I'm a little late to the party here, sorry to bump an old thread...but I just gotta. I know this is wordy, complain to my editor.
I had the chance to audition this device through a system I'd heard before with vinyl...and was simply amazed that the sound was coming from a computer's USB. I have never experienced any computer-fed d/a convertor that was worth a long listen, and because of the past experiences didn't even bother with the expensive convertors.
There was almost no reason to throw many thousands of dollars at a device strapped to a dirty pig of a source. Like the days of early Home Theater PCs, there was always some disappointment. My enthusiasm simply didn't exist for standard computer handling of music for high-end listening enjoyment.
My initial reaction was that the sound I heard simply couldn't be coming from the MacMini. Cymbals shimmer through their sustain, overtones and air rendered so well...the sound-stage was remarkable. The liveness or immediacy was tangible...vague terms, I know. Best I can do. The Tranquility DAC seems to make magic previously reserved for product many, many times its price.
It has been over a month since the audition, but I am still stunned and cannot wait until the next time...when I'll bring some recordings I've made live along with a few other items. Some of these are 96/24 rates off an Alesis recorder.
I've known Eric Hider for over ten years, since I calibrated an old Sony RPTV for him. He's been on a continuous path for the perfect hifi, and has never EVER been as excited over any product...not in my memory. Of all the cheap tricks and tweaks he's turned me onto...this unit is the most ground-breaking.
Enough to draw him into this wild and crazy marketplace...in the worst economy we've seen in forever.
I consider him trustworthy to the extreme, ethical, enthusiastic, and honest. He is a friend of mine, but that wouldn't get in the way of an honest review...ever!
I haven't been motivated to get into digital music servers for serious listening until now. Lucky I've been loading my CDs into the laptop iTunes with every play, though, at some near future point that work will be rewarded.
Cheers,
John
I had the chance to audition this device through a system I'd heard before with vinyl...and was simply amazed that the sound was coming from a computer's USB. I have never experienced any computer-fed d/a convertor that was worth a long listen, and because of the past experiences didn't even bother with the expensive convertors.
There was almost no reason to throw many thousands of dollars at a device strapped to a dirty pig of a source. Like the days of early Home Theater PCs, there was always some disappointment. My enthusiasm simply didn't exist for standard computer handling of music for high-end listening enjoyment.
My initial reaction was that the sound I heard simply couldn't be coming from the MacMini. Cymbals shimmer through their sustain, overtones and air rendered so well...the sound-stage was remarkable. The liveness or immediacy was tangible...vague terms, I know. Best I can do. The Tranquility DAC seems to make magic previously reserved for product many, many times its price.
It has been over a month since the audition, but I am still stunned and cannot wait until the next time...when I'll bring some recordings I've made live along with a few other items. Some of these are 96/24 rates off an Alesis recorder.
I've known Eric Hider for over ten years, since I calibrated an old Sony RPTV for him. He's been on a continuous path for the perfect hifi, and has never EVER been as excited over any product...not in my memory. Of all the cheap tricks and tweaks he's turned me onto...this unit is the most ground-breaking.
Enough to draw him into this wild and crazy marketplace...in the worst economy we've seen in forever.
I consider him trustworthy to the extreme, ethical, enthusiastic, and honest. He is a friend of mine, but that wouldn't get in the way of an honest review...ever!
I haven't been motivated to get into digital music servers for serious listening until now. Lucky I've been loading my CDs into the laptop iTunes with every play, though, at some near future point that work will be rewarded.
Cheers,
John