Musical Fidelity V-LINK USB SPDIF

[baka1969]

Does anyone have any speculation on how well it would work on the following?

Laptop > Win XP > iTunes > USB (Nordost/Belden Gold) > Cary Xciter > b22/WA6SE > HD800

I had the Blue Circle Thingee but sold it after I upgraded from the DacMagic to the Xciter.

 

[Patu]

Quote:

Patu-
Does it also sound muffled compared to the Hiface you have in your signature? I have the v-link and think it sounds better the longer I listen to it. I was considering the DI first and got the v-link instead. Then I thought I might get the DI also for comparison, but if the v-link sounds muffled compared to it, I might not like it. I think the Hiface is bright and trebly to my ears, so the v-link should sound muffled compared to it also. Does this make any sense?
 

 
I thought first that DI sounds brighter than HiFace but when I switched to upsampling to 192khz, it changed to more balanced sound IMO. I like it better with upsampling on. Anyway, my setup is very capable and revealing and if DI would be too bright then I would hear it. DI + PSU is just better sounding than V-Link. Better separation, deeper and more powerful bass, better PRaT and all in all more dynamic sound. More lively. My HiFace is borrowed to my friend at the moment so I can't say anything about it.
 
 

 

[Justin Uthadude]

Patu-
I believe that your system is revealing. I was trying to get a feel for what you were calling bright and what you called dull or muffled. I have a better idea now when you say you like the balance, bass, PRaT, etc better when your DI is in upsampling mode than when it is in bit perfect mode. I do not doubt your taste. Since they are roughly the same price without external PS, I tried the v-link first because I wanted as little dsp as possible. Now you make me curious again to compare. 

 

[dookie182]

thank you guys for your contribution.
So it sems that for the money, the audio GD DI+psu it the one to beat.
did someone already had he occasion to compare it to the firestone bravo+supplier psu?
does the DI act as a reclocker like the bravo do?
any information/impression/advise is welcome.

 

[Patu]

I forgot to mention that I hate too bright or extremely revealing sound. Sibilance is the worst, I'm very sensitive to it. It makes me fatigued quickly.
 

 

[MomijiTMO]

I think mine is sitting at the post office.  
 
(Either that or a soldering iron).

 

[MomijiTMO]

Well it was the soldering iron but I did pick up my v-link today. I have some listening to do.

 

[ninjikiran]

You would adore the LCD-2's, revealing without the sibilance.
 
Quote:

I forgot to mention that I hate too bright or extremely revealing sound. Sibilance is the worst, I'm very sensitive to it. It makes me fatigued quickly.
 

 

 

[Justin Uthadude]

Has anyone read the writeup in April's Stereophile?

 

[tpaxadpom]

Quote:

Has anyone read the writeup in April's Stereophile?

I read your post and dropped by local Barnes and Noble. John Atkinson reviewed V-link and did an interesting set of measurements. He fed Musical Fidelity X24 DAC that doesn't have good jitter rejection with J-test pattern generated from AP2772 and measured jitter on the output to establish some reference. Then he used 15' Toslink and fed the same 16bit J-Test signal from his mac mini to the same DAC, then repeated measuments with V-Link using coax and toslink outputs. He also measured jitter on AP2772 and it was similar to U-stello usb-spdif converter. In his review he compared it to Halide Bridge and mentioned that Halide was more precise and transparent. Overall interesting article that is worth reading. I was considering getting V-link and was looking forward to pro reviews. I wasn't able to get a hold of February Hi-Fi News in US where V-link was reviewed.
 

 

[leeperry]

John Atkinson reviewed V-link and did an interesting set of measurements.

figures?

 

[grokit]

I just changed a few things around and put a V-Link in between my old Mac Mini running ALAC > Pure Music and my surround receiver's coaxial input with bi-amped Polk towers and a 15" subwoofer, and it's never sounded so good.
 

 

[tubesound]

Had a brief comparison with Genesis Digital Lens in my system the other day and couldn't tell much of a difference.

 

[grokit]

 
Quote:

Had a brief comparison with Genesis Digital Lens in my system the other day and couldn't tell much of a difference.

So the tiny USB-powered V-Link is just as good as the much bigger, more expensive, and AC-powered Digital Lens (which still fetches $500 used) for jitter reduction, that's great news!
 

 

[tubesound]

One question: after I connect V-Link to the computer (Windows Vista or Window 7), the computer installs the driver automatically. However, this driver only supports 24/44.1, 24/48 and 24/96. No 24/88.2 or any 16 bit formats on the drop down list (although 16 bit is supported). Is this the same case for you?