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Introducing the Buffalo III-SE-Pro 9028/9038

Hi Russ, Are you suggesting that the 9038 will perform better with higher rate masterclock in either sync or async mode? I am considering running a 90.3168 in the Cronus to run sync mode, but the 45.1584 XOs have a phase noise advantage. I do understand that the higher rate XO might be needed for, say, DSD 512...

That's not exactly what I meant - but you are not wrong. :)

My main point was - using the local master clock async is often the cleanest/best solution - even if we choose to reclock the source - so I am saying people should not dismiss that notion out of hand. Sync is not always better than async. :)

I am encouraging people to explore the simpler options first - because I have found the results are somewhat surprisingly awesome. :)

I guess I would put it like this - while sync is great and has some appeal - async likewise has some advantages - one of which is that the clock is right next to the chip - and you don't get much better than that in a situation where noise is critical.

Happy new year!

Cheers!
Russ
 
Got the B3SEP going this past weekend. Coming from an original B2.

More detail, more smooth. Pretty big jump! nice.
Got mercury going a few days later (super easy build, thanks). WOW. Coming from an IVY, I wasn't expecting a huge difference but wow. Everything is fatter and has a nice tight body. mmm.....

That's awesome! I am so glad to hear this report. Enjoy the music!

Cheers!
Russ
 
Here's perhaps a dumb question, my excuse is I am only just learning Arduino programming with the intent of initially integrating Arduino control of the ES9038. The first step I was considering was using the Arduino to merely switch the IO ports on the Buffalo board, allowing microprocessor control of SW1 and SW2 settings. Implementation should be pretty easy with display of parameters on an LCD.

The question I have relates to the desire to also display the sample frequency on the display, which involves using I2C communication with the DAC chip to pull data from the chip registers. If however the ATMEL controller chip on the DAC board is still present, and is presumably the master on the I2C bus, can the Amanero even use the I2C bus to request data from the DAC? - my guess is that it cannot, and if I want to retrieve the sample rate form the DAC, it would mean removing the ATMEL chip an using the Arduino to control all the chip settings. Can anyone confirm this?

Thanks
 
Here's perhaps a dumb question, my excuse is I am only just learning Arduino programming with the intent of initially integrating Arduino control of the ES9038. The first step I was considering was using the Arduino to merely switch the IO ports on the Buffalo board, allowing microprocessor control of SW1 and SW2 settings. Implementation should be pretty easy with display of parameters on an LCD.

The question I have relates to the desire to also display the sample frequency on the display, which involves using I2C communication with the DAC chip to pull data from the chip registers. If however the ATMEL controller chip on the DAC board is still present, and is presumably the master on the I2C bus, can the Amanero even use the I2C bus to request data from the DAC? - my guess is that it cannot, and if I want to retrieve the sample rate form the DAC, it would mean removing the ATMEL chip an using the Arduino to control all the chip settings. Can anyone confirm this?

Thanks


I too am thinking this for display control purposes. However, I am thinking of using an 8 bit PIC from MicroChip instead of Auduino. Will there be any problem using a PIC to drive the display to show ESS chip status ?

The display should show: input, sample rate, bit rate, playback format, and possibly audio dB level.
 
I am interested in making an ESS Buffalo 3 SE Pro DAC. From what I heard about the Murcury board, I will be using that to interface with the Buffalo 3 SE Pro.

If I start with a stereo stage, can I later on configure my DAC for dual-mono by purchasing just another ESS Buffalo 3 SE Pro and have both ESS chips configured for all 8 outputs on each for single channel output ? Assuming I am on the right track - Will I need another Mercury board ?

I also want to have a variety of inputs for the ESS 9038 to select from:
4 TOSLINKs
4 Coaxials
I2S
USB Input

I want RCA unbalanced outputs to interface with the rest of my stereo system.

What sort of Line Stage will I need to accommodate all these inputs from TPA ?

When using USB input - what situation would I want The Amanero Combo 384 module is a buss-powered, 2-channel USB2 to I2S/DSD adapter? Can I use only the USB Buss ? Does the additional modules offer significant performance gains when using USB ? And what situation would I need to make use of the additional clock that TPA offers ?

Also, would I want to use Chronus even though I am not using a master clock controller at this time ? Will I hear significant performance going this route ?
 
I am interested in making an ESS Buffalo 3 SE Pro DAC. From what I heard about the Murcury board, I will be using that to interface with the Buffalo 3 SE Pro.

If I start with a stereo stage, can I later on configure my DAC for dual-mono by purchasing just another ESS Buffalo 3 SE Pro and have both ESS chips configured for all 8 outputs on each for single channel output ? Assuming I am on the right track - Will I need another Mercury board ?

I also want to have a variety of inputs for the ESS 9038 to select from:
4 TOSLINKs
4 Coaxials
I2S
USB Input

I want RCA unbalanced outputs to interface with the rest of my stereo system.

What sort of Line Stage will I need to accommodate all these inputs from TPA ?

When using USB input - what situation would I want The Amanero Combo 384 module is a buss-powered, 2-channel USB2 to I2S/DSD adapter? Can I use only the USB Buss ? Does the additional modules offer significant performance gains when using USB ? And what situation would I need to make use of the additional clock that TPA offers ?

Also, would I want to use Chronus even though I am not using a master clock controller at this time ? Will I hear significant performance going this route ?

I would very strongly suggest you start simple until you grow confident about the modules and how they work.

- Just use 1 spdif input (you can MUX it if you want)
- Use Amanero + Cronus connected async to the B3SEPro (don't take master clock from Cronus - leave master clock on B3SEPro) for DSD/PCM(I2S) - or use an Amanero in master mode if you want to save some money/complexity at the cost of a small amount of SQ.
- Mercury already does Balanced and SE outputs - you will love it.
- The on-board controller does volume control - you don't need a line stage or pre-amp.

Start there - you can add more features later.

Cheers!
Russ
 
You are looking for female to female ufl cables.

Like the one attached.
 

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I would very strongly suggest you start simple until you grow confident about the modules and how they work.

- Just use 1 spdif input (you can MUX it if you want)
- Use Amanero + Cronus connected async to the B3SEPro (don't take master clock from Cronus - leave master clock on B3SEPro) for DSD/PCM(I2S) - or use an Amanero in master mode if you want to save some money/complexity at the cost of a small amount of SQ.
- Mercury already does Balanced and SE outputs - you will love it.
- The on-board controller does volume control - you don't need a line stage or pre-amp.

Start there - you can add more features later.

Cheers!
Russ

Thanks. This is a great starting point. I will make a decision soon to purchase.

One thing to note - I plan to use an AMB Sigma 11 or 22 voltage regulators as power. I see I need a bipolar voltage power supply which the Sigma 22 provides. Would I require any additional power supplies such as the Sigma 11 boards which provides positive voltage or any additional Sigma 22 bipolar voltage regulators ?

I also use Avel Lindberg Toroidal Power Transformers with Sigma 11/22 voltage regulators to power my audio projects.

Thanks !!!
 
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