Best Audiophile USB Card ?

On 3/31/2021 at 2:23 PM, wittao said:

We finished some weeks ago our first own developed USB card family’s first two pieces:

 

- USB P24

- USB P24 OCXO

 

I am planning to finalize on our webpage the USB card’s subpage.

 

Some parameters about the cards:

1. USB P24:

- 2pcs USB 3.0 port

- low profile bracket option

- normal bracket with external 24MHz clock input (miniXLR socket)

- 4pin molex inside PSU connection (5V@1A DC)

 

2. USB P24 OCXO:

- 2pcs USB 3.0 port

- low profile bracket option

- normal bracket with external 10MHz clock input (miniXLR socket)

- 4pin molex inside PSU connection (5V@1A DC)

- 24MHz VCTCXO in PLL with onboard 10MHz OCXO

Can order from 15th April.

 

If you need further information, please ask me.

Thanks,

Viktor

 

Hi Victor,

Fascinating development and the boards do look excellent. Very clean layout as well. I am currently using JCAT USB XE and would be interested in the USB P24 OCXO version. I agree with Nenon now that the Taiko USB card is out of DIY market, this would be a viable option given that you are using the same Renesas chipset.

However, I am curious why didn't you choose to add an external input power connector in the PCI bracket to power it from externally power supply instead of only having a 4-pin molex internal connector ? The JCAT card actually has both - an internal molex as well as an external 5.5/2.1mm DC input so that it could be powered in both ways (and off-coarse from the PCIe if none of them are connected).

Some pics about the OCXO version:

Hi,

This is the OAudio RealStream USB card which I hope people will find interesting.

It's designed and constructed without compromise for what I think might be the ultimate in USB sound reproduction. Sound quality is best simply described as "next level".   

A few details:

• Highly developed master USB RealStream clock subsystem incorporated onto the card.
• 12 LDOs for people that count, many more commonly found in applications like top end RF test equipment.
• Two user configurable USB ports

1. Both ports No1 and No2 can have USB chipset firmware changes applied to modify the USB chipset's transmission characteristics.   
2. In addition Port 1 has a bespoke system controlled via setting controllers at the rear of the card to allow Port 1's USB transmission signal integrity parameters to be modified to suit down stream system and musical taste.

• Various Power options including PCIE sourced or dedicated 12 volt to rear of card.

No plans currently to offer this commercially but without a doubt listening to it, I think it is a contender for the title of this thread 

Enjoy.

OAudio

1 hour ago, Exocer said:

 

Thanks for sharing @OAudio.  So this card is voiced for a server you will be offering as well, correct? 

 

Exciting times.

 

Cheers,

-Rob

Indeed exciting times, thanks Rob, 

Yes that's correct it is intended to be part of my music server and was developed primarily for use in single and dual core c621 systems. There were a number of iterations pro of concept and prototypes to confirm the way the card should be designed. Voicing will obviously be spot on with c621 systems but in other servers its been remarkably consistent as well.  

29 minutes ago, Dev said:

@OAudiothe card looks very similar to the Taiko :-) it looks like you guys sharing the same reference design. The user configurable USB ports are an interesting addition. Why not offer it commercially ? 

Hi Dev,

Haha you have some thing there. The Taiko, Core Audio (very nice looking design) and my card have all settled on the same USB host controller chipset and the "house" colour scheme for high end USB cards of black and gold :-). 

The card pictured was built in January this year after 5 months of very intensive development work, but pulls heavily on earlier ideas I had and projects going back a number of years. There was a lot I wanted to packed into the card so its actually had to be larger than the other designs I think and uses a full size PCIE blade. It has been in a 2u case but it was defiantly a tight squeeze. 

My aim is that the components I am producing will by used in the in the server I am working on. I am targeting a very high level of sound quality performance so having the flexibility to change individual components where I need to specifically to suit this application is important rather than producing components for general use.

And JCAT set on the same USB host controller 8 years ago 😎

No argument there Marcin and full credit.

Like a good wine I think it has aged well and is still an excellent choice.

I was very close to going with the ASM3142 which I think you also use  

I just checked your card also has the high end black and gold "house" scheme to that's a full house 

15 minutes ago, Dev said:

thanks for the clarification. Interesting that you went the reverse route than Taiko and others. Did the ASMedia sounded better than the Renesas is your testing or was there a different reason ?

Yes. I chose it on purpose based on the trials. 

Asmedia consumes slightly more power compared to NEC (renesas), but Asmedia has much better performance.

Also the NEC chip is old and I am not sure how long it will be availble. 

Regards, 

Marcin

On 4/14/2021 at 6:42 PM, Dev said:

Did the ASMedia sounded better than the Renesas is your testing or was there a different reason ?

I did recently some tests of Jcat cards on my X99 mb with 10 core Xeon with Euphony/Roon OS.

Jcat USB Femto charged with Keces P8 USB 5V got new life powered by Jcat Optimo Duo. Changing LPS for Optimo was eye opener. SQ uptick was really significant and I was, in fact shocked, how big difference comes from this LPS. Everything improved, but what was important, everything was just right, balance, pace, colour. Just pleasure to listen to. Before I had some remarks to my server sound according tonal balance and the sound correctness. With new LPS everything clicked and came on the right place. I didn’t imagine the LPS can have so big difference, particularly I compared Keces P3 with P8 before and the difference between them was not as big, as with Optimo.

Then, I changed the card for Jcat USB XE, also with Optimo Duo LPS. The difference is not as big, as changing LPS for Jcat USB Femto, but still is. So, after a while I returned to Jcat USB Femto and yes, the change in this direction is more painful. The sound extension is limited, bass doesn’t go so deep and is less differentiated, the upper frequencies doesn’t shine as with XE card. I perceive most difficult to accept ( for me ) the bass. When you experience something better, it's difficult to agree after for step back. 

I compared Dual CPU C621 MB USB output with Jcat USB Femto some time ago and there is change, but I will not call it improvement, more side effect, some could like it, I don't. I liked very much USB Femto with single CPU, but with C621 it doesn't work for me.

Following some opinion on this forum I wanted also to check, if XE card will improve sound of the server based on Dual C621 CPU, but still testing. Initial impression is positive, but too early to judge, as I powered it today.

Pink Faun Bridge - stock clock vs. OCXO

I would like to report on the impact of the OCXO on the sound quality for the Pink Faun card. For context, a detailed description of my streamer and hifi system is in my profile (go to activity then audio system). I use the SPDIF version of the card but I expect the impact of the clock to be similar for the USB card.

First, I love the sound and musicality of the pink faun card. I tried the EF, Jcat Femto and Jcat XE with 5-10 different power sources (between myself and a friend). I settled on the Pink Faun with Uptone JS2 or Jcat optimo duo, so the report is based on the pink faun card powered by those. The 5V LPS has a huge and critical impact to the sound quality (i fully  agree with the prior post from Tatomek7) and the power supplies are really the heart of the audio PC. This cannot be underlined enough. All those cards need the very best LPS you can afford to develop their full potential (happy to give recommendations depending on your budget).

1) Stock clock

With the stock clock, the Pink Faun is immediately enjoyable. It has a very musical sound, the tone is very good, the instruments sound natural and realistic, there’s a little bit of natural warmth and even “romanticism” and humanity, with good dynamics and a lively sound that’s never cold or analytical. With the pink faun, you naturally focus on the music. I find that I’m not really dissecting the sound and just listen to the music instead. A very good sign in my book.

2) OCXO

The presentation changes and the impact of the clock is slightly different on the JS2 vs Optimo (which is a higher grade LPS than JS2 but more on that later). Overall, the OCXO brings focus. It’s a little bit like a lens that you would put in focus. Maybe the stock clock is an older lens and the OCXO a modern and sharper lens, if you take a photography analogy.

The instruments are more precise, more defined. You can hear much more the nuances of what the musicians are playing, the grain of the instruments, and the sound is a bit more dynamic. There’s more detail, but not in an analytical or cold way. There’s just more definition and control. Everything is tighter, and there’s a greater level of precision everywhere.
 

The more the hifi system is of a higher level, with the Jcat optimo for instance, the more the benefits of a clock where it brings more realism. The soundstage is also improved, particularly the depth. The sound is less homogeneous as well however depending on what you want in your system, you might want to rebalance the system once you insert the clock since it does bring more focus and precision. This is really system and taste dependent. For example, with the Optimo, I noticed that the clock is pretty much all upside with excellent and positive impact on the realism of the voices and instruments.

Overall, it’s recommended and an excellent step up. It does make you want to try and buy the ultra OCXO since this clock goes to the next level!

There’s a review of the pink faun cards and server on the hifi advice website too, for another report.
 

Let me know if any question, and hope this helps.

I am replacing OCXO with Ultra OCXO on my usb card.

OCXO is for sale, drop me PM if interested.

Ultra already installed and working. Didn't listened yet, but will make some brief listening within an hour or so.