There is no calming sound of sigma.
But other more pushy cables (vodka for example) can overdo things with naim 500 as there is too much energy.
Sigma is not calm - it has a good groove and is doing micro details as I never heared before ( here a click, there someone breathing) All sounds so natural …
I think you’ll find the Neotech betters the Diamond in your system. I get the impression you are looking for a very neutral and transparent cable and I have a hunch this one will do it for you. Only time will tell of course.
I tried to tell my dealer how I found it and the only way I could put it was to say it just gets out of the way, completely (that’s how it feels). Kind of unlimited or something like that.
This of course means it doesn’t always sound good but always better😉. I love it!
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Interesting @Dunc I tried a PhoenixNet. Did not rate it against the ee8. Demo’ed a Melco server but it was a pain to integrate and sounded no better than a Naim Core.
We must have very different ears (mine are a bit on the old side) but as you say if it works for you then it’s a result.
Diversity is always a good thing!
Enjoy your system…but try a SR Sigma, you never know it may suprise you.
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Yes the Ansuz is an interesting proposition. Kudos Audio rate it highly. But is it better than the ee8?
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Very well summarised👍
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It certainly does not ‘better it’ in my system. But then it is my system and may work better in others.
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Soon I will know 
What has Kudos said about them?
Hi CC, I hope you enjoyed Scotland. I spent a lovely couple of weeks up there this time last year with some really good friends. We had a great time. Pretty epic location as well!
Thanks for the feedback. Nice to know we concur on a lot of our findings. This streaming/ethernet/noise thing is so tricky, you just don’t know what does and doesn’t work and it’s not cheap when you are messing around with filters, LPS’s and cables.
However, I do think I’ve arrived at a point where I’ve fundamentally shifted streaming very close to stored playback and vinyl. The Sigma seems to be one of the final pieces of the jigsaw and, as you say, taken things to the next level - certainly in my system!
If you’ve read a lot of this thread you will see I’ve changed my mind on LPS performance. With the Shunyata the LPS that I have works wonderfully. Stick the Catsnake on it and I doesn’t sound right at all. This is just another quirk we need to dial in to the equation.
Drago seems to be a consummate ‘fiddler’ so worth keeping an eye on the things that he’s trying as his findings are also similar to ours.
I’m becoming increasingly confident that streamings is now coming of age and suspect that Naim’s (and others) next iteration will be something really special!
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The PhoenixNet certainly is a strange one.
Luckily for me mibe was x demo snd been on for dome time so them big lovely capacitors had been run in nicely.
Also the clock can take a while to get up to temperature in it’s little oven.
Put both off these in obe box and you have something that definitely takes a long time to really show what it can do.
Even mine gave different results after being on and used when wired up differently.
But out off the 5 switches i have tried, the PhoenixNet has certainly been the one that has made the biggest difference, as some made things worse like the melco, other’s i couldn’t really tell if they were even on.
But this is certainly the worse bit off kit i hafe ever had as far as just plugging it in and off we go, it takes months and months, it bloody annoying, but once sorted i find it’s amazing.
I even removed it not long ago, as someone wanted one and i almost sold it.
The reason was, i have had new fibre put into the house, well the complete village has it and so thought, maybe i dont need this now i am on fiber and the line will be much better now. Errr, wrong, it soon went back in, luckily i didn’t removed it from the power.
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Certainly not an easy demo for dealers……but at the time it was so much better than the Melco switch….i think the latter has a newer one. Still happy with my Phoenix, will try the Melco/ADM clock on my Melco N1?
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Yes you are right up to a point.
I dont want a system that is coloured and fake, but as said at the same time i don’t want a system that is fully transparent, neutral and can leave you feeling totally unattached from it all.
I think i know what i am after, and i think i have that already with my streaming and vinyl.
My vinyl still just tops it all, but my streaming isn’t far behind it, and then comes the rest.
This too me doesn’t quite fit right, as my stored and ripped music always sounded slightly better than streaming and now it’s the other way round.
If i can getcit once again sound better, then i will be a very happy boy.
But going back to the way things sound.
I dont want a system thats very musical, and i can listen too it all day long, not a problem. But it doesn’t really give me the final details that let you pick a track apart if you want
But at the same time having a system that gives you everything, but at the same time leaves you feeling cold and detached from it all, isn’t very good either.
So basically getting that right balance for yourself is the critical thing to try and find, and hopefully the neotech cable between my melco and PhoenixNet will bring me what i feel is lacking from this area.
Only time will tell, as it has crossed my mind that maybe the melco just can’t reach this new level, but i also think, no come on now.
Cheers dunc
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On another thread, on Anzus switch, @Blackbird found the PhoenixNet sounding a bit too soft. I responded that for me it has very similar characteristics to Naim, with a lot of grip, drive, and full and organic sound.
Do you find the PhoenixNet too soft ?
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Just to avoid misunderstanding I have not tried PN or Ansuz. What I’ve read is some claiming PN is on the warm, coloured, more bass heavy side of neutral.
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I borrowed my dealers PN twice and would say your description is pretty much what I found. It loaded my DBL’s with a touch too much bass. To be honest I’ve found most LPS’s to be on the warm, colourful side. That was until I tried the sigma cable. I may have to try a bunch of LPS’s all over again!
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Do have just PhoenixNet or ee8 going into it?
Can’t say i found it did anything like that really in fact i can’t really say what it does it’s very much like adding the clock to sync all the dCS boxes up. Its very hard to say what it has done, but it hasn’t altered the music, but for some reason it just sounds better for it.
Usually on these type off things you miss it if you remove it, rather than hear it when you install it, if you get what i mean.
I think it just makes it all just easier to follow and so your brain has an easier time processing it all?
But certainly some are less effective by what a clock does and maybe the same goes for the PhoenixNet. As some lucky dCS owners can’t hear a difference when you switch off the clock, and so save themselves a load off dosh.
Could be completely off with my thoughts, but having owned both for quite a while now, i do feel they kind of do the same thing in my system.
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Just as a side note if there’s any confusion Bluejeans (BJC) is a US Ethernet cable that is very cheap and well constructed. For the cost it’s quite difficult to find much better. Then there’s Belden Catsnake made bu Designer Cable in the UK. More expense but still peanuts in comparison to the usual ethernet suspects. This sounds much richer, more fluid and generally cleaner than BJC. I’ve struggled to find cables better balanced than Catsnake.
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Not sure what you mean, so will just say how i have it.
Ethernet comes into my PhoenixNet and then i have the audioquest diamond going to the dCS Vivaldi.
I also have my melco n1zs mk2 going into the PhoenixNet. This is where i want to try the neotech Ethernet cable between these.
I first tried it when i got the PhoenixNet, running a cable from it to the melco and then using the melco players port to the dCS Vivaldi. But streaming certainly sounded better the other way and so did the melco.
So obviously i run it with all going through the PhoenixNet
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It sure would be interesting if you just removed the diamond and put the Neotech there without any other changes.