[artur9]

Well looks like I made the right choice on the Gungnir Multibit then , mine just arrived yesterday.

Care to elaborate more on the non-USB source input? I know the Schiit guys in general are not fans of USB but they seem to have either worked things out or gave in to the demands of the consumer. USB of course was my intention for the Gugnir, but if I move things around I could make the optical out on my iMac work but that then brings other things into play.

USB seems to put a bit of fuzz into everything. On the other hand, cleaning that up to make it the equal of other choices can get crazy expensive. On the gripping hand, some digital music can only be played over USB, like DSD and DXD.

The fuzz that USB adds seems to originate with noise riding along on the USB power lines. At least, that's the current operating theory for people going down that rabbit hole.

It could be in your system things are clean enough that you won't have to worry about it. It's worth trying both the optical and USB to see which you like better.

 

[pctazhp]

USB seems to put a bit of fuzz into everything. On the other hand, cleaning that up to make it the equal of other choices can get crazy expensive. On the gripping hand, some digital music can only be played over USB, like DSD and DXD.

The fuzz that USB adds seems to originate with noise riding along on the USB power lines. At least, that's the current operating theory for people going down that rabbit hole.

It could be in your system things are clean enough that you won't have to worry about it. It's worth trying both the optical and USB to see which you like better.

I read a post or review (can't remember which) where the author described what he heard from USB as a woooooooshing sound. That is consistent with my experience.

 

[daddyo1973]

Well after I figure out which tubes to use in my amp this whole USB optimization thing (or toslink, or SPDIF or BNC) may be the next thing to tackle on my audio to do list. Seems there is always something....

 

[theveterans]

^ Just skip USB altogether and get the Rednet 3 AOIP

 

[artur9]

^ Just skip USB altogether and get the Rednet 3 AOIP

That or a streamer box with no USB out. Like the hifi berry. Loving my Bryston BDP so get one of those used and cheap.

 

[NightFlight]

My USB must be very clean. I burned a FLAC to CD for comparing SPDIF on my DVP-S7000 vs USB. With a 30 second lag to flip between the two - I can't really pick up a difference. Optical on the Schiit stuff won't lock at 24/192 - never had an issue with my Emotiva XDA-2 regardless of Toslink cable used.

I also did a similar experiment with a couple singled ended RCA cable pairs that I previously thought couldn't be be more different from each other. Since the gumby has two single ended outputs I hooked them both up to my Mainline's 2 inputs. Flipping directly across from input to input has taught me just how similar they actually sound. They *might* be slightly different, but identify them blind? No way.

 

[winders]

My USB must be very clean. I burned a FLAC to CD for comparing SPDIF on my DVP-S7000 vs USB. With a 30 second lag to flip between the two - I can't really pick up a difference. Optical on the Schiit stuff won't lock at 24/192 - never had an issue with my Emotiva XDA-2 regardless of Toslink cable used

TOSLINK is only slightly better than USB. You need to use S/PDIF coax (BNC is better than RCA) to get a clearly better signal.

 

[NightFlight]

The Toslink is out as it won't lock on higher bit rates.

I was comparing my DVP-S7000 as an RCA coaxial transport against USB with the same recording. I'd have to do more listening tests, as it was just a random burned CD I had in the drive. But if you really have to strain to *maybe* hear a difference between really good and really good... then where is this train headed?

 

[winders]

The Toslink is out as it won't lock on higher bit rates.

I was comparing my DVP-S7000 as an RCA coaxial transport against USB with the same recording. I'd have to do more listening tests, as it was just a random burned CD I had in the drive. But if you really have to strain to *maybe* hear a difference between really good and really good... then where is this train headed?

If you can't hear the difference between USB and SPDIF coax, consider yourself lucky because you will be spending less on gear! When using my Mimby, I always stick a Singxer F-1 in front of it. Why would I put a ~$250 device in front a $250 device? Because feeding Mimby USB really sucks!

 

[pctazhp]

If you can't hear the difference between USB and SPDIF coax, consider yourself lucky because you will be spending less on gear! When using my Mimby, I always stick a Singxer F-1 in front of it. Why would I put a ~$250 device in front a $250 device? Because feeding Mimby USB really sucks!

I have found using the unique SPDIF pass-though function of this soundcard (which completely eliminates USB) significantly improves SQ over use of USB with my Bimby: I run directly from the SPDIF coax output of the card to the SPDIF Coax input of Bimby.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product..._sfl_title_7?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

 

[Gimpinchair]

I have found using the unique SPDIF pass-though function of this soundcard (which completely eliminates USB) significantly improves SQ over use of USB with my Bimby: I run directly from the SPDIF coax output of the card to the SPDIF Coax input of Bimby.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product..._sfl_title_7?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER

That is going to be difficult to stuff into my Intel NUC!

 

[artur9]

That is going to be difficult to stuff into my Intel NUC!

You just need a bigger hammer! ;-D

On other news, listening to Carly Simon's live album the Gumby is making the stage fill the whole room. It's kind of mesmerizing.

 

[RCBinTN]

Interesting discussion about digital feeds into the GMB. I have a similar problem.

My source is a Macbook Pro (mid-2014) running JRiver22. I've set the Mac programs to manual, so they don't interrupt the USB.
I have two direct options into the GMB: USB and Toslink. There is nothing between the computer and the DAC - a straight shot. I tried a Wyrd for awhile but got tired of it - and why should I need a damn Wyrd anyway?

So, I purchased high-end cables. The USB is Wywires Platinum, the Toslink is AQ Diamond. Top of the line.

I started with the USB. I had heard that USB would provide good SQ. It does sound really good, but it's inconsistent. At times, the music stops in the middle of an album, usually between songs, then the GMB freezes and JRiver has to be restarted. This happens with no change in music bit rate, just between songs on the same album.

I got tired of that problem and switched to the Toslink. Now, there are no issues w/ music drop-outs, and the SQ is similar to the USB. I've now settled on the Toslink as my primary link.

However, I continue to hear that there are better options out there...that's my reason for writing this post. Do y'all have any other (better) options that I might pursue? I appreciate your help, as always.

Best regards,
RCBinTN

 

[winders]

USB sucks and TOSLINK is not much better. The "damn" Wryd's job is clean up the crappy USB signal coming out the laptop. There are plenty of devices out there that attempt to do that with some being better than others. My experience tells me that these uber expensive USB/TOSLINK cables are a waste of money. Get a quality cable, yes! But don't spend over $100. Go to BlueJeans or Straight Wire for cables.

For Gumby, the best you can do is SPDIF coax. BNC is ever so slight better than RCA. With my Yggy, I use a Singxer F-1 DDC (converts USB to SPDIF coax). I think the Singxer F-1 handles the USB crap better than Yggy does so the sound quality is improved bypassing Yggy's USB interface.

 

[UntilThen]

With my Yggy, I use a Singxer F-1 DDC (converts USB to SPDIF coax). I think the Singxer F-1 handles the USB crap better than Yggy does so the sound quality is improved bypassing Yggy's USB interface.

I'm debating on your suggestion of getting a Singxer F1 for my Yggy or a Asus Essense STX ii card or a bigger expense Lynx AES16e .... or do nothing, continue using USB until Schiit comes up with a better solution. I just want something simple. My source is an iMac 27" (Audirvana Plus 3) and a new PC running Windows 10 and using JRiver Media Center 22.

I know USB isn't the best option but it's sounding very good to me now. Flip to Toslink and I couldn't hear much difference. However with USB, I did experience JRiver hangs as described by @RCBinTN. Doesn't happen now though.

Btw Yggy sounds incredible. Was using a NAD d1050 previously. The difference is great.