Weiss Minerva Dac

01-14-09: Alexsee
this is all a bit confusing...

aren't AES/EBU, SPDIF Coax, & Toslink cables limited to 24bit 96kHz bandwidth, & USB 2.0 cables limited to 24bit 48kHz bandwidth?

how does one feed raw 24bit 176kHz (&/or 196kHz) data into these DACs with just a single cable?

Hello Sir [Alexsee] !

You are correct;
SPDIF & AES/EBU cannot carry more than 24/96.
Hence, top end Transport & DAC's [Esoteric & dCS] use 'dual' connections. Left & Right from Transport to DAC. Even Chord has 2 cables & that too can only transmit 176 Khz.

Basically, to send 24/192 from a transport to a DAC either a 'firewire' has to be used or a 'proprietory' cable like what is used by Accuphase.

However, all those DAC's [Teac / dCS / Accuphase] cannot accept digital inputs from a computer, since no computer sound card gives you 2 digital outs [192 KHz sampling].

USB too cannot support sampling frequencies of 192 Khz.

Basically, one needs to get 3 things sorted out.
A - Digital out from a 'source' [computer or CD Transport] @ 192 Khz.
B - DAC that can accept 192 KHz & 'lock' @ that rate.
C - Word Clock [master / slave]

Yes, the HRX recordings from RR are from a 'different planet' Just too good. No CD / SACD can come close to it ! All must hear them. Keith Johnson has done a great job !! Bravo !!

hi Schwinnindia, i agree with yr 3 pts & would like to add another 2:

D - media software needs to be compatible with high def audio files;

& most important of all...

E - there needs to be more titles/albums properly remastered in high def audio formats (no point investing in all this gear to listen to the same 10 CDs over & over).

anyway, i've not managed to hear RR's HRx, but do hv quite a number of RR's discs - which are also very good but prob nowhere near HRx (in a proper setup).

btw, is anyone currently using the Lynx AES-16 24/192 digital I/O? what kind of cables/connectors does this btw the I/O & the DAC?

btw, is anyone currently using the Lynx AES-16 24/192 digital I/O? what kind of cables/connectors does this btw the I/O & the DAC?

Sir,

This still clocks @ 24/96
Cannot do 24/192
The Digital Out on the Lynx Card cannot give 192 Khz out on a SPDIf - AES / EBU.
So any External DAC only gets a 92 KHz input.

Forget RR HRX recordings.

This Minerva can accept 24/192 output from a computer. That can only happen via firewire. This is its biggest USP. Even dCS has the same cable connection format for its Scarlati System.

Interesting that you need two cables to get the high bitrates. I have a Cary Audio 306 Pro with digital inputs and it states in the manual that it accepts up to 192 khz 24 bit and will accept digital inputs at the following sample rates: 32khz, 44.1khz, 48 khz, 88.2 khz, 96 khz, and 192 khz and it accepts 16, 20, or 24 bits. When I feed it hi rez downloads via a dvd player like the Oppo, the display reads the proper sample rates (have done up to and including 192). If what you say is true, then this should not be possible (as it only has Coax, Toslink, and AES/EBU digital inputs and only one of each). It sure sounds good and will oversample at various rates up to 768hz for CD playback (via analog outs) and will playback digital inputs at 44.1, 96, or 192hz. I am not attempting to compare this CD/SACD player and DAC to the Weiss as I have not heard the Weiss, but I am curious as to the explanation for difference between what the unit display and manual by Cary say and what I am reading here. Thanks for any explanation, and please accept my apology if the answer is obvious and I am just too dense to know it. :)