Ayre QX-5 Twenty First Listen

[Blackstone]

Tecknik, the Transparent ethernet was used in the demo that caused me to start this thread. That was from a Melco to QX-5 via ethernet. Going to their Premium USB was a step toward that same sound.

I am completely amenable to using ethernet, but the question is, what specific device goes between the router and QX-5 to clean it up. There seems to be a large universe of devices.

For what it is worth, my PC is:
Intel 6 core Haswell-E at 3.4Ghz liquid cooling
16GB DDR4 Memory
1 TB Samsung 840 Evo SSD
1 x 4TB Caviar Black Hard Drive at 7200 rpm.
1 x 5TB Caviar Black Hard Drive
2 x Nvidia Geforce GTX 980 GPU
Corsair 850 watt psu.

All in one chassis. The Transparent usb just gets the job done, with no intermediary device. It is astonishingly quiet and musical considering the monstrosity it is connected to. If they can design a cable that makes that beastly machine sound as good as it does, I trust their ethernet cable is excellent. I thought I would need a dedicated source device to achieve this type of performance, but apparently not.

[Tecknik1]

Thank you Blackstone, only the last couple of weeks Ive gotten the Ethernet on the QX 5 going and its been a big learning curve so I appreciate everyone input.

[ctsooner]

Back to room treatment. Folks really need to remember that all our rooms are so different as are the movement of or addition or subtraction of furniture. I do little treatment and what I do is always inexpensive. I feel my rooms in my life have sounded very good overall. I usually don't get the slap echo problem that most have and I have light quilts and fabric at the side of eh speakers where the first reflection will happen. I most often use huge plants (fake or real) behind the speakers and use a book case or case of albums on the rear wall when I can. Honestly, the rooms I've heard treated most often are dead and dull. They almost all have the 50-60Hz resonance that plagues most rooms, especially at many dealers.

As for what connections are best, it all depends on everything else, lol. That's the reality. I don't know if the connection I'm putting together is the best or not, but it's working great for a few folks I respect and I know it will be outstanding, so I'm doing that route. It gives me the flexibility that I want too. It's going to let me keep using a server that I feel sounds as good as any I've heard. I'll just add an external hard drive and then I can use Roon and any other software now or in the future that sounds best. It will all be isolated too.

The only ethernet cable that's going to make any difference and you won't know how much until you try some, is the one in the audio room going into the QX5 Twenty. I'm using the Audioquest Diamond, unless I'm given another cable for free, lol. Does that mean it's better than the top Cardas? Nordost? Transparent? MIT? no, it's what I am using in my whole system, so why change? Blackstone uses Transparent as his dealer sells it. He even said he has no desire to audition cables and that's fine. Probably a great thing. He's got Transparent in the rest of his system and he loves how it sounds with his Ayre/B&W speakers so why change? Honestly, I use Wireworld fiber optic cable since it's one of the only ones I've seen that is true glass and not plastic. I think it sounds much better than the plastic ones I've listened to. I know they make a GREAT ethernet cable also. I want a Cat 7 cable at a minimum and will check to see if the AQ is Cat 7 as I don't think it's an 8. Most of them are Cat 6 or 7, but it probably won't make any sound differences and once that would, you can just sell and buy the newer model, lol.

[Blackstone]

[emoji106]

[Tecknik1]

Im sorry to be off topic here guys and I have tried to figure out how to send a PM but cant .

Imprezap2, I beleive you posted a video one youtube June 17 2014 of your system playing an incredibly beautiful song , female vocalist . Lyrics something like take a look inside ?

Who is that artist and what is the name of the sone.

[imprezap2]

It's Black Sheep - Natalie Merchant, from the CD "Natalie Merchant"
Also try her latest, re-recording of the tigerlilly album "paradise is here"

[Tecknik1]

Thank you.

[ctsooner]

great cut. Thanks for sharing. Never heard it before.

[audio bill]

Originally Posted by imprezap2

It's Black Sheep - Natalie Merchant, from the CD "Natalie Merchant"
Also try her latest, re-recording of the tigerlilly album "paradise is here"

I believe that album is actually titled: "Paradise is There".

[imprezap2]

yep, missed the T