MartinT

So, back to why the need for a Rendu, in my case my recently upgraded Deluxe from SE. Five years ago I set about converting my system to single-source streaming-only using Qobuz Studio (or HiFi as it was then). No more LPs or SACDs. No files, no server. Just Internet streaming. I did it because I wasn't satisfied with having limited access to all music and because I wanted to prove that it could be done. Well, it can be done and the Deluxe was the final nail in the coffin for all other sources for me. The Deluxe and Qobuz bring me closer than I ever thought possible to the master tape, and that was my main objective. I am constantly amazed at the sound quality I now achieve and consider the job to be done. All else is just bonus from this point on. Thanks for the review, it reinforces everything I hear in the Deluxe's performance. Congratulations to all at Sonore.

They are? Not on my three JS-2 power supplies, nor are they needed with the excellent Sapphire star-quad cables.

The Sapphire is an excellent DC cable. I am using four in total.

I removed the AD pads and affixed Black Ravioli Pads in their place. Direct damping of the chassis is critical to how BRs work so don't add them to intermediary feet.

You may well find a Tubulus Concentus provides better value than the next model clock upgrade. Don't underestimate the sound quality uplift.

Fantastic news @Superdad. Congratulations on overcoming such a hurdle go to Alex and John. Onwards and upwards!

Well, I don't have superpowers, but taking the description of how choke-regulated power supplies work in general, they create only sinewave ripple compared with the spiky ripple created by capacitor regulation. That ripple goes through further stages of regulation but what you will end up with is tiny benign sinewave noise rather than tiny spiky noise. What digital circuits hate most is spiky noise that goes up into gigahertz territory.

I'm going to have to wax lyrical about how outstanding the JS-2 is - again. I have just taken delivery of my 3rd unit, this one fittingly powering the EtherREGEN and TP-Link router (both outputs set to 12V). As with the others, it rests on Black Ravioli Big Pads with granite coasters and Schramm weights on top. There is a temporary SR Red fuse in the back while I await delivery of another SR Orange. It is powered from my PS Audio P3 regenerator. It's really hard to nail what this PSU does that others don't, but it's easy to hear as heightened energy, with stunning bass, while reducing harshness and sibilance. A tough combination of attributes. I feel strongly that its choke regulated topology has a lot to do with its amazing sound quality when powering digital components. It's not just the noise level, it's the benign nature of the noise. Thank you again for such an amazing power supply. No, I just couldn't wait for the JS-4.

The AD clock PSU definitely needs to be isolated from the ER PSU. I use an Uptone JS-2 for the clock and a Coherent QP-2 for the ER and router. Both my ADs are on Black Ravioli Pads with a granite coaster and Schramm weight on top. This works very well and improves sound quality. I used to have a Zero Zone power the clock but the JS-2 made a remarkable difference in SQ, quite stunning in fact. Clock cables are Tubulus Concentus.

I tried both of mine out last week. Didn't like the sound as much so I put them back in place.

I am running two AfterDark clocks, both sinewave: a King for the EtherREGEN and an Emperor Triple Crown for the Gustard U18 DDC and Gustard X26 Pro DAC (using I2S feed-through). They are each fed with an Uptone JS-2 power supply and are each on Black Ravioli footers. Despite them being sinewave, and using BLP-10.7+ filters on both, the clock cable still very much matters. I am now using Tubulus Concentus clock cables on each and they really do uplift the performance even more (previously was using Harmonic Technology DC-III and Belden 4694R), as do the JS-2 power supplies, which are hugely over-specified for the job.

Yes, exactly the same for me. I know the ER2 is going to be great, but the ER1 is keeping me happy in music.

Almost all streamed music and files are available in maximum 24-bit format. Where would you even find 32-bit files from?

Perhaps I misinterpreted SFP+ is not supported by Lumin as suggesting the link won't work.

There still seems to be a lack of understanding of SFP+. The Rendu series don't support SFP+ at 10Gbps either (nor does the EtherREGEN), but work quite happily with the Amphenol SFP+ cable running at 1Gbps.

Good question. We are talking about how these things impact on the the actual D/A conversion inside the DAC. The more noise superimposed on the signal, the more uncertainty around the triggering threshold, which results in the negatives we don't like about poor digital replay: fuzziness, harshness, artifacts, poor frequency extremes.

Fair enough question, but where are you expecting these measurements to come from? Network computing reviews will talk about build quality, bandwidth, protocols, maximum distance, bend radius etc. None of them will relate to audio use. Some forums, e.g. ASR, will perform so-called 'measurements' and announce that they are all the same and therefore will sound the same. Other forums and independent testers simply will not have the advanced equipment (e.g. Teledyne Lecroy) to perform phase noise, jitter, signal integrity tests at the levels required for a bunch of high speed data cables and, even then, I'm not sure that you will see any correlation between measurements and what you hear. So, I ask again, where will these measurements come from?

I don't really care what measured evidence says when it comes to music because there are many things like soundstage depth and note decay that we don't know how to measure but are entirely audible. If you have the equipment, you can do what I did and replace a working 10Gbps optical link running at 1Gbps with a 10Gbps DAC running at 1Gbps and listen to the result. It isn't subtle, it's blindingly smack-on-the-head different and in a good way. You simply cannot not hear it. It directly implies that noise is reduced as the detail resolution is on a different level altogether.

Not so, optical transmission suffers from group delay which increases with the length of the cable.

My thanks to @Superdad for pointing us to the Amphenol DAC cable using their SkewClear build process. I received a 3m length on eBay - not the length I need but good enough for testing. Making some direct comparisons by hot-swapping between the gnodal and Amphenol, the Amphenol has sharper focus with more edge resolution. This also gives a little more spatial definition and perception of depth - not bad considering the already excellent performance of the gnodal. I'm staggered at the bass performance of these DAC cables and the Amphenol is up there with the gnodal in this department. The Amphenol is just a touch sharper in the high female vocal range and I suspect some burn-in will fix this. Dynamics are simply knock-out - I keep reeling back from startling dynamic swings in music I know well. Background detail and spatial cues are better than I've ever heard. This cable is the real deal and I have ordered a 4m length from Amphenol Cables on Demand in the US. Shipping is steep but when I hear something as good as this, cost is immaterial.

Your second diagram is how I am configured.

My comparisons so far reveal that DACs do most certainly sound different. In my setup, a DAC is clearly superior even to the best optical cable, the Cisco SFP-10G-AOC, between my EtherREGEN and Signature Rendu Deluxe. The best sounding DAC I have tried is the inexpensive gnodal available used on eBay. I have also tried the FS and a no-name cable. The gnodal has an incredibly well developed and sweet treble end with filigree detail. Midrange is communicative, fluid and works superbly with female voice. Bass is very potent with extended and tight bass going down to seemingly subterranean levels. This is a step improvement over the Cisco, and a substantial upgrade at very low cost. The Melco is outrageously priced and I would want to hear one in my system before even giving it consideration. I may spend large sums on Coherent and Tubulus cables but I can see exactly where the money is going.

My first DAC SFP+ cable was a gnodal, Chinese I believe, and it sounds very good indeed just referencing against the Cisco SFP-10G-AOC optical cable I was using before. Since then, a second cable, an FS brand, arrived. It sounds good but not quite as vibrant sounding nor as dynamic as the gnodal. Both are 4m lengths which is the minimum length required from my 'pre-stage' electronics containing an EtherREGEN, AfterDark clock and JS-2 power supply to the Signature Rendu Deluxe in the main system.

Good to know. I do have a 4m FS cable, which arrived on Monday, but the gnodal is so good that I've left it in place until I can hear no more burn-in (which has been very mild in effect). Then I'll try the FS.

It's a passive DAC cable with no electronics, as recommended by @Superdad I can't comment on how your system will behave as I have precisely one point of reference: my system 😃 I can only urge you to try it as a passive DAC cable is not expensive. For me, it's a new level of performance.