A few months ago I was listening to the LAiV Harmony, and an excellent DAC it is. However, I wanted to listen to it via its I2S input, over HDMI, and none of the streamers I use have such a port. Then I remembered that somewhere in the loft I had a Matrix X-SPDIF2, which does. A short while later I emerged from the loft covered in dust and clutching a Matrix Box.
The Matrix X-SPDIF2 can run from the power supplied via the USB interface, or from a separate power supply.
I tried various options, but the one that really made an impression on me was using my Weiss PSU102 running at 9V. This I usually use on my Weiss 204 DAC.
The bass became so controlled, hard hitting and nuanced.
When I returned to using my Weiss 204 DAC I left the X-SPDIF2 in-situ, but the Weiss PSU102 had to go back to the 204, and so I used another excellent PSU. This lifted the sound quality I had been getting, but that bass was not quiet as good.
I sat on my hands and told myself to enjoy what I had. In the meanwhile that little upgrade worm was burrowing into my brain.
Last week I bought a second Weiss PSU102, so my system now looks like this:
Did it make the same difference? If anything, even more.
I keep trying to tell myself the differences are minor, and not to be hyperbolic. So, what am I hearing? Well: the bass has become more controlled, hard hitting and nuanced; Elements in the music have separated more, so that it is easier to follow individual instruments; sounds that were amorphous are more obviously produced by a number of sources; and, sound-staging has improved.
I am doing one of those exercises where I am revisiting album after album.
I confess that I was unsure that the effect would be as pronounced here as it had been with the LAiV Harmony. Having spent the moolah, I am glad to say that I am not disappointed.
My 300DR & SBLs are just getting better and better!
I do wonder if Naim are missing a trick by not producing power supplies with standard outputs, they have massive expertise & experience in this field.