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Flaws in this chain?

New to streaming and such. Is there a serious weak link in this chain?:

MacBook Pro with Tidal (hi res)------wireless to-----Apple TV-----toslink to-----Schiit Modi 2 Uber-----RCA cable to----Line stage.

I know that the Schiit is no great shakes in terms of a DAC but is there any other serious limitation in the chain? Thanks.

George
n80
audioengr
3,282 posts
 

Jitter causes the image to smear and even have halos. Vocalists seem 2-3 feet wide. Cowbells sound dull. Pianos sound warm and bloomy. Difficult to pinpoint deep sounds in the image.

Reducing jitter is like cleaning the dirty window so you can see clearly.  Improved clarity.

Steve N.

Empirical Audio

n80 OP
1,227 posts
 
Thank you. So far I have not played anything hi-res through the current set up. I have yet to re-activate my Tidal account.

My ripped CDs are on an old iMac wired directly to the DAC via USB.

I will rip some CDs onto my new iMac (in a different room) and then play it through the current Apple TV set up and see what I hear. If I can't tell the difference then, well, caviar and truffles are wasted on the untrained palate and jitter might not matter to me.

Is the iFi SPDIF iPurifier you mention similar to the Schiit Wyrd and Eitr?
n80 OP
1,227 posts
 
I don't see a  iFi SPDIF iPurifier with Toslink.
rechsm
13 posts
 
Try Googling "iFi SPDIF iPurifier" - the pictured optical port supports toslink via included adapter. I own a handful of these as well as a Empirical Audio's Synchro-Mesh. The iFi is cheap and convenient, and it does seem to clean up dirty sources somewhat. I have my Sonos running through Synchro-mesh right now, and it's the best digital source I've ever heard. Like Steve said, you get what you pay for.  
n80 OP
1,227 posts
 
Thanks, I did not see the adapter.

I guess my point is why spend even $150 to correct (purify, decrapify) the signal from a $100 Apple TV? Seems like I should save my money until I can come up with a better wireless solution....whatever that would be and however much that would cost. Of course, if that solution is going to be $1000 or more then I guess the iFi makes sense.

As far as the Schiit devices they are only for USB and optical connections, not Toslink. So no help there.

I'll do some testing this afternoon to see what my ears tell me.
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