[doug s.]

Huh.... well dang Doug, I'll try out the Neko but looks maybe another area ($) I can squeeze into maybe something more important.

 If it doesn't rip the dac in my cdp a new one I'll be impressed. Shoot, might just buy another XDA-1.

don't you awreddy have an outboard dac?  what i am saying, is if it's decent, i would be surprised if the neko "rips it a new one"...  depending on how good your cdp is, the neko may or may not be a worthwhile improvement to a one-box cdp.  based on my experience w/isolation transformers, i would suspect it worthwhile to separate dac & transport...

doug s.

[Rclark]

Thanks for the tip!  I'm actually now considering the BDP-1 as my digital source.

The XDA-1 had 12 volts output peak to peak, I believe. At this point I'm considering the Ncore mono's as my next amp so I'll look into that.

[Rclark]

  Nope Doug, I got rid of the dac because it sounds identical to the one in my cdp. Just straight cdp to WS to amp right now.

[doug s.]

Make sure the DAC you buy will drive your amp. The Neko only has a 1v output. Very few amps these days are driven to full output by 1v. Most take around 2v. You might want to consider the Bryston BDA-1 which has a superb discrete class A output stage.

1v output is quite low to be used w/a passive preamp...

doug s.

[raysracing]

If you continue to use a preamp with the volume pot maxed isnt the coloration and other changes to the signal now altered before LDR?  I am very new to all of this so I am not arguing, but digging for more understanding.

I also just bought a used Warpspeed.

[Rclark]

From what I understand when the volume is maxed it's basically bypassed.

With the Warpspeed and switching between xda-1 volume maxed to just erc2 cdp was no difference.


..and I guess I'll be evaluating the Neko at lower listening levels then ?

[jk@home]

...i do believe in clean power - my digital was improved w/isolation transformers - at the wery least, use one for dac and another for transport...

For years I ran a Squeezebox 3 "Classic" into a CI-VDA-2 dac . Recently I added a connection scheme where as the SB3 goes into one Monarchy non-upsamp. DIP, then splits off to a Behr DEQ (using Nuetrik impendence tranny adapters, for coaxial to AES/EBU conversion), for Magnepan speakers and a Behr DCX2496, for four subs. The digital signal for the Maggies then comes out of the DEQ, into another non-upsamp. DIP (for jitter reduction) then finally on to the Channel Island DAC, via a 2 meter coaxial cable.

I did this to program in a high pass filter and some tone control for the maggies, along with crossover and EQ for the subs. Was hoping that all that extra stuff wasn't going to screw up the signal too bad.

Don't know if it was due to the extra voltage gain from the DIPs, or upsampling in the DEQ, isolation trannys built into the DIP, or the ones in the Neutriks or maybe a combination of these things, but the results actually took the resolution of the system up a notch. 

[konut]

1v output is quite low to be used w/a passive preamp...

doug s.

Quite right. I use a passive with the BDA-1 into W4S monoblocks with great results. 

..and I guess I'll be evaluating the Neko at lower listening levels then ?

What is the sensitivity and input impedance of your amp?  What is the sensitivity of your speakers? How loud do you listen? You may not need full output from your amp if you listen at low levels. When I was looking at a DAC for my setup I had to reject the Neko because of its low output. With an active pre it would be fine.

[Rclark]

I'll look it up. Virtue Two. Speakers are modded Maggie's with a now claimed sensitivity of 92db. I top out in the mid 80db range before my amp starts to poop out. One of the reasons I am now seeking more headroom. Was fine before but the mod has brought with it BASS.

[Warpspeed CE]

"Ohhh, I got me the remote control blues..."

[Warpspeed CE]

Sadly that's the reality for most products designed and built here in the US...but happily I don't have the slightest urge to compete with the Eva or anything similarly designed and  built.

I can proudly say though that the Warpspeed has all its parts, except for one, procured from vendors in the US of A...and in my own small way help our struggling economy.

PS: the USPS has been a great partner in shipping these...at just shy of warpspeed!   

[Rclark]

 You're right Allan, your LDR is gorgeous, that other thing looks like a garage door opener from the late 70's.

[Rclark]

Seems the remote is a BIIIIG deal to some people. I envision a Hover'Round and an oxygen tank.

[InfernoSTi]

Explain to me what the appeal of the remote is, please?

And because I sincerely don't have the slightest desire for a remote, let me say that I run my front end through a Bolder Modified Touch that allows me to click "pause" and change songs, etc remotely.  But I don't use the volume on it whatsoever.  I just set the volume for what I want at the beginning of the session and then, if an album is low/high, I get up, walk ten feet, turn a knob a 1/4 inch, and sit back down.  Typically I get a Scotch while I'm up and then start the album over so I can listen all the way through.  I never touch the volume except by album and rarely that.

I don't get it but then I don't mind a ten foot walk...sorry, twenty if you count round trip and forty if you count getting a nip.   

John

P.S. And how does that explain snarky posts that everyone knows are intended to be snarky?  How does a preference for a remote translate to poor manners?  Are we that self-indulgent that we feel entitled to be snarky because someone doesn't make a product at a price we are willing to pay?  I find "Cheap and Cheerful" to come with compromises such as getting up twice a night to adjust the volume and get another "adjustment" to my listening experience.

[Rclark]

 Some people are addicted to constantly cranking the volume up and down. I've been around such people, it's maddening to listen to music with them.I like a remote. But once I started running the Warpspeed I realized I had absolutely no need of one. You set the volume.. and you walk away.

 And you can even just wire it to be right next to your chair, sofa, whatever you listen from. It doesn't HAVE to sit on your rack...I'm sure Allan will figure out how to make this all work and eventually have a more reasonable solution.
 
 Meanwhile, I'm happy to have my Warpspeed as a permanent feature in my system that will remain for years to come.

[doug s.]

this is the cheap n cheerful forum.  remember?  as has been discussed earlier the sound of ldr attenuators has absolutely ZERO to do with ANYTHING but the ldr's themselves - which are all the same in anyone's product.  see this post by a qualified engineer, who explains it a lot better then i ever[/i] could:

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=97379.msg1052303#msg1052303

for all of you that want the warpspeed, great - go get one.  remote?  no remote?  i don't care. personally, i rarely use a remote, but when i want to use it, i am glad it's there.  and yes, i wouldn't have a preamp in my main rig w/o one.  for those that want a remote, you can get a warpspeed and then spend $700 on top of the cost of the unit itself, or you can simply spend $400 and get the unit and the remote.  same excellent sound. (also responsive customer serwice, btw.)  cheap-n-cheerful.  remember?

my preamp looks like a garage door opener from the 70's.  great.  it looks fine on my rack.  you wanna spend more for a preamp that looks like a garage door opener from the 70's, w/a fancy knob & wood faceplate?  go get 'er!

there's nothing snarky or in your face here.  would i post like this if this were warpspeed's mfr circle?  of course not!!!  but, this is the CHEAP-N-CHEERFUL FORUM - REMEMBER?!?   

ymmv,

doug s.

[Rclark]

Lol, you're right Doug. It seems there's inflation everywhere huh? Even in the cheap and cheerful forum we buck against the limits.

 Clearly though, we should consider the Warpspeed and similar ldr's to be a supreme value.

[doug s.]

Lol, you're right Doug. It seems there's inflation everywhere huh? Even in the cheap and cheerful forum we buck against the limits.

 Clearly though, we should consider the Warpspeed and similar ldr's to be a supreme value.

thank you!   

i agree 100% that the stock warpspeed and similar ldr attenuators are killer.  if you or your system cannot handle using a passive preamp, it will improve even an active preamp system - simply set your active's wolume pot to full or almost-full gain, and use the ldr attenuator between your main preamp and your amp(s).  even tho it is another link in the chain, it will still sound better - it is that good.

doug s.

[Rclark]

OK all that does is make me want to try a killer active pre.

There's the thing though. I'm enoying "that good" all by itself. Is adding more to the chain, between my cdp and WS really so important?

 In what way will adding an active pre improve things beyond this? It's already clean as a whistle, dimensional, real, palpable. I mean, it's battery ldr clean. What more is there? I'm basically a cd player straight to my amp, oh, there's a volume in between.

[jk@home]

...And because I sincerely don't have the slightest desire for a remote, let me say that I run my front end through a Bolder Modified Touch that allows me to click "pause" and change songs, etc remotely.  But I don't use the volume on it whatsoever.  I just set the volume for what I want at the beginning of the session and then, if an album is low/high, I get up, walk ten feet, turn a knob a 1/4 inch, and sit back down.  Typically I get a Scotch while I'm up and then start the album over so I can listen all the way through.  I never touch the volume except by album and rarely that...

I pretty much do the same thing, although I am guilty of tweaking the volume level with the squeezebox GUI, but do try to keep as close to 100% as possible. And the the scotch part..Ick! I prefer Bacardi and Mountain Dew (yeah I'm weird like that)...

I sit at a desk as my listening position, and usually surf the net while I listen. IMHO, it is easier to keep the Squeezebox Media server window open on the PC and control it via a mouse, than to have to pick up/put down a remote. Now that's lazy.

As far as batteries and LDRs, I've heard augments both ways. AFAIK, the ldrs are isolated from the power supply, so it is said to be a non-issue. I can see the convenience if one is running other components on battery power, and a small AGM battery, even with a charger throw in, is a heck of a lot cheaper than one of those fancy dancy power conditioner units.