I’ll be curious what you think, especially the differences between Jotunheim and Magnius. 
3 Likes
That’s gonna be an awesome stack. 
Congratulations, and I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on them.
2 Likes
I like your style, go big or go home.
Points for effective use of audio nerd and pornstar in the same sentence. If that doesn’t get a new user of the month badge, I don’t know what will.
1 Like
LOL! I must have missed that.
Autotune and Berry White DSP? That’s my guess.
If Tyler actually had a voice like Alvin the chipmunk in real life, that would be the bestest thing ever.
Maybe we can get him to karaoke this song:
3 Likes
Dead lol. Maybe a Prince-like rendition?
1 Like
This is now a moral imperative. It must happen
2 Likes
I will see what can be done lol! No promises, though I think I have a horrible voice…
1 Like
Anyone have suggestions for a decent spl meter? Is there a brand name I should look for or stay away from? Want to be able to check what my listening levels are at. Don’t think Im at worrisome volumes but want verification. Thanks.
3 Likes
A cheap’o $20 should do. If you want to spend a little more, get a dBC weight from a more known brand. The 20 bucks one should already give you any yellow/red flags w.r.t. listening levels though.
Bonus: look at this graph. If you’re a bass head, definitely get the dBC. Since I’m not one, the dBA already works for me. But I’m sure at some point I’ll give my cheap’o meter to my dad and get a dBC next time. The 100+ bucks ones. I just love tools. 
Ref. brands: I’m a Fluke fanboy. Ohh boy, they are expensive but it’s probably a 1 purchase for life kind of deal.
2 Likes
Everyone has been extremely helpful with their advice and opinions! I pulled the trigger on an Asgard 3 and Modius and I’m just waiting for them to arrive. Had considered the new Magnius (liked the balanced aspect), but the Asgard 3 sounded like it might fit my needs better. Who knows, I’m a noob trying to figure this headphone thing out. I enjoy the research anyway, although as was mentioned above, it can certainly be overwhelming. Trial and error.
Now for my “final” piece of the puzzle to get my setup ready for listening - streaming. 
I will ultimately get an AVR that will offer the streaming portion of the program, but am trying to figure out the best way to do it before I get the AVR. My only computer is an old Asus laptop (low end, even for Asus), so I’m thinking maybe streaming through my iPad or iPhone for now. I know there are many advantages to using a computer for your streaming, Roon, storage, etc. I have the Apple Lightning to USB camera adapter already (3 years old, should I upgrade this to newer model), so was wondering if I should go out of my iPad/phone (lightning) into the Modius (micro USB, which means another adapter).
It would be nice to WiFi to a streamer and remotely control via the iPad/Phone. Did not really want to buy a separate streamer if I’m going to have the AVR in the next year or so (redundant?). Maybe I am on the wrong track using the AVR as my streamer. So many options.
5 Likes
This is what I’m currently doing and the sound quality is better than it was from a Bluesound Node 2i to my ears. I’m also using a Matrix Audio X-SPDIF in the chain before the signal gets to the DAC. This is the best sounding system that I’ve had so far.
3 Likes
Check out the PIE2AES device.
This is a inexpensive way to set up your DAC as a device you can stream to. It will use the AES input of the Modius, which is widely considered to be much better than USB.
Hope it helps.
4 Likes
This is a great solution. The Pi4 will be the end-point streamer that I’ll be using (the X-SPDIF has AES output).
If you’re going to use ROON, this is a great way to go.
2 Likes
Got a question for you guys, if you please, @ValentineLuke and @ProfFalkin.
Are the Pi and the X-Spdif essentially the same idea with one being wireless input vs the other being wired?
I am looking at running Spdif for my BF2 as I have read a few reports that the Spdif input may “improve” it over Unison. Dont care the least about the 24/192 limit of it because why? It seems to be personal preference related but I guess is a real thing re the sound difference. The Pi seems less expensive but has more setup involved whereas the X seems to have a nicer form factor and is plug and play (with perhaps needing a power adapter). Streaming isnt a big thing for me right now or anytime soon so its not a real selling point one way or the other.
This is kind of just a curiosity for me at the moment, not sure if I want more stuff on my desk.
2 Likes
No, X-SPDIF is a DDC (Digital-to-Digital converter). Raspberry Pi is a Lennox (?) computer often used as a ROON end-point.
You can combine the two, as I will be doing to run multiple DACs.
4 Likes
Sort of.
The Matrix X-SPDIF 2 is a simple DDC (digital-to-digital converter). It takes a wired USB input and converts it to S/PDIF (TOSLINK and COAX), I2S and AES-EBU (AES3/SPDIF), while optionally taking USB power out of the equation.
The PIE2AES takes a NETWORK input (WiFi or Ethernet) and provides TOSLINK, COAX and AES-EBU (AES3/SPDIF) outputs. As far as I’m aware, this means you cannot just plug a USB cable into the Pi, and get AES (etc.) output from the PIE2AES board. In other words, it becomes a streamer. There may be software builds that let you use USB input to the Pi and get output from the PIE2AES board, but I’ve only ever tried it/seen it done, using a streaming system like Roon.
6 Likes
Thank you both for the replies.
You guys are guaranteed levels beyond me re technical details regarding audio interfaces so any information is helpful and appreciated.
So it appears that my understanding is correct that they both can output to Spdif. I haven’t come across much that suggests an ability to use USB input for the Pi and I did do some looking to see if it was possible. I will research both a bit more, see what the Pi requires re setup for MacOS and whether I want to get into that (could be an interesting little project) or just go simple plug and play with the X-SPDIF. Maybe I’ll come across a comparison between the two online. The Pi seems to be very well regarded but this is an idea still in its infancy for me.
Thanks again, much appreciated!
1 Like
What Torq said.
(Thanks Torq for saving me a bunch of typing on my smartphone. Haha)
Additionally, you access the Pie2Aes device (for management/configuration) via a web page over the wireless network. For daily use, it just shows up as a network device that your pc/tablet/phone can stream audio to, kind of like a Chromecast device. In Roon, it just shows up as another endpoint that it can connect to.
The Matrix box has no such interface, as it doesn’t need one. It needs a direct connection from a pc/tablet via usb.
3 Likes
All outputs are active then? Dont believe I came across anything suggesting how to switch them. Thats an interesting feature if you want to run different audio chains, I’ll keep that in mind!
2 Likes
I don’t know why you would use a Raspberry Pi device into a Matrix box? It seems like putting a middleman into the chain -vs- just going directly out from a Pie2Aes unit.
I may have completely misunderstood
3 Likes