Silent Angel Bonn N8 Audio Grade Ethernet Switch

[Koeitje]

@amirm Can you do a frequency sweep? Claims often include better bass or more detailed highs, so let's also deal with that.

 

[bidn]

Respectfully, as an electrical engineer I could tell you that an Ethernet switch cannot “improve“ the sound.

Indeed, the TCP/IP specs are standardized, so nothing to improve. Moreover it is completely outlandish to audio, the data being cut in chunks (packets), and it has error detection and correction. And the transfer rates are much higher than that required for audio streaming.

I mean that any ethernet device or cable special for audio is by definition snake-oil, and the companies producing or selling these scams can't be trusted, nor those reviewers avoiding to expose them.

Re. these telecommunication devices, for me the only issue is about spying,
and after the revelations by Snowden (e.g. re. Cisco) , Wikileaks, or recently about the Crypto AG company, the NATO fax machine, and so on, I only care not to buy from an American network company (which includes Netgear), e.g. I have only been ordering from TP-Link. I like very much the saying of the Chinese prime minister, it was something like: take the accusations of government of the USA, replace "China" with "America", and the lies become facts...
But I don't think their spying on the kind of music we listen to would matter much...

 

[Deleted member 9286]

The best and worst digital circuitry both have great rejection and acceptance of poor and good digital signals. It's a moot point due to the nature of the circuitry and signals.

I suppose if that’s the case then we should probably treat hifi switches like hifi cables then.

 

[Doodski]

I suppose if that’s the case then we should probably treat hifi switches like hifi cables then.

Digital switches and cables are far apart in their operation and requirements. Digital circuitry switches have intentionally engineered decisive ranges of operation. Cables are a range of resisters with some unwanted reactance and are not designed to intentionally, "switch."

 

[digicidal]

Digital switches and cables are far apart in their operation and requirements. Digital circuitry switches have intentionally engineered decisive ranges of operation. Cables are a range of resisters with some unwanted reactance and are not designed to intentionally, "switch."

I suppose if that’s the case then we should probably treat hifi switches like hifi cables then.

Actually no... most cables will have a measurable difference (note I didn't say audible... just measurable). If the variance was significant enough in a switch to make a difference in a low bandwidth transmission like streaming audio - then it would simply be the difference between a failed unit and a functional one. Not like it could somehow suck with a 250kbps datastream but be perfect with a 1gbps one.

This actually got my entrepreneurial juices flowing - rational audiophile products which admit to having not measurable effect on their face. Obviously not going to be expensive "tweaks" - just aesthetic ones which will enhance subjective perception and are completely transparent in that pursuit.

 

[Doodski]

heheh funny for sure
Love those wurmz.... lol

 

[digicidal]

I think I can beat their price for snake oil at the very least. Look for it soon... placeboaudio.com I'm thinking less along the lines of cables and more on the lines of billet casings, racks, etc. although maybe even a switch as well... with a nice automotive paint finish available in custom colors.

 

[diegooo1972]

How can you have any kind of misinformation on the digital stream if you always end up collecting the bits in the buffer-cahce of the last NIC receiving the digital stream. Only then, once the byte is completed, bits are sent to the DAC. You may have a wrong bit but this imply a network with a huge problem. You're network in that case simply don't work properly even for copying files. That ain't happen even with very low networking apparatus unless they are broken. From networking perspective this is just funny. Just the price is less funny.

 

[Deleted member 9286]

Digital switches and cables are far apart in their operation and requirements. Digital circuitry switches have intentionally engineered decisive ranges of operation. Cables are a range of resisters with some unwanted reactance and are not designed to intentionally, "switch."

I meant treat them the same as in, not bother to test them

 

[Kaiju]

Snake oil right here.

 

[gfx_1]

I got two D-Link switches, it's claim was low power consumption. For a device that's on 24/7 and with a kWh price of 22 cents every Watt is 2 euro a year.
It only does a few Watts, slightly warm to touch and the powersupply is just above room temperature.

 

[digicidal]

How can you have any kind of misinformation on the digital stream if you always end up collecting the bits in the buffer-cahce of the last NIC receiving the digital stream. Only then, once the byte is completed, bits are sent to the DAC. You may have a wrong bit but this imply a network with a huge problem. You're network in that case simply don't work properly even for copying files. That ain't happen even with very low networking apparatus unless they are broken. From networking perspective this is just funny. Just the price is less funny.

I'm reasonably sure they find it quite funny... all the way to the bank!

 

[NB Speaker Cables]

From time to time we see a spike in traffic to our website which we commonly trace back to an audio forum of sorts. It's always rather exciting (annnnd sometimes a little nerve racking as some people don't seem to share our sense of humour)! I'm not here to plug our products, just here to say thanks for the shout out and I'm glad we could help crack a few smiles.

Keep fighting the good fight... just try and do it at least 1.5m apart .

 

[vkvedam]

Use WiFi instead

 

[milosz]

Respectfully, as an IT professional, I entirely 100% couldn't agree more!

Respectfully, as an electrical engineer I could tell you that an Ethernet switch cannot “improve“ the sound.

Respectfully, as a high-end audio salesman I bet I can find enough people who can be convinced that there is a sonic improvement to allow me to buy a Porsche. (Actually I don't sell audio, I'm just making a point here.)

 

[mhardy6647]

Let's agree that you are not going to buy a $400 switch and try to improve the performance of a $40 Raspberry Pi streamer. And that any test with a low-end DAC and streamer will be dismissed out of hand for not having "enough resolution" to show the difference.

[emphasis added]

... and, I think, that's my major pet peeve vis-a-vis audiophilia. I call it the Emperor's New Clothes Syndrome. "Of course you can't hear a difference -- your system simply isn't resolving enough."

I will cop to all sorts of snobbery & snarkiness (ya'll've seen enough of me already to know that!) -- but certain manifestations of bad audio attitude really do rub me the wrong way... that's one of them.

Sorry for the digression.
Thanks for listening.

 

[mhardy6647]

If anything cried out for a quick teardown this does. There is a real expectation that the internals are actually generic. Maybe there is something different in there, but one really suspects not.

Had I to speculate maybe some wire wrapped around a hunk of ferrite somewhere inside... and/or some randomly judiciously applied Dynamat in the enclosure.

Yeah, I know... I'm sneering again* . At least I'm not out kicking puppies or something.

_______________________
* https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...t-bothered-by-home-theatre.12357/#post-364219
@Kal Rubinson's post in the HT thread really did give me pause vis-a-vis my snarkier tendencies.

 

[TabCam]

Maybe it is to be expected that for well designed products it makes no difference. For me it would be as interesting to see how the Raspberry Pi would do. Maybe some middle of the road SINAD products and even a low SINAD product as well?

 

[Labjr]

I'm sure there are people who think this review is a sham. That you falsified data or used the same test results for both. Especially those who shelled out the money.

 

[anmpr1]

I am surprised you even bothered with this, Amir. There are some ridiculous "audiophile" products like stones and stuff...

I'd rather have a large stone than an expensive Ethernet switch. LOL