I played a little with vibration isolation of Innuos. NorStone Stabbl with glass shelves is the rack.Thick Ikea bamboo shelves didn´t work well under it,neither did one inch thick cork or other small brass tweaks I have. Then I found Soundcare Superspike 2´s from my drawer and gave them a try…huh. I placed them metal end to glass shelf and wider soft side coupled to Innuos own feet,3 of them. Sound opened up in all directions and made everything sound a lot better than Innuos just laying on the shelf. Faster ,snappier and more real. Worth a try if anyone have them laying around and made me think what even better isolators could do there. Nice…
Save money, buy the pro version. Iso puck and iso puck mini, are the same as their Orea line, but much less expensive.
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I’m using Gaia Titan Theis.
My salesguy at the Cable Company told me to never put isolation devices under the feet. Put them directly to the chassis instead. I objected but he said it has been proven time and again… so maybe try that as well?
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I did started out with the iso pucks. They sounded quite nice. That’s why I decided to try the Orea’s. To me, I think there’s a slight improvement to the sound with the Orea’s. The iso pucks are now under my mini monitors in my bedroom system where they are sounding quite nice there also.
There is no difference, except the finish and weight they support. They now have mini pucks too.
They might be the same as you say. I did not switch back and forth on them to confirm, and also my power amp’s weight may be a bit over the limit of the iso pucks. I had to use 4 Red Orea’s for that. The preamp weights 70 lbs. so I use 3 Red Orea’s as opposed to 4 iso pucks, so slightly different numbers. I can’t be sure on the difference in sound, but I thought the Red Orea’s sounded best. Anyway, no big difference.
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@aangen I don’t have any audio grade footers under my gear,except my speakers where I use Herbie decouplers with great results.
With Soundcare the changes are all good with Innuos and under their own feet. They are too short to be used otherwise,can’t lift gear up. I need to experiment more in the future but what I have tried,they usually degrade sound making dull ,soft or etchy sound. Hard to find good balance so I have just left my gear to lay on a shelf and forget it 
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No one seems to be answering your question. I am assuming because no one has a Phoenix.
I have the Phoenix and have been using it for about two months. It works absolutely perfect with the Matrix with no issues what so ever.
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Thanks Flip! What about the sound with the Phoenix? Is there a significant improvement? Was it worth the investment?
I have a Zen Mk 3 with a DS and like it. Not thrilled with using USB so have considered using the Matrix. The Phoenix, as everyone says, would be more compelling at $2000.
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Great to hear. Can you be more specific on how you connect them ? Usb to Phoenix and usb to Matrix and via i2s to dsd ?
I think i haven’t seen back panel of Phoenix,is it usb powered or does it need power cord or external lps ?
And obviously you tried just Phoenix and Matrix separately too,but find it sounds better with both ?
I own the Zen Mk3 and use the ethernet output, but have trued the usb output and thought it was just as good. Part of what you are paying for is a separate linear power supply for the usb output.
So the comparison for DS DAC owners surely should be usb-matrix to the I2S input vs. usb direct to the usb input, and then add the Phoenix into the usb direct connection to see if it helps.
Darko used a DS DAC as a reference and his view was that the Innuos was just as good if not better by usb, forget I2S.
My impression was that the Phoenix was mainly for people with computer sources, so they did not have to junk their computer (which might have Dirac and other favoured apps) and the Phoenix would simply clean up their usb output. I never got the impression that the Phoenix was intended for people with audio-specific streamers.
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Brownsf - The sound is a significant step up in ALL the audiophile directions. I bought this to tied me over with my laptop sound until funds become available for a ZENith MKIII. It is doing just that!! But, it is still a laptop. A polished turd is still a turd…
Somppsa - The connections are as simple as they can be. There is a USB in and a USB out, an on/off toggle, and an IEC power in. That’s it! It is a complete pass thru of the signal, so no drivers in any way. My laptop still sees the Matrix and uses those drivers. Completely falling off a log simple. Also, even with power toggle on all the time, the unit is only “working” when a signal is passing thru it. I know this because when there is no music, it gets cold, and when there is music, the front gets a little warm and is ABSOLUTELY silent. With Windom, direct USB in has a “cutting out” issue. I did do a little comparison, but Matrix > AES/EBU > DSD beat it out easily in my system. I don’t use I2S.
Stevensegal - They made the Phoenix as an upgrade for those who don’t want to buy a whole new main Innuos unit. But because it is completely pass thru, it can be used with ANY USB source. My dealer was there, and there are youtube vids, of them demonstrating this at RMAF in 19 with a ZENith MKIII. Even with the camera mics and crappy youtube sound, you can still hear the difference it makes. In the comparison with the Statement vs. Zenith MKIII, my dealer said it is basically 95% of Statement when using the internal SSD drive. He also said that the Statement killed the ZENith/Phoenix with it’s Ethernet though. I don’t stream, so not a big deal for me.
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I have the Innuous Zenith 3 and the Matrix, using the I2S input on the PS Audio Directstream. I’m very interested in the Innuous Phoenix reclocker. I’m not into tech stuff and am trying to figure out how I would connect the Phoenix in my system…what cables would go where in other words. Would appreciate any advice. Thanks.
I was under the impression that the Phoenix and the Matrix perform the same function. Hmmmmm. Interesting that they are being used together.
I think the Phoenix is a reclocker while the Matrix converts a usb signal to i2s. I’m not exactly an expert so someone who is more knowledgeable please clarify or correct this
I am getting ready to do the same comparison…picked up a TWL USB to go from the Phoenix to the DSD …Currently going Phoenix to matrix to DSD via i2s and it sounds great…going to take the Matrix out of the loop and see how it sounds…PSA thinks it will sound great so we shall see!
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Cutlr- Really interested in your experience and opinions using the Zenith/Matrix, Zenith/Phoenix/Matrix and the Zenith/Phoenix. I’d appreciate any information you can post when you’ve had a chance to try out the different configurations.
Cutlr,
Hope I’m not being a pest but I’m wondering if you have any preliminary thoughts about the different Zenith /Phoenix/ Matrix configurations. As I’ve mentioned, I’m using the Zenith 3 with the Matrix now. I have a Phoenix ordered , which is supposed to arrive soon. I have 30 days to return it. I’m trying to learn all I can about the setup and sound quality. Thanks in advance for any thoughts.