Interestingly, when Foster 1 PS was add to my Bonn 8, I found that more dynamic and a bit more detail. However, it was kinda edgy sound sometimes. Then Bonn8 pro without external PS, it is definitely more refined than Bonn 8+PS without edgy sound. ( BTW, I used Esprit Alpha power cable for Bonn 8 pro and Foster2 PS)
With Audioquest Diamond Ethernet Cable, Bonn 8 pro + Foster 2 PS/ orange cable… not a good match… bass booming and somehow in my room, not good… when I swapped AQ Diamond out for Ansuz A2 … then suddenly all music are in place and transparent, tight bass, and musical.
I am in the process of trying Ansuz A2 vs D2. Later next week, I hope to get Shunyata Sigma and Esprit Lumina cable to compare.
I previously like Esprit Cable a lot but now I have Ansuz Cable… Ansuz is great.
So bottom line, internet switch makes difference in SQ, adding linear PS gives more dynamic, but matching Ethernet cable is critical part of the process.
For some reason, AQ Diamond sounds not good when I add PS to Bonn 8 or Bonn 8 pro, to the point that I think my 10 dollars Ethernet is better.
Upgrading Internet Switch can expose sound signature of Ethernet cable… matching cable to your musical preferences is critical. Definitely different sound characters among Ethernet cable can be easily heard.
So far, I like Ansuz Cable more than AQ Diamond which I have had for 10 years.
Interesting story! I had similar findings when initially I used an Audioquest Vodka with a similar combo, English Electric 8, powered by SA Forester 1. Swapping the AQ Vodka into an Ansuz A2 ethernet cable greatly improved the sound: more natural vocals and instruments, tighter bass and decreased noise level. Enjoying the (pricey) upgrade! @JTheKop : did you compare the original basic black DC-cable with the upgraded SA Bastei Orange cable?
Hi guys. I have been speaking with Dave Campbell at Kronos AV this afternoon. I rang them to discuss getting an audition on Marten Parker Duo speakers which he is arranging for me in the next week or so. However, what I thought would be a quick call turned into a very interesting and informative hour long chat on a tangent I had not considered previously. General chit chat turned to my main source of music which is streaming (ND5 XS2) via Tidal and Qobus.
He asked me a bit about the electronics and the cabling of my system generally, and asked if I had a network switch in my system. He stated to me that until a few years ago, he always thought that CD playback sounded better than streaming. He said that he did not know why, and that it didn’t make sense when streaming high res against 16 bit CD playback that this should be the case. He then heard about and Anzus Powerswitch. In layman’s terms, it is a switch set between the router and equipment which effectively cuts out the resonance and noise on the network. Once he had heard it, it was one of them OMG moments for him, and it changed his listening dynamic.
Now, it could be that he is a bloody good salesman (which I am sure he is), but having spoken to him, and listened to his undoubted passion for all things audio (as well as his business - he is an original director), I feel that he was genuinely just sharing an alternative upgrade path to consider, rather than automatically jumping up to the next level.
If you feel inclined, and if you Google the product, you will see that the outlay for the basic switch is £2k which is not an insignificant sum. This is more or less the same as moving up to the NDX2 price wise in my system. However, in his opinion the benefit is significant enough to at least listen to the difference this can make in a higher end system.
So the long and short of it - I have finally got to the question I was going to ask - has anyone in Naimworld gone down this rabbit hole as I would appreciate any feedback on you experiences. I will as I have said be auditioning the speakers, but will also be doing a AB test on the switch. Will feedback to you if anyone is interested………
Some of us went for that rabbit hole, with 2 X Uptone Etheregen switches powered by expensive Sean Jacobs ps, or Innuos PhoenixNet switch like me and several others.
Most use English electric switch, some with additional ps.
I had before the Tp link then Cisco 2960 then ER then ER ( Etheregen) with top MCRU PS and now the Innuos PhoenixNet. Each step was an improvement in sound. The PhoenixNet matches well the Naim sound, prat, involvement, organic sound. It’s the best I had in my system
The PhoenixNET is certainly worth a try. I’d start with a demo with something like the EE8 first (closely related to the Bonn N8) and see what you think.
I possibly stand on my own here in preferring the 2x ER/PS route vs the Phoenixnet. It would have suited me MASSIVELY to prefer the Phoenix due to rack space. I ran the Phoenix for almost a month while keeping the ER’s powered up, the wow moment for me was when I switched back. More natural to my ears and less aggressive/sharpened sound. My hearing maybe flawed but I listen loud and dislike sharpness!
I never tried this approach actually and maybe should have. After hearing the 2xER’s again I just boxed up the Phoenix and sent it back. I think @Darkebear had it next?
It was a case if i have to have two switches, but i like the sound of the combo, preferable to my hp or cisco switch with Phoenix. You get the warmth of ER andthe reclocking of the Phoenix.
In my system the PhoenixNet, with Audioquest diamonds, give no hint of brightness or sharpness. Like you I hate that. Maybe it’s a matter of match of Ethernet cables with the switch which works better or not.
I tried the Phoenix for ten days and really wanted it to be better than my ER switch - but it just was not in my system. The ER switch had a more natural easy presentation compared to the Phoenix which seemed by comparison to sharpen-up songs but at expense of now-level presence details and more obviously it was less dynamic.
I puzzled as to why I was not getting the results that others who I respect said and it may be that in my particular Active system it just voiced to it better.
I do use another Cisco 2960-C switch before the ER (which has a small Linear PS) - and the ER feeds the Melco and ND555.
It works well and I like how it runs - I did have to choose carefully the cables to get it to voice correct: ND555 - Vodka 1.5m - Melco - Cat 6 Kabal Direct 1.5m - ER - Vodka 1m - Cisco 2960
It is a strange mix of good and seemingly standard cables but it works well.
Difficult to say more as the people that ‘know’ (without trying) it all makes no difference will already be triggered.
But my advice - try things and be guided by what you actually hear.
I preferred a small Linear PS for the ER over a larger one I had tried too - surprisingly better.
There is no substitute for trying at home in your own system with your own ears, otherwise we would all be listening to the same system, same room, same music etc.
I recently tried the Silent Angel F1 LPS on my EE8-switch for a couple of weeks. I actually found that in my system it made things just a little too smooth and clinical. Going back to the standard SMPS give me more speed and leading edge to notes.
I could have lived with the F1 but I knew I’d start messing around with trying different power leads, DC leads and then ethernet cables again. I’m trying to avoid this as the system is sounding really good at the moment. Dead easy to mess it up but really hard to improve!
Hi Steve,
Im glad you found your happy place with your system.
One point I would make is that the Phoenix net takes a lot longer than a month to fully run in, due to the Mundorf capacitors, which are notorious for both great sound and long burn in times. Typically a Phoenix net run in comprises, first 3-4 days….unit sounds a lot better once the clock has fully stabilised, until a week later when the real running in starts, then the performance tends to be a little in yer face for 3-4 weeks, after which you’ll get a hike in performance. The next month to 6 weeks is a roller coaster of several bad days followed by several good….the bad days always heralding a forthcoming shift for the same region in the opposite direction. It seems that the bigger the negative swing, the larger the positive. You’ll notice these swings in the bass (too much, then perfect ) dynamic attack (also too much, then perfect), sibilance, then one day after ca. 2 months it will sound off for a day and the next day is the final transformation, when everything comes together and it sounds glorious. This is the pattern I have observed each time I’ve run in power supplies with Mundorf capacitors, which I’ve done lots of times in the past 3 years.
In terms of running in, just leaving the unit switched on doesn’t seem to be enough, or if it is, it takes forever. Remember the voltages and current are very low when the unit is inactive and not even particularly high when its making music. What does seem to help and accelerate the process is to switch off the unit entirely and let it go through several warm up cycles.
Another point I would make is the following:
When you use 2 ERs, you clean up the signal massively in the first, then input this high quality signal into the second ER, which further refines, cleans and improves the signal. The first ER makes the second sound much better, and the second ER improves the output of the first, so you get 3 ‘bangs’ for your 2 bucks.
When you take away both switches, you are removing the huge uplift that one gives another. I can imagine 2 ERs is a great combination, the same as 2 PhoenixNETS, the SQ improvement is huge with the second switch
So did you try:
ER followed by the PhoenixNET? This would be the ‘equivalent’ of the 2 ERs with the ER uplifting the PN input and the PN starting its contribution from an already very high level stream.
2 ERs into a PN. Essentially here you are taking a super clean signal, reclocking it to a spec of 3 parts per billion, creating the stream with a high capacity, super clean and smooth power supply, with power generated and regulated close to the client, allowing no noise to creep in, with super stability and low impedance. That super low noise, super accurately timed stream is output via designed for purpose audio quality isolation transformers, with constrained layer mounted high quality, individual RJ45 sockets. On hitting your DAC, that signal requires no clean up or corrections and all DAC processes operate on an ideal ‘specification exceeding’ input. The main result, at least in my case is that the music becomes a lot more realistic, dynamic and natural and communicates feeling and emotions at a way higher level.
