Block Diagrams, System Topologies, and Bears, Oh my! - Members' Systems Deep Dive

Thanks for the credible insight! You certainly would now better than my simple assumptions with regard to his business decisions.

I am really impressed with the engineering that went into this preamp. I’ve been to multiple high-end audio shows over the last two years, none have impressed me from a design perspective as much as this Purity preamp.

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10-4; thank you.

SEE

BD#30 Update - click to zoom…

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Hi folks - can anyone point me at some Visio stencils for audio / block diagram use please?
I use Visio extensively at work (and have my home network mapped out also) but never been able to find any audio type (I can get front/back panel pics of the internet for some stuff but more interested in block diagram type stuff).
Any clues?
Really like the diagrams on here, looking forward to doing mine :slight_smile:

I thought I’d waste an hour or two trying to do one. Tho I’ve got pictures of a lot of the equipment the diagram is already pretty big so I’ll punt on that for now:

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Wow Ted! Thanks for taking the time to put this together. I think I speak for the masses when I say that it is fascinating to learn of the gear you have adopted in your system, which turns out to be quite complex. I’m having fun looking at what the “Wizard of Windom” has in his system :grimacing:

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@joma0711 - the pic above your post is a VISIO drawing with screen shots from vendors to keep it interesting. I used Snag It to capture the VISIO in (4) blown-up sections and pieced them together for click zooming. I like VISIO cause I can scale my rack and make sure the cabling distances are thought out before reconfiguring. The pics of the equipment are scaled in VISIO and so is the rack. When I get an idea to reconfigure, I like to analyze the distances needed for cabling… There is just basic stencils. I use Snag-It to capture a pic of equipment, then ratio it according to the physical specs. I due use the dimensioning stencils for dimensioning distances.

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This looks great @cardri

Jeff - holy crap is Ted’s BD got a lot of stuff… who said the digital yeti just worked a digital screen shot of beef jerky cabling… That is a very serious BD @tedsmith

Hi Ted!

Questions:

1 - The DirectStream DAC feeding the front speakers also feeds the Oppo HA-1. Please describe how you are using this HA-1 as it is a DAC also, and how are you hooking up to the DIrectStream… Two connections to the DirectStream at the same time? Swap cables?

2 - You have three sources to that same DirectStream and two of them denote three connections each. Can you explain this?

3- What is you 1st and 2nd most played source in your system?

BTW… hiking in sandals? Yikes.
BTW2 - I have a Pioneer PRO 151FD plasma and I still think it is the best picture out there today. Friends are buying the latest crazy crap… the Pioneer is still the most neutral and accurate… and the Plasma has not faded or degraded in any way (I can notice).

Peace
Bruce in Philly

  1. I perodically listen to the DS directly with the Audeze LCD-3 headphones. I’m just using the HA-1 as a headphone amp.

  2. Just as I sometimes recable the output of the DS to the HA-1, I recable the inputs as needed for testing, etc.

  3. I mostly listen via the PC running foobar2000 via the Matrix. I use the DMP 2nd and rarely the Oppo (now that I have a DMP.)

I took a chance that plasma had gotten good enough to last a while and I’m quite happy that it has. My Pioneer has been on almost continuously since I got it. My wife has a higher density monitor upstairs, but it’s colors aren’t nearly as true to life, blacks aren’t as deep and boy tennis sure looks better down here. Down here the ball is trivial to follow and stays the right shade of yellow, unlike the ball ghost on her screen.

+1 on the attributes of a great plasma TV.

I think OLED is just about there in terms of black levels and motion artifacts. I had not been tempted to upgrade my Panasonic Viera plasma until I recently took a gander at some of the big OLEDs that are now available.

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I think I didn’t read #2 correctly.

I hook up three or four of TOSLink, S/PDIF, AES3, I2S between either the DMP or the Matrix to the DS. It’s important to verify that there aren’t ticks, etc. when changing inputs, that all are of the same polarity, levels, not channel swapped, etc. On the TSS which swaps in for the DS, I need to test everything.

Re Pioneer plasma:
When I was ready to give my Sony Wega to my brother, my wife and I went to the local Magnolia Hi-Fi and looked obliquely across the rooms, the Pioneer plasmas stood out: no rainbows, no creepy crawlies at hi contrast edges, smooth motion, no sign of color or contrast differences to the right of text, etc. It was amazing how many ways a good picture could be screwed up…

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I gave away my pioneer plasma to my sister when I left for med school(I started a little later in life than the traditional route) and I actually just got to see it again 2 weeks ago… It still looks amazing. It’s lost a little brightness, but it still crushes most of what’s out there as you guys have already mentioned. Good thing the oleds are out now.

I also gave my Pioneer plasma to my son and it’s still going and looks great. Now have an LG OLED that is really excellent. Best true black levels I’ve ever seen. Very natural colors, off-axis viewing, etc. Nothing like any LED backlit LCD I’ve seen so far.

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I entirely forgot the power side of things: oops. I also forgot my SimAudio Air (a FM tuner with Magnum Dynalab guts) Perhaps I’ll add those things in a day or so.

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