Comments on Profile Post by GoldfishX

I use the SRA SIgnature Amp myself. Literally transformed the Yggdrasil+ MIB. PCs are a better bang for buck than ICs since they make more difference IME

Agreed! I got a good deal on some Sigma V2 RCA's, but the difference from PC to PC is far more striking and I'm enjoying rolling them. Do you find the Signature bright/silvery at all? I know Audiobacon guy loves it, but I'm worried it might be too bright (my source and both main DAC's are cool/neutral).

Where I am so far: Cottonmouth Gold is in the source (Soundaware D100 Pro), Kimber in Yggdrasil A1. Venom NR was too bright in Soundaware, but good noise removal. Gamma NR is outclassed by SRA and Kimber rn. Have a Cardas Clear Beyond to try in both. Then swap Yggdrasil out for Dave and redo. Everything goes back in a week.

And also removed an Audioquest C7 X2 from my Audioengine speakers. Replaced it with the old stock cable. Massive improvement. Slightly bright/cool, but the AQ had a nasty plasticky tone with midrange suckout to it. That cost me time with the rented cables. :/

Signature Amp just thickened the density of notes and increased the presence and black background while displaying excellent dynamics. I thought it’s more naturally neutral without a hint of any tonal shifts. I’d say it’s better for Gold to be on amp and hybrid on source just to keep the tonality as untouched as possible on the source while max dynamic contrast, details and naturalness from increased tonal density

What is your source? I switched to the Cardas Beyond earlier today in the Soundaware and it's way too lean, all else being equal (which is odd, given the Cardas is full copper). Too much energy in upper mids and treble, but staging and clarity is good. I thought it was odd Audiobacon guy didn't bother much with either Cardas or Shunyata.

Schiit Yggdrasil+ MIB is my DAC (with SRA Signature). With PC, I think the geometry and strand count, strand size matter just as much as material. I'm guessing the Cardas Beyond has too thin but lots of strands which can increase energy in the upper frequencies. SRA is multi-sized strands for sure

Oh, sorry, I meant what is feeding it? Or are you just doing USB out from a PC (vs a streamer)? I went to the Palladian in the Soundaware and the SRA Gold in the A1 and it's much more to my liking. Incisive, detailed and fast with warmth and much better soundstage than I'd used to (not 3D, but very un-2D). So I'm getting at least one Palladian. Cardas is out.

I'm feeding it with SOtM-sMS 200 (OG, not neo, not ultra) with Uptone UltraCap LPS-1. USB out to iFi micro iUSB 3.0 (ipower 2) and BADA USB Series 2 (Pangea AC-14SE). I'm using Diretta protocol from my PC -> iFi Omni LAN switch (fiber isolated from router) -> NA eno2 streaming system (2.0m streaming cable)

The ethernet filter + fiber treatment and 2x USB decraps really help maximizing 3Dness without sacrificing dynamics. Add lots of propulsive sound to the DAC. Yggdrasil+ MIB doesn't sound relaxed with that upstream setup, but rather very articulate with more dynamics on both macro and micro dynamics

Interesting setup. I had started on that path (messing around with Fidelizer), but I couldn't wrap my head around it. I found I was getting a better and more focused soundstage with the Soundaware than PC/Fidelizer, so I switched back to it full time. Having the single box helps the nervosa aspect. At some point, will A/B it with an Eversolo.