As usual with these kinds of threads on this community the answers get overly complicated with many posters posting about their pet peeves or current love affairs. I will try to stick to answering the OPs question.
Possible reasons why the type of Roon endpoint can make a difference.
Ethernet versus Wi-Fi
Using an endpoint with only Wi-Fi can sometimes lead to dropouts and other connection issues, especially when streaming content with higher than CD resolution and when the Wi-Fi signal strength is poor. Endpoints connected via Ethernet, aka wired, are much more stable and can handle high resolution audio much better than an endpoint with a Wi-Fi connection.
USB versus Optical versus Coaxial
With a good, modern DAC the connection type to the endpoint should not make any audible difference. Aside from some the clocking issues pointed out in some of the previous posts, using a USB connection to the DAC has the advantage of allowing for two way communication between Roon and the DAC. This means that Roon is able to “see” the DAC and often additional setting for the DAC can be accessed via Roon.
Matching the endpoint and the DAC
This means using a combination of endpoint and DAC that provides the best possible experience. Don’t care about high resolution or can’t run Ethernet cable to the endpoint then a Wi-Fi endpoint is the solution.
Have an older DAC or a home theater receiver without a USB input then an endpoint with optical or coaxial output is needed.
I stand by my original statement, which reads, in full, “With a good, modern DAC the connection type to the endpoint should not make any audible difference.”
I will also add that aside from the golden eared wonders of the high end audio press very few humans can hear jitter or clocking issues.
I did no such thing. The full context is easily accessible and my text directly responds to what you wrote. You say it should not make a difference yet it most often does…and you don’t need to be “golden eared” to hear the difference electrical noise pass through a USB connection can make.
Most audible issues with a USB connection to a DAC occur when one is using the USB from a computer and no driver for the DAC is available. In other words, the imperfect combination of an old computer and an old DAC
I hear that bits are just bits. Yea it’s true but not the full context. If the DAC isn’t designed to handle high input jitter or you’re using an input that inherently has more jitter , it’ll show up in the sound.
So yes what’s feeding the DAC and how does matter.
A DAC that’s not designed to be immune to jitter is not a good DAC, because removing jitter is essential to the D/A conversion. My statement that the quality of the DAC is all that matters stands.
And what exactly does “high input jitter” sound like, other than a BS marketing claim? And I’m not referring to an image on an oscilloscope, I’m referring to the actual sound a human with normal hearing can actually hear.
For example we all know what a scratch on a record sounds like. We all know what a blown speaker sounds like. We all know what blown left channel sounds like. We all know what a bad output tube sounds like. But what on earth does the jitter boogeyman sound like?
Measurements demonstrate that this device does nothing to change jitter, noise or distortion, nor clock speed or output voltage.
As previously stated, a good DAC, i.e., one fit for purpose, handles jitter and noise perfectly well without unnecessary additions.
@Jim_F’s DAC is no exception, and what he heard and described as “noise”, was more likely in the digital domain.
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Bill_Janssen
(Wigwam wool socks now on asymmetrical isolation feet!)
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Once again, you’re taking poor old @Jazzfan_NJ out of context! He specifically said an “old” computer where no drivers are available. Your ultraRendu obviously does have a driver.
No. The ultraRendu does not have a driver made specifically for my DAC. It has a generic driver used for all DACs. That should be a problem according to what he said.
Sonore kit runs a Linux OS, where drivers for dacs and usb implementations are released in the Linux kernel used which is updated at intervals. If there isn’t a Linux driver created for a specific DAC in the Linux kernel it will fall back to a default USB Audio class 2 or 1 driver which will have limitations and possible not allow native DSD etc. If the DAC is fully USB Audio compliant then it should have no issues other than missing some format support as mentioned that’s available on other computer os.
Linux does not have USB audio drivers for specific DACs. The reason that you have DAC-specific drivers for Windows is that the default Windows drivers have limits in regards to bit depth and sample rates and with DSD. You don’t have DAC-specific drivers for macOS either.
Classic audiophile tomfoolery. First the post is from 2015, which is a lifetime ago in the world of digital audio. Oh what’s that, there’s no audible jitter in the original? No problem since I’ll just add massive amounts of jitter, in fact, way more jitter than one would ever encounter in a properly designed and functioning DAC.
In other words, humans can’t hear the jitter in a properly designed and functioning DAC.
Thanks for proving me correct!
Someone doesn’t think that vinyl is any good because of surface noise. So to prove themselves right they take a brand new record and play it but there’s no surface noise. Well no problem, they just run some sandpaper on the record and bingo, what do you know lots of horrible surface noise. See records are no good.
@Martin_Webster I just saw your response and now I see that you and I are on the same page. Thanks!
