I don’t hear any noise from my system, if I did I’d say I’ve got an issue.
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Well, when going back and forth between the two ports, one was clearly “quieter”. Both my friend and I preferred the “audio” port on the Uptone.
But as I mentioned above, it clearly depends on the system. My friend’s system (mytek-NAD-Legacy) we could hear no difference. Was it because his system was “better” and didn’t require the filtering provided by the Uptone, or was his system unable to expose the difference. I have no idea. On my system there is a noticeable difference.
Sorry to insist, but what does it mean, if you say “quieter”?
Was/is there noise to be heard with no music playing or a pause between movements?
More of the quiet parts while music is playing. When noting is playing there is no difference.
So, like more detail retrieved, that seemed buried before?
But buried by what, if not noise?
No difference, like: same background noise as before.
Or is the system dead quiet either way?
Why is it, that you’re not directly answering my question?
The answer appeared, the best answer someone could ever imagine.
Totally agree @Marin_Weigel - this noise floor “thing” is one of the most ridiculous audiophoolia fantasies. When nothing is playing, there should be no noise from your system. When something is playing, the background noise comes from all sorts of sources - studio noise, piano pedals, amplifier noise, pickup hum, etc. etc. etc. That’s natural noise, not something you want to eliminate.
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Interesting topic. Here‘s my learning curve the last two months that I’d like to share with all users who hear differences:
Exchanging a normal switch with an SOtM switch: much better
Comparing with a Melco switch: different sonic footprint. SOtM is more open and analytic and brings a very nice mid and top range, but is a little lean. Melco is sounding darker with more body and meat, but lacks a bit of the transparency of the SOtM.
Just because of curiosity I used both switches in line, with SOtM at the front side (router, transport, NAS) and the Melco at the end connecting to streamer (and Oppo for movies). Interesting find is that the result combined the goods of both switches. So I kept both.
Next step was exchanging the standard spsu‘s with lpsu‘s. Starting with two different 2-bay Keces psu‘s and ending up with two separate Farad Super 3 psu‘s. Result is less noise, darker background and more enjoyment.
Last step was exchanging the electrical connection between the two switches the optical way. Learned that optical cable needs to have some length, in my case 7m. A short cable of just 1m was not good, assume because of the damping factor issue. Anyway, much better and neutral as with the electrical connection.
Next step now is evaluating different Ethernet cables for the components. First impression - they make a difference as well.
Cheers
NOA
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Many thanks for posting and sharing your valuable experience here.
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I just have to ask you as well, since I honestly want to understand:
What kind of noise, like white noise, pink noise, somehow modulated or cyclic or intermittent, chirping even?
Did you hear that noise before adding, less of that noise after adding devices?
Or did adding devices change the noise in character?
Still hear some noise?
If so, is that with nothing playing at all, or while listening to pauses between movements, or noticeable all the time during playback?
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Hi Marin,
It’s none of the noises you’ve mentioned, so no noise that you would hear from the listening position under normal circumstances.
Before we move forward, would you be so kind and let me know a little bit more bout your music listening history and experience, and the kind of gear you are using? This question seems to be a bit presumptuous but it is not, and not intended to be. It just helps me to better find an appropriate explanation for you, if you really want to know it as you’ve expressed.
Cheers
NOA
NOA,
please click my avatar to check out my listening equipment, if you haven’t done so yet - sorry, no eye candy or highly regarded name plates to brag about.
I love to listen to live and reproduced music of diverse genres since I’ve been a kid and learned to play the piano (only play the Didgeridoo these days).
Only thing I loved about going to church was to listen to the organ playing.
Currently, Covid is keeping me from attending to my subscription of concert series with the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks.
Instead, I’m donating that money to artists in need.
Started early to build or tweak turntables, electronics, speakers, and finally bought my own acoustic measurement system, which was called DAAS and ran on Win95 - wow…
Know some about repairing tube and solid state equipment, as well as things like fixing Magneplanar wire delamination and Quad arcing problems.
Used to have a dedicated, treated listening room with stacked Quad ESL57s, broad range of Magneplanars all the way up to the Tympani4A, Pass amps, Threshold preamps and such over the years.
I have been working in Laser application technology, electronics hardware development and product management, as well as equipment engineering in semiconductor industries (particle accelerators and molecular beam epitaxy), some 35 years altogether, so have ample and broad technical knowledge and skills.
You mustn’t adapt your language to try to explain what exactly you hear.
And yes, I really want to know what exactly it is you hear!
PM sent…
Any noise coming out of your speakers when nothing is playing would be a result of your amplifier, not the source. You could have a completely dead silent amp, or a hissy one, but that would have no bearing on the ‘noise’ generated through network cabling, USB cable, etc, before the amplifier. And the source ‘noise’ isn’t actual white noise on another layer from the music, but comes through as harshness or the music being muddled. I think many get confused by the use of the term ‘noise’ and therefore automatically discount that network changes can have an impact on the sound without actually trying changes themselves.
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Hi Michael, the diagram does not show the roon server.
Thanks for sharing these results.
Well, my experience with digital audio has certainly led to the possibility that a switch could make an audible difference. I don’t think I’d spend my money on an ‘audiophile’ version.
Has anybody tested these in a system where there is a fiber firewall after it? Because I added a fiber firewall just before my Roon endpoint to good effect.
I bought a Netgear Nighthawk Switch a while ago, it’s made to a better spec, and the case is heavy aluminum.
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I bought the same Nighthawk S8000 switch, a fantastic one! My download speed is now > 600 mbps.
I just use regular BJ 6a cables.
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Very useful indeed, Michael, thanks so much for taking the opportunity to share with us. It comes at a time when my dealer has ‘discovered’ the wonders of an audiophile switch and wants to share the news with his customers (and maybe flog a few £400+ switches no doubt). 
Well done on the test Michael! Appreciate the time and thought put into it. Though I am skeptical of the benefits of audiophile switches, CAT cables, etc: I’ve only informally tested them so don’t have a definitive opinion. What I would say though, is that I’m convinced at a minimum there is much better value/bang for the buck in improving a system w/other things such as room treatment, et. al.
Maybe, depends on where the weakest part of the system is, or what you want or need to improve or achieve.
Switches and cables do different things than room treatment to the sound. One concerns the sound source, the other the room response of the source.
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