totaldac D1 server

[GuillaumeB]

Another update regarding the d1 server. I decided to try a different version of the Cubox software which Vincent sent to me, the MPAD only (so no Ipeng8, no airplay and no UPnP) but without track pre-loading. Vincent claims that it "sounds smooth. It is useful when a system requires a smoother sound."

Well it definitely works as advertised! Gone is the razor sharp imaging and the top end is definitely a bit softer. Quite handy indeed for some material!

This was the kind of thing I was talking about before... we all have a wide range of recordings that can sound very different on the Devialet, thanks to its extreme transparency. Wouldn't it be nice to have different filters/DSP settings in the Devialet to tweak this?

Well looks like I kinda got what I asked for here, thank you Vincent! 

Guillaume

[Rufus McDufus]

The Cubox image files are nearly 16G in size unfortunately and I just don't happen to have any 16G micro SD cards or USB sticks. I might have to splash out on one!
If the OS has sshd or whatever configured it might just be straightforward to get in and change things anyhow. Not sure how thoroughly Vincent protects his Cubox setups - probably better than I'm hoping!

C'mon Rufus, just break the bank

A normal Cubox image is about a gig or so, but once you open it, and recreate it, the result is 16G. (The size of the card it was first installed to).

If I were you, I would get a very fast SD card (like Samsung Pro series, yes it makes a difference) and preferably 32G since not every 16 is made the same (some are a 'bit' smaller and cause you trouble)

cheers...

Kunter

I agree - the actual OS should only be about a gigabyte or so but the totaldac image files are just under 16G in size uncompressed and Win32DiskImager barfs if I try and write it to an 8G card! I'm sure virtually all of that 16G is just empty filesystem but there's not much I can do about that. I might just splash out... Was hoping someone would *hrrrm* verify it works while I procrastinate (!)
Actually it might work if I just 'dd' to it as the trailing filesystem on the image will just get truncated (and corrected with an fsck perhaps).

[Kunter]

The Cubox image files are nearly 16G in size unfortunately and I just don't happen to have any 16G micro SD cards or USB sticks. I might have to splash out on one!
If the OS has sshd or whatever configured it might just be straightforward to get in and change things anyhow. Not sure how thoroughly Vincent protects his Cubox setups - probably better than I'm hoping!

C'mon Rufus, just break the bank

A normal Cubox image is about a gig or so, but once you open it, and recreate it, the result is 16G. (The size of the card it was first installed to).

If I were you, I would get a very fast SD card (like Samsung Pro series, yes it makes a difference) and preferably 32G since not every 16 is made the same (some are a 'bit' smaller and cause you trouble)

cheers...

Kunter

I agree - the actual OS should only be about a gigabyte or so but the totaldac image files are just under 16G in size uncompressed and Win32DiskImager barfs if I try and write it to an 8G card! I'm sure virtually all of that 16G is just empty filesystem but there's not much I can do about that. I might just splash out... Was hoping someone would *hrrrm* verify it works while I procrastinate (!)
Actually it might work if I just 'dd' to it as the trailing filesystem on the image will just get truncated (and corrected with an fsck perhaps).

There is some documentation on the net on how to reduce the image size deleting the empty spaces but I could not make it work yet...

best bet is to try a larger sd card... 

Waiting for my new Cubox to go back to trials...

cheers

[AaronG]

I think I might have to get a TotalDac Server. I think what still sounds better than the Devialet from my Tact Millennium III may be in part due to the reclocking in the latter. I have the Totaldac USB cable on order. I'll see what that does and then perhaps I'll take the plunge. I also love how responsive Vincent is.

[GuillaumeB]

I think I might have to get a TotalDac Server. 

Let me know how you get on! Will be nice to have another d1 server owner on here! 

Guillaume

[AaronG]

Will do! It seems like Vincent is committed to keeping it state of the art. Does the TIDAL integration work well?

[GuillaumeB]

Will do! It seems like Vincent is committed to keeping it state of the art. Does the TIDAL integration work well?

Hi AaronG I'm embarrassed to say that I haven't managed to get TIDAL working yet. As far as I understand this needs to be done through the Ipeng iPad app and I have been struggling a bit with this. I haven't given up though. The other alternative would be to simply stream directly from my iPad using Airplay which the d1 server reclocks anyway.

Recently I've been mainly using two versions of the software that remove all services except MPD (so no Airplay, UPnP, Ipeng etc) to achieve the highest level of sound quality possible. At the moment I am really enjoying the version without pre-loading which sounds quite a bit smoother... seems to be a nice synergy with the Devialet. The sound quality is what really sets this box apart though, it seems to give you the best of AIR without any of the slight dryness/brightness. And by the way I think AIR sounds mighty good!  So we are talking about taking things to a new level. 

Anyway it's nice to have all these options and yes it does seem that Vincent is very committed to this product, which also forms a key part of his flagship d12 DAC.

By the way I'm also using his ethernet cable to connect directly to a switch, it performs at least as well as my AQ Diamond one! The AQ one is possibly a little darker but the totaldac one is very natural.

If you go down this route you'll also need to factor in a decent AES/EBU cable.

Cheers

Guillaume

[AaronG]

Will do! It seems like Vincent is committed to keeping it state of the art. Does the TIDAL integration work well?

Hi AaronG I'm embarrassed to say that I haven't managed to get TIDAL working yet. As far as I understand this needs to be done through the Ipeng iPad app and I have been struggling a bit with this. I haven't given up though. The other alternative would be to simply stream directly from my iPad using Airplay which the d1 server reclocks anyway.

Recently I've been mainly using two versions of the software that remove all services except MPD (so no Airplay, UPnP, Ipeng etc) to achieve the highest level of sound quality possible. At the moment I am really enjoying the version without pre-loading which sounds quite a bit smoother... seems to be a nice synergy with the Devialet. The sound quality is what really sets this box apart though, it seems to give you the best of AIR without any of the slight dryness/brightness. And by the way I think AIR sounds mighty good!  So we are talking about taking things to a new level. 

Anyway it's nice to have all these options and yes it does seem that Vincent is very committed to this product, which also forms a key part of his flagship d12 DAC.

By the way I'm also using his ethernet cable to connect directly to a switch, it performs at least as well as my AQ Diamond one! The AQ one is possibly a little darker but the totaldac one is very natural.

If you go down this route you'll also need to factor in a decent AES/EBU cable.

Cheers

Guillaume

Thanks for pointing that out Guillaume. I have 120 which does not have an XLR input, so perhaps the TotalDac is then not the ideal solution. I should receive their USB cable in a few days. Looking forward!

[GuillaumeB]

I have 120 which does not have an XLR input, so perhaps the TotalDac is then not the ideal solution. 

You have the choice of AES/EBU and SPDIF outputs with the d1 server.

Guillaume

[AaronG]

Thanks!