[ImmaLizard]

If I drag/drop .cue files, will they show up as separate flac files for each track or will I need to convert before saving them on the DAP?

 

[SpitFir3]

Cue files did not work for me. I had to use medieval cue splitter.

 

[Leviticus]

Does anyone here know a thing or two about Sony's new ‘Premium Sound’ Memory Card (SR-64HXA) that it plans to launch in March? It allegedly reduces electrical noise during data transfers, thus providing an even better sound quality when used with a high-quality DAP. Are Sony's claims legitimate or merely putative? It costs approximately $150. 
 
I personally do not think that a memory card can make much of a difference. But I'm wondering if the internal storage of, say, the ZX2 produces more noise than the SR-64 and if there is an aural difference that one can hear.
 
 
Here's an article in case you haven't heard of it yet:
 
http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/19/8068465/sony-memory-card-premium-sound-sr-64hxa 

 

[jonstatt]

  Does anyone here know a thing or two about Sony's new ‘Premium Sound’ Memory Card (SR-64HXA) that it plans to launch in March? It allegedly reduces electrical noise during data transfers, thus providing an even better sound quality when used with a high-quality DAP. Are Sony's claims legitimate or merely putative? It costs approximately $150. 
 
I personally do not think that a memory card can make much of a difference. But I'm wondering if the internal storage of, say, the ZX2 produces more noise than the SR-64 and if there is an aural difference that one can hear.
 
 
Here's an article in case you haven't heard of it yet:
 
http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/19/8068465/sony-memory-card-premium-sound-sr-64hxa 

 
 
It has been discussed in this thread and largely regarded by many as "poo", expensive "poo"! However, a couple of forum posters have noted differences in sound between memory cards, most likely related to additional "noise" introduced by the card and card reader circuitry. There are also theories about jitter, but as we are talking compressed formats like FLAC, jitter shouldn't really play a part in the "read" process.
 
Either way, it is "possible" that this memory card has some advantages, but it is very expensive and is unproven. Many are sceptical to pay so much, and in this thread there are various cards that have been considered "good" by those that have compared many brands and types.

 

[djricekcn]

When I did, there were differences between different cards but more of like a hiss/bzzt sound during quiet times.  As for actual quality in the music / depth / width, no.

 

[jonstatt]

  When I did, there were differences between different cards but more of like a hiss/bzzt sound during quiet times.  As for actual quality in the music / depth / width, no.

 
That's my finding too and I suspect that all the Sony "special" card gains is removal of that very background hiss/bzzt sounds you described which you can only hear between tracks (hadn't noticed it during a track, but then I hadn't tried a track with silent parts in the middle)

 

[Conext]

  Does anyone here know a thing or two about Sony's new ‘Premium Sound’ Memory Card (SR-64HXA) that it plans to launch in March? It allegedly reduces electrical noise during data transfers, thus providing an even better sound quality when used with a high-quality DAP. Are Sony's claims legitimate or merely putative? It costs approximately $150. 
 
I personally do not think that a memory card can make much of a difference. But I'm wondering if the internal storage of, say, the ZX2 produces more noise than the SR-64 and if there is an aural difference that one can hear.
 
 
Here's an article in case you haven't heard of it yet:
 
http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/19/8068465/sony-memory-card-premium-sound-sr-64hxa 

My gut reaction to this is "horesepucky"!
 
But, having looked at this, I can begin to understand why people claim that even when dealing with electronics, 1's and 0's aren't necessarily always right.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/755645/sony-sr-64hxa-low-electronic-noise-microsd-card-for-hq-audio-players#post_11339716
 
But—even more but than the previous but—how often do these scenarios play out when a 1 or a 0 isn't read properly? And what's the result when it reaches the listener's ears? Does it manifest as something that a human can even perceive?

 

[Decreate]

Does anybody know if there is an adaptor available that would enable me to use a cable that has the 2.5mm balanced plug with the TRRS output of the ZX2?

 

[jonstatt]

  My gut reaction to this is "horesepucky"!
 
But, having looked at this, I can begin to understand why people claim that even when dealing with electronics, 1's and 0's aren't necessarily always right.
 
http://www.head-fi.org/t/755645/sony-sr-64hxa-low-electronic-noise-microsd-card-for-hq-audio-players#post_11339716
 
But—even more but than the previous but—how often do these scenarios play out when a 1 or a 0 isn't read properly? And what's the result when it reaches the listener's ears? Does it manifest as something that a human can even perceive?

 
I don't think the 1s and 0s are ever in question actually. I think its just noise introduced from the card and card reader circuitry interfering with the analogue circuitry.

 

[castleofargh]

 

  Does anyone here know a thing or two about Sony's new ‘Premium Sound’ Memory Card (SR-64HXA) that it plans to launch in March? It allegedly reduces electrical noise during data transfers, thus providing an even better sound quality when used with a high-quality DAP. Are Sony's claims legitimate or merely putative? It costs approximately $150. 
 
I personally do not think that a memory card can make much of a difference. But I'm wondering if the internal storage of, say, the ZX2 produces more noise than the SR-64 and if there is an aural difference that one can hear.
 
 
Here's an article in case you haven't heard of it yet:
 
http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/19/8068465/sony-memory-card-premium-sound-sr-64hxa 

 
 
It has been discussed in this thread and largely regarded by many as "poo", expensive "poo"! However, a couple of forum posters have noted differences in sound between memory cards, most likely related to additional "noise" introduced by the card and card reader circuitry. There are also theories about jitter, but as we are talking compressed formats like FLAC, jitter shouldn't really play a part in the "read" process.
 
Either way, it is "possible" that this memory card has some advantages, but it is very expensive and is unproven. Many are sceptical to pay so much, and in this thread there are various cards that have been considered "good" by those that have compared many brands and types.

I think anybody really interested can get 2 types of cards, and just record with a computer(and an ok soundcard)one song from different cards and then just ABX them when aligned. doesn't require expensive measurement gears, could have been done years ago from any DAP with a card slot, and it cuts all the weird myth from people who don't understand a single thing about what is actually done with the data(a buffer? what is that witchcraft?). if one card is "noisy", you just use it for something else than music. (I was troubled by this once with some noname brand in my all life...)
we've had the same jokes for hard drive, now it's for flash memory, people just love to worry about meaningless stuff while neglecting driving power, impedance impact and other actually meaningful and most likely audible things. there is one simple rule, if it's good enough for video, it's good enough for music. if you're going to waste money on cables of storage stuff, get video stuff it will most likely be better and more affordable than "audiophile" products.
 the rest is maybe about how many errors can be written on the card when we load it with music? well we can check the integrity of our files on any support. and could do so for years with any computer. I know I do with everything that matters to me and will be my "back up".
 
for photography I've had all kinds of cards at all prices, the actual difference was if I could record some high res video or not (the data flow being too big for some old cards), or how fast I could shoot successive pictures(more like how many I could shoot in one burst in fact, as the camera also uses a buffer). and in very very small instances, some cards might have an error and you would lose one of the 800 pictures to some file corruption. so speed and reliability in writing are really what matters most on flash drive, reading can go slow, but it's not exactly a technological challenge.
no photographer I know of is dumb enough to believe one card would actually make the picture get better colors or other nonsense. but somehow when it's audio we turn off our brains and just get scared of everything. it's an amazing hobby.

can't wait for all the testimonies of people clearly hearing the differences in soundstage from the sony card, it's going to be another blast.

 

[jamato8]

   
 
 
This is a balanced cable for the PHA-3 to Hirose. There are all types of adapters you can make. Also a spring flower shot from the desert here. :^)
 
 
Quote:

  Does anybody know if there is an adaptor available that would enable me to use a cable that has the 2.5mm balanced plug with the TRRS output of the ZX2?

So you want a 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter. I haven't seen one in TRRS. I would make one. 

 

[Steven R. Rochli]

  Does anybody know if there is an adaptor available that would enable me to use a cable that has the 2.5mm balanced plug with the TRRS output of the ZX2?

My buddy in Singapore can make one.

 

[goodvibes]

 
I think anybody really interested can get 2 types of cards, and just record with a computer(and an ok soundcard)one song from different cards and then just ABX them when aligned. doesn't require expensive measurement gears, could have been done years ago from any DAP with a card slot, and it cuts all the weird myth from people who don't understand a single thing about what is actually done with the data(a buffer? what is that witchcraft?). if one card is "noisy", you just use it for something else than music. (I was troubled by this once with some noname brand in my all life...)
we've had the same jokes for hard drive, now it's for flash memory, people just love to worry about meaningless stuff while neglecting driving power, impedance impact and other actually meaningful and most likely audible things. there is one simple rule, if it's good enough for video, it's good enough for music. if you're going to waste money on cables of storage stuff, get video stuff it will most likely be better and more affordable than "audiophile" products.
 the rest is maybe about how many errors can be written on the card when we load it with music? well we can check the integrity of our files on any support. and could do so for years with any computer. I know I do with everything that matters to me and will be my "back up".
 
for photography I've had all kinds of cards at all prices, the actual difference was if I could record some high res video or not (the data flow being too big for some old cards), or how fast I could shoot successive pictures(more like how many I could shoot in one burst in fact, as the camera also uses a buffer). and in very very small instances, some cards might have an error and you would lose one of the 800 pictures to some file corruption. so speed and reliability in writing are really what matters most on flash drive, reading can go slow, but it's not exactly a technological challenge.
no photographer I know of is dumb enough to believe one card would actually make the picture get better colors or other nonsense. but somehow when it's audio we turn off our brains and just get scared of everything. it's an amazing hobby.

can't wait for all the testimonies of people clearly hearing the differences in soundstage from the sony card, it's going to be another blast.

You may be right but transferring files is a different test than playing files off a card.

 

[Whitigir]

Flash works using an entirely different kind of transistor that stays switched on (or switched off) even when the power is turned off. A normal transistor has three connections (wires that control it) called the source, drain, and gate. Think of a transistor as a pipe through which electricity can flow as though it's water. One end of the pipe (where the water flows in) is called the source—think of that as a tap or faucet. The other end of the pipe is called the drain—where the water drains out and flows away. In between the source and drain, blocking the pipe, there's a gate. When the gate is closed, the pipe is shut off, no electricity can flow and the transistor is off. In this state, the transistor stores a zero. When the gate is opened, electricity flows, the transistor is on, and it stores a one. But when the power is turned off, the transistor switches off too. When you switch the power back on, the transistor is still off, and since you can't know whether it was on or off before the power was removed, you can see why we say it "forgets" any information it stores.

A flash transistor is different because it has a second gate above the first one. When the gate opens, some electricity leaks up the first gate and stays there, in between the first gate and the second one, recording a number one. Even if the power is turned off, the electricity is still there between the two gates. That's how the transistor stores its information whether the power is on or off. The information can be erased by making the "trapped electricity" drain back down again.


The above was quoted from


http://www.explainthatstuff.com/flashmemory.html

It is amazing how micro SD is as physical as anything in the electrical circuit, don't you think ? If so, don't you think with the use of better materials the electricity will flow and conduct better ? In everything that may affect it, reading, writing erasing ?

 

[jamato8]

Flash works using an entirely different kind of transistor that stays switched on (or switched off) even when the power is turned off. A normal transistor has three connections (wires that control it) called the source, drain, and gate. Think of a transistor as a pipe through which electricity can flow as though it's water. One end of the pipe (where the water flows in) is called the source—think of that as a tap or faucet. The other end of the pipe is called the drain—where the water drains out and flows away. In between the source and drain, blocking the pipe, there's a gate. When the gate is closed, the pipe is shut off, no electricity can flow and the transistor is off. In this state, the transistor stores a zero. When the gate is opened, electricity flows, the transistor is on, and it stores a one. But when the power is turned off, the transistor switches off too. When you switch the power back on, the transistor is still off, and since you can't know whether it was on or off before the power was removed, you can see why we say it "forgets" any information it stores.

A flash transistor is different because it has a second gate above the first one. When the gate opens, some electricity leaks up the first gate and stays there, in between the first gate and the second one, recording a number one. Even if the power is turned off, the electricity is still there between the two gates. That's how the transistor stores its information whether the power is on or off. The information can be erased by making the "trapped electricity" drain back down again.


The above was quoted from


http://www.explainthatstuff.com/flashmemory.html

It is amazing how micro SD is as physical as anything in the electrical circuit, don't you think ? If so, don't you think with the use of better materials the electricity will flow and conduct better ? In everything that may affect it, reading, writing erasing ?

It would seem so to me. And they are working on even smaller circuits. amazing. And motors that can operate in the human body to do some medical procedures.