Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site
In the Forum: Didital Things
In the Thread: DIY NOS twin 1541A DAC
Post Subject: AI vs.The Notion of SimplicityPosted by Paul S on: 11/8/2026
Even starting with stock gear one has to break it in (whatever that takes) and let it warm up and stabilize each session (however long that takes). Then, there are cords and cables to consider, along with the quality of connectors and connections, not to mention the AC. At some point, the active consideration of the gear, itself becomes too much for relaxed, attentive listening to Music. As it happens, the only bypass caps I use in my system are for phono stage couplers. Like the Miller effect, or inductive caps, there are almost always "other considerations" in active/reactive/working (vs. static/designed) electrical circuits. Plate curves are a great visual example of this, or a maybe a waterfall plot from a compression driver. The CEC transports sound pretty good if their belts are OK, so they are obviously doing something right, and the Sanyo guts are presumed to be good enough. I listen attentively when clocks come under discussion, but I really don't have a clear idea of how they work from digital input through analog output. Do we need more than one, and how do we keep it to one? My own DAC uses a (tiny) switching PS. Some years ago, a telecommunications engineer (John Rankin) opined at GSC that a properly-done SMPS was the quietest, most reliable way to provide lower voltages in audio gain paths, and I still have the stuff he sent to me so I could prove it to myself. I can easily hold it all (PCBs included) in the palm of one hand. Reactive values are literally forces to be reckoned with, along with "electrical/electronic byproducts" generated by activated parts and clusters of parts. A little Mu metal can go a long way. Another trick I learned was resistors soldered as straight extensions of tube pins, as opposed to right angles, to fit in the chassis. I think we have to somehow clean out the attic before we can really listen to Music. I used to meditate regularly; now it takes a while to get my brain up and running.
Paul SRerurn to Romy the Cat's Site