[morserotonin]

Quote:

next version:
 
microStreamer Opera
 
LOL
 
yeah like that will attract more young listeners!
LOL
 
well, maybe we can attract more opera fans!

Wait I haven't listened to any Wagner through this rig yet.... that just has to be rectified! LOL

 

[jaywillin]

on a whim, i put a bid in on a dragonfly on ebay last week as the auction was about to end.
i won the damn thing for $107 shipped.
just throwing some initial, first impressions, as a dac, not using either to drive either headphones or speakers
with headphones i, i  prefer the micro, and its not real close, the dragonfly seems to have an edge to it, i don't know
with my speakers, its closer,
i just found it interesting, as i said, very preliminary , and i haven't used the dragonfly to drive headphones or speakers
directly yet.
 
 
hmmm, just realized as i was writing this post, listening to some live black crowes, it was the microstreamer doing the duties
and i wasn't think about how it sounded, i was just grooving !

 

[estreeter]

I still maintain that Art Dudley's review of the HD was considerably more 'warts and all' than the majority of Stereophile reviews of gear at the budget end of the market - they even appointed Robert J Reina as the 'point man' for reviews of budget gear. Whether said warts can be construed as 'negative' or simply realistic is for others to decide, but I felt that he expected more from HRT's 'premier' DAC - it may well be that Kevin has made a rod for his back with his earlier 'giant killers', but that's a yoke many manufacturers would be happy to carry. Schiit, IMO, are in a similar position with the new statement pieces due late 2013/early 2014, but thats all covered elsewhere on HF. Anyone who wants a counterweight to the Dudley review need only check out the Positive Feedback review of the HD and, of course, Mike's impressions when he gets his act together

 

[mikemercer]

Quote:

I still maintain that Art Dudley's review of the HD was considerably more 'warts and all' than the majority of Stereophile reviews of gear at the budget end of the market - they even appointed Robert J Reina as the 'point man' for reviews of budget gear. Whether said warts can be construed as 'negative' or simply realistic is for others to decide, but I felt that he expected more from HRT's 'premier' DAC - it may well be that Kevin has made a rod for his back with his earlier 'giant killers', but that's a yoke many manufacturers would be happy to carry. Schiit, IMO, are in a similar position with the new statement pieces due late 2013/early 2014, but thats all covered elsewhere on HF. Anyone who wants a counterweight to the Dudley review need only check out the Positive Feedback review of the HD and, of course, Mike's impressions when he gets his act together

 
I wholly agree.  Tt seemed as if Art's expectations of a 500 dollar DAC was a bit over-the-top in terms if what he normally reviews.
And isn't the Halide (formerly DevilSound, whose OG USB DAC is killer) more expensive?  Plus - they were chasing HRT from the start.
They admitted this to a colleague!  
 
Nonetheless, I'm going to judge it on its own musical merit as a DAC.  F__ the price point.
 
now, gotta get back to packing boxes for the move!!

 

[mikemercer]

Quote:

Wait I haven't listened to any Wagner through this rig yet.... that just has to be rectified! LOLNo no

No No.
 
You mean Stravinsky's The Firebird Suite.
 
Jesus, if I hear another middle-aged, jaded audiophile ask for that at a convention I think
I'll projectile vomit all over them.

 

[breadvan]

About the Firmware, the Support webpage only mentioned: "Firmware: 7-10-2013 (includes firmware versions for use with NAS and similar, lower processing power hosts)". Does anyone know if this applies to microstreamer? Have to agree they can make the page more understandable.

 

[RapidPulse]

Yes.  If you download the zip file, you will see .bin files for the various HRT products.
 
According to Kevin from HRT:
 
uS_1V2.bin            this corresponds to microStreamer version 1.2
uS(NAS)_1V2.bin    this corresponds to microStreamer (NAS) version 1.2
 
I have no idea why there are 2 versions. i.e. do you give anything up by installing the NAS version, even though primarily using on a computer? Why wouldn't you want to install that one? Unfortunately, the documentation doesn't indicate what new firmware fixes/improves.
 
I followed up with Kevin to try to get more details.

 

[jaywillin]

Quote:

No No.
 
You mean Stravinsky's The Firebird Suite.
 
Jesus, if I hear another middle-aged, jaded audiophile ask for that at a convention I think
I'll projectile vomit all over them.

well, i'm definitely middle aged, some close to me say i'm obsessed with this stuff, and yet i'd pick the crowes, the dead, the brothers(allman)
over wagner, stravinsky, et. al.  on most anyday !!
i've been told i was an overgrown kid !

 

[jaywillin]

Quote:

Yes.  If you download the zip file, you will see .bin files for the various HRT products.
 
According to Kevin from HRT:
 
uS_1V2.bin            this corresponds to microStreamer version 1.2
uS(NAS)_1V2.bin    this corresponds to microStreamer (NAS) version 1.2
 
I have no idea why there are 2 versions. i.e. do you give anything up by installing the NAS version, even though primarily using on a computer? Why wouldn't you want to install that one? Unfortunately, the documentation doesn't indicate what new firmware fixes/improves.
 
I followed up with Kevin to try to get more details.

please post whatever you learn, i'll try and do the same today

 

[morserotonin]

Quote:

No No.
 
You mean Stravinsky's The Firebird Suite.
 
Jesus, if I hear another middle-aged, jaded audiophile ask for that at a convention I think
I'll projectile vomit all over them.

Stravinsky is an awesome composer and did a lot to free music from the restraints imposed by the past. He also wrote music that inspired Charlie Parker and that says a lot to me.  However The Firebird Suite as nice as it is was written for a ballet and is not one of his better works IMHO. I do believe it needs to be heard by most music fans but to live and die by it is funny... now I am going to go listen to Tin Pan Alley on repeat for a few hours

 

[jaywillin]

Quote:

Stravinsky is an awesome composer and did a lot to free music from the restraints imposed by the past. He also wrote music that inspired Charlie Parker and that says a lot to me.  However The Firebird Suite as nice as it is was written for a ballet and is not one of his better works IMHO. I do believe it needs to be heard by most music fans but to live and die by it is funny... now I am going to go listen to Tin Pan Alley on repeat for a few hours

now thats funny !!

 

[jarrett]

The Firebird should be heard entirely - not the suite. I think he orchestrated the suite to retain copyright and to perform highlights in concerts.

 

[estreeter]

HRT, Schiit, Audioquest and Meridian need to start pushing their gear outside the realms of the 'converted' : how many MacWorld readers would absolutely love one of these toys if they were offered as a subscription prize ? How about gamers at an Expo, or even the Comicon crowd ? Not sure if the others need driver downloads, but I just plugged my HRT streamers into the USB port and they worked straight up - it doesn't get any simpler.  
 
I read somewhere that Nuforce and even CEntrance gear can be found in certain 'big box' stores - surely it's time for HRT to get it's gear onto those shelves ? They definitely need to throw some money at packaging, but in reliability terms I think it would be a no-brainer choice for me. Full marks to Nuforce for getting an audiophile product into a big box store. 
 
 http://www.bestbuy.com/site/NuForce---Icon-iDo-Digital-to-Analog-Docking-Interface-and-Headphone-Amplifier---Red/4003156.p?id=1218447378159&skuId=4003156

 

[estreeter]

 

 
 
Just a couple of photos to highlight just how tiny the microStreamer really is ..  HRT MSII, Just Audio uHA-120 and the microStreamer. Doesn't look that small on the product page  

 

[jaywillin]

Just a couple of photos to highlight just how tiny the microStreamer really is ..  HRT MSII, Just Audio uHA-120 and the microStreamer. Doesn't look that small on the product page  

Small, but solid!