Super Best Audio Friends

wav - flac USB digital audio data integrity

Discussions may be found on internet forums claiming flac encoded files sound different from straight pcm wav files. Results from actual testing for data integrity issues at any step in the process of encoding, transmitting, receiving will be shown using a complete system loopback null test. This is a Windows specific test but similar results may be obtained on other major non-RTOS computers.

I miss these kinds of meets. Tradeshows have their place, but nothing replaces old school meets.

Schiit Wotan The Schiit Wotan is a beast!


200W into 8 ohms
400W into 4 ohms

For all of the information please reference Schiit’s product page.

https://www.schiit.com/products/wotan

This doubling of power is very important to anyone who wants to power Magnepans (which run mainly at 4 ohms).

Just to make it official...

Let me set the stage before diving into the Wiim Ultra review. Many folks in the SBAF community are hunting for that elusive last 1-5% of performance, with some even aiming for a mere 0.1% improvement. There's a belief here that digital sources contribute up to 50% (or more) to the final sound from a DAC. Whether you buy into this or not, debates on audio (much like gun control) aren’t settled through talk, but maybe through more physical confrontations—but let's steer clear of that path.

When it comes to DACs and streamers—those digital sources feeding the DACs—many of us have gone for fancy boxes with specialized USB outputs, typically powered by 5V linear power supplies. An example, albeit direct from a PC rather than a streamer, can be found here: https://www.superbestaudiofriends.o...usb-break-out-pci-usb-card-with-unison.11822/

Terminology for this discussion
Fs: sample rate frequency
f: sinusoid signal frequency (stimulus)
inferred jitter: symmetrically paired sidebands related to the stimulus

A stimulus f often chosen to be Fs/2, Fs/4, Fs/8 is sent to the DAC input. A very high resolution FFT is performed to reveal components other than the stimulus. Those that are symmetrically paired sidebands on either side of the stimulus are likely a result of input data transport jitter, though they could also be from noise on the converter reference voltage. FFT components not symmetrically paired are intermodulation distortion from some other source, ie: not jitter.

For 44100 Hz sample rate f is typically chosen as 11025 Hz (Fs/4.)

Inferred Jitter Wiim Ultra USB out to dac1221 USB input SE output

For those who asked, e.g., @YMO:

Installing the Schiit Mesh card was a straightforward process. The most challenging part is having a small hex wrench to loosen the retaining screw on the volume knob. Once that's done, simply unscrew the four Phillips screws on the top and remove the lid.

The Mesh DAC card differs slightly from the ESS card in that it sits vertically rather than horizontally. Make sure all four pins are properly seated in the socket. My initial attempt only inserted four of the eight pins in the 2x4 array into the socket. I noticed this through a visual inspection, where the card appeared offset at an angle.

Recently they popped up at "only" 150 Euros on Amazon Warehouse in "Like New Condition" here in Spain, so I decided to get a pair. Usually these cost somewhere around 280 Euros and rarely pop up on the local second hand market. Given how even on Amazon Warehouse one is able to return an item within 14 days, I just had to give them a go. Quick review below.

BUILD
Nice! I really like the British Racing Green esque color on the cups. When there isn't a ton of sunlight, these actually look almost black. Give the cups more light and the dark green color will pop up. Wing system is not for everyone but works great for me. Definitely designed for big asian heads like mine! The cable is covered in braided fabric, but unlike Focal Clear's OG cable, is actually quite nice and doesn't get in the way. Jack at the end feels quality made. Cable is non-removable, because of course it's not. Also, made in Japan which is something you don't see all that often these days. Pads are soft and roomy. I am not 100% sure, but these might have some form of memory foam inside. Sweet!

SOUND
Before putting them on I was expecting something Audio Technica "Neutral". Usually this means elevated voices, peaky treble, with a little bit of mid-bass elevation. Oddly enough these are very different. There's a LOT of midbass, some subbass, very dark voicing, and ok treble with an annoying peak at around 10KHz. More details below!

So Lindsay and I did a video a while back about how horrible the Wiim Pro sounded here: https://www.superbestaudiofriends.org/index.php?threads/wiim-pro-streamer-review.14835/

Below is the SPDIF output. Unfortunately I forgot to grab the zoomed in square wave. After all, a bunch of square waves at 44.1kHz (or 48kHz, or whatever the sampling rate) is what the output is supposed to look like. Below is are square waves squished tightly together but zoomed out.

Valhalla 3 is out. We compare to the TA-66 with HD800, JAR600, and ZMF Caldera



This is one is mostly Lindsay's show. I'm really liking this format because she hears thing I don't notice, so that forces me to do a double take. This is a good thing because I have my biases and she is new at this without any preconceived notions.

As you guys know I live on America's Penis, which is Florida. Summers in Florida are harsh, but not close to Southeast Asia or places like Singapore. Summers here in Florida (including most of the Southeastern US) gets Hot/Humid where the air is max Humidity. This means nothing will dry off your clothing because there's no where the water that's on your shirt for example can evaporate to. If you were in West Coast where it is dryer, shirts can dry much faster (but this all depends on the material of what you are wearing).

I have more things to talk about, but for now I want to focus on what material you are wearing clothing wise.

Cotton Is a Double-Edge Sword

Polyester Is Another Double-Edge Sword

Linen is Good To A Point

Powder Your Butt and Balls

Smelly Pits

Shave The Balls

To be honest, I haven't been keeping up with Schiit lately, so the Mimir surprised me. It's amusing because I remember discussing a "What If" scenario with Jason, similar to those Marvel or DC Comics shows that explore alternate realities, like Evil Superman or Tony Stark as Doctor Doom. My "What If" was this: What if we could attach the megacomboburrito filter directly to the front of the ESS chips during the D to A conversion? I was curious if this was feasible because one aspect I really dislike about the filters provided with the ESS chips is how they stage the sound. The headstage or soundstage often feels flat and lacking depth, which may work for some headphone users, but for me, it feels overly constrained. What was the phrase about the ESS soundstage? As flat as Keira Knightley's chest.