Having just written that, I'm picturing scores of vinyl lovers laughing smugly as they read about such server…
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Servers, servers, servers. How we who embrace digital hi-fi love them for their potential to make files and streams sound better (more alive, vital, streams sound better (more alive, vital, musical, moving, transparent) than music served from a computer. How we curse them when we experience the limitations of their software. How we despair when, shortly after ascending to Peak Digital Mastery, we download a software update that hurls us back into the Valley of Digital Unknowns.
Input is by Ethernet. Simple. I went from the Uptone Audio EtherRegen, aided by an AfterDark Giesemann Emperor Double Crown Master Clock, to the Nordost QNet Ethernet switch then on to the Oladra.
Output is more complicated. Antipodes considers I2S (provided over HDMI or RJ45) the Oladra's best-sounding output. It's the only output that can deliver up to PCM 32/384, DSD256 via DoP, and DSD512 native DSD, but many DACs (including my three-piece dCS Vivaldi Apex stack) cannot accept I2S. Other choices, in Antipodes's order of sound-quality preference, are AES3, S/PDIF (BNC and RCA), and USB…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Dedicated music server/ streamer with R21 Reclocker. Input: Ethernet (RJ45). Outputs: Direct Stream Ethernet, USB 2.0 handles PCM to 32/768, DoP to DSD256, native DSD to DSD512; AES3 (XLR) handles PCM to 24/192 and DoP to DSD64; S/PDIF on BNC & RCA & TosLink (3 separate outputs) handles PCM to 24/192 and DoP to DSD64; I2S on HDMI & RJ45 handles PCM to 32/384, DoP to DSD256, and Native DSD to DSD512. Storage: 3-Bay SSD user-installable SSD Slide-Ins up to 24TB.
Dimensions: 17.5" (445mm) W × 15.7" (400mm) D × 3.2" (80mm) H. Weight: 46lb…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: dCS Vivaldi Apex DAC, Vivaldi Upsampler Plus, and Vivaldi Master Clock; Uptone Audio EtherRegen, AfterDark Giesemann Emperor Double Crown Master Clock, and Nordost QNet Ethernet Switch, all powered by Nordost QSource linear power supplies (2); Synology 5-bay 1019+ NAS, Small Green Computer Sonore Deluxe opticalModule, Linksys mesh router and Arris modem, all powered by HDPlex 300 linear power supply; Apple 2017 iPad Pro and 2017 MacBook Pro laptop with 2.8GHz Intel i7, SSD, 16GB RAM.
Preamplifier: Dan D'Agostino Momentum HD.
Power…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
Because the Antipodes Oladra, like music library/reclocker/server solutions from Melco, Aurender, Auralic, Innuos and others, is a data-storage and -delivery device, any technical or subjective uplift in performance—over a conventional NAS or PC/Mac USB solution—can only be inferred via an attached, third-party streaming player or DAC. Identifying any reduction in jitter or circulating RF interference from the Oladra also depends on the efficacy of the USB receiver's jitter suppression and/or galvanic isolation; a USB DAC with excellent data recovery/reclocking may…
My first car was a decrepit, mustard-yellow Peugeot 304 with a navy hood. The blue hue wasn't a fashion statement; after an accident, the previous owner had gone to a salvage yard where only a blue replacement could be procured. When he grew sick of the car—because it made him look "like a frickin' ad for Ikea"—I paid him 600 Dutch guilders for the old heap, the equivalent of about $300 US.
Nothing worked as it should. The stalk for the blinkers was missing; I substituted a screwdriver. The radio was like a wavering zombie: dead one day, sputtering to life the next. I got well acquainted…
When you swipe on the HiFi Rose's inertial-scrolling display, the graphics roll by as smoothly as on any late-model tablet. No surprise: HiFi Rose is a division of Citech, a Seoul-based company that's a leader in ticket-issuing machines and information kiosks.
Traces of the RS520's Koreanness surfaced occasionally. Tap on the RosePodcast icon and then on Genres, and you get a screenful of Hangul characters (the Korean alphabet). RoseFM attempts to pull in Korean stations as the factory default, although changing that to the US or another country is trivial. One of the icons on the display…
Sidebar 1: Specifications
Description: Solid state Roon Ready streamer, DAC, and GaN FET–based class-D integrated amplifier with a 12.6" TFT LCD touchscreen (1920 × 510 pixel resolution). DAC section utilizes ESS ES9038PRO chip. Custom Android 7.1 OS. Infrared remote control included. Dedicated phone app available for download. Frequency range: 20Hz–90kHz. Continuous power: (at 1% THD) 250W into 8 ohms (24dBW) and 4 ohms (21dBW). Dynamic power: (at 1% THD): 248W into 8 ohms (24dBW), 500W into 4 ohms (24dBW), 428W into 2 ohms (20.3dBW), 235W into 1 ohm (14.7dBW). Input impedance: 100k ohms…
Sidebar 2: Associated Equipment
Digital sources: 16" MacBook Pro M1 Max running Roon 2.0. Roon ROCK (Lenovo ThinkCentre). Auralic Vega DAC. Naim Uniti Atom controlled via iPad Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max.
Preamplifiers: Benchmark HPA4, Naim Uniti Atom.
Power amplifiers: Krell FPB 200c (recapped). PrimaLuna EVO 400 integrated amp with Tung-Sol KT150 and Gold Lion platinum 12AU7 tubes. Anthem STR integrated.
Loudspeakers: Tekton Moab, Focal Scala Utopia EVO, Raidho TD3.8.
Subwoofers: Two SVS 3000 Micro, Hsu VTF-2 Mk5.
Cables: AudioQuest, Blue Jeans, Clarus, Nordost, RSX,…
Sidebar 3: Measurements
When I unpacked the RS520 sample reviewed by RvB, I heard something metallic rattling around inside the amplifier. The nut holding one of the speaker binding posts to the printed circuit board on the back panel had come undone. I found the binding post inside the shipping box, and when I removed the top cover, I found the nut inside the amplifier. I reattached the binding post, but when I removed the top panel, the two ribbon cables that connect it to the main circuit board detached. As hard as I tried, I couldn't manage to reattach these cables. I requested a new…