[Gazny]

I hope it has Bluetooth, but I know it may not be popular enough nor do I know if ldac decoding is an open standard as is ldac encoding.

 

[yonson]

I HIGHLY doubt the Schiit Transport is going to have Bluetooth...

Stranger things have happened though...

 

[GearMe]

I am also hoping my patience , waiting for the Schiit Transport, will pay off.
My CD player is 25 years old, and has barely been used in the last 10 years, as I have ripped allmy CDs and also use Qobuz.
However, I have around 1,000 CDs ready to be 're-discovered' on a good CD Transport and the collection is still growing...
As soon as the Schiit Transport is available, I'll be getting one and a Freya S ( or possible Freya+) , as I don't currently use a preamp.

I rip all my CD's as well and can see the need for a new CD device to continue this for my new CD's that I continue to acquire (once the current CD device craps out).

However, I still struggle with the concept of 're-discovering' CD's via playing them on a new transport through one's DAC compared to the lossless ripping and then playing them through the same DAC...

What am I missing? Thanks!

 

[wout31]

However, I still struggle with the concept of 're-discovering' CD's via playing them on a new transport through one's DAC compared to the lossless ripping and then playing them through the same DAC...

What am I missing? Thanks!

Well maybe the optimal match of a Unison USB™ server to a Unison USB™ receiver. That makes everything sound........

 

[Les Strat]

It could be that you ( and I) aren't missing anything at all by using lossless rips of CDs, in which case buying a CD Transport and Preamp would be a complete waste of money .

I certainly struggle to understand why a CD transport can be 'better' than replaying a ripped, lossless copy of a CD through the same DAC,

However, when Mike says that CD transport remains the best way of playing digital music, he has my attention!

 

[mbritt]

I rip all my CD's as well and can see the need for a new CD device to continue this for my new CD's that I continue to acquire (once the current CD device craps out).

However, I still struggle with the concept of 're-discovering' CD's via playing them on a new transport through one's DAC compared to the lossless ripping and then playing them through the same DAC...

What am I missing? Thanks!

Check out this video about the difference in high end streaming and a great cd player.

 

[bcowen]

I certainly struggle to understand why a CD transport can be 'better' than replaying a ripped, lossless copy of a CD through the same DAC,

However, when Mike says that CD transport remains the best way of playing digital music, he has my attention!

I won't even attempt to make a stab at an explanation as this is way above my pay grade. But from experience, a CD played from the inexpensive Cambridge transport directly into the Cary DAC sounds better than a ripped (lossless) version from the same CD played through the laptop into the Cary. Not a night and day difference, but noticeable. I don't have a network streamer so perhaps there's some difference there, or perhaps it's the electronics of the laptop versus a (likely) more 'pure' data stream from the transport with less noise interference. Just guessing here quite honestly, but Mike's words ring true in my experience.

Edit: My big rig is unassembled right now, but once it's put back in place I'm afraid to even try swapping the Bifrost 2 in place of the Cary....'cause I don't have the money for another Bifrost 2 right now. It's friggin' amazing...

 

[exdmd]

That's why I am looking forward to using the planned Schiit CD transport with USB out into the Unison USB input of my Yggdrasil. Should be very interesting. I don't have the Unison board yet, will install it in January or so when Schiit starts shipping it.

 

[Les Strat]

Check out this video about the difference in high end streaming and a great cd player.

That is an interesting video.
The Hegel CD player which is featured in the video, costs £3,800 in UK!
I am pretty confident that the Schiit CD Transport will only be a fraction of that price.
The Hegel does include a built-in DAC, but I already have a fantastic DAC- the Yggy A2....
I am optimistic that the new Schiit Transport will be capable of fulfilling the full potential of the Yggy DAC, by using either Unison USB or Mike's new BWD connection for digital output.
If I wanted a 'traditional' CD transport with S/PDIF output, I would buy a Cambridge CXX or Audiolab 6000 CDT, both of which are less than £400 in UK
I'll be patient....

 

[KoshNaranek]

I won't even attempt to make a stab at an explanation as this is way above my pay grade. But from experience, a CD played from the inexpensive Cambridge transport directly into the Cary DAC sounds better than a ripped (lossless) version from the same CD played through the laptop into the Cary. Not a night and day difference, but noticeable. I don't have a network streamer so perhaps there's some difference there, or perhaps it's the electronics of the laptop versus a (likely) more 'pure' data stream from the transport with less noise interference. Just guessing here quite honestly, but Mike's words ring true in my experience.

Edit: My big rig is unassembled right now, but once it's put back in place I'm afraid to even try swapping the Bifrost 2 in place of the Cary....'cause I don't have the money for another Bifrost 2 right now. It's friggin' amazing...

My experience is laptop sounds worse than transport which sounds worse than a dedicated streamer. In my case, a Raspberry pi with either hifiberry digi pro or 502 DAC added on. I am still interested in the transport as my wife likes CDs and Mike feels that he can do better than a dedicated streamer. Given how many of his engineering projects have given me pleasure over the past 25 years, I am willing to pretty much try anything that he has a hand in.

 

[tafens]

Schiit's FAQ pages have implied comments about Modi being potential dumpster fodder... might they need to be reworded? Im assuming there's some kind of limited-liability statement shipped with every re-flashed-updated chip ("you brick it... yew have a problem... knot Schiit Audio Ltd.")... yes/no/dunno?

No statement, just the chip, in an anti-static bag.

It’s an easy install if you have handled IC:s before; just remove the old and insert the new, making sure it goes in the right way of course.
I have no idea what happens if it’s inserted the wrong way, but it probably won’t make for the best of days I guess.

 

[GearMe]

Thanks for the replies above!

It could be that you ( and I) aren't missing anything at all by using lossless rips of CDs, in which case buying a CD Transport and Preamp would be a complete waste of money .

I certainly struggle to understand why a CD transport can be 'better' than replaying a ripped, lossless copy of a CD through the same DAC,

However, when Mike says that CD transport remains the best way of playing digital music, he has my attention!

You and me both

Would love to hear from Mike ( @Baldr ) on the engineering differences -- sure it would be insightful.

This is where I get hung up...if bits are perfectly delivered to the DAC, then doesn't it really come down to how the DAC handles the bitperfect stream from that point forward? Acknowledging, of course, that whatever piece of equipment connected to the DAC may have the possibility of introducing some spurious hum/etc. more so than another unit might.

Well maybe the optimal match of a Unison USB™ server to a Unison USB™ receiver. That makes everything sound........

Are folks just saying that some connection methods sound better/introduce more noise than others?

Or are they saying that a bitperfect stream from a CD Transport is actually better sounding than one from a streamer/laptop/etc if noise levels are equal?

To put the question another way, would a CD Transport with SPDIF output sound different than a Network Streamer with SPDIF output fed into a Yggdrasil assuming their noise levels were identical.

Check out this video about the difference in high end streaming and a great cd player.

Interesting video!

It looked like the CD player and the Network Streamer were each feeding the Integrated Amp with an analog signal.

If so, then you've got two different DACs at play which seems to introduce a variable that makes it hard to compare a CD Transport vs a Network Streamer delivering a bitperfect stream...yes?

I won't even attempt to make a stab at an explanation as this is way above my pay grade. But from experience, a CD played from the inexpensive Cambridge transport directly into the Cary DAC sounds better than a ripped (lossless) version from the same CD played through the laptop into the Cary. Not a night and day difference, but noticeable. I don't have a network streamer so perhaps there's some difference there, or perhaps it's the electronics of the laptop versus a (likely) more 'pure' data stream from the transport with less noise interference. Just guessing here quite honestly, but Mike's words ring true in my experience.

Edit: My big rig is unassembled right now, but once it's put back in place I'm afraid to even try swapping the Bifrost 2 in place of the Cary....'cause I don't have the money for another Bifrost 2 right now. It's friggin' amazing...

Glad to hear you like your Bifrost 2!

Are Cambridge CD Transport and the laptop both feeding your DAC with USB?

FWIW, I think I understand the logic here if the Laptop is introducing noise via a poorer USB connection that is somehow picked up by the DAC and 'added' to its analog output.

I use SPDIF output (Streamer, CD Player) where ever possible to alleviate this in my setups.

 

[scottbrown5271]

I HIGHLY doubt the Schiit Transport is going to have Bluetooth...

Stranger things have happened though...

If you haven't listened to hi-res over an ldac connection, you may be in for a surprise. Audiophile grade Bluetooth transmitters and receivers with s/pdif connections may not be completely out of the question... I wonder what Bluetooth 10 will look like...

 

[Roy G. Biv]

I can't explain it either, but I think the sound quality from my Oppo DVD/CD player > Modi Multibit > Receiver is just a little bit better than Mac Mini (using Roon) > Modi Multibit > Receiver.
Having said that, the convenience of playing files thru Roon more than trumps the tiny bit of perceived SQ difference. For me, anyway. YMMV.

 

[mbritt]

I can't explain it either, but I think the sound quality from my Oppo DVD/CD player > Modi Multibit > Receiver is just a little bit better than Mac Mini (using Roon) > Modi Multibit > Receiver.
Having said that, the convenience of playing files thru Roon more than trumps the tiny bit of perceived SQ difference. For me, anyway. YMMV.

I've had the same experience with close to the same equipment only with an ALLO DigiOne pi streamer in the mix from an iMac. There is a notable difference even between high resolution downloads or rips and SACD discs. The discs always sound a little better. It's not a big deal but if I really want to lose myself in an album I get the CD, DVD OR SACD out. Roon wins for general listening and for Roon Radio - the auto generated, similar genre playlist based on the last song you played.