New denafrips DDC (Iris and Gaia)

[richardloh]

Ummh .. just realised gaia is worldwide operating voltage aka switching power supply.

Let's see .....

Cheers.

Richard

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Sorry guys, I am totally lost. What is a DDC? Is this yet another word for an upsampler? Reclocker? Format converter? Something else?

 

[richardloh]

Sorry guys, I am totally lost. What is a DDC? Is this yet another word for an upsampler? Reclocker? Format converter? Something else?

Hi Gimmeheadroom,

DDC = Digital to Digital Converter

Often we want to change from one digital format and connection type to another.

For example, your dac may not have usb input but a DDC can be added to take your source with usb output to convert to coaxial output to fit the coaxial input of your dac.

In the case of gaia,

- it has i2s output that some of us prefers to the Terminators that has such i2s input

- Some may also wants better ocxo clock in the gaia as compared to the clock of the source for lower jitters aka higher sound quality

- last but not least, the gaia has clock inputs to be synced i.e. replaced by the even better ocxo equipped Terminator Plus in the hope of lower jitters

You are not wrong ... various DDC in the market and may do upsampling, reclocking in additional to key function of a format changer.

Cheers

Richard

 

[richardloh]

Thanks John! I just got my Tubulus Argentus HDMI shipping notice. It arrives on Tuesday and I will use it in place of the Sablon ethernet so for I2S I will be LVDS, rather than LVCMOS. My Kimber D60's for the clocks are also new and need to burn in.

Hi Blake,

Unless already used up by another source, I2s B RJ4 is also lvds like i2s A hdmi for both standard and plus version of the Terminators .. it is i2s C RJ45 that is LVCMOS.

Not learned or able to provide any technical justification but I do prefer well established industrial used ethernet cable to consumer home av hdmi cable/connector.

Cheers.

Richard

 

[BlakeT]

Hi Blake,

Unless already used up by another source, I2s B RJ4 is also lvds like i2s A hdmi for both standard and plus version of the Terminators .. it is i2s C RJ45 that is LVCMOS.

Not learned or able to provide any technical justification but I do prefer well established industrial used ethernet cable to consumer home av hdmi cable/connector.

Cheers.

Richard

Hi Richard. In my use case with Gaia, the RJ45 output on the Gaia is I2S-C. There is no RJ45 I2S-B ouput on the Gaia. Hence, in order to be LVDS, I need to run HDMI from my Gaia to my TPlus. Having said that, I am currently running a Sablon ethernet from Gaia I2S-C to TPlus I2S-C and it sounds terrific. Therefore LVCMOS is not such a bad thing after all.

 

[johnzz4]

Hi Blake,

Unless already used up by another source, I2s B RJ4 is also lvds like i2s A hdmi for both standard and plus version of the Terminators .. it is i2s C RJ45 that is LVCMOS.

Not learned or able to provide any technical justification but I do prefer well established industrial used ethernet cable to consumer home av hdmi cable/connector.

Cheers.

Richard

Richard, the limitation isn’t with the T+ inputs, it’s withe the Gaia outputs. Gaia has two i2s outputs: 1) HDMI LVDS and 2) RJ45 LVCMOS. As a result, to pair the T+ with the Gaia via i2s LVDS, HDMI is the only option. I, too, would generally prefer Ethernet, but the Argentus is a specialty i2s cable - so much so that it removes unnecessary wires and doesn’t meet the HDMI spec. I can attest to how good the cable is. That said, I did try Ethernet and the LVCMOS also sounded very good.

 

[Sage Encore]

Richard, the limitation isn’t with the T+ inputs, it’s withe the Gaia outputs. Gaia has two i2s outputs: 1) HDMI LVDS and 2) RJ45 LVCMOS. As a result, to pair the T+ with the Gaia via i2s LVDS, HDMI is the only option. I, too, would generally prefer Ethernet, but the Argentus is a specialty i2s cable - so much so that it removes unnecessary wires and doesn’t meet the HDMI spec. I can attest to how good the cable is. That said, I did try Ethernet and the LVCMOS also sounded very good.

Hi John,
How do they compare? Is there a difference?

 

[Sage Encore]

Ummh .. just realised gaia is worldwide operating voltage aka switching power supply.

Let's see .....

Cheers.

Richard

Hi Richard,
Sorry for the ignorance, but for those of us who are uneducated in the electrical field, is this an issue? cause circuit designers use relay and auto voltage detection modules and relays to detect the incoming voltage and adjust it accordingly. They DO NOT use SMPS. This circuit topolgy is used quiet alot across the industry and even MSB use it among others.

Is this bad? TP uses the same circuit design as well when it comes to input voltage detection. Would you care to enlighten us on the shortfalls of this design and advise? Thank you so much for your proffesional input, its much appreciated.

 

[richardloh]

Hi Richard,
Sorry for the ignorance, but for those of us who are uneducated in the electrical field, is this an issue? cause circuit designers use relay and auto voltage detection modules and relays to detect the incoming voltage and adjust it accordingly. They DO NOT use SMPS. This circuit topolgy is used quiet alot across the industry and even MSB use it among others.

Is this bad? TP uses the same circuit design as well when it comes to input voltage detection. Would you care to enlighten us on the shortfalls of this design and advise? Thank you so much for your proffesional input, its much appreciated.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/old...minator-plus-terminator-arrives.936310/page-5

Post #74 and 75

 

[mordicai]

About 100 hrs on the Iris. My SU 1 died. Using it with a HoloSprings 2 and a PrimaLuna Evo. I enjoyed the sound this combo with the Singxer gave me. So far I’m finding the Iris to be brittle; the highs a bit raw. To me it’s not a sweet, smooth musical sound. Like I say, it’s only my fourth day and things may smooth out. I’m shocked at how much the Iris has taken over the sound from the holo.

 

[johnzz4]

About 100 hrs on the Iris. My SU 1 died. Using it with a HoloSprings 2 and a PrimaLuna Evo. I enjoyed the sound this combo with the Singxer gave me. So far I’m finding the Iris to be brittle; the highs a bit raw. To me it’s not a sweet, smooth musical sound. Like I say, it’s only my fourth day and things may smooth out. I’m shocked at how much the Iris has taken over the sound from the holo.

Unless the Iris is completely different than the Gaia, it likely just need some more time, or I would take a look at your cables. Also, LVCMOS or LVDS on the Holo? Not sure if that would play into it.

 

[mordicai]

Unless the Iris is completely different than the Gaia, it likely just need some more time, or I would take a look at your cables. Also, LVCMOS or LVDS on the Holo? Not sure if that would play into it.
[/QUOT
You have a Gaia? Does it take an extremly long burn in time? My experience with caps is they usually get to 70% by 110 hrs. I’ll give it 300 hrs and then decide

 

[richardloh]

About 100 hrs on the Iris. My SU 1 died. Using it with a HoloSprings 2 and a PrimaLuna Evo. I enjoyed the sound this combo with the Singxer gave me. So far I’m finding the Iris to be brittle; the highs a bit raw. To me it’s not a sweet, smooth musical sound. Like I say, it’s only my fourth day and things may smooth out. I’m shocked at how much the Iris has taken over the sound from the holo.

Hi mordicai,

What is the reason for adding the SU1 or Iris DDC to the holo2 dac ? Format change ?

More importantly for available input format in both SU1/Iris and the holo2 dac, kindly share your experience of connecting these DDCs vs directly into to holo2 dac and your thoughts on the reasons of any impact to sound quality at least in your case/system.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers.

Richard

 

[mordicai]

Hi mordicai,

What is the reason for adding the SU1 or Iris DDC to the holo2 dac ? Format change ?

More importantly for available input format in both SU1/Iris and the holo2 dac, kindly share your experience of connecting these DDCs vs directly into to holo2 dac and your thoughts on the reasons of any impact to sound quality at least in your case/system.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers.
Hi Richard, Years ago while trying to improve the quality of sound from my set up, I inserted a Su1 in my system to allow me to download an I2s signal from my computer into my then Gustard DAC . The improvement in sound quality was amazing, and ever since I always convert USB to I2s. My ears, MY HEARING OF COURSE

 

[mordicai]

The Iris is around 200+ hours and starting to mellow out. Big relief And glad I put faith in Alvin