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smsl /chromecast

marco13

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hello

sorry for my english , i dont speak very weel

i have a smsl ad18 , and i use my chromecast for play music ...so with the wifi
the chromecast use te spdif mini toslink
the smsl ad18 use the spdif normal

my speaker is eltax monitor 9

i live in appartement, and i think i dont use all potential of my amp
i cant to use all the power to my amp


i'm ask some things about my installation becaue i dont sure its the best installation


im not sure if the cable spdif is the best than the aux
whats the best the outpout aux ? or the spdif ?
the dac of the chromecats or the conversion of the smsl ad18 ?

im not sure about the alimentation ...
exist an alternative ?

im ask if its the smsl sa100 is not best than the ad18 ???(with a chromecats and a cable coax/aux
because i dont use bluetooth , and dont sure i need more power (appartement :( )

can you help me please ?

thank you very much
 

Willem

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Normally I would recommend using the digital output of the Chromecast, but the DAC part of your amplifier is not very good, and probably not as good as the DAC in the Chromecast. See here: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...w-and-measurements-of-smsl-ad18-dac-amp.7325/
In addition, your amplifier has more power when fed from the analogue line input. So that is what I would do: use the analogue/rca output of the Chromecast, maybe even in the High Dynamic Range setting (i.e. higher output voltage, it has nothing to do with real dynamic range), depending on the input sensitivy of your amplifier.
If you really want better sound I would recommend a Yamaha AS501 amplifier (with digital inputs). Or, if on a really tight budget, a Sony STR DH 190 (without the digital inputs, so to be used with the analogue output of the Chromecast).
 
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marco13

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thank you for your answer

but i dont want a big material... i want to use tiny
and i want to keep the type of this system for casting with chromecast (i love this system


my last solution is to buy a smsl sa100

what do you think ?
 

BDWoody

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thank you for your answer

but i dont want a big material... i want to use tiny
and i want to keep the type of this system for casting with chromecast (i love this system


my last solution is to buy a smsl sa100

what do you think ?

As suggested, why not just use your Chromecast with the analog out instead of optical, hook it up directly to analog in, and you should be good.

You don't need anything new. Just feed analog in. You can use your Chromecast for volume control if needed.
 
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marco13

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but i search a best quality and the best cable ....the best solution


what do you think about smsl sa100 ?

thank you
 

Willem

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Now that I have had time to reread Amir's test I am not so sure anymore that my advice to try the analogue input was right. This is a fully digital chip amp so it does not really have a Dac (just like my own Ava Maestro 50 bedroom amp). In fact, the analogue input uses an AD converter and that may well degrade the sound (you have DA conversion in the Chromecast and then AD conversion in the amp. From what I understand Amir used the usb input of the amp and the problems may well be confined to that.
What remains is that you are not quite happy with the sound. And indeed this is not a great amplifier and a good amplifier would certainly improve the sound. The complicaton is that you want something small. I am not a fan of all these cheap and often Chinese chip amps. Very few of them seem to measure well. If you want good and small you need one with an ICEpower module and designed by people who know what they are doing. That will cost at least a few hundred dollars/euros. Anything else is a potential waste of money. if you are on a tight budget more traditional amplifiers such as I mentioned are your only safe bet. But they are large because they have big traditional power supplies. But that is also why they sound so good. They have ample power and abundant clean power is the key to good sound.
 
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