DAC/Streamers

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Grant Hill

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #100 on: 30 Apr 2020, 09:21 pm »
Great interview! Really a pleasure reading it.

James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #101 on: 1 May 2020, 10:12 am »



MEMO: To All Bryston Customers
SUBJECT: Bryston 3.14 DAC/STREAMER/PREAMP

May 2020

Hi Folks,

Please see the link below for a very in-depth review of our new Bryston 3.14 DAC/Streamer/Preamp from Soundstage Magazine.

Favourate quote:

Listening

When I began listening to the Bryston BDA-3.14, my first thought was,

 “Wow, this sounds really nice.”

Among its immediately obvious virtues was that it was extremely quiet -- at normal volume levels, with no music playing and my ear next to a tweeter, I heard only a very faint hiss. From a foot away, I heard nothing.

And as soon as I began listening attentively, it was obvious that the BDA-3.14 had amazing dynamics and fluidity -- the combination drew me into the music in a way I’ve rarely experienced.


 https://www.soundstagesimplifi.com/index.php/feature-articles/126


James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #102 on: 2 May 2020, 01:46 pm »



MEMO: To All Bryston Customers
SUBJECT: Bryston 3.14 Review – Alpha-Audio


May 2020

Review Bryston BDA-3.14 Renderer – DAC
by CHRISTIAAN PUNTER

       

Conclusion (for those that can’t wait!

The BDA-3.14 is a great DAC with an excellent streamer section on board. This seemingly simple addition is actually so well implemented that it leads to a better result than with the best server + renderer combo I currently have available. And that says it all!

Listening:
The first listening session with the Bryston BDA-3.14 took place after a long day at work and without prior comparisons. At that time the Magicos were connected with the Aqua La Diva CD transport as source.

The Antipodes combo is still working faithfully but lately your editor is back in the CD mood. That way, you stay busy as an audiophile, huh!?

Anyway, the BDA-3.14 sounded immediately fantastic! We may be accustomed to a DAC from the very highest regions, but the Bryston gave no reason to be cranky. Everything was perfectly balanced and you immediately get involved.

The timbre is also very natural, Bryston never has a synthetic sound at all, and the DAC has a pleasant combination of sonorous robustness, impressive dynamics and a rich midrange with smooth highs without any sharpness.

Although the BDA-3.14 has that Bryston-typical V12 motor-like “drive”, there is also a high degree of refinement and versatility so the sound never gets dry. And when a component sounds smooth and supple with the Magicos, you can be sure that it does. If there is sharpness or a loud edge, they let you hear it right away.

Now it was time to switch to the Antipodes CX + EX music server to compare the USB and RJ45 inputs. Your editor immediately took this opportunity to make a comparison between the server and the CD transport. Starting with the CX + EX combo as server and renderer, connected to the Bryston BDA-3.14 with a Final Touch Audio Callisto USB cable, we immediately recognized the Antipodes-typical sonore robustness. This was a clearly fuller and more colorful sound than with the CD transport. However, the BDA-3.14 also showed perfectly that the server does not have the same level of tautness and impulsiveness as the Aqua CD transport. In comparison, the sound of the server is a bit more static. The CX can also perform both server and renderer tasks on its own and sounds tighter and faster but also a bit less magical. As such it approaches the sound of the CD transport but the sound image becomes more compact and with less feeling of depth image. But what we missed the most is the sonorous and robust fullness in which the EX excels. Which reproduction is the most neutral we leave in the middle but what is certain is that the BDA-3.14 shows these differences in a very fine way.

Streaming input:
After connecting the Antipodes CX directly to the BDA-3.14 with an Ethernet cable, the sound suddenly reminded us of the Bryston BDP-3 media player. Tighter, faster, better articulated and also more direct. Now the server sound came much closer to the sound of the CD transport and while maintaining the lyrical power, call it the magic. It seems that the physically more direct connection actually results in a more concrete (and better!) sound.


Comparison

When judged with the music server via USB or the CD transport via coax, both the Aqua Formula xHD and the Denafrips Venus reach an even higher level of transparency and resolving power. Both DACs use a discreet NOS R2R topology which makes them sound “cleaner”, without the subjectively often pleasant warmth and forgiveness of most other D-A converters.

In absolute terms, we would say that both components expose more of the recording than the comparatively warmer and more robust sounding Bryston. Of course, this is also a matter of taste, but in the case of the Aqua, it’s no disgrace anyway, as this DAC costs no less than 13,670 euros. In the case of the Denafrips it’s a bit different as the Venus is more or less in the same price range as the Bryston. In that case one has the choice between a pure DAC with a strictly speaking more audiophile sound and a DAC with an extremely good sounding streaming input and the largest selection of inputs that we have seen so far on a DAC.

But the most important factor is that with both other DACs you also need a streaming endpoint. And as the tests soon showed, you don’t have one, two, three really top sound with a server/streamer.

This is where the Bryston BDA-3.14 comes into its own, making it perhaps unbeatable as a complete solution in its price range!

himitsu

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #103 on: 5 May 2020, 08:57 pm »
HI

No it uses the 3 for now. The PI is a separate board so it would be easy to replace it going forward if the performance warranted it.

james

Hi James

Is it possible I could get a Pi 4 replace it bu myself, thanks.

James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #104 on: 5 May 2020, 09:25 pm »
Hi James

Is it possible I could get a Pi 4 replace it bu myself, thanks.

The software would have to change and that will take some time.

james

himitsu

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #105 on: 6 May 2020, 04:21 am »
Thanks James

I think I should stick with PI 3 for now.

Keith

unincognito

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #106 on: 6 May 2020, 02:48 pm »
Hi James

Is it possible I could get a Pi 4 replace it bu myself, thanks.

Unfortunately the Pi Foundation hadn't kept the orientation of the rear IO consistent with the release of the Pi 4 so it physically wont fit.

Chris

gberger

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #107 on: 6 May 2020, 03:14 pm »
Can the 3.14 PI connect with thhe Idagio  classical music streamer?

sfraser

Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #108 on: 13 May 2020, 06:53 pm »
Forgive , but it has been a while since I looked at the Bryston streamer products. Can the Manic Moose S/W in conjunction with this H/W Still be used as Squeezebox player via the  squeezelite S/W?

Thanks,

himitsu

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #109 on: 4 Jul 2020, 04:17 am »
The software would have to change and that will take some time.

james

Hi

Does anyone know how to do the factory reset on 3.14, when I try to reset it ask for user name and password but I never set the password on it, thanks.

James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #110 on: 4 Jul 2020, 05:05 am »
Hi

Does anyone know how to do the factory reset on 3.14, when I try to reset it ask for user name and password but I never set the password on it, thanks.

Hi

Password and User name is --- bryston

james

himitsu

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #111 on: 5 Jul 2020, 04:50 am »
Hi

Password and User name is --- bryston

james

Thank you James

James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #112 on: 8 Jul 2020, 04:51 pm »


MEMO: To All Bryston Customers
SUBJECT: Bryston 3.14 DAC/STREAMER - Review

July 2020


Hello Bryston, 

I just started days off and picked up my streamer. 

It is truly amazing!   … I am astounded by the clarity. 

I successfully wired it into the BP26 then with some trepidation went on the “information superhighway” to order Tidal.  Whenever I do something like this I have some concern I might accidentally slew Navigational Satellites or possibly Launch against the Chinese.  That may have happened but the good news is that I now have Tidal HiFi.  I also learned Premium doesn’t mean Premium but is 2 levels down according to the word smiths at Tidal.

I am now a happy Streamer (very, happy) and wonder why I waited so long.

Thanks for all your assistance and guidance on this purchase.  I really enjoyed our conversations and am grateful for your advice.

Best Regards
Cal

WillyP

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #113 on: 8 Jul 2020, 06:11 pm »
My preference would be the BDA-3.14: for a small difference in price an audio streamer is built-in. The only thing that worries me is the behaviour of the HDMI input. Some users have complained that pops and clicks can occur with their BDA-3 when playing SACD’s. It does not happen with every SACD player, though.

Anyways, here is hoping that Bryston has solved these issues when the BDA-3.14 was developed.

Kind regards,

WillyP

A few months ago I attended a demo of the Bryston BDA-3.14 during an audio show and I was really impressed. That is why I decided to follow my own advice so I traded in my “old” streamer and bought the BDA-3.14.

The sound quality is indeed fantastic. Very insightful without being analytical or even aggressive. Everything just sounds right. Manic Moose has a learning curve, though. On my computer, it is very usable, especially for maintenance, but a big screen is almost a must. With a smartphone, you really miss the bigger screen, everything feels cramped. I will give Rigelian a try, but my first impressions are that it needs a tablet with a reasonable size.

I also like the new remote, the BR4. It is light, lies well in my hand and is a joy to use. To be honest, I like it even more than its far more expensive cousin, the BR2, that I also have. The text is easier to read than with the BR2.

There are some questions I would like to ask.

1. When the unit is switched on, it needs some time to boot, after all, it is also a computer. When it is finished, it is muted. Is this normal?

2. After the unit is switched off, the stand-by LED goes red, but the LED above the Optical/Streaming input is also on (yellow). Is this because there are two devices connected to the BDA-3.14 (a scratch disk and a hard disk with music)?

3. Speaking of yellow, the two LED”s that can turn into yellow, are not completely yellow. You still can see a part of a red LED. I don”t know how to describe it, but it looks like two LED’s that are not completely aligned with each other. I tried to take a photo of it, but then the effect is not visible. It just seems not completely right to me and I can”t remember seeing it with the BDA-3.14 which was on display during the show.

Who has the answers to my questions?

WillyP

James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #114 on: 8 Jul 2020, 07:29 pm »
A few months ago I attended a demo of the Bryston BDA-3.14 during an audio show and I was really impressed. That is why I decided to follow my own advice so I traded in my “old” streamer and bought the BDA-3.14.

The sound quality is indeed fantastic. Very insightful without being analytical or even aggressive. Everything just sounds right. Manic Moose has a learning curve, though. On my computer, it is very usable, especially for maintenance, but a big screen is almost a must. With a smartphone, you really miss the bigger screen, everything feels cramped. I will give Rigelian a try, but my first impressions are that it needs a tablet with a reasonable size.

I also like the new remote, the BR4. It is light, lies well in my hand and is a joy to use. To be honest, I like it even more than its far more expensive cousin, the BR2, that I also have. The text is easier to read than with the BR2.

There are some questions I would like to ask.

1. When the unit is switched on, it needs some time to boot, after all, it is also a computer. When it is finished, it is muted. Is this normal?

2. After the unit is switched off, the stand-by LED goes red, but the LED above the Optical/Streaming input is also on (yellow). Is this because there are two devices connected to the BDA-3.14 (a scratch disk and a hard disk with music)?

3. Speaking of yellow, the two LED”s that can turn into yellow, are not completely yellow. You still can see a part of a red LED. I don”t know how to describe it, but it looks like two LED’s that are not completely aligned with each other. I tried to take a photo of it, but then the effect is not visible. It just seems not completely right to me and I can”t remember seeing it with the BDA-3.14 which was on display during the show.

Who has the answers to my questions?

WillyP

Hi Willy

1. Yes it is normal - it is a computer so it does take some time to boot up.  That may improve in the future with software.

2. Yes the Pi is connected as well as the DAC

3. Yes the LED's are tri-coloured so they will 'bleed' a bit.

james

WillyP

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #115 on: 8 Jul 2020, 08:23 pm »
Hi James,

Thanks for your quick reply. Much appreciated. Re: my first question, I guess it is also normal that the BDA-3.14 mutes after startup?

WillyP

James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #116 on: 8 Jul 2020, 08:42 pm »
Hi James,

Thanks for your quick reply. Much appreciated. Re: my first question, I guess it is also normal that the BDA-3.14 mutes after startup?

WillyP

I believe so because it needs a signal to un-mute.

james

WillyP

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #117 on: 9 Jul 2020, 11:31 am »
Thank you, James.

WillyP

WillyP

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #118 on: 10 Jul 2020, 12:01 pm »

2. After the unit is switched off, the standby LED goes red, but the LED above the Optical/Streaming input is also on (yellow). Is this because there are two devices connected to the BDA-3.14 (a scratch disk and a hard disk with music)?

Hi James,

Some more questions for you, if I may.

It seems that the behaviour of the BDA-3.14 is a bit unpredictable as far as the LED’s concerns. Sometimes the indicator LED above the chosen input is off, after the device is shut down, sometimes it goes on. This also happens when another input was used, for example, the SPDIF 1 input.

1. Is it possible that this has something to do with the software of the BDA-3.14?

How much time does the BDA-3.14 before it is burned-in? Compared to the BCD-3 I would say the sound quality is in the same league, but there is a difference in the sound balance. When I play a CD with the BCD-3 (or with my Blu-ray player) the instruments are evenly divided between my two front loudspeakers. This is not (yet?) the case with the same CD when I use the BCD-3 as a digital transport and the BDA-3.14 as a DAC (with a digital SPDIF cable between the two). The balance is shifted to the right.

2. What would be your advice? Just wait and see if things will improve the next coming days?

Thanks,

WillyP

James Tanner

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Re: DAC/Streamers
« Reply #119 on: 10 Jul 2020, 12:36 pm »
Hi James,

Some more questions for you, if I may.

It seems that the behaviour of the BDA-3.14 is a bit unpredictable as far as the LED’s concerns. Sometimes the indicator LED above the chosen input is off, after the device is shut down, sometimes it goes on. This also happens when another input was used, for example, the SPDIF 1 input.

1. Is it possible that this has something to do with the software of the BDA-3.14?

How much time does the BDA-3.14 before it is burned-in? Compared to the BCD-3 I would say the sound quality is in the same league, but there is a difference in the sound balance. When I play a CD with the BCD-3 (or with my Blu-ray player) the instruments are evenly divided between my two front loudspeakers. This is not (yet?) the case with the same CD when I use the BCD-3 as a digital transport and the BDA-3.14 as a DAC (with a digital SPDIF cable between the two). The balance is shifted to the right.

2. What would be your advice? Just wait and see if things will improve the next coming days?

Thanks,

WillyP

Hi Willy

I have not heard of the LED issue before but they are controlled by software.

Are you using 2 different sources - CD player and another Blueray player? -- If you can I would check with another digital source other than the CD player into the 3.14 DAC to see if the source is the issue.  Also try the XLR digtal output as well as the COAX from the CD player to see if things change.

Other wise I am at a loss as I have the same hookup at home and all seems fine.

james

PS - also check the cable?