[rajacat]

I use JRiver to upsample  my 44.1 files to DSD256 (Quad-Rate DSD). It works great and sounds better in my rig. YMMV. I doubt that I'll ever go back to 44.1. JRiver is cheap and gets the job done. I'd like to try DSD512 but I need to upgrade my chips first. Luckily, I own a DAC (Musical Paradise MP-D2 Mk. 3) that permits upgrades of the DAC chip.

[mlundy57]

I was doing a little more research and came across this.
Ideon Audio 3R USB. It cleans up the power and reclocks the data from source and than sends it out to the DAC. Has anybody used this device?

Don't know about that device but another option is getting a network streamer/Roon endpoint like the Sonore microRendu ($540). This goes between the computer and the DAC and is connected with a ethernet cable. This isolates the noisy computer from the DAC and is much cheaper and easier to isolate the noisy computer from the DAC.

You can get a computer setup where the USB is cleaned up to the point it is almost indistinguishable from the network solution, but like I said, it is neither cheap nor easy (though enough money can take care of the not easy part). I use a dedicated Dell Xeon (32Gb DDR4) Windows Workstation that has been highly modified. I installed a 256Gb SSD for the operating system and programs and a 2Tb SSD for the music library. I replaced the graphics card with a fanless card to reduce noise. I installed ab SOtM USB Audiophile soundcard and an SOtM linear power supply for the sound card so it is not powered by the computer power supply. In addition to Windows 10 Professional, I have Fidelizer Pro 8 installed on the computer which I run in "Purest" mode. This turns off all unnecessary windows services to keep the noise down. I then connect it to the DAC with an AudioQuest Carbon USB cable. This is how I streamed music to the Stellar Gain Cell DAC. Since getting the DirectStream Sr. DAC with the network bridge, I have been able to connect the computer to the DAC through the network. Comparing the USB connection to the network connection, the USB is almost as good.

All that is to say that from where you are now, the least expensive and easiest way to get the best sound quality to the GCD is going to be with a network streamer/Roon endpoint like the Sonore products (they have more than just the microRendu). This is true whether you decide to go with Roon or JRiver. If you plan on getting Roon, make sure the streamer/endpoint you get is fully certified by ROON. They sent out an email awhile back stating that streamers/endpoints that are not fully certified will not be able to use ROON.

[emailtim]

I was doing a little more research and came across this.
Ideon Audio 3R USB. It cleans up the power and reclocks the data from source and than sends it out to the DAC. Has anybody used this device?

Here is another product to check out.  Wyred 4 Sound's Recovery USB Reclocker (RUR).  It has its own power supply, fempto clock and galvonic isolation.  If you have a decent DAC, it probably already has galvonic isolation.

https://wyred4sound.com/products/digital-converters/recovery

... I replaced the graphics card with a fanless card to reduce noise. ...

I just did some upgrades to my aging music PC to tide it over until I can get into a NVMe/PCIe 4 or 5 build. 

I added this passively cooled "MSI Graphic Cards GT 1030 2GH LP OC" graphics card to take the load off of the onboard graphics CPU and memory.  It has GDDR5 memory, HDMI and Display Port.  Some of the other variants (of which there are many) sneak in slower DDR4 memory and have different output connectors.  WEI graphics scores went from 5.4 to 7.8.  I think the passively cooled CPU is running cooler because it no longer has to carry the graphics load.

https://www.amazon.com/MSI-GT-1030-LP-OC/dp/B072BL9CRM/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=MSI+1030+passive&qid=1607316689&sr=8-3

[rajacat]

I use UpTone's ISO REGEN along with the UltraCap LPS-1 to clean up the USB. It reclocks with a Crystek CCH-575, provides galvanic isolation and provides its own 5V if needed. I notice a nice improvement with it installed in between the USB outlet on my dedicated laptop and the DAC (Musical Paradise MP-D2 Mk 3). Presently, my system seems very transparent with no apparent noise.  But as many know even though you have no obvious noise an upgrade with a single component can often leave you wondering what you were missing.

[WarmColors]

I was actually considering of using raspberry pi for a dedicated source. I know that some of its components are lower grade but it's very quiet and very cheap. Anybody used raspberry pi as an Audio source?

[dlparker]

I was actually considering of using raspberry pi for a dedicated source. I know that some of its components are lower grade but it's very quiet and very cheap. Anybody used raspberry pi as an Audio source?

I use it with a hifiberry digital out card. Works great.

[corndog71]

I have a Pi 4 set up with Volumio which is controllable by my iPhone/iPad.  Works for playing from an external hard drive as well as streaming.  It’s not the greatest app and has some quirks but works well enough for me.  I paid $100 for the Pi4 kit and $2 for the Volumio app.  Can’t beat that price!  I have the Pi4 connected via USB to a Schiit Modius dac which sounds great.

[WarmColors]

Will anybody be using PS Audio Octave program when it's released? I may just wait until February see if Octave compares with Roon and see how well they compete with each other.

[RonP]

I have a Pi 4 set up with Volumio which is controllable by my iPhone/iPad.  Works for playing from an external hard drive as well as streaming.  It’s not the greatest app and has some quirks but works well enough for me.  I paid $100 for the Pi4 kit and $2 for the Volumio app.  Can’t beat that price!  I have the Pi4 connected to a Schiit Modius dac which sounds great.

I'm using the Pi + Volumio that mounts a network share storing my FLACs and lossy sound files. Pi has a HiFiBerry Hat to use the coax digital out to the built-in DAC in my preamp. I bought the ifi better power supplies - $50 each but I didn't notice a difference with those. I can use a browser on my pc, phone or a tablet to control the music.

I just added an Cambridge Audio Streamer to the mix and have been frustrated with it's builtin software (given my particular setup). So I'm using it as the DAC downstream from the Pi for now. I'll putz with it more later. But the Cambridge box has a killer sound compared to the lower end DAC chips in the preamp.