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digititis
Sept 4, 2020 10:42:22 GMT
via mobile
Post by julesd68 on Sept 4, 2020 10:42:22 GMT
Yes it's going to take some time to evaluate them properly and not rush things.
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Post by julesd68 on Dec 17, 2020 14:22:31 GMT
System still not used since March but bought another toy to add to growing list of gear to evaluate when chance arises in New Year. Which year that is could be another matter at this rate.
Drawn to the dark side once again by the dastardly jandl100, I've got me one of them there Mojos.
It can be used in the main system as a pure DAC or as a portable headphone amp so has a lot of potential.
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Post by MikeMusic on Dec 17, 2020 16:36:39 GMT
Don't know what I'd do without music on one day let alone months.
Would be very bad for me
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digititis
Dec 17, 2020 17:55:57 GMT
via mobile
Post by julesd68 on Dec 17, 2020 17:55:57 GMT
Not without music completely - got Spotify on my phone.
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Post by John on Dec 17, 2020 18:20:16 GMT
The mojo a nice DAC Jules and a great Headphone amp
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digititis
Dec 18, 2020 9:55:58 GMT
via mobile
Post by julesd68 on Dec 18, 2020 9:55:58 GMT
I must say it's a lovely thing - fits in the palm of your hand with very tactile metal build quality. Hope it sounds as good as it looks.
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Post by MikeMusic on Dec 18, 2020 10:04:38 GMT
Not without music completely - got Spotify on my phone. Phew ! I would miss my system though |
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digititis
Dec 21, 2020 16:19:42 GMT
via mobile
Post by julesd68 on Dec 21, 2020 16:19:42 GMT
I must say that I do like using Future Shop whenever I can.
I saw they were selling an adapter I needed for under Amazon price. Their service is lightning quick too - they aim to deliver next day or 2 days.
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Post by MartinT on Dec 21, 2020 17:04:33 GMT
They got my Wireworld to me very fast the other day.
Good company.
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 31, 2021 18:14:22 GMT
I’m back!  First listening session for pretty much exactly a year didn’t get off to a good start - just couldn’t get Volumio online. Took me about 15 minutes messing around to remember that my ATB needs an ethernet cable to work - DOH!! So first I fed my usual Spotify Premium into the system as per my signature - the only difference is that I’m now running the reclocker via the 5v Powerbank. Overall very good but I somehow seem to be just missing a little bit of the rez and transparency I was remembering from last year. Maybe I just need to get used to the system again … I was planning to just have a listening session today but of course curiosity got the better of me and I couldn’t resist trying some of the toys acquired during system downtime. So I plumbed in a different passive - it's as simple and pure as can be with single input and output. I absolutely love the styling of the casework and the feel of the volume knob - it really is quality.  It was made by a dealer called Hi-Fi Hangar. Here’s the science - < 20K, 21 stepped gold plated attenuator, using surface mount resistors.
The case and knob are of the highest quality and made in Germany.
It uses twisted pairs of silver plated copper, 7 strand internal cable, sleeved in PTFE, in the shortest manageable lengths, for the purest signal path >I felt that it gave me a bit more transparency, as though a small amount of ‘hash’ has been removed from the background, everything feels a little bit ‘faster’ and livelier, so a decent result for a very modest price indeed. It’s not remote controlled but maybe this is a benefit in terms of SQ since there is no mains involved. I will have another go with this very decent passive tomorrow. Here are the tracks that stood out in terms of SQ today - it was just a fun rock / pop / dance session, nothing too demanding! If you can manage some decent dance music, the David Guetta is absolutely slamming, an amazing system workout for rez and dynamics. |
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digititis
Mar 31, 2021 18:29:21 GMT
via mobile
Post by jandl100 on Mar 31, 2021 18:29:21 GMT
Hey, I had one of those Hifi Hangar passives. Very nice.
Yes, I can imagine it having the edge on the Chinese RVC pre.
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Post by julesd68 on Mar 31, 2021 18:43:43 GMT
Hey, I had one of those Hifi Hangar passives. Very nice. Yes, I can imagine it having the edge on the Chinese RVC pre. Hells bells, and there I was thinking I’d got my hands on something you hadn’t tried Jerry!! The volume knob is so tactile I may just get used to it … |
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Post by julesd68 on May 5, 2021 15:12:36 GMT
Today I had the living room to myself so I was able to get Bluetooth up and running for the first time. Set up was as follows - Teclast BT5 tablet and Spotify > BT LDAC adapter > Topping D70 > Hifi Hangar passive > Audio Synthesis power amp > Sonus Fabers
Took me a little while to get going - I figured that the 5V USB BT adapter would run off my Powerbank like the Tinker and reclocker, but it didn’t! Powered on for about 30 seconds and promptly switched itself off with the Powerbank on a near full charge. So plan B was to power it from a mobile phone charger which ran perfectly. Pairing and set up was straightforward, and was able to tweak all the BT settings on the tablet’s Developer Options with 44khz set for Spotify. Thanks to John and his YouTube video for making clear what the options to play with are. Please bear in mind that I have no experience of BT5 in any other system, so can only report on what I heard on my system today. Trust me, I really, really wanted this to work out but I’m not there yet - I couldn’t get a sound I was really happy with. I just didn't reach the ultimate transparency and detail that I want. Fortunately it was very easy to quickly swap over to the Tinker set-up, and a quick A-B playing the wonderful Sofia Portanet confirmed my suspicions. I then had a session with the Tinker and was much happier about what I was hearing. I also plumbed in another Gothic Audio silver USB cable to run from reclocker to DAC and promptly felt this may have added a bit more detail but it could just be wishful thinking.  So what next? For the moment I would like to concentrate on getting the preamp / volume control sorted. I get excellent transparency with a passive but I’m just wondering if there might be a bit more body and texture to come from the sound and would like to try some active preamps in this regard. I have my little Pro-ject pre to try but I have to first get under the hood of the power amp and reduce the gain setting - it’s unusable at current setting. Favourite test track today -  |
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Post by jandl100 on May 5, 2021 16:35:34 GMT
Ah, probably the reason the powerbank cuts out after 30 seconds is that the BT receiver draws such little current the powerbank doesn't know it's there and turns itself off.
I had the same problem, I think Clive did, too?
You have to feed something else from the powerbank to keep it turned on.
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digititis
May 5, 2021 16:42:17 GMT
via mobile
Post by jandl100 on May 5, 2021 16:42:17 GMT
Shame about your BT experience.
There's something about the sound in my setup that really works for me.
I went back to my laptop fully wired USB configuration after a while and it sounded more like hifi and a lot less like music. All hyped up transparency and detail.... but I liked it well enough previously. Maybe it's down to what you get used to.
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Post by julesd68 on May 5, 2021 17:05:11 GMT
Ah, probably the reason the powerbank cuts out after 30 seconds is that the BT receiver draws such little current the powerbank doesn't know it's there and turns itself off. I had the same problem, I think Clive did, too? You have to feed something else from the powerbank to keep it turned on. That makes perfect sense Jerry - I had forgotten that the only reason my reclocker works with the Powerbank is because the Tinker is plugged in and draws a lot more current ... |
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Post by julesd68 on May 5, 2021 17:07:25 GMT
Shame about your BT experience. There's something about the sound in my setup that really works for me. I went back to my laptop fully wired USB configuration after a while and it sounded more like hifi and a lot less like music. All hyped up transparency and detail.... but I liked it well enough previously. Maybe it's down to what you get used to. I'm very happy to have tried it - not an expensive exercise and who knows, there may be more to get out of it with experimentation. |
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Post by John on May 5, 2021 17:18:49 GMT
Also try Dolby Atmos Jules I find that adds another level of refinement and make sure it is on music when you connect. Just swipe down from the top and click on Dolby Atmos and then go into settings then sound settings then sound quality and click on your Atmos settings you only have to do this right
Sorry it is not working for you Jules but at least you gave it a go
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Post by MartinT on May 5, 2021 17:37:41 GMT
Bit of a shame, Jules, but good choice of music to test it with.
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Post by John on May 7, 2021 7:33:25 GMT
Just a quick thought Jules
At the moment I am having to use a powerbank and the mids are not as good as when I use a dedicated power supply so when it safe to visit I come around with a decent power supply and my Bluetooth receiver and have a try again
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