charlesphoto

Ah, sorry about that.

There is a separate thread I believe dealing with the DAC cable (I'm one of the OG testers, and the amphenol 1M skew clear beat out some others for me. The concept behind the DAC being better is that it doesn't have to make the conversion to optical, thereby cancelling two points of electrical activity. My opticalModuel actually runs almost cold compared to the mini heater it was with an SFP inserted (and I was using Finisair's before, and a Cisco AOC cable). AS far as LPS's go, I have a Sonore on the opticalRendu, and it is very good, and Teddy Pardo on the opticalModule, also very good. But, imo, before you spend $$ on a power supply for the 10Gtek, I would hazard that money is better spent on an opticalModule powered by an SMPS (the Uptone $15 one is very good actually). You'll get more bang for the buck than the generic 10Gtek FMC (if that is what you are using). .

Great description of a PJ show experience. Here's those cell phone lights in 2018 at Fenway. For photographers, a lot more effective than lighters!

Good article. Keep in mind, that for most, probably upwards of 90% of their music collection can be replaced by streaming or downloads or re-ripping. It will just cost time, stress, and money. But 100% of your digital photo collection is irreplaceable. Nobody else has your photo files available to replace. So be sure to implement just as robust backup policy for all of your digital files, esp the ones that are cherished memories or your livelihood.

That's how I've been using a DAC cable (the Amphenol Skewclear now after having tried a couple of others) from opticalModule (gen 1) to opticalRendu, using a Teddy Pardo 7V power supply on the oM. A plus is that the oM now runs pretty much dead cold compared to before with an SFP transceiver.

Part of that I believe is due to technology. Whether one is making, say, a $200 or a $20k DAC these days, it's pretty hard to get it wrong. And now that everyone and their brother seems to be manufacturing bespoke hifi, there's just too much of it out there, and when it's all 'good,' to a degree, it would take a real stumbler to release something that is truly bad. IMO, high end hifi is more about re-arranging deck chairs than anything. I wanted teak, but now that I've got that, only Brazilian rosewood will do, even though the comfort level will be the same - and cheap metal may actually be more functional and easier to deal with in the long run. But dang that rosewood at 10X the cost sure looks nice. Yes, there are price points where the sound certainly changes for the better, but within those price points, much if it as actually very similar, so one is buying more into brand loyalty and lifestyle than anything else at this point.

One sees this type of disagreement play out all the time in the photography industry press, and in general I believe that even if one is 100% right, it's best to not air your dirty laundry in public. It won't make future clients want to work with you - even if they love what you do, they may just want to avoid any stink of (potential) drama. And that's where GS messed up imo - they might have been better served by making a video that anonymized dCS but pointed out what a bad practice this is for the industry, and what an awful precedent it sets. But I also know that if one feels they have their back up against a wall, there can be the need to lash out The party(ies) responsible at dCS should never have tried going down this road to begin with, and let the review die a lonely death in the vast archives of the Internet and moved on. Grow a pair and thicken up the skin. It sounds as if maybe there's a perception in the high end audio work (and this translates to lots of realms, I'm sure) that they are in control of the reviewers, or at least feel they should be. Probably in large part due to the sycophantic nature of social media and most reviewing 'blogs' and forum sites depending on the good graces of these mfg in order to be able to review four to six figure gear. Kind of like the old all expenses paid 'press junket' where the journalist is expected to write a puff piece about the subject (but don't always do). I think it would probably be in the best interest of GS to kindly decline the offer of a Lina system, and tell dCS they are free to donate it or the cash from selling it to the charity of their choice. If one wants to be independent and transparent and bias free, that's the way to do it.

I received the Amphenol 1m Skewclear on Monday. Haven't had much time to listen, but have been burning it in. A few evening check in's and it is very close in overall sound and performance to the other, basic .5m Amphenol, but just that much better, with still even less fatiguing highs, always a problem for me, but with crystal clarity and incredibly present and tight bass. My advice: don't muck about and just get the Amphenol Skewclear, either new or used, both are great value. And keep it short, within reason.

Best to keep in mind that DAC cables are for the LAST leg in a network to the audio devices. I have no plans nor need to replace the 25m of armored outdoor single mode optical that runs from an FMC connected to the router at the front of the house to an FMC in my office at the rear, and then on to a Cisco switch, which then feeds my oM and other office devices such as NAS, printer, and Roon server. The DAC cable is strictly for the oM to oR connection, both of which have nice power supplies (albeit plugged into the same circuit as everything else - that just can't be helped unfortunately).

I will second this statement. I was listening to Miles Davis 'In a Silent Way' last night and it was as if I'd never listened to music before. Incredible. And I'm long suffering from tinnitus, so any sort of treble glare or harshness gets me, esp from tenor saxophones or violins, and none of that from the Ampheon DAC cable, which was still present (though highly mitigated) with the optical Cisco AOC. Plus, my original opticalModule now runs stone cold, and it's being powered with a 7V power supply (optimum is 5v).

I don't think there's anything 'magical' sounding in that length. I would go shorter if you can, or longer if you actually need the reach. I think for Melco 2m was probably a good compromise to sell the cable without having to manufacture and stock a number of different lengths. Not too long and not too short. At this point these DAC cables are still very much outliers as most streamers/switches are RJ45 based. But I think as this cat gets out of the bag and the etherRegen 2 comes out we may see that the few of us here are at the forefront of something. Because the difference I'm hearing, from the best optical (AOC) wasn't even subtle, but dramatic. And I doubt any fancy four figure ethernet cable could compete.

I had the non-Skewclear Amphenol .5m cable arrive yesterday. New out of the box it wiped the floor with the 3m Cisco I had installed. I let it run for eight hours and late last night listened to the Cluster/Eno album in the dark while editing photos and it was almost like an out of body experience. I was hearing things, with zero fatigue, that I'd never heard on this recording before, with a soundstage like I'd never heard before, with sparkling highs and firm, solid, bass. It was most definitely the quality of the cable at play, perhaps as well as the length, which forced me to relocate the opticalModule closer to the opticalRendu and away from some other devices. Being a photographer's office, there is a lot of devices on and no ability to separate power for the hifi. I did try the cable in different directions, think I preferred the second, but that also might be psychological laziness in that I didn't want to be bothered to switch it back to the first direction again to try and compare. Anyway, I've got a 1m Skewclear coming and I can't even imagine how it could be better. So thanks @Superdad for this tip. It's really like getting a new hifi for all of $8.

I just bought a one meter of the Ampheon Clearskew off eBay with the correct part # of SF-SFPP2EPASS for a total of $15.50 with tax and shipping. There is one more at the link below, and there is also a seller with a number of new 3m ones as well. Anyway, once I have all in hand I'll give my account of what I think between a basic Ampheaon, a Clearskew Ampheon, and the Cisco, and if there's truly any differences going on. https://www.ebay.com/itm/403938596715?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20231207125618%26meid%3Db48725ac0f8443b79f766edfe0ac2937%26pid%3D101875%26rk%3D3%26rkt%3D12%26sd%3D232676398542%26itm%3D403938596715%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2332490%26algv%3DSimplAMLv11WebTrimmedV3MskuWithLambda85KnnRecallV1V2V4ItemNrtInQueryAndCassiniVisualRankerAndBertRecallWithVMEV3CPCAutoWithCassiniEmbRecall%26brand%3DAmphenol&_trksid=p2332490.c101875.m1851&itmprp=cksum%3A403938596715b48725ac0f8443b79f766edfe0ac2937|enc%3AAQAJAAABcLC2%2Ba5TgOFYgIvLQSBIYkURSzHvc7cCccVTU14STgixqt2LHVH3DQgpuMCV11vSwIPgiyFOwqAlvyaCYV%2F3KC%2BV%2Bw2hITE7xTLMc%2FUAdPVM74mBrClyfys6h0qSntiKTtamp%2FwRG%2FuVgTYA%2FQ9W3Ox1vA0GraSb4JMRxeVcTuw%2FbvfsO7mDS6tzWet1HTCrTfW9840tPTREOq3%2BqdJHbJItLN0QyxmJqd543PotCscHRls1hvi2u9TqZiLCF6fMYbb5pXx81Y%2BKkwm6tvPJ4Ad0QwrCRfw5Vgfl2FAd7G%2FNyY7GiLSA%2FdPNRPU6jS2IqKx4qdo4xXH5cEmZcoz%2F5bxYlgVE6cSOG7uc5I7kGGyp97tKfYBIPNQA54S6qHhlc5uGPTDmbsoGUDw7EkCHW9g0HJYxDBxUq%2FXoL7fuJQwVXbFTka4xyEndIbe3a0bqhBAhQFKs6YxNuH%2FH8WWfLIDvvqF8gawfR0MUzSWobbAG|ampid%3APL_CLK|clp%3A2332490&epid=15010825321&itmmeta=01J1GMBTQTXZE8S0V5Z1AYPCP1

Ah, no worries, figured it's all a bit of gamble and in the scheme of cable rolling these things are cheap. As it is, it will be interesting to see if I hear any difference between the $8 three meter OEM Cisco I've got playing (and enjoying now). Maybe just the much shorter length will come into play.

That part I can't help you with. Count your blessings in other ways living where you do. 😁