So...
After roughly month I finished setup of new speaker system, and I would like to run down what I have learned during the process on this forum and ask you guys, what else can be done to improve the sound quality.
I will start at the speakers, moving to the source.
a) Speakers
I puchased Elac DBR-62s mainly because I found review on this forum, with all needed technical data. Price/performance ratio is excellent and I really like how they sound. Cables to amp are quite common copper speakers wires, 1.5m long.
b) Amplifier
I was looking for a small, integrated, power-efficient solution, which can fit on the table. To me were available just Yamaha WXA-50 and NAD d3020v2. The goal was to achieve values close to CD audio requirements. Unfortunately there are no scientific reviews, I did measurements myself - SNR is105dB and THD -81.5dB, and under normal circumstances, power consumption is at 16Watt.
c) Connection
I planned to use OPT for 44,1KHz 16bit sound output from PC and AUX for 48KHz 24bit. First should be used for normal daily use and mainly gaming, the other for DVDs and BluRays, in order to minimize re-sampling distortion.
AUX cable costed 40 Euro, its gold plated and shielded QED 3.5mm jack to 2xCinch, OPT Toslink costed 15 Euro and its AudioTuning 10, both cables are 1.5m long.
After initial hearing tests, I was convinced that AUX somehow sounds much better. Then I read about used DAC in the amplifier and realized that there must be a different issue. I did some measurements, learned about CAudioLimiter in Windows, and fixed issue in Windows Audio Stack and balanced audio output of OPT and AUX. Now both inputs sound the same, measurements say that OPT has lower noise levels as it isolates DAC from the rest of the system.
Due this I will probably just use OPT and switch between 44.1KHz 24bit / 48KHz 24bit.
d) ALC1220
Internal soundcard in my PC. 3.6 Roentgen, not great not terrible. Unfortunately, all of its analog outputs and inputs can carry EM coilwhine from my GPU. Mainly used for its optical SPDIF Out, while in case of a problem I can revert to analog.
e) Equalizer APO
Kind people on this forum provided great EQ profile for DBR-62s, -0.14dB gain avoids triggering CAudioLimiter on OPT and -3.76dB to balance AUX with OPT. This way sound of any game in my system gets equalization and both inputs are of same loudness.
f) Foobar2000, MPC-HC, PowerDVD20
I use Foobar2000 as a primary music player. It allows use of Wasapi Exclusive mode via plugin if necessary and gapless playback.
MPC-HC in combination with LAV Audio filters is used for DVDs and BluRays. Source audio is usually multichannel 48KHz 16 or 24bit, downmixed to stereo 32bit Float and then sent to DAC (where is converted to 24bit again). At this point I am not really sure if EQ APO is needed or useful for movies, therefore I am not sure whether to use Wasapi Exclusive. It would make playing movies much more convenient - no need to switch between sampling rates.
PowerDVD20 serves as a default player when other software fails and I kept it set to Exclusive mode. It allows and DVD/BluRay, or to view Youtube in exclusive mode.
g) Sources
Mostly I would like to use lossless media, preferably CDDA, FLAC, Lossless DTS-HD MA. Rest are compressed 5.1 audio formats on DVDs and audio in PC games (often a real treat).
To play media, possibility to set Wasapi exclusive mode is a must, however PC games do not offer this feature. EQ APO was therefore solution to possible distortion by the system. Also I use movie streaming, however I dont have much information about the audio quality.
Anything else?
I am not going to perform room measurements, speakers are used in near-field situation.
I got myself new more powerful surge protection (2690 joule), but no noise filtering equipment - not much help as most of the EM noise comes from the PC and that was solved by Toslink
After roughly month I finished setup of new speaker system, and I would like to run down what I have learned during the process on this forum and ask you guys, what else can be done to improve the sound quality.
I will start at the speakers, moving to the source.
a) Speakers
I puchased Elac DBR-62s mainly because I found review on this forum, with all needed technical data. Price/performance ratio is excellent and I really like how they sound. Cables to amp are quite common copper speakers wires, 1.5m long.
b) Amplifier
I was looking for a small, integrated, power-efficient solution, which can fit on the table. To me were available just Yamaha WXA-50 and NAD d3020v2. The goal was to achieve values close to CD audio requirements. Unfortunately there are no scientific reviews, I did measurements myself - SNR is105dB and THD -81.5dB, and under normal circumstances, power consumption is at 16Watt.
c) Connection
I planned to use OPT for 44,1KHz 16bit sound output from PC and AUX for 48KHz 24bit. First should be used for normal daily use and mainly gaming, the other for DVDs and BluRays, in order to minimize re-sampling distortion.
AUX cable costed 40 Euro, its gold plated and shielded QED 3.5mm jack to 2xCinch, OPT Toslink costed 15 Euro and its AudioTuning 10, both cables are 1.5m long.
After initial hearing tests, I was convinced that AUX somehow sounds much better. Then I read about used DAC in the amplifier and realized that there must be a different issue. I did some measurements, learned about CAudioLimiter in Windows, and fixed issue in Windows Audio Stack and balanced audio output of OPT and AUX. Now both inputs sound the same, measurements say that OPT has lower noise levels as it isolates DAC from the rest of the system.
Due this I will probably just use OPT and switch between 44.1KHz 24bit / 48KHz 24bit.
d) ALC1220
Internal soundcard in my PC. 3.6 Roentgen, not great not terrible. Unfortunately, all of its analog outputs and inputs can carry EM coilwhine from my GPU. Mainly used for its optical SPDIF Out, while in case of a problem I can revert to analog.
e) Equalizer APO
Kind people on this forum provided great EQ profile for DBR-62s, -0.14dB gain avoids triggering CAudioLimiter on OPT and -3.76dB to balance AUX with OPT. This way sound of any game in my system gets equalization and both inputs are of same loudness.
f) Foobar2000, MPC-HC, PowerDVD20
I use Foobar2000 as a primary music player. It allows use of Wasapi Exclusive mode via plugin if necessary and gapless playback.
MPC-HC in combination with LAV Audio filters is used for DVDs and BluRays. Source audio is usually multichannel 48KHz 16 or 24bit, downmixed to stereo 32bit Float and then sent to DAC (where is converted to 24bit again). At this point I am not really sure if EQ APO is needed or useful for movies, therefore I am not sure whether to use Wasapi Exclusive. It would make playing movies much more convenient - no need to switch between sampling rates.
PowerDVD20 serves as a default player when other software fails and I kept it set to Exclusive mode. It allows and DVD/BluRay, or to view Youtube in exclusive mode.
g) Sources
Mostly I would like to use lossless media, preferably CDDA, FLAC, Lossless DTS-HD MA. Rest are compressed 5.1 audio formats on DVDs and audio in PC games (often a real treat).
To play media, possibility to set Wasapi exclusive mode is a must, however PC games do not offer this feature. EQ APO was therefore solution to possible distortion by the system. Also I use movie streaming, however I dont have much information about the audio quality.
Anything else?
I am not going to perform room measurements, speakers are used in near-field situation.
I got myself new more powerful surge protection (2690 joule), but no noise filtering equipment - not much help as most of the EM noise comes from the PC and that was solved by Toslink