NEW PS Audio Digital Link III DAC
NEW Sony XDRF1HD HD Radio Tuner
NEW Samsung PN63B590 63-Inch 1080p
Sony PS3
Oppo 980H universal DVD player
Sony VAIO VGX-XL2 Digital Living System
Nintendo Wii
Monster Reference PowerCenter HTS 3500 MKII
Project Debut III Turntable
Bellari VP129 tube amp
Project Speed Box II
Tivoli PAL Tuner
Apollo Wall mounted shelf
2 Monitor Audio Silver RS6 speakers, Monitor Audio RS-FX surround speakers, and a Monitor Audio RS LCR center channel
Elemental Designs A2-300 sub (my Outlaw sub died)  
 

The pic below has a link to a better picture with labels that are not as jumbled together.

PS Audio - Digital Link III Audio DAC -  I have wanted a better DAC for a long time now.  I just could not justify the cost of one of the high end models, so I thought it would be a while before I added one to my system.  The DLIII DAC price dropped by $300, and while it is still expensive, it was more in my price range.

The reason I picked this DAC over some of the other models is that it has been reported time and again to have a "warmer, more analog" sound than other more clinical DACs. 

The DAC is very easy to setup.  In fact, I just plugged the USB into my computer without even turning on the display and it was up and running.  I also hooked up my Oppo 980H DVD player to the optical input, and I ran a long coax cable from the Roku in my office into the DAC (which is in my living room).  The only downside with this setup is that the USB is limited to 16bit/48khz (according to the people over at computeraudiophile.com).  I eventually want to record my vinyl collection to my computer in a "hi rez" format (thanks to my Sony Vaio's ability to burn to DSD format) and at that point, I will have to go back to some sort of optical switchbox or unplug my Oppo from the setup.  Not a huge problem since I rarely listen to CD since I rip them to my computer in lossless format.

Anyway, the sound quality is fantastic.  It takes off the digital edge that leads to fatigue after periods of listening.  Also, a smoother sound works great with headphones.  I have RCA outputs running from my Denon 3808ci into my office, so I can listen to the PS Audio DAC in both rooms.  I still have my Beresford in my office, but it is only for listening to audio from my computer in the office.

Sony XDRF1HD HD Radio Tuner - I bought one of these mainly to see what HD Radio was all about.  Memphis has a couple of decent HD channels.  Personally, I hate commercials and talky DJs, so the HD channels are a nice departure from many of the over-talky FM channels.  However, I was still surprised by how easy the HD signal and FM signals came in.  I did not even hook up the supplied antenna properly and it still picked up tons of channels.  Also, the channels came in crystal clear with no noticeable noise. 

I also tried a couple AM channels and while I got the main channel I wanted, I can't say the channels came in as easily.  Also, the tuner is on a shelf under my TV and when the TV is on it causes a major amount of interference with the AM signal.  Why have the TV on?  Well, I was setting up my receiver at the time with the TV interface and it made it impossible to get any channels.  I turned the TV off and the channel came in.  I don't usually listen with the TV on, so it is not a big deal, but I thought it might be worth mentioning.

The tuner has been reported to run very hot, but I have not had that problem with mine.  I did put it up on a couple small legs, but mine runs lukewarm. 

Also, the tuner is said to lose its presets when unplugged for a few minutes.  You could get a battery backup, but I did not find it very difficult to scan and add channels, so I can live with that problem. 

The amp in my Outlaw Sub went kaput and it was no longer covered under warranty, so I decided to get a new sub.  While this sub is a little bit smaller than the LFM-1, it still creates a lot of punch and actuall covers more of the audio spectrum (18-100Hz frequency response at +/-3dB.)

I ran the Audyssey room correction program on my receiver and then turned the amp on ths sub up a few clicks.  We watched WALL-E and I listened to a couple of SACDs and I really like the way it blends in with the other speakers.  Despite the fact that I had to put it on the same wall as my surround speakers, you would never know where the sub was located by just listening.  This may be the expertise of Audyssey or just a great sub.  Either way, I am very happy with the performance!

I should warn those that want to buy an Elemental Designs sub.  It took over a month to get mine after I ordered it.  I was already aware of the long wait, so I am not complaining.

You can see my MA speakers (one with the grill and one without).  I like the look without the grill, but since the pups and I play ball in the house (don't tell Mrs. Brady), we prefer leaving them on.

They sound fantastic.  For the size, they create more bass punch than I expected.  The seem to sound great for every type of music, too.  The size is small enough to fit under the wall shelf with an NHT speaker stacked on top of it. 

Robert J. Reina for Stereophile magazine exclaimed:

"There's nothing much more I can say—the flawless and exceptional Silver RS6 gave me more listening pleasure than any other loudspeaker I have reviewed for Stereophile. In my more than 20 years of reviewing, I have not reviewed an audio component that produced greater sound quality per dollar than Monitor Audio's Silver RS6." 

Sony Bravia SXRD KDS-60A3000 60" 1080p HDTV

Sony Bravia SXRD KDS-60A3000 60" 1080p Rear Projection HDTV - This is the main feature of my HT.   Unfortunately, Sony discontinued their rear projection line in favor of LCD. 

The picture is fantastic.  I also like the fact that they put the inputs on the side, which makes them much easier to reach without having to move the TV.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sony PS3 60GB

 

This is probably the greatest multi-media machine on the planet *other than a computer*.  It plays great games, Blu-ray movies, serves media from your computer, has an internet browser, plays CD/SACDs, etc...

Click HERE for my review of the Sony PS3 (Note: Sony adds new features all the time, so some of the new features may not be in my current review.  For example, you can now download "high-def" movies to the PS3 from Sony's network).

OPPO DV-980H 1080p Up-Converting Universal DVD Player with HDMI and 7.1CH Audio  -  I got this player so that I could remove the Yamaha C750 and Outlaw Bass manager from my main system.  It took 12 cables to do what one cable (HDMI) will do with my new setup! 

The Oppo is no slouch when it comes to playing discs.  It can handle DVD-Video, DVD-Audio, Super Audio CD with DSD, Audio CDs, HDCD, WMA, DivX and more.  For me, one of the other main selling points was the ability to send out an untouched DSD signal from SACDs.   Most players convert DSD to PCM and this could degrade the sound quality.  Also, I have a few DVD-A titles that my PS3 can't handle. 

The Oppo is known for having a great up-converter for standard DVDs.  This means that I can put in a regular DVD and it can send out a signal in 1080p/720p/1080i signal.  Currently, I have a 720p HDTV and it helps to send the TV a signal that matches its capabilities.

When I eventually buy a 1080p HDTV, I can change the output to 1080p, so I will not need to upgrade the player at that point. 
 

BELLARI - VP129 TUBE PHONO PREAMP -This is the newest addition to my home theater.  It is a phono stage/headphone amp for my Project Debut III turntable.  It uses a tube in its design and gives my vinyl music a wonderful sound.  This has been on my wish list for over a year now and I am glad I finally got around to buying it...thanks to a reasonable discount of a head-fi forum member.

Behringer SRC2496

 

 

See my Entech vs Behringer Shootout!

 

The Behringer SRC2496  ($129) has just been made available to the public again after a prolonged absence.  It is a pro-style DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) that does several things.  It can convert analog to digital, optical to Coax for digital connections, coax to optical, optical to analog, coax to analog, and upsample the feed to several different formats. 

 

It only has XLR connectors with  balanced inputs and outputs for analog.  I am waiting on adapters to test its analog abilities. 

 

I have tested the digital connectors (optical in and coax out) with my Sigma Tel sound card on my media PC.  The comparison was against the analog outputs on the computer using the Sigma Tel card, so this may or may not be the best way to measure its performance.  With the digital output on the computer, I am feeding that into the Behringer, then upsampling to 24/96 and outputting to my Denon AVR3300 receiver via Coax.   The analog (RCA) output on the Sigmatel is being fed directly into the Denon receiver.  

 

With my favorite test album, Norah Jones "Come Away With Me", the difference was astounding.  The analog feed had a much louder noise floor, the bass was not as defined, and the instruments seem to fade into the background.  The Behringer performance was amazing when compared with this setup. 

 

For the next test, I used the same Behringer setup as above, but compared it to the Turtle Beach USB optical output fed directly to my receiver.  Because I wanted to A/B the results, I used Foobar to play the file being fed to the Behringer and Windows Media to feed the USB/optical connection.  The noise floor was much quieter on the USB connector than the analog connection in the first setup.  However, the bass felt deeper and the separation between each instrument was better with Behringer.  The imaging was also better as was the definition of every single instrument.  While the USB was great on Norah's vocals, the instruments lacked the punch of the Behringer DAC. 

 

The Behringer SRC2496 sells for ONLY $129!!!  Below is some info from Musicians Friend website:

 

Transfers digital audio signals between devices with different sample rates, formats, or interfaces Disables SCMS for 1:1 digital copies and removes dropouts or jitter from digital media Simultaneously operable outputs offer splitter functionality High-quality 24-bit/96kHz A/D/A conversion Provides format conversion between AES/EBU and S/PDIF (coaxial or optical) High-quality signal output with 16-, 20- or 24-bit resolution Universal sample rate synchronization via word clock or digital input. XLR, RCA, and optical outputs simultaneously operational Functions as a digital patchbay

 

 

Entech Number Cruncher 203.2

 

I also grabbed an Entech Number Cruncher for $50 (including shipping) on Outletmp3 on EBay. 

 

Features

3-Pole analog anti-aliasing filter for removal of distortion-producing digital artifacts 5 independent voltage regulators for ultimate separation of the digital and analog stages Low jitter circuitry for optimum clarity Twenty bit Sigma-Delta processing for maximum information retrieval Converts stereo digital (S/PDIF) to analog stereo from CD, LD, DVD, DSS, DAT or Minidisc

The main selling point of this unit and the Behringer was price and anti-jitter circuitry.

 

 

Behringer SRC2496 vs Entech Number Cruncher 203.2

I have had the Entech for several days now and it should be broken in good enough to conduct an informal test. First, I know this is not an ABX formal test with results from several people in a pristine environment. Therefore, if you are a Hydrogen Forum alumni , you may want to skip over this informal test result.

The purpose of this test was to determine if I wanted to keep the Number Cruncher 203.2 in my main system or the SRC2496. The "loser" will go to my bedroom.

First off, I decided the music I wanted to use for the test. It consisted of Norah Jones "Come Away with Me" (mainly for female vocals in a mid-tempo setting), Pink Floyd "Comfortably Numb" (for guitar, ambiance, etc..), Soundgarden "Black Hole Sun" (bass and male vocals), and Van Morrison (Horns, vocals, and ambiance). After my personal tests, I picked a song that I thought would bring out a big difference in the performance in these DACs), Bob Dylan "Standing In The Doorway".

For the test, I used my Sony Vaio WMC PC with Sigma Tel soundcard. The digital optical out feeds the SRC2496 and the digital coax output feeds the Entech. I have switched them around and I could not make out any difference. The SRC 2496 has XLRs. Therefore, I used adapters to connect them to the analog inputs on my Denon AVR3300 receiver. I fed the RCA analog outputs on the Entech to my receiver. The RCA cables were the same brand (AR).

I used all WMA Lossless files out of Foobar2000 at 44.1Khz.

My girlfriend was not around during my earlier tests, but when she arrived, I had the following list for her to know what I was looking for:

1. Separation of instruments - I explained that I was looking for an idea of which "A" or "B" sounded more open, less noise floor, with more room for each instrument to breathe.

2. Sounds truer to the sound of the instrument - A piano should sound like a piano, etc..

3. Imaging - did the speakers disappear? Was it like a band in the room or did it sound more like two speakers where she could pinpoint the exact location of the speaker when hearing the music?

4. More detailed bass - punch, does it sound muffled, etc..

5. Vocals - do they sound true?

6. Musical - which is a better presentation with all of the above combined - which sounds better in the bigger picture?

These choices were my own invention and are in no way scientific. However, I knew what I wanted answered by her more technical ear (she plays several instruments ranging from the piano to the drums). I did not tell her what I was testing, but that it did not matter which one she chose because it was a "win-win" situation regardless of her decision.

I set up an SPL meter before she got there to determine if there was a difference in the volume. There was, so I adjusted to the correct volume before switching. In other words, I would put the receiver on a "dead" input to adjust volume so one would not stick out based on it being louder.

In nearly every case, the Behringer was better overall. The one exception was with the Norah Jones track which actually worked better overall with the Entech.

My girlfriend had the exact same results, for the same reasons, that I had. The Entech seems to really pull out the vocals. However, it does so with the loss of ambiance. The reason I added the Dylan tune was because it has a lot of ambiance in the background and with the Entech it was buried too deeply behind the vocals. This was also the case with all of the other tracks (other than Norah).

For me, once again, the Behringer was the clear all around winner. The Entech still sounded good and I feel that I got my money's worth ($50), but it will be heading to my bedroom to be played in my other system (which is still pretty good and now because of the Entech will be even better).

If you have the money and need a great DAC, get the Behringer SRC2496 as soon as possible.  It is known to disappear for long periods of time and it seems to be available at many different locations for the time being.  I bought my from www.Musiciansfriend.com , and would recommend them, even though I have no affiliation.

The Harmony 880 was a Christmas present and has been in my system for months now.  It is an incredible unit with a bunch of features that make it easy to setup and use in a complicated system.

When I first got the unit, I hooked it up to my computer and installed the software that came with it.  It takes you to their internet site and walks you through several steps.  The site has codes for nearly every product under the sun, so it takes less time to setup than most universal remotes.   This is really great for those that want to spend more time using the remote than programming it.  I have been down the Pronto remote road in the past, and while it was fun and cool, it was more about playing with it as a gadget (which is great for geeks like me) than using it. 

The other HUGE advantage that this remote has over most remotes is its ability to remember what components are on and off.  Anyone that has designed programs and macro steps for remotes knows how import discreet codes (examples of a discreet codes are individual on and off commands instead of just one button to toggle power) are and when they are lacking it is a pain.  I will spare you the long discussion on how great this feature is at this time, but with this ability, products without discreet codes can still be added to macros.

The remote also has a nice color screen and automatically turns on the backlight when it is picked up.  This saves on battery power and does not require the user to hit a button to turn on the light.

A cool feature is the ability to upload jpegs for a slideshow.  When it is on its docking station, it will cycle through the pictures and this is an easy way to make sure you have it properly sitting on its station..  BTW the station comes with the remote and does not have to be purchased separately.

This is a PCI card for the computer that allows the user to record from cable TV that is  plugged into the back or from an external antenna.  I bought it so that I could record HD movies from an over the air antenna and play them back on my Linkplayer (above).  The unit comes with a remote that works through walls for people that want to hook their computers directly to their TVs.

Click here to see the rest of my review