Wadax Reference Dac and Server arrive

[Mike Lavigne]

One of the things I like most in my system is Stealth Audio cables. If you get a chance try a Sakra V17 LE interconnect. It gets right out of the way.

hi Aangen, thanks for the recommendation. however, a few post's back i did already demo and purchase a 1.5m set of Phase III XLR Gorgon XLR's for the Wadax dac.

Wadax Reference Dac and Server arrive

Maybe @Elliot G. know who owned this system. Actually @HiFim3 might be the dealer to ask. He is the local Wadax/RevOPods dealer to this person.

www.whatsbestforum.com

 

[aangen]

hi Aangen, thanks for the recommendation. however, a few post's back i did already demo and purchase a 1.5m set of Phase III XLR Gorgon XLR's for the Wadax dac.

Wadax Reference Dac and Server arrive

Maybe @Elliot G. know who owned this system. Actually @HiFim3 might be the dealer to ask. He is the local Wadax/RevOPods dealer to this person.

www.whatsbestforum.com

There is still time to try other things. I continue to try other things and I think you are ahead of me. Perhaps I should try Gorgon.
I think that was the name of a Pinball Machine back in the early 90's.

 

[Pokey77]

today received an upgrade to my 1.5m Sablon Ethernet cable to the 2020 version. many thanks to Mark Coles for sending me a new one so i did not have to wait 2 weeks for a turn around for my 'old' one to be updated. my old one will go back as a trade in. Mark said we need 200-250 hours for it to open up.

still; first 30 second impressions is a little more bass weight, more lit soundstage edges and holographic imaging compared to the 'old' one. now 20 minutes in, seems like it absolutely synergizes with the Nordost QNET switch. neutral and fast, fast, fast. but with ease and a relaxed naturalness and flow. just a little more of these things. more 'not there'. no doubt it will go thru ups and downs as it breaks in.

thank you Mark!

in a week or so i should receive the new Nordost Linear Power Supply for the QNET switch. that should wrap up my digital gear efforts......

View attachment 89573
View attachment 89574

Though I already have an ER+SR4T LPS, I will be very interested to hear about the Nordost switch and LPS.

FYI - I put in a 1M Linkup 8 cable from Amazon with the Telegartner (or Telegartner-style plug) back on 12/18/21 and it worked quite well. Then over the next month put in two more of them and the SQ just keep getting better. I need to put one last one in from router to the A side of the ER to see if there is anymore I can get out of these value-oriented Network cables. The reason I mention this is because they do seem to need a few hundred hours to settle, which would correlate with what Mark Coles was quoted as saying. I realize Marks product is a different cable, but still, the connection to long settling/burnin times for Cat 8 network cable. BTW, I moved from Supra Cat8+, which was quite good in itself.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

the new pair of 1.5m Stage III Gorgon XLR's i ordered, showed up today to replace the demo loaner 2m pair. normally i would use the Audiodharma Cable Cooker for 2-3 days first prior to listening to the new cables.....then listen and maybe more Cooker time. especially as these are big heavy cables. however; Stage III recommends music only as a break in. so the demo pair are packed up and headed back. got to let it play.

installing the new cables, which are the right length now for the distance, allows me to 'dress' them more properly. i was able to use 4 Audioquest Fog Lifters along the floor under these heavy beasts now i don't have to loop them around. and also the 'clamp/zip-tie' stress relief at the preamp end is more effective with the cables up higher off the floor. which allows my active device under my dart pre to be more optimized.

the first 20-30 minutes was pretty gnarly sounding, then a little better, now at 90 minutes it's past the worst part and opening up a little. not nearly as hashy. but i think the cable dressing effects are already evident with a bit more dynamic snap and greater bass swings and flow.....and maybe a few other plus's. but it's early. these need 200-250 hours to get right, then gradually improve from that for awhile. so about 10 days from now we should be in a good place.

i do have some records i need to clean and listen to......

 

[divertiti]

today received an upgrade to my 1.5m Sablon Ethernet cable to the 2020 version. many thanks to Mark Coles for sending me a new one so i did not have to wait 2 weeks for a turn around for my 'old' one to be updated. my old one will go back as a trade in. Mark said we need 200-250 hours for it to open up.

still; first 30 second impressions is a little more bass weight, more lit soundstage edges and holographic imaging compared to the 'old' one. now 20 minutes in, seems like it absolutely synergizes with the Nordost QNET switch. neutral and fast, fast, fast. but with ease and a relaxed naturalness and flow. just a little more of these things. more 'not there'. no doubt it will go thru ups and downs as it breaks in.

thank you Mark!

in a week or so i should receive the new Nordost Linear Power Supply for the QNET switch. that should wrap up my digital gear efforts......

Thanks for sharing Mike. I was curious if you have tried Shunyata Omega ethernet against the Sablon, as well as the Sablon 2022 Evo USB against your Goebel USB?

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Thanks for sharing Mike. I was curious if you have tried Shunyata Omega ethernet against the Sablon, as well as the Sablon 2022 Evo USB against your Goebel USB?

No, not tried any other Ethernet cables to compare to the ‘old’ Sablon or the 2020 Sablon I just received. I do have another one in bound to try, we will see about that one.

as far as USB’s, right now I’m not using one as the Wadax uses the Akasa optical.

with my MSB/Extreme I was using the Gobel usb which had been a big step up over some other modestly priced USB’s a few years back. Then last summer I had an opportunity to try the FTA Sinope usb, which was a better match in my system than the Gobel, so I sold the Gobel usb. Never compared the Gobel to any others including the Sablon 2022. Heard great things about that one.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

over this last 5-6 weeks little by little i have found various ways to optimize the Wadax combo. to begin with in mid-January, after the final compare between the Wadax Ref server and the Taiko Extreme, (1) i was able to locate all the chassis in a more long term setting with double Daiza's under the dac and power supplies. the Server was naked on the granite shelf. then (2) the Stage III Gorgon loaner demo XLR's arrived. next (3) the 24 RevOpods arrived and i was able to install those on all the Wadax chassis. followed by (4) the Nordost QNET switch, then (5) the upgrade to the Sablon Ethernet cable (still breaking in) and (6) the new set of Stage III Gorgon XLR's (also still breaking in). while doing these last 2 additions, i also took the opportunity to (7) improve my cable dressing for the Gorgon XLR's and also improve that in some other spots too. and i admit to one or two more 'steps-up' i should have in the next few days. if there is more blood in the turnup not sure how i will react.

late last week, after the new cables had a day or so on them, i noticed that the accumulated fine tuning and optimizing of the "astonishing to begin with" Wadax combo has taken things collectively into a realm i've been searching for words to describe. how can i get off the 'hype-train' and just communicate about this? what do i say?

every session; i throw another two or three full orchestral complex recordings at the Wadax and it's a walk in the park like girl with guitar. complex and chaotic......made simple and easy. not a hair out of place, beauty and nuance, liquid and natural, self assured, not a digital artifact or niggle anywhere. the bass explosive and textured. the soundstage deep, layered and enveloping. the flow and presence of the performance real and alive sounding. immersive.

i've been listening to this same cross section of large and small scale classical recordings for years, so i have a feeling for how this has gone. we are in a whole different realm now.

it was great before..........now its.............

it's like the challenge of reproducing music got figured out. digital? that use to be a concern. not any more. i can listen for hours.....zero digital fatigue factor......my shoulders relaxed......my body calm and happy.

note to Francisco--i will try to find the time to list some of the recordings when i get a chance.

as fine as things sounded a month ago, the Wadax has responded to more attention.

this reminds me of my best vinyl, where no matter how much better my system was able to get, the vinyl just was able to take full advantage and get better with it since it had so much information and musical headroom. i never was able to get to the end of the road. and the Wadax is like that. it just keeps getting better. peeling the onion layer and after deeper layer.

streaming or files, it does not matter. i can hear differences in resolutions, but they are all superb. rock, jazz, classical or ???......it all works.

sorry for my stream of consciousness here, just attempting to communicate the wonder of my Wadax listening sessions. and give an update to my experiences.

 

[Ultrafast69]

Good to read your experience down the digital path, it can be done and made more enjoyable as you seemed to have achieved. Enjoy!

 

[KeithR]

250 hour break in for an Ethernet cable. Huh.

 

[Audiocrack]

Good to hear that the reference combo is (i) not only getting better and better but also - and that is much more important of course - (ii) appeals to you in such an emotional satisfying way during many hours of listening. Keep enjoying it!

I talked to Javier yesterday, inter alia about the dedicated PSU for the reference server. The ‘scary’ thing is that - how impressive the reference server is already sounding ‘on its own’ in combination with the Akasa interlink and the reference dac - according to him this PSU is going to raise the bar of the Wadax combo very, very significantly (btw, he used different words but I rather remain somewhat ‘conservative’). So I guess what I am saying is that you have not even heard the ‘best’ of the Wadax combo yet. Is that not ‘frightening’, albeit in a good way?

 

[Gregadd]

over this last 5-6 weeks little by little i have found various ways to optimize the Wadax combo. to begin with in mid-January, after the final compare between the Wadax Ref server and the Taiko Extreme, (1) i was able to locate all the chassis in a more long term setting with double Daiza's under the dac and power supplies. the Server was naked on the granite shelf. then (2) the Stage III Gorgon loaner demo XLR's arrived. next (3) the 24 RevOpods arrived and i was able to install those on all the Wadax chassis. followed by (4) the Nordost QNET switch, then (5) the upgrade to the Sablon Ethernet cable (still breaking in) and (6) the new set of Stage III Gorgon XLR's (also still breaking in). while doing these last 2 additions, i also took the opportunity to (7) improve my cable dressing for the Gorgon XLR's and also improve that in some other spots too. and i admit to one or two more 'steps-up' i should have in the next few days. if there is more blood in the turnup not sure how i will react.

late last week, after the new cables had a day or so on them, i noticed that the accumulated fine tuning and optimizing of the "astonishing to begin with" Wadax combo has taken things collectively into a realm i've been searching for words to describe. how can i get off the 'hype-train' and just communicate about this? what do i say?

every session; i throw another two or three full orchestral complex recordings at the Wadax and it's a walk in the park like girl with guitar. complex and chaotic......made simple and easy. not a hair out of place, beauty and nuance, liquid and natural, self assured, not a digital artifact or niggle anywhere. the bass explosive and textured. the soundstage deep, layered and enveloping. the flow and presence of the performance real and alive sounding. immersive.

i've been listening to this same cross section of large and small scale classical recordings for years, so i have a feeling for how this has gone. we are in a whole different realm now.

it was great before..........now its.............

it's like the challenge of reproducing music got figured out. digital? that use to be a concern. not any more. i can listen for hours.....zero digital fatigue factor......my shoulders relaxed......my body calm and happy.

note to Francisco--i will try to find the time to list some of the recordings when i get a chance.

as fine as things sounded a month ago, the Wadax has responded to more attention.

this reminds me of my best vinyl, where no matter how much better my system was able to get, the vinyl just was able to take full advantage and get better with it since it had so much information and musical headroom. i never was able to get to the end of the road. and the Wadax is like that. it just keeps getting better. peeling the onion layer and after deeper layer.

streaming or files, it does not matter. i can hear differences in resolutions, but they are all superb. rock, jazz, classical or ???......it all works.

sorry for my stream of consciousness here, just attempting to communicate the wonder of my Wadax listening sessions. and give an update to my experiences.

Mike,
My issue with digital is more software than hardware...
You are not known to e'ingage in hyperbolic or to get "it",wrong. The unit must be something special.
Enjoy

.
.

 

[Elliot G.]

Good to hear that the reference combo is (i) not only getting better and better but also - and that is much more important of course - (ii) appeals to you in such an emotional satisfying way during many hours of listening. Keep enjoying it!

I talked to Javier yesterday, inter alia about the dedicated PSU for the reference server. The ‘scary’ thing is that - how impressive the reference server is already sounding ‘on its own’ in combination with the Akasa interlink and the reference dac - according to him this PSU is going to raise the bar of the Wadax combo very, very significantly (btw, he used different words but I rather remain somewhat ‘conservative’). So I guess what I am saying is that you have not even heard the ‘best’ of the Wadax combo yet. Is that not ‘frightening’, albeit in a good way?

I am really enjoying the comments of the owners of these products. When one tries to explain to others what the Wadax is about it mostly sounds like hyperbole. People have expectations of a small difference in sound rather than the paradigm shift that is actually there. When I called these transcendent products I got a lot of crap here and the lines about dealers etc. These are generational products. I did not want to become a dealer or want to buy them I had to after hearing them. No one sells a Wadax, these are products you buy and you buy them because you hear it and get it. Every person that has listened to my system since the installation of them has totally changed their beliefs about digital.
I have spoken to Javier and Jerome about what's coming and I am excited but as I said many times I don't look for it they just seem to find me.
I don't know what the PSU or the Reference Transport will bring to the audio table but I am excited to find out.
I do feel however that I have a much better understanding about what digital can do and the issues over the past 40 years that prevented it from being what we were originally told it would be.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Mike,
My issue with digital is more software than hardware...
You are not known to e'ingage in hyperbolic or to get "it",wrong. The unit must be something special.
Enjoy

.
.

no; digital music reproduction limitations are almost entirely hardware. which is why you don't see it solved. it takes leaps of faith to invest in the solution. now it's clear it can be done. we will see how the market reacts.

this is just my opinion based on what i have experienced. not stating facts.

 

[Elliot G.]

no; digital music reproduction limitations are almost entirely hardware. which is why you don't see it solved. it takes leaps of faith to invest in the solution. now it's clear it can be done. we will see how the market reacts.

this is just my opinion based on what i have experienced. not stating facts.

I totally agree !

 

[Gregadd]

no; digital music reproduction limitations are almost entirely hardware. which is why you don't see it solved. it takes leaps of faith to invest in the solution. now it's clear it can be done. we will see how the market reacts.

this is just my opinion based on what i have experienced. not stating facts.

It would not bother me if you are correct. But I disagree.
Wothut a doubt hardware has improved dramatically. The problem is whatever is not captured in the recording is lost forever. Add that to the fact that some have started a race to the bottom.
Some even hold the view that all dacs are equal.
I like all types of music.Some producers think even mp3 is not necessary for the masses.
We will save that discussion for another day. I am just glad you like the Wadax.
Note:Should not opinions be based on facts? If not they are just impressions.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

It would not bother me if you are correct. But I disagree.

it's your right to do that....

Wothut a doubt hardware has improved dramatically. The problem is whatever is not captured in the recording is lost forever.

but until you hear these digital recordings played back on the right hardware , don't point the finger at the recording format as the limitation. it's much more capable than i ever would have thought before.

Add that to the fact that some have started a race to the bottom.
Some even hold the view that all dacs are equal.
I like all types of music.Some producers think even mp3 is not necessary for the masses.
We will save that discussion for another day. I am just glad you like the Wadax

and i do appreciate your respect for my Wadax performance feedback.

 

[Gregadd]

"...until you hear these digital recordings played back on the right jardware...:[text omitted] Mike Lavigne
Come on Mike
Surely you are not claiming the Wadax is retrieving something that is not there. Moreover the vast majority of audiophiles will never on anything like the Wadax or your system
Egot_ To put it bluntly, for example as tgood as he Waday may be. Can it turn lossy into lossless?

 

[Mike Lavigne]

"...until you hear these digital recordings played back on the right jardware...:[text omitted] Mike Lavigne
Come on Mike
Surely you are not claiming the Wadax is retrieving something that is not there.

exactly the opposite. i'm saying that the Wadax is (1) finding detail and musically significant information other hardware glosses over, then rendering it in musically significant ways, and (2) avoids digital distortion by anticipating it and compensating for it. digital rips from my 30+ year old CD's, and 10 year old files are showing significant new info and life.

more information is there than other hardware can uncover. nothing magic. just (what seems to be for the time being) extreme technical solutions.

how much of it is the dac? is the server? is the Akasa Optical interface? we did step through those different levels and i did post about it.

Moreover the vast majority of audiophiles will never on anything like the Wadax or your system

over time more will get exposed to it. whether those encounters will be in depth enough to be able to 'get' the implications of the Wadax is a question. Audio Shows are not ideal for this. having the opportunity to do extended A/B's in my own system and step through the differences made this process easy for me and those who joined me....i agree. only anecdotal findings, but one's that had value to me.

again, just my opinions. not claiming facts.

 

[Gregadd]

I did not want want to go there.
The Wadax is finding information other dacs missed????
Pray tell where was this info hidden and how is it being retreived?
I am sorry that is disrespectful. Clearly I need to learn more about digital.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

I did not want want to go there.
The Wadax is finding information other dacs missed????
Pray tell where was this info hidden and how is it being retreived?
I am sorry that is disrespectful. Clearly I need to learn more about digital.

in any source-media reading process (digital/vinyl/tape) there are variables in levels of detail and musical truth that gets rendered....from the same media.

nothing more than that. it's just that the Wadax is degrees of magnitude beyond other hardware doing this to my ears.