(We used to list a Cisco unmanaged SFP switch in the past, but it was discontinued.)
I believe that’s multimode.
You may also try the Corning single mode fiber listed in our web page, together with a pair of single mode SFP modules. Should not cost much. Audiophilestyle.com discussions seem to favor Finisar modules, but we have not tested them and this brand costs more.
Well, just hooked up the fiber (using the gear recommended on the Lumin site).
Dumb question - is there any “burn in” required for the network switch or fiber cable? My first impression is that it sounds a bit crisp and I get a clear glassy-like sheen. Quieter perhaps, with defined bass but reminds me of new speaker or interconnects that need some break in. Or - like MOSFET mic vs tubes mic.
Trouble is I prefer tubes generally even at the expense of utter transparency, and my ears are a bit fatigued with the fiber. Hope this improves with more hours. I’m also not using any fancy Ethernet cable to the switch.
The switch uses a switching power supply, not sure if that is contributing to what I’m hearing on first listen.
So far for my ears, Ethernet is beating Optical. Optical sounds…digital. Ethernet sounds more euphonic and analog.
I don’t expect it to change considerably. Some users prefer one, the others prefers the other - as with everything in audiophile world. The important thing is you get to choose. Feel free to change back to Ethernet as you like.
It’s quite easy to do an A/B comparison in a few days again, just remember don’t form a network loop by connecting both the Ethernet and the fiber to the same switch at the same time.
Thank you Peter. I’ll try more comparisons. The cost and complexity of the switches is low, so easy to try out. I’m not sure that I want to go down the rabbit hole of audiophile network switches or power supplies.
A quick note of thanks - it’s great to get real time feedback and detail from a manufacturer. Lumin is lucky to have you.
While I have your attention, if you care to share preferred Roon upsampling settings for the X1 I’d be grateful. Right now, I’m not doing any upsampling via the Lumin or in Roon. I have a Nucleus (not the plus version) and when I tried the Roon upsampling settings at full DSD or PCM, I noticed the processing speed seemed high. No glitches, and I can’t say I heard a clear impact with up sampling in Roon. The X1 sounds highly organic and natural in its present , stock settings, but perhaps there are configurations that you’ve preferred. I do use your recommended Roon upsampling settings for the T2.
I have an upgraded Ethernet cable on its way for evaluation- never thought I’d be one of “those Ethernet cable guys”. It’s a testament to the resolution of the X1 that I am able to hear such fine detail. Then again, I also never thought I’d go this far into digital gear, but my ears love what they hear from the X1.
The T2 is doing duty in my second system and still sounding great.
Generally, Lumin upsampling should be disabled when using Roon.
In Roon DSP settings, turn on Parallelize Sigma Delta Modulator.
You may experiment with Roon DSP Engine upsampling to DSD256 (if not fast enough for DSD512), or have it disabled. See which sounds better to you. Another X1 user recently told me he liked Roon upsampling to 352.8kHz.
Those same settings in X1 (or higher upsampling) seems too smooth things a bit but at the loss of some natural organic sound. My experience with the X1 seems to be that best sound is had by leaving it alone (no upsampling). Leedh volume control doesn’t seem to impact sound quality either way.
Upsampling in Roon for the X1 added a tinge of brightness. Honestly, just stock default settings sound great.
Peter, I just switched from multimode to the Lumin-recommended Corning single-mode fibre and Finisar transceivers. There is, indeed, an uptick in micro details.
A question: Robert Harley observed in his September 2022 review of the P1 in “The Absolute Sound” that Lumin said the fibre input would take a long time—many hundreds of hours—to break in and sound the best. Do you know whether this is a reference only to the physical Lumin input or the combination of the input and the associated SFP modules plus fibre?
I purchased the Finisar FTLF1318P3BTL transceivers. I purchased from Genuine Modules, which had a great price but a $40 DHL charge from China. The expensive shipping may explain why the transceivers were so reasonably priced. The Finisar transceivers have been very favorably received by many OPs.
The Finisar transceivers were 32USD apiece. That was a great price as you’ll find prices vary greatly. I did pay a lot for the shipping, which may be an offset to Genuine Modules for the low price. I was okay with the transaction, though, as I did a lot of research and believe the transceivers are, indeed, genuine. Apparently there are some fake transceivers out there.
On the Amazon U.S. website, the Finisar transceivers were listed at 59.48USD with free shipping. Even though I paid 40USD for shipping through Genuine Modules, the overall cost was less than via the Amazon seller. Plus, when I read some comments on the Amazon site, at least one person said they were sent a fake transceiver.
I would not doubt that fake transceivers exist. Not that I bought or used any of them, but I did come across services that advertise they can put any label on the transceiver.
I speculate that if a break-in phenomenon exists, it probably primarily comes from the SFP module.
I would like to think that there is a break in period for the SFP modules based on what I heard in hooking up my optical switch - brighter sound like you hear with new cables and gear. Wish these could be accelerated- I might try placing into a server switch I have and letting them stay for a while before evaluating.
I’d like to revive this topic by asking where the Lumin P1 compares with T2, T3 and X1. I would assume the X1 remains at the top of the heap but the P1 is looking to be a possible upgrade for me from the T2. It’s not just the streamer portion that I am looking to improve but the flexibility of the preamp capability of the P1 adds interest as well. Any P1 owners wish to chime in?
@wklie now that you mentioned the P1 being the closest to the T-series addign a linear power supply, is there a chance we could get a product sitting in between the T3 and P1, dropping the preamp and video sections from the P1, but keeping the improved power supply, clock and the analog output section, all in one box? The preamp inside the streaming DAC is unnecessary for us who own great integrated amps already, and I assume there would be some cost savings having that removed.
Thanks
EDIT: and another question - I’m reading around on the network accessible local library, and is unclear to me - can Lumin T3 / P1 / X1 read from a samba share which I have enabled on my internet router having an external USB drive connected to it, or does it really require UPnP server running? I fail to find any references around the SMB protocol anywhere when reading about Lumin.