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Twisted Pear Audio - Buffalo32S (ES9018 DAC)

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Has anyone already upgraded the powersupplies of their Buffalo32s from LCBPS to Placid and what are the results?

Scanspeakman

I used one Dual Placid to replace the LCBPS for my Buff32. The most significant change I can say was the music was even more involving than before. After the Placid was well burned in I then added the Ballsie since I am using SE. Now there is another big change. I still had all the clarity, but I gained a bottom end that seems to have no limit. I use stereo subs and I my system measures flat to below 20hz in my with RealRTA and I never have heard as much base as I am hearing now, I have actually had to dial back the subs a couple of notches with the Ballsie in the circuit. I will listen for a couple of more weeks and as a reality check remove the Ballsie to see if I since a lack of base. BTW I am using the Burr-Brown IC in the Ballsie.
 
I am just setting up mine but have a problem with the single placid.Leds ok,8VAC input ,0.25v on r17,but when I ramp up the voltage output after 5v it suddenly jumps to 8.5v.Then I have to really back down on the pot until it jumps to 3.7v in one instant.Am I running out of input voltage?
Is 5v ok for the digital ps?
 
Yup.I switched transformer to 12 vac and it is ok.Now it ramps up to around 8.5v and then it loses the regulation.The placid needs 6-7Vdc headroom to work properly it seems.So if you want about 6vdc then a 9vac transformer is on the low side.

HI Protos,

The placid actually only needs about 3VDC headroom to work plus the drop at R17. What VA rating is your transformer? Did you measure the voltage after the rectifier at 250ma CSS current?

I am using 7.5VAC transformer for 6VDC output in my rig.

Cheers!
Russ
 
Russ / Brian,

I just came back to audio after about 6 months break and I'm thinking about bufallo 32 and I see you redesigning it . . . . .

Is this an upgrade of the original or is it the DIY tweakers version.

In other words are you gonna end up with two versions of bufallo or one.

I wonder when each version might be released again ( if there are two ) ?

Many thanks

and sorry if this is covered already

mike

We will have one version of the Buffalo. It will be both an upgrade and the tweaker's version rolled into one. We are sure you will like it.
 
I am hoping to have the layout finished this weekend.

I am very excited to try it out myself. :)

It is pretty radically different in a lot of ways from anything previous, but still keeping some of the features of the Buffalo that make it easy to use. Such as DSD,PCM, and SPDIF input with no hassle.

I think you guys are really going to like what I have working. :)

Here is the best news, while Brian and I don't know the exact cost yet, the price will be very reasonable.

The layout really took some thought. It is 4 layer and has some pretty nifty features.

I have been taking time to prototype ideas and get this thing were I really want it. I think the result will be worth the time and effort expended.

You guys are very very kind to be so patient with me. I appreciate all the emails of encouragement and support. Especially in the midst of this job transition which has been demanding on me. Brian fully deserves a ton of credit for helping to keep me motivated.

Cheers!
Russ
 
Is there likely to be a prebuilt sabre32 sold

Hello I really want to buy a maxed out Sabre32 dac. Is there likely to be prebuilt ones sold by Twisted Pear of the new design? I have emailed twisted Pear but received no reply.

As I am in New Zealand I need a 230 volt version. I was thinking with Placids and multiple transformers maxed out power supplies etc.
 
3.6VA and 4.5VA are too small and are going to give problems.We recommend 15-30VA.

Ok but the current draw is 200ma, right?So a 500ma rated transformer should have no problem.If the transformer does not overheat or sag and the PS is regulating at the recommended voltage should I worry?
I measured the dc voltage after the rectifier but I was surprised to find in both PS that it is maybe the same or slightly higher than the ac voltage.The dual placid has a 30VA 15v x2 toroid.
Shouldn't it be x1.4 give or take (whatever the transformer)?
 
Now regarding sound quality:
Comparing with a TEAC VRDS25x (clocked/opamp upgradesetc),Perpetual Technologies P1A/P3A dac(modded) and DIY DDDAC 36 parallel 1543 non-oversampling
The Buffalo is probably in a class of it's own in many sectors.
Main strengths are harmonic and timbral accuracy/naturalness, soundscape/soundstage detail,excellent very extended high frequencies, neutral and natural mid-range.
In fact in many instances I was reminded of the differences I hear switching to a good vinyl source.I think that says a lot to many.
Now the only sector I would have liked more performance is in the bass .Not that it does not go low enough which it does just that there seems to be a lack of attack or "slam" and tightness/control compared to for example the P3A or even the TEAC .In this sense it does not reach the best in pace , rhythm and timing and "foot tappingness" .
By the way I am using it single ended (+ gnd).
 
Congrats are in order for both Brian and Russ. The Buffalo 32S was just awarded the Writer's Choice Award by Larry Cox from Positive Feedback magazine. For a DIY company to get that kind of award, well...have a fantastic Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Larry said "Much more resolving and musical than the Apogee Mini DAC, Lavry DA10, Stello and equally resolving though qualitatively far more musical than the Benchmark DAC1. I am very satisfied with the Buffalo 32S's musical performance."

and

"My closing complement to the Buffalo 32S is that I don't wonder if other DACs are better, I am sated like a diner after a tasty, well prepared and portioned meal."

Kudos!

Anand.
 
What impressed me more about the Buffalo was that it is not one of those components that you end up saying that with mediocre recordings it "cannot make a silk purse out of a sows ear".
In fact in what I thought were mediocre or problematic recordings it uncovered a layer of musical/timbral and spatial information that I did not think could be recovered or was actually there.
Particularly with digital transfers of older big band jazz or classical I could always disagree before with how massed horns /muted trumpet and strings came across on cd. Going thru various digital upgrades the slightly screeching quality was only slightly attenuated.In fact since the differences were not huge I thought it was part of the problem of redbook digital recording process in general combined with the problems of transferring analog to digital.
However the buffalo retrieves this "missing information" and this is obvious even on older rock recordings.
To give an analogy in some instances I was reminded of the difference between say a recent JVC XRCD or Mobile Fidelity digital remaster compared to an average cd transfer of the late 80's.
 
Hi Folks,

I personally am very humbled by the award and your reviews. I am very grateful and want to give credit to those who take the time to educate me when I need it. We also thank our valued customers who give us the resources to get better.

I am especially thankful to Brian for his hours and hours of indispensable work and his shared vision for Twisted Pear Audio.

Cheers!
Russ
 
Does anyone try playing a 192 kHz 32 bit PCM WAV file?

May I ask a kind of FAQ level questions here? (I have browsed this thread as well as other threads like "ESS Sabre Reference DAC (8-channel) "<diyAudio> and "Twisted Pear Buffalo Sabre DAC" <Head-Fi> and failed to find any answers to my primitive questions. I'm not an ES9018 or ES9012 user though my friends in Japan own one unassembled Buffalo32s kit.)

Does anyone try playing a 192 kHz 32 bit PCM WAV file?
We want to try to do that using our original transport on development
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digi...ory-card-transport-project-5.html#post1922738
with its I2S interace.
Q1. Does ES9018/9012 accept PCM 32 bit data of floating, integer or both?
Q2. Is there any compatible WAV file downloadable via the Internnet?
Is it originally recorded in 32 bit format or generated by any sound editing software? ( I think floating type is more popular for intermediate files in editing in 32 bit.)
Q3. Is there any output device that handles a 192 kHz 32 bit S/PDIF singnal?

Bunpei
 
Does anyone try playing a 192 kHz 32 bit PCM WAV file?
We want to try to do that using our original transport on development
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digi...ory-card-transport-project-5.html#post1922738
with its I2S interace.

Yesterday, RayCtech of Norway succeeded in playing 192 kHz 32 bit PCM Integer WAV file using our SDHC Memory Card Transport SDTrans192.
He connected it to his own ES9018 DAC via I2S and posted his result on this thread.
http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/digi...ory-card-transport-project-7.html#post1997270

According to descriptions on this web page,
epanorama.net/S/PDIF Interface
my understanding is "the maximum bit length on S/PDIF is 24". Is it correct?

Bunpei
 
This is correct. I have played quite a few 32bit PCM files at both 96 and 192khz. Mostly exported from pro tools.

I appreciated your answer very much. Thank you!
May I ask you the following questions if they do not bother you?
My understanding is that "pro tools" is software by "M-Audio" that used in studios and in the area of a sound creation or mastering, handling 32 bit floating point audio files is very popular.
However, how do you output 192 kHz 32 bit PCM Integer of one of I2S/Left Justified/Right Justified signals using what kind of commercial hardware for pro or home audio? Is there any standalone commercial DAC product which accepts 32 bit input?

Bunpei
 
I have access to pro gear which outputs 32bit I2S and/or DSD. I have no idea if there is any consumer gear that can do this. Do a little googling and you can find some pro-gear that does.

I don't own any myself. But I have family and friends that produce/engineer music I bring my DAC with me when I go. If I like something I typically resample to 192/24 so that I can play it via SPDIF.

Cheers!
Russ
 
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