[Alwayswantmore]

Olive is new on my radar screen, and I've very intrigued by what I've read so far. I've done a few searches and a quick scan of the pdf user manual, but in the interest of time -- i.e. I'm lazy -- I'm posting these questions to learn from other RWA fans...

For starters, I have a Signature 30 (love it!), Hudson AudioPath 8-wire silver IC (OMG!), and a Wadia 830 CDP with Wadia's latest upgrade (adds a second power supply board). I have a new pair of Omega Compact Hemps on order. And I own and very much enjoy a set of AKG K1000 headphones tied to the Signature 30. Currently I'm using Anti-wire, but intend to try Omega's copper speaker wire after the Hemps are through burning in. [And I use a spare bedroom as a dedicated media room, so my room is pretty small.]

My musical tastes lean toward vocals and small instrumental, so I love a magical midrange. I also am a sucker for great imaging, a big soundstage, and subtle detail.

I'm considering selling my Wadia to fund a RWA modded Olive Symphony. So here are my questions...

1.) Can Olive's RCA input be used in conjunction with RCA outputs from a standard analog source (like a DVD player)? I.e., could the Olive be used as a preamp/volume control for an external source?

2.) In terms of wireless, is a standard G wireless router the way to go, or can it take advantage of anything faster?

3.) Assuming I play physical CDs (as opposed to ripped music), is there any loss of of SQ?

4.) Is the internal DAC (using analog outputs) the way to go, or would I want an external DAC to get the best SQ?

5.) In terms of wireless, could the Olive act as a base station to transmit to other remote units? If so, I'm thinking of using the Olive to supply background music in my bedroom or kitchen. What choices are there for cheap remote listening stations?

6.) In terms of SQ, is there any significant difference to go to the more expensive models in Olive's product line?

7.) In terms of absolute sound, I read one user comment that his Olive beat everything he'd ever owned, including a Meridian CDP. Can other owners please share their listening experiences in terms of whether or not the modded Olive should / might out perfrom my current Wadia (I would be selling the Wadia to fund the Olive, and would not want to step backwards in terms of SQ)?

Sorry if some of the answers currently exist on this forum -- and thanks in advance for any input you can provide!!!

Best, Kent

[Vinnie R.]

Hi Kent,

1) The analog input is intended to be used for recording (e.g. recording your vinyl to the hard-drive) via the built-in ADC.

However, you actually CAN connect another source to this input and set it up so that this source will pass through to the output jacks AND you can control the volume via the remote.   In this regard, the Olive is kind of like a preamp (with only one external input).   

2) I think the wireless G is the fastest you can go...

3) They should sound very close (playing the CD from the CD drive vs off of the hard drive), but I have found (as have some of my customers) that playing off of the hard drive (after ripping to WAV or FLAC) sounds the best.

4) After the mods, I am all about using the internal dac.  I feed the analog output of my modded Olive directly to my Sig 70s.  I control the volume via the Olive's remote.  However, the modded unit's digital output is also fantastic and if you want to use an external dac, the modded Olive makes for a top-notch, off-the-grid transport!  If you go with an external dac, you won't be able to control the output volume via the Olive's remote control.

5) Yes, you can trasmit to the Olive Sonata units: http://www.olive.us/p_bin/?cid=01_02_sonata

These were supposed to hit the market this year, but I think there have been some delays.  The Sonata has both analog and a digital output, and the last I heard, it was supposed to be fairly inexpensive (no more expensive than a SB3)...

6) The Symphony and Musica are the same unit, except for the size of the internal hard drive.  The Opus is supposed to offer a better power supply, a different dac board (designed by Resolution Audio, with SPDIF input fed by tapping off of the SPDIF output signal.... so no remote volume control!), and a larger hard drive, and IEC power input jack.

I do not mod the Opus because I would throw away the upgraded power supply in favor of the battery conversion, I would throw away the different dac board in favor of my analog output mods, and my modded Symphony and Musica customers who want more HD space are buying external USB hard drives. 

Best regards,

Vinnie

[Alwayswantmore]

5) Yes, you can trasmit to the Olive Sonata units: http://www.olive.us/p_bin/?cid=01_02_sonata

Thanks Vinnie.

The Sonata's are $199 (per Olive's web site).

Have a great holiday!