[CaptainFantastic]

Interesting but I'm not sure I understand what you mean. I always run my DACs in line out mode (0 dB). I have auto ref off. I wonder if auto ref is causing noise in your scenario.
I don't think I'm getting noise when the RME is not playing but I'll check it. May take a while...

OK, thanks. What I mean is that there is some noise whether the volume is off or on at any level with no music playing. As soon as the music is playing it covers this faint background noise. It does this in auto-ref ON or OFF mode and goes away immediately when disconnecting USB from the RME. I will recheck this tonight.

By the way, line out mode at 0 dB would mean that I have almost zero play on the amp volume. So I use -10 dB on line out. Otherwise by 10 o'clock on the tube amp I would be destroying my ears (I think, I have to check again, but at -10 dB at least I can adjust up to 11-12 o'clock depending on the track). How do you manage this high volume thing? I don't have the amp on high gain or anything, it's a WA3 and my headphones are high impedance Sennheisers.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

OK, thanks. What I mean is that there is some noise whether the volume is off or on at any level with no music playing. As soon as the music is playing it covers this faint background noise. It does this in auto-ref ON or OFF mode and goes away immediately when disconnecting USB from the RME. I will recheck this tonight.

By the way, line out mode at 0 dB would mean that I have almost zero play on the amp volume. So I use -10 dB on line out. Otherwise by 10 o'clock on the tube amp I would be destroying my ears (I think, I have to check again, but at -10 dB at least I can adjust up to 11-12 o'clock depending on the track). How do you manage this high volume thing? I don't have the amp on high gain or anything, it's a WA3 and my headphones are high impedance Sennheisers.

I haven't noticed but I can check.

With the RME -> Lyr 2 for LCDs and the tubes I have and the amp on low gain it is pretty good. The range of volume is a minor problem for me on my Sennheiser setup. I have the V280 attenuated to -12 dB and there isn't a whole lot of room on the volume knob but it's still ok.

I prefer to use line out mode because in theory that's the best possible sound quality. Amps usually like to be driven hard and some do well at significantly more than the 2V standard (SE) or 5-something for balanced. The more clean signal the amp gets the better the output will sound. If there has to be attenuation somewhere, I think it should be at the amp rather than the source.

Edit: I just reread your post and now I'm starting to wonder maybe you just have noisy USB, especially since it doesn't happen with optical.

 

[technobear]

OK, thanks. What I mean is that there is some noise whether the volume is off or on at any level with no music playing. As soon as the music is playing it covers this faint background noise. It does this in auto-ref ON or OFF mode and goes away immediately when disconnecting USB from the RME. I will recheck this tonight.

By the way, line out mode at 0 dB would mean that I have almost zero play on the amp volume. So I use -10 dB on line out. Otherwise by 10 o'clock on the tube amp I would be destroying my ears (I think, I have to check again, but at -10 dB at least I can adjust up to 11-12 o'clock depending on the track). How do you manage this high volume thing? I don't have the amp on high gain or anything, it's a WA3 and my headphones are high impedance Sennheisers.

This noise is coming from the ground wire in the USB cable. It doesn't bother the RME but it will be present on the ground wire of the analogue interconnect. Clearly your valve amp is susceptible to this ground plain noise. The noise might be generated by the computer or it may be coming into the computer via the ground wire from the mains (from a badly behaved switching PSU perhaps). I fixed this problem with an iGalvanic3.0. Using optical is also a solution. There is nothing wrong with your RME and this noise is not created by the RME.

 

[CaptainFantastic]

This noise is coming from the ground wire in the USB cable. It doesn't bother the RME but it will be present on the ground wire of the analogue interconnect. Clearly your valve amp is susceptible to this ground plain noise. The noise might be generated by the computer or it may be coming into the computer via the ground wire from the mains (from a badly behaved switching PSU perhaps). I fixed this problem with an iGalvanic3.0. Using optical is also a solution. There is nothing wrong with your RME and this noise is not created by the RME.

Thanks. Yes, I didn't think it was an RME issue at all. It is perfectly silent when not paired with the tube amp. I always did think the tube amp is more sensitive and picks up the noise being transmitted via USB from the PC. The RME must be designed to block this 100% when using its internal amp. Also, I am very happy using optical via a quality optical cable. I understand the RME has an excellent design for eliminating jitter, so I can't see any downsides to using optical given that I don't have any files of such high-res that it would create a limitation.

 

[Tuneslover]

By the way, line out mode at 0 dB would mean that I have almost zero play on the amp volume. So I use -10 dB on line out. Otherwise by 10 o'clock on the tube amp I would be destroying my ears (I think, I have to check again, but at -10 dB at least I can adjust up to 11-12 o'clock depending on the track). How do you manage this high volume thing? I don't have the amp on high gain or anything, it's a WA3 and my headphones are high impedance Sennheisers.

Fried Reim suggested that gain levels (DAC and AMP) should be set so that the Violectric V280 volume knob is around the 12:00 o'clock position to achieve a normal listening level. I have experimented with the gain settings for the RME and found that I get the best sound when the RME's Ref Level is set to +13dBu (Auto Ref Level is set to OFF).

My RME's volume using XLR line out is set to a volume of -10dB. In order to get the V280 volume to the 12:00 o'clock range I needed to set the V280 gain to -9dB which gives me a pretty decent volume knob range around the Noon setting. Of course harder to drive headphones will have me turning it up higher closer to the 1:00 - 2:00 o'clock positions and naturally the easier to drive phones range from 10:00 - 11:00 o'clock.

 

[cistercian]

How about we get back to talking about how great our units are compared to the competition. I will start.

The other night I was listening with the RME and various headphones. I started to think about the fact that I have no desire to upgrade. This is an absolute first in my headfi journey. Even the headphones I was using I was wonder about upgrades. I know there is the chord RME comparison which has been addressed here. I am curious about the comparison but not enough to let this unit go. Then I was thinking... is there competition in this price category? If not? Where is everyone? I seriously think this unit does not get enough love. There are not a ton of reviews out there so I am thinking I found something special. But seriously is it just a lack of advertising? Where is everyone?

This is where I am at. I won't upgrade until this unit explodes. It is remarkably capable and drives all of my phones perfectly. The flat response
and adequate power combined with epic EQ/ bass and treble controls are end game for me. It is the best piece of audio gear I have ever owned.
It is remarkable...and the frequency display looks cool as hell too. It has so much flexibility it is amazing. Other DACs are very poor feature wise compared
to the RME. Truly Epic grade. I am listening to it now...delicious!

 

[PierreA]

Which tube amp are you referencing?

In my case it works great both with my Woo Audio WA6-SE and also a great match with SinglePower SLAM PPX3.

 

[elisiX]

Fried Reim suggested that gain levels (DAC and AMP) should be set so that the Violectric V280 volume knob is around the 12:00 o'clock position to achieve a normal listening level. I have experimented with the gain settings for the RME and found that I get the best sound when the RME's Ref Level is set to +13dBu (Auto Ref Level is set to OFF).

My RME's volume using XLR line out is set to a volume of -10dB. In order to get the V280 volume to the 12:00 o'clock range I needed to set the V280 gain to -9dB which gives me a pretty decent volume knob range around the Noon setting. Of course harder to drive headphones will have me turning it up higher closer to the 1:00 - 2:00 o'clock positions and naturally the easier to drive phones range from 10:00 - 11:00 o'clock.

Can confirm that I am using a similar setup with RME/V281 and I too set my V281 at 12 o'clock by adjusting the RME to these volume/auto ref settings.

It's such a brilliant versatile setup and as much as I have a desire to update (just because), it's not perfectly clear to me what i'd upgrade to. TT2, Moon 430HAD, etc.

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Indeed indeed, never thought my 99's are that capable This little machine is making me happy each and every day Now onto saving for Empyreans

Now try a pair of HD 25s out of your RME. Mind-boggling!

 

[gimmeheadroom]

OK, thanks. What I mean is that there is some noise whether the volume is off or on at any level with no music playing. As soon as the music is playing it covers this faint background noise. It does this in auto-ref ON or OFF mode and goes away immediately when disconnecting USB from the RME. I will recheck this tonight.

By the way, line out mode at 0 dB would mean that I have almost zero play on the amp volume. So I use -10 dB on line out. Otherwise by 10 o'clock on the tube amp I would be destroying my ears (I think, I have to check again, but at -10 dB at least I can adjust up to 11-12 o'clock depending on the track). How do you manage this high volume thing? I don't have the amp on high gain or anything, it's a WA3 and my headphones are high impedance Sennheisers.

I was looking at the menus on my Brooklyn and I found there is a trim function. I set it to -3 dB and I can listen to my LCD-3F at 12 o'clock on my V280 without blowing my brains out. I'll try it with some Sennheisers later.

 

[rickydenim]

Have still been looking at the ADI-2 FS v2 and came across a seller on ebay who is a dealer in Italy (apparently). Price over here in Australia is pretty crazy. Any issues I would need to consider when importing? Just need a plug adapter, same voltage here. Would be saving like $1k!

 

[gimmeheadroom]

Have still been looking at the ADI-2 FS v2 and came across a seller on ebay who is a dealer in Italy (apparently). Price over here in Australia is pretty crazy. Any issues I would need to consider when importing? Just need a plug adapter, same voltage here. Would be saving like $1k!

Just make sure it's a legit seller.

 

[technobear]

Have still been looking at the ADI-2 FS v2 ...

Lazy writing? Or a completely different product: https://www.rme-audio.de/ADI-2-FS.html

 

[rickydenim]

Lazy writing? Or a completely different product: https://www.rme-audio.de/ADI-2-FS.html

Sorry, lazy writing! Talking about the RME ADI- 2 DAC FS

 

[CaptainFantastic]

Have still been looking at the ADI-2 FS v2 and came across a seller on ebay who is a dealer in Italy (apparently). Price over here in Australia is pretty crazy. Any issues I would need to consider when importing? Just need a plug adapter, same voltage here. Would be saving like $1k!

I would buy from a reputable seller. Thomann sells it brand new for 945 euro. And be prepared to wait a bit. Because of the situation shipping can take a week or a month, make sure you have tracking on it.