

I just ordered a LifePo4 battery. Tried a 9V alkaline - that makes difference already over a standard PSU. The EVO seems very sensitive to power source - get rid of that wall wart.

 
Quote:

Have you had a chance to try a battery based supply?  Battery supplies have been known to improve the output signal quality of such devices.
You notice a major upgrade from the Hiface to the Evo?

 

[kyrill]

The Hiface by itself attracted a lot of very good reviews so the EVO WIIL be a winner. How ever you pay also  for alternative inputs which you may not use and it provides a simple wall-wart type power supply. AN alternative which may sound practically the same is the modded HiFace MK2:  http://sites.google.com/site/hifacemods/home
 
Included to this modded HiFace next to the mods is an internal battery and charger.  I dont have an original unmodded HiFace so I could choose between this MK2 and the EVO
 
The MK2 misses EVO's potential to be connected to an external clock ( very worthwhile if your DAC has that potential too, ( my DAC has not) ) and as my DAC ( DEQX) can only accept spdif, EVO's other inputs are of no use to me and since the converter in the EVO is the same* converter of the Hiface I opted for the MK2 also of the almost half the price. SO for th eprice difference i finally choosed for the MK2
 
 
 
Well I learn that whatever history the HiFace may have had,  the modded MK2 has 2 (big) crystals, making it identical to to the EVO except from  a  FPGA chip, which I asume does not intervene in the conversion process

 

[fy415]

 
Quote:

The Hiface by itself attracted a lot of very good reviews so the EVO WIIL be a winner. How ever you pay also  for alternative inputs which you may not use and it provides a simple wall-wart type power supply. AN alternative which may sound practically the same is the modded HiFace MK2:  http://sites.google.com/site/hifacemods/home
 
Included to this modded HiFace next to the mods is an internal battery and charger.  I dont have an original unmodded HiFace so I could choose between this MK2 and the EVO
 
The MK2 misses EVO's potential to be connected to an external clock ( very worthwhile if your DAC has that potential too, ( my DAC has not) ) and as my DAC ( DEQX) can only accept spdif, EVO's other inputs are of no use to me and since the converter in the EVO is the same* converter of the Hiface I opted for the MK2 also of the almost half the price. SO for th eprice difference i finally choosed for the MK2
 
 
 
Well I learn that whatever history the HiFace may have had,  the modded MK2 has 2 (big) crystals, making it identical to to the EVO except from  a  FPGA chip, which I asume does not intervene in the conversion process

I've been debating whether to go with JKeny's MK2 Hiface, or with the EVO. Like you, I have no use for the EVO's extra inputs/connections, but it sure looks purrrty, compared to the JKeny MK2's plain black plastic box. It costs more, too, of course.
 
Can you tell me more about the "FPGA chip"? Is this found only in the EVO? What does it do?
 
Has anyone done a comparison between the JKeny MK2 and the EVO? Right now I'm leaning heavily toward the JKeny unit, but still waiting/hoping the currency exchange rate changes in my favor.
 

 

[aimlink]

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Originally Posted by fy415 /img/forum/go_quote.gif
 
I've been debating whether to go with JKeny's MK2 Hiface, or with the EVO. Like you, I have no use for the EVO's extra inputs/connections, but it sure looks purrrty, compared to the JKeny MK2's plain black plastic box. It costs more, too, of course.
 
Can you tell me more about the "FPGA chip"? Is this found only in the EVO? What does it do?
 
Has anyone done a comparison between the JKeny MK2 and the EVO? Right now I'm leaning heavily toward the JKeny unit, but still waiting/hoping the currency exchange rate changes in my favor.
 

One good reason for going with the EVO is that you have the option of using battery's or a power supply unit that avoids the hassle of power down and recharge rituals.  I decided to go with the EVO and very much appreciate not having to worry about batteries and hence, the stability issues on my Mac that go with powering on and off, the modified HiFace.

 

[kyrill]

Enjoythemusic.com finally published their review of he MK1 (!) and the EVO and the Halide bridge  http://enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1110/m2tech_hiface_evo_dac.htm
quote
[size=x-small]"Ultimately I preferred John's hiFace but it was very close. The Evo has much greater flexibility with regard to connections, does not require charging and vigilance over the batteries and the use of the RF attenuators. For some people the need to charge a battery powered device may not be worth the  improvement in performance, in my case it is. Certainly if one is using a standard hiFace, the Evo is a significant step up and highly recommended. [/size]"
[size=x-small]unquote[/size]

 

[fy415]

 
Quote:

One good reason for going with the EVO is that you have the option of using battery's or a power supply unit that avoids the hassle of power down and recharge rituals.  I decided to go with the EVO and very much appreciate not having to worry about batteries and hence, the stability issues on my Mac that go with powering on and off, the modified HiFace.

 
According to the FAQ on jkeny's site http://sites.google.com/site/hifacemods/, the MK2 battery powers only the clock, and the charge would last about a week of *continuous* play. The MK1, on the other hand, relied on batteries for both the clock and the chip, and it's the chip that drains the battery at a much faster rate (~8 hours). The MK2 relies on an external power supply for everything other than the clock, and the external supply recharges the battery when the unit is turned off.
 
I don't expect to ever play music for more than a day at a time, much less a week. So battery user-friendliness/convenience-wise, the jkeny MK2 seems to be equivalent to the EVO. In terms of physical beauty, though, the EVO beats the jkeny MK2, by a large margin.

What I don't know, and I hope someone can help, is what the FPGA chip is. Which unit has it, and what does it do?
 
What issues does a Mac have with batteries, and do PC's have the same problems? (I have a PC.)

 

[aimlink]

Quote:

 
According to the FAQ on jkeny's site http://sites.google.com/site/hifacemods/, the MK2 battery powers only the clock, and the charge would last about a week of *continuous* play. The MK1, on the other hand, relied on batteries for both the clock and the chip, and it's the chip that drains the battery at a much faster rate (~8 hours). The MK2 relies on an external power supply for everything other than the clock, and the external supply recharges the battery when the unit is turned off.
 
I don't expect to ever play music for more than a day at a time, much less a week. So battery user-friendliness/convenience-wise, the jkeny MK2 seems to be equivalent to the EVO. In terms of physical beauty, though, the EVO beats the jkeny MK2, by a large margin.
 
What I don't know, and I hope someone can help, is what the FPGA chip is. Which unit has it, and what does it do?
 
What issues does a Mac have with batteries, and do PC's have the same problems? (I have a PC.)

 
Even though  your battery last longer, the only way it will charge is if your unit is powered down.  
 
On my Mac, when I had my modded HiFace, the only way I could power the HiFace on without causing a kernel panic was to do so prior to powering up my Mac or logout prior to powering up and then logging back on.  With the Evo, there's no need EVER, to power down in the interest of recharging a battery.  I couldn't care less about appearance since I don't even see the Evo where it is now.
 

 

[fy415]

Quote:

 
Even though  your battery last longer, the only way it will charge is if your unit is powered down.  
 
On my Mac, when I had my modded HiFace, the only way I could power the HiFace on without causing a kernel panic was to do so prior to powering up my Mac or logout prior to powering up and then logging back on.  With the Evo, there's no need EVER, to power down in the interest of recharging a battery.  I couldn't care less about appearance since I don't even see the Evo where it is now.
 

 
It makes sense now. I just looked at pictures of the Evo, and I didn't see a power switch. Do you simply leave your Evo plugged to the wall and powered up all the time? 
 
Thanks!

 

[aimlink]

Quote:

It makes sense now. I just looked at pictures of the Evo, and I didn't see a power switch. Do you simply leave your Evo plugged to the wall and powered up all the time? 
 
Thanks!

Yes, I do. Not a problem.
 

 

[kyrill]

There is finally a review for both the units  and for the "halide bridge" : http://enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/1110/m2tech_hiface_evo_dac.htm
 
The EVO is a close second to Kenny's MK1
 
I am very happy to buy his MK2 which has a more cleaner pws solution than the MK1,  and a build in "forget" automatic battery loader

 

[padam]

Doesn't seem like a useful comparison to me, and it is written that all three units were not present at the same time.

 

[kyrill]

not 3 units only the Evo