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Ifi zen stream tidal connect8/12/2023 ![]() So the value proposition needs to be balanced up with the rest of one's system. And to get it to sound at its best, the outlay of $600 + a LPS = not chump change. And since iFi uses a customised version of this, I cant see why Quboz cannot be integrated similarly like Tidal Connect. Volumio has integrated Tidal and Quboz streaming into its app. I think the Achilles heel of this unit at the moment is with its software support. In short, the Pi4B with latest volumio build gives you about 80% of this sound for $150.says a lot doesnt it. I'm pleasantly surprised that it is a noticeable jump in sonics. Other USB DACs, on the other hand, do not (how frustrating) They will announce some support resolution but not all. the computer or ZEN Stream in our case) the FULL list of sampling frequencies and bit depth it can support during the initial USB handshake. I can see now why *name withheld* is saying that he got more improvement over the ifi power smps using the Ifi Elite LPS. All iFi DACs will announce to the host (i.e. I'm getting all the subtle pluses over the Pi but with more authority, slam, and presence. ok, now its the bulls turn to chase the bull fighter. "As i'm listening to the 12v 5amp psu, whoa. This was an extract of a PM i had with another member last night. It was all there in spades, all the traits noted above with the ifi low noise smps, now had more authority, presence, and meat on them bones. When i plugged in the Meanwell 12v 5A smps, i immediately noticed a change in the sound. ![]() Was there a noticeable difference between the Ipower2 and X? Not that i could tell. I didnt notice it as much before, but in its absence, it is now noted. There was a bit of top end hardness that was present with the RPi4 + battery pack that is now gone. More focus and less diffusion to the sound comes to mind when powered by these iFi low noise smps. Tried the ifi power supplies and all of them gave me a similar presentation, blacker background, cleaner but somewhat lacking authority, meat on them bones, sound that i had from the Pi4 with the battery pack. ![]() As a baseline, I used a battery powered pack which gives out 5v dc 3amps to the RPi4 that is running the latest full version of Volumio2.ġ2v 5a (meanwell) GST60A12-P1J - Mean Well - AC/DC Power Supply, ITE, 1 Output () Ok, here's my subjective impressions on it. The good quality sound was a nice surprise, and it has been reasonably stable from a software perspective, acknowledging there are a few quirks. I was (and still am) a little skeptical of the difference any reasonably well designed streamer can make to digital audio playback when you have a good quality DAC feeding upstream components, but the fairly reasonably priced ZS was worth the price of admission in my case, just from a convenience perspective. As a comparison, the ifi zen stream is a bit better than using USB APP. I felt in my system the Chromecast Audio was not as good as using a laptop or particularly USB audio player pro (USB APP) from an android phone direct to a DAC via usb for streaming Tidal. Note that I have not A/B'd directly though so YMMV. I use it mainly for Tidal, and its quite a bit better than my old Chromecast Audio (better detail/bass and treble extension/soundstage etc- essentially all the usual audiophile metrics). 1) can anyone compare this to the old Chromecast audio? I'm looking to upgrade and this seems a decent option.Ģ) I heard there was going to be a Chromecast firmware update.
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