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Rca or optical ?
- Thread starter jcris
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AnalogSteph
Major Contributor
(fixed the link for you)
You can certainly try the RCA inputs but don't be too surprised if you get typical ground loop noises when connected to something like a PC. The digital input is likely to be the more robust option.
MarnixM
Member
Tonycollinet and Killingbeans; possible, but I am very satisfied with the change. Enjoying my Jazz and Classic albums as never before. And that's why we doing it, ain't it?
Killingbeans
Major Contributor
Yes, but I don't like the idea of recommending a placebo to people when they ask for technical advice.
Or rather, please call a spade a spade, and then just do whatever makes you happy.
Or rather, please call a spade a spade, and then just do whatever makes you happy.
Exactly
Spdif coax can also be made electrically isolated, but that increases the cost. I wonder if there are many out there in commercial products.
One additional point for toslink, in my opinion, is what I read recently that you can ruin an amp by mistakenly plugging in a spdif coax instead of an analog line. Can't tell if this is true or not but others here might know.
One additional point for toslink, in my opinion, is what I read recently that you can ruin an amp by mistakenly plugging in a spdif coax instead of an analog line. Can't tell if this is true or not but others here might know.
I killed my NAD M22 with a SPDIF signal! But how is that possible?
HI I just killed one channel in my NAD M22 by giving it a SPDIF signal instead of an analogue signal. It was going to be a temporary installation were it would replace a Wadia 151 as a subwoofer amplifier, but I forgot that the Wadia is a PWM amplifer that only takes a digital signal. It was...
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Like @MaxwellsEq I'd have expected a low pass filter somewhere to protect the amp - still, clearly possible.I killed my NAD M22 with a SPDIF signal! But how is that possible?
HI I just killed one channel in my NAD M22 by giving it a SPDIF signal instead of an analogue signal. It was going to be a temporary installation were it would replace a Wadia 151 as a subwoofer amplifier, but I forgot that the Wadia is a PWM amplifer that only takes a digital signal. It was...
OP
- Thread Starter
- #30
Hey,
With my passive system I used a usb A connector on the output of a MacMini to a usb B connector on my dac. Nothing special there and I was satisfied with it. Now that I’m moving to a digital system the dac is no longer necessary so I’m trying to figure out the best way to handle making that connection. The connection at the active speaker is an xlr type that can be converted to use spdif or aes/ebu. I’ve been doing some research and it seems the aes path would be better, but I’m unsure. The Mac functions as a server that holds my entire music collection and while it is older it serves it’s purpose very well. I’ve replaced the drive with an SSD and bumped the memory to 8 gigabytes, so it’s really a decent setup imho. Please offer opinions on how best to accomplish this connection. A particular cable or converter or? I should add that my focus is sound quality and maximizing performance.
Thanks,
Jcris
somebodyelse
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OP
- Thread Starter
- #33
I’m looking at Matrix 3 to handle the usb to aes conversion. https://www.matrix-digi.com/product/82/X-SPDIF3
Kinda pricey but looks like a nice piece of kit
And now I’m thinking about a quality xlr cable to daisy chain the speakers together ( 10’ would do) and to make the connection from the usb converter to the aes input (a 3’ would do). Just a decent quality cable nothing to crazy. I’ve soldered up plenty of rca’s along the way but haven’t even used an XLR type.
Any ideas?
This is great , thanks so very much for your help
Jcris
Kinda pricey but looks like a nice piece of kit
And now I’m thinking about a quality xlr cable to daisy chain the speakers together ( 10’ would do) and to make the connection from the usb converter to the aes input (a 3’ would do). Just a decent quality cable nothing to crazy. I’ve soldered up plenty of rca’s along the way but haven’t even used an XLR type.
Any ideas?
This is great , thanks so very much for your help
Jcris
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Wow - yes that is pricey. Just so you know, you can get USB to SPDIF converters for less than $30
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To connect USB to AES, you can get an inexpensive, $30 device as @tonycollinet notes above. I have no idea how these work and whether or not they're reliable. I have no reason to believe they're not, but I haven't seen a test of one.
If you want to step up from that, unfortunately most, perhaps all, devices that convert USB to AES start at $500 and up, like that Matrix SPDIF3 you found, or the MiniDSP Flex Digital Edition.
If you are willing to give up the AES output on the device, though, then your options open up a lot. For example, SMSL makes the PO100 Pro, which I think is only $70, and it provides USB input and SPDIF (RCA coax) output. (They used to make a non-pro PO100, which did the same job and cost about $40 or $50, but it's been discontinued).
With SPDIF coax output, you can buy a (relatively) inexpensive RCA SPDIF to AES cable to go from the PO100 Pro to the AES input of your device. Technically that cable should be a 110 ohm cable. Those are hard to find in my experience, but I know Sweetwater has them for around $35 depending on the length. However, if you have a relatively short run - like 6 feet or less, maybe even 10-15 feet or less, I'm not sure - then a regular 75 ohm RCA to XLR cable should work. While I was waiting for my 110 ohm Sweetwater cable to arrive, I got a $9, 75-ohm Monoprice RCA to XLR cable (added it to an Amazon Prime next-day order of other stuff I was already placing anyway). I tried the Monoprice cable and it works perfectly (I have a 6-foot run). When the Sweetewater cable arrived it looked nice, but the Monoprice fits nice and tight on the RCA end, so I just left it installed and have never even used the Sweetwater cable.
As for an AES to AES cable to daisy-chain the speakers, I would recommend getting one from World's Best Cables, which are sold on Amazon. Inexpensive ($35 give or take depending on length), 110ohm, aka proper spect for digital AES, works great.
So even if you want to stick to reliable name brands and active devices, I think you can get what you need for about $100-$130, give or take, including the converter device and both cables.
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OP
- Thread Starter
- #36
Excellent tmtomh,
I wondered as much about the Matrix but I was getting fired up and well I appreciate your much more reasonable recommendation. Especially considering that using the Mac as a source will diminish when I get a reliable internet connection. Then the focus becomes a streaming.
Thanks
Jcris
I wondered as much about the Matrix but I was getting fired up and well I appreciate your much more reasonable recommendation. Especially considering that using the Mac as a source will diminish when I get a reliable internet connection. Then the focus becomes a streaming.
Thanks
Jcris
I use a Topping D10 for usb to spdif conversion. Works perfectly. The D10S and the D10B both have coaxial as well as optical spdif output. I use the optical one at 96 kHz, 24 bit without any problem.
A digital interface cable works a bit like this: Imagine you have someone on the phone who only says "zero" or "one". This phone line is your cable. Each time you hear "zero", you write down a 0 on a piece of paper. Each time you hear "one" you write down a 1. The piece of paper is the memory buffer of the receiving party. The DAC, in turn, will only read what's on your piece of paper.
As long as you can hear the person on the phone well enough to differentiate the "ones" from the "zeros", the DAC will see no difference at all, since the content of your piece of paper will be exactly the same regardless of the quality of your phone connection. As soon as your phone connection becomes so bad that you start missing or misinterpreting what the person is saying, the content of your piece of paper will result in clearly audible dropouts and glitches. So any proper digital connection will do just fine, without any difference to the DAC which uses its own clock to read out its memory buffer (the piece of paper). That's the beauty of digital transmission: it's extremely robust. The proof of that is you reading my message right now without any spelling errors (I hope ).
A digital interface cable works a bit like this: Imagine you have someone on the phone who only says "zero" or "one". This phone line is your cable. Each time you hear "zero", you write down a 0 on a piece of paper. Each time you hear "one" you write down a 1. The piece of paper is the memory buffer of the receiving party. The DAC, in turn, will only read what's on your piece of paper.
As long as you can hear the person on the phone well enough to differentiate the "ones" from the "zeros", the DAC will see no difference at all, since the content of your piece of paper will be exactly the same regardless of the quality of your phone connection. As soon as your phone connection becomes so bad that you start missing or misinterpreting what the person is saying, the content of your piece of paper will result in clearly audible dropouts and glitches. So any proper digital connection will do just fine, without any difference to the DAC which uses its own clock to read out its memory buffer (the piece of paper). That's the beauty of digital transmission: it's extremely robust. The proof of that is you reading my message right now without any spelling errors (I hope ).
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