• WANTED: Happy members who like to discuss audio and other topics related to our interest. Desire to learn and share knowledge of science required. There are many reviews of audio hardware and expert members to help answer your questions. Click here to have your audio equipment measured for free!

Have the dac/amp, now want to work on source(maybe)

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
I am about ready to upgrade the computer, its getting a little long in the tooth, and I wanted to make it more for music and gaming. I have read a little about linear power supplies and specialized USB cards(in a post here several months ago, but cant find it now), but is it worth the expense of the added cost of assembling a PC this way, or is it just more of the high end audio snake oil? If it is a good way to go, could I get some links of were to go to read up on it and the sellers web sites? I have the new Massdrop/TXAA Amp with RME's Adi-2 Dac, would it improve the audio with this kind of gear? Would the improvements be audible? Lots of questions but what I remember is that the gear isn't cheap, and if it isn't warranted I would rather take a vacation or something.
 
D

Deleted member 65

Guest
I am about ready to upgrade the computer, its getting a little long in the tooth, and I wanted to make it more for music and gaming. I have read a little about linear power supplies and specialized USB cards(in a post here several months ago, but cant find it now), but is it worth the expense of the added cost of assembling a PC this way, or is it just more of the high end audio snake oil? If it is a good way to go, could I get some links of were to go to read up on it and the sellers web sites? I have the new Massdrop/TXAA Amp with RME's Adi-2 Dac, would it improve the audio with this kind of gear? Would the improvements be audible? Lots of questions but what I remember is that the gear isn't cheap, and if it isn't warranted I would rather take a vacation or something.

You've got SOTA equipment more or less immune to noise. Get a silent PC or build one such as the one Amir built or I did (threads to be found in ASR).
 

maverickronin

Major Contributor
Forum Donor
Joined
Jul 19, 2018
Messages
2,527
Likes
3,308
Location
Midwest, USA
The ADI-2 DAC already has an excellent USB implementation so there probably won't be much to gain from linear power supplies. Boutique USB interface cards strike me as likely to cause plenty of problems.

Also a linear power supply suitable for a gaming PC would probably be an enormous and expensive space heater. I have Corsair 1050W in mine. Sure wouldn't want to replace that with an LPSU...
 
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Thanks. I will build it as I normally would and save the money. I admit the new TXAA amp sounds really good as is. I just received new balanced cables for the 6xx and with the change to the TXAA's amp from the RME's I am finally there in terms of audio quality(and power) that I have been looking for.
 

derp1n

Senior Member
Joined
May 28, 2018
Messages
479
Likes
629
Thanks. I will build it as I normally would and save the money. I admit the new TXAA amp sounds really good as is. I just received new balanced cables for the 6xx and with the change to the TXAA's amp from the RME's I am finally there in terms of audio quality(and power) that I have been looking for.
Are you saying you can hear a difference between the headphone out of the ADI-2 DAC and the THX 789?
 
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Ya
Are you saying you can hear a difference between the headphone out of the ADI-2 DAC and the THX 789?
Ya at louder levels and 300 ohm headphones. I can tell there's a change in amps.
 

derp1n

Senior Member
Joined
May 28, 2018
Messages
479
Likes
629
Ya

Ya at louder levels and 300 ohm headphones. I can tell there's a change in amps.
Can you describe the differences?
 
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Good music mastering is important too
Amirm:
Sennheiser HD-650. This combination provided incredible level of transparency. I could set the volume level high and hear the slightest amount of background noise in recordings! It was so good that variations in fidelity of the source was more apparent than I had ever experienced.

With loud electronic music, I could easily set the cups to motion on the HD-650 whit no hint of distortion. Power was ample and clean.

Pretty close. The transperancy part I dont know if thats what I hear, but it sounds clear, clean is the way I describe it, lack of anything noise, black. Bass at louder volumes stays clean, punchy.
 
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Can you describe the differences?
Oops I replied to the wrong person in the above post. Sorry.
Amirm:
Sennheiser HD-650. This combination provided incredible level of transparency. I could set the volume level high and hear the slightest amount of background noise in recordings! It was so good that variations in fidelity of the source was more apparent than I had ever experienced.

With loud electronic music, I could easily set the cups to motion on the HD-650 whit no hint of distortion. Power was ample and clean.

Pretty close. The transparency part I dont know if thats what I hear, but it sounds clear, clean is the way I describe it, lack of anything noise, black. Bass at louder volumes stays clean, punchy.
 

derp1n

Senior Member
Joined
May 28, 2018
Messages
479
Likes
629
I strongly suspect that if you carefully matched the volume you couldn't tell the difference between the ADI-2 DAC headphone out and the THX 789.
 
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Hell I dont know, I just like what I hear(on well mastered music)
 
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
But then again I like the monolith too. :p
 

maxxevv

Major Contributor
Joined
Apr 12, 2018
Messages
1,872
Likes
1,964
There would be practically no real differences with what you already have for the USB output part of things.

I would suggest spending the money on making your PC as silent as it practically can and running as cool as it should instead (as already suggested above). And maybe a commonly available PC PSU that is rated as 'clean and stable".

It would help in the overall experience of listening to music much more.
 
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Well what your describing is how I built my last PC. Good quality power supply, a low noise PC case, and six 140mm fans and two 120mm fans on the cpu cooler. 3 of the fans are on a 12-7-5 volt switch and 3 of them on the fan headers of the video card that only come on when the 1080 card is working. So it can be cool and quite(3 fans off, 5 fans at 7 volt including 2 cpu fans) or all 8 fans full speed. So I will just keep on what I have been doing. Next to get is a new motherboard,ram, and processor. Thanks
 

maxxevv

Major Contributor
Joined
Apr 12, 2018
Messages
1,872
Likes
1,964
Good for you !

I'm not sure if having many fans is the quietest of options though? Would liquid cooling or those passive vapor heat-tube systems be quieter ?

There used to be websites dedicated to testing of cooling solutions for PC's maybe a decade back, they used to do things like measuring the mean temperatures and noise levels. Are those sites still around ? Perhaps it might be useful to take a peek and see if there are quieter options out there ?
 

watchnerd

Grand Contributor
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Messages
12,449
Likes
10,408
Location
Seattle Area, USA
You've got SOTA equipment more or less immune to noise. Get a silent PC or build one such as the one Amir built or I did (threads to be found in ASR).

Isn't it just easier to make the system based upon network protocols and have the server in a different room than than the audio?

I run Roon on an iMac attached to a NAS in my office. While I do have an office system, for my living room listening it's all over wifi streaming, so I don't care how noisy or not the office system is.
 
Last edited:
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Good for you !

I'm not sure if having many fans is the quietest of options though? Would liquid cooling or those passive vapor heat-tube systems be quieter ?

There used to be websites dedicated to testing of cooling solutions for PC's maybe a decade back, they used to do things like measuring the mean temperatures and noise levels. Are those sites still around ? Perhaps it might be useful to take a peek and see if there are quieter options out there ?
Well Noctua fans at 5 volt are silent in the case I have, at 7 volt I have to have my head close to the case to hear them and I am not sitting that close to the case. Factual design case's has some sound insulation in them also. The two fans on the pc cooler are noctua also on that big hunkin Noctua heat sink they make. Heat has never been a problem. I can just about turn the heat sink fans off(5 volt) when I am just browsing or listening to music. Play a AAA pc game though and the fans crank up and I can hear them, but the case still doesn't get hot. Lots of air movement out of the case.
The fans that are the loudest are the ones on the GPU. There irritating and I have them set at max 75% to handle the noise. There off most of the time though.
 
Last edited:
OP
Rod

Rod

Addicted to Fun and Learning
Joined
Mar 24, 2018
Messages
744
Likes
332
Well Noctua fans at 5 volt are silent in the case I have, at 7 volt I have to have my head close to the case to hear them and I am not sitting that close to the case. Factual design case's has some sound insulation in them also. The two fans on the pc cooler are noctua also on that big hunkin Noctua heat sink they make. Heat has never been a problem. I can just about turn the heat sink fans off(5 volt) when I am just browsing or listening to music. Play a AAA pc game though and the fans crank up and I can hear them, but the case still doesn't get hot. Lots of air movement out of the case.
The fans that are the loudest are the ones on the GPU. There irritating and I have them set at max 75% to handle the noise. There off most of the time though.
Oh ya, the Asus Strix 1080 blows the heat into the case, not out the back so I have to move a lot of air to keep the case cool when its on. I did achieve a silent gaming pc though when I want it to be.
 
Top Bottom