Mutec MC-3+

Dear tgb,

Mutec internal PS are really bad for hifi !

May be - I've never tried with hifi.,,

At least in two quite elaborated setups (aka high end) replacing MC-3+ internal smps by generally accepted linear psu (e.g. Paul Hynes - to name one) didn't give a big change soundwise.

<Edit>above statement is true but no longer needed, I guess ,-)</Edit>

Note that in both cases care was taken to have proper grounding; this is important. May be that's a major factor causing improved sound when running from battery.

Dear Julian,

First of all, allow me to say that MUTEC very much cares about high-quality audio and that we strive to deliver the best possible products to our customers.

I can confirm this from many discussions with Chris. Mutec is indeed commited to achieve best possible results soundwise - postponig delivery of an already anounced product for quality reasons is strong evidence.

We advise against modifying your MUTEC product, but if you must please do so with utmost care and know that your warranty will be voided.

With the brand new MC-3+ Smart Clock USB about to launch, this topic should really be a thing of the past

In High End, there is always room for further improvments ,-)

Admitted, many of these change can not be done in a product which must be both, reliable and versatile. For instance, I've modified MC-3+ reference input to better fit to a 10 MHz sine wave source - loosing the ability to connect any word clock matching the original spec doesn't derogate to improved sound quality ,-)

Best Regrads,

Ulli

Hi Julian,

I must admit a few days after I wrote this post, that the words I used are too strong. I APOLOGIZE sincerely about that.

 

It is based on my own experience and some others confirmed.

The pretty high sensitivity of my setup to a dead clean source (vs digital & EMI) maybe the reason why I had to tweak My MC-1.1+. Tweak that I did not find relevant when I own the MC-3+ on a previous setup which was far less sensitive to clean source.

My point was to tell that Mutec products produce pretty good products, but they can sound at top level by changing the power supply.

 

My post focused on what I felt & experienced to be the "parts to tweak to enhance the SQ of the products".

My post was not to say Mutec products are bad.

Mutec products ARE GOOD & KEY FOR AUDIO.

Price/performance ratio is good. Functions offered by your boxes are smart & motherboards are top quality.

My MC-3+ did a great job when I used it.

My current MC-1.1+ is doing a tremedous job in my current setup where I need a TOP NOTCH splitter to feed 2 full digital amplifiers with top clean digital stream.

But on this very sensitive setup I needed to tweak it.

I did not think at all about sending it back to my seller, no way !

The MC-1.1+ did the job, but it sounded harsh thru my setup. Then the trouble was not the top good motherboard & functionalities, but as it is often the case in digital audio : when it sounds harsh > clean the power supply > and sounds is OK afterwards.

This is what I did.

 

Please note that after I posted about this trouble, another guy, with another setup, did not complaint about harshness with its MC-1.1+. Thus it seems it is very function of the setup.

 

Of course, I did it with care, all that kind of change must be done if you know about these electronic products.

My MC-1.1+ lost its warranty a few days after I bought it, I knew about that... but is part of my gear for a long time now.

 

I just wanted to make it clear that of course I keep trusting Mutec products quality, no doubt about it.

 

Rgds

Hi tgb,

My apologies about the late response. I was gone for vacation and have been catching up since then. Either way, apologies accepted and I very much appreciate your clarifications and your kind words regarding the MC-1.1+. Hopefully you'll have the chance to hear the MC-3+USB when it comes out and to share your thoughts!

Best regards,

Julian

Got it. Will be double-checking this with MUTEC developers.

hello julian,

how about the Dop issue now? Will Mutec just let it pass through?

John

hello julian,

 

how about the Dop issue now? Will Mutec just let it pass through?

 

John

Hi John, I've checked with the developers and MC-3+USB will indeed re-clock and pass through DoP64. So you get the benefit of the MUTEC re-clocking algorithm and connected devices can still decode the DSD audio stream. Higher rates (DoP128 or DoP256) won't be possible simply because the AES3 and S/P-DIF protocols don't support higher sample rates than 192 kHz, which would be requirement for transferring DoP128 and DoP256.

Does that answer your questions?

Julian

Hi John, I've checked with the developers and MC-3+USB will indeed re-clock and pass through DoP64. So you get the benefit of the MUTEC re-clocking algorithm and connected devices can still decode the DSD audio stream. Higher rates (DoP128 or DoP256) won't be possible simply because the AES3 and S/P-DIF protocols don't support higher sample rates than 192 kHz, which would be requirement for transferring DoP128 and DoP256.

 

Does that answer your questions?

 

Julian

Hi Julian,

Thanks. That's exactly what I need. Moreover, will Mutec MC-3+ do the same in that doing the reclock and pass through Dop64?

John

Hi Julian,

 

Thanks. That's exactly what I need. Moreover, will Mutec MC-3+ do the same in that doing the reclock and pass through Dop64?

 

John

Hi John,

Yes, the MC-3+ will also re-clock and pass through DoP64!

Cheers,

Julian

Product manual for the MC-3+ usb now ready on mutec`s homepage. German only....

Looking forward to try out this unit.

Units will be ready around 20 november here in Norway!

One can select "English" as an option at the top right corner of the Mutec page. Here's the link:

MUTEC - Professional A/V and High-End Equipment - MC-3+ USB

Yes, thats right. But the product manual for MC-3+ USB is still only in German text!

But the product manual for MC-3+ USB is still only in German text!

True. English manual won't be long, I guess. Street price just below €1000.

Mutec MC-3+ USB | Smart Clock + USB-Interface - hifi12a

True. English manual won't be long, I guess. Street price just below €1000.

Mutec MC-3+ USB | Smart Clock + USB-Interface - hifi12a

Hi folks,

We are indeed busy working on the English manual, so this should be coming very soon. We will start shipping the first units to our dealers at the end of next week. Thanks for your patience! We're excited about seeing the first MC-3+USBs in your hands out there.

In the meantime, here's a very first review of the device translated from the German audiophile online platform LowBeats.

Julian

- MUTEC Marketing

" The desired clock rate for the digital outputs can be selected on the front panel with options between 44.1 kHz, 88.2 kHz and 176.4 kHz that are independent from the clock rate of the incoming DSD or DoP streams. "

Is there any reason that very standard option 96kHz is not included in the list or will it be later available in firmware update ?

" The desired clock rate for the digital outputs can be selected on the front panel with options between 44.1 kHz, 88.2 kHz and 176.4 kHz that are independent from the clock rate of the incoming DSD or DoP streams. "

 

Is there any reason that very standard option 96kHz is not included in the list or will it be later available in firmware update ?

Hi pre,

Thanks for asking! The reason for not including 96 kHz is that the MC-3+USB doesn't do a sample rate conversion, but rather a clock division of the original clock rate of the DSD/DoP streams during the conversion process. If we were to offer other clock rates, we'd have to use a sample rate conversion process, which might degrade the audio quality and should be avoided if at all possible. We've heard from a lot of audiophile users that they'd rather not have a sample rate conversion in the path. Nevertheless, I will pass this on to the MUTEC developers and if there's enough interest by other users, I'm sure they'll explore the possibility of making this an available feature for future updates.

Hope this helps!

Julian

I may be missing something but aint 96kHz and 192 kHz standarts in recording studios? why not include those?

I may be missing something but aint 96kHz and 192 kHz standarts in recording studios? why not include those?

Hi peabreu,

Yes, 96/192 kHz are of course common clock rates in recording studios. Nevertheless, it very much depends on the application whether or not a sample rate conversion of DSD to PCM actually needs to take place at these clock rates. If you're a studio user, I can see this as a limitation in a few situations. But the MC-3+USB was specifically designed with the needs of audiophile consumer audio fans in mind that want the highest fidelity playback - even when using ordinary laptops or desktop computers. And for those users in particular we can achieve a better sound quality by doing a simple clock division to 88.2 or 176.4 kHz rather than doing a much more complicated sample rate conversion to 96/192 kHz.

Does that help?

Best regards,

Julian

Partially. I mean I did not get the DSD to PCM part. I am not interested in that. What I am interested is in playing 96kHz and 192kHz recordings thru this Mutec (I am not into DSD), so I assume I am OK. That was just clock dividers for DSD to PCM. Correct?

Partially. I mean I did not get the DSD to PCM part. I am not interested in that. What I am interested is in playing 96kHz and 192kHz recordings thru this Mutec (I am not into DSD), so I assume I am OK. That was just clock dividers for DSD to PCM. Correct?

Oh yeah, absolutely. This is just a limitation related to the DSD-to-PCM conversion. If you're just playing back PCM the MC-3+USB will do all standard sample rates up to 192 kHz (including 96 kHz) via USB 2.0 without a question!

Got the MC3 + USB today and just hooked it up to the Lampizator Big7 on AES/EBU and it beats the crap out of the USB Amanero in.

Sounds really organic and musical out of the box so will give it a few days to settle before commenting much more.

I am feeding it off a dedicated Audio PC with all Linear supplies, with A JCat USB card going through a Regen then into the MC3.

The all German instructions with it were no good to me so I went at it blind and got music, need to find an English Manual now and see if I have it setup right but it sounds great on all 16 44, 24 88 & 24 96 tracks I listened to this evening.

I expect this will cause a stir in the field of USB to SPdif convertors, my first foray into this field and I am glad I made the jump and the Big7 is loving the change from USB for over a year now, never knew what I was missing.

Cheers,

Pearse.

Got the MC3 + USB today and just hooked it up to the Lampizator Big7 on AES/EBU and it beats the crap out of the USB Amanero in.

Sounds really organic and musical out of the box so will give it a few days to settle before commenting much more.

 

I am feeding it off a dedicated Audio PC with all Linear supplies, with A JCat USB card going through a Regen then into the MC3.

 

The all German instructions with it were no good to me so I went at it blind and got music, need to find an English Manual now and see if I have it setup right but it sounds great on all 16 44, 24 88 & 24 96 tracks I listened to this evening.

 

I expect this will cause a stir in the field of USB to SPdif convertors, my first foray into this field and I am glad I made the jump and the Big7 is loving the change from USB for over a year now, never knew what I was missing.

Cheers,

Pearse.

Hi Pearse,

Thanks for your terrific user report and my apologies about the absence of the English manual. It should be available on the MUTEC site the day after tomorrow at the latest and I'll make sure to send you a link as soon as it's up.

Thanks for your patience and wish you lots of listening pleasure with the MC-3+USB ;-)

Cheers,

Julian

Hi Pearse,

 

Thanks for your terrific user report and my apologies about the absence of the English manual. It should be available on the MUTEC site the day after tomorrow at the latest and I'll make sure to send you a link as soon as it's up.

 

Thanks for your patience and wish you lots of listening pleasure with the MC-3+USB ;-)

 

Cheers,

Julian

Hi all,

The English operating manual for the MC-3+ Smart Clock USB is now available on the MUTEC site:

MUTEC - Professional A/V and High-End Equipment - MC-3+ USB

Best regards,

Julian

I had a quick look at that manual for the MC-3+ Smart Clock USB but did not find how to select a specific input.

I had a quick look at that manual for the MC-3+ Smart Clock USB but did not find how to select a specific input.

Hi there,

Basically this is described starting on page 18 and onwards in the manual. It depends a little bit on how you're using the MC-3+USB, i.e. whether you're using it as a clock or re-clocker, but generally you select a specific input via the reference menu. Most people here will probably use it as a re-clocker and USB interface, so you'd put the MC-3+USB in "RCLK" (re-clock) mode, select one of the inputs via the reference menu (USB-PCM, USB-DSD/DoP, AES3/11, S/P-DIF) and the until will immediately output the re-clocked source at all the available outputs.

Does that help?

Julian

Hi all,

The English operating manual for the MC-3+ Smart Clock USB is now available on the MUTEC site:

MUTEC - Professional A/V and High-End Equipment - MC-3+ USB

 

Best regards,

Julian

By the way, here is a direct download link:

http://mutec-net.com/downloads/manuals/MUTEC_MC-3plusUSB_Manual_E_screen.pdf

Hi John, I've checked with the developers and MC-3+USB will indeed re-clock and pass through DoP64. So you get the benefit of the MUTEC re-clocking algorithm and connected devices can still decode the DSD audio stream. Higher rates (DoP128 or DoP256) won't be possible simply because the AES3 and S/P-DIF protocols don't support higher sample rates than 192 kHz, which would be requirement for transferring DoP128 and DoP256.

 

Does that answer your questions?

 

Julian

Hello, Julian.

I am interested in converting a DoP signal from spdif to USB to feed the DSD engine in a Lampizator DAC (which only accept DSD via USB). Is this possible with the mc-3?

Also, If the DoP signal is sent out of the mc-3 via USB (rather than spdif), are the higher DoP/DSD streams (128 or 256) possible?

Thank you.

Got the MC3 + USB today and just hooked it up to the Lampizator Big7 on AES/EBU and it beats the crap out of the USB Amanero in.

Sounds really organic and musical out of the box so will give it a few days to settle before commenting much more.

 

I am feeding it off a dedicated Audio PC with all Linear supplies, with A JCat USB card going through a Regen then into the MC3.

 

The all German instructions with it were no good to me so I went at it blind and got music, need to find an English Manual now and see if I have it setup right but it sounds great on all 16 44, 24 88 & 24 96 tracks I listened to this evening.

 

I expect this will cause a stir in the field of USB to SPdif convertors, my first foray into this field and I am glad I made the jump and the Big7 is loving the change from USB for over a year now, never knew what I was missing.

Cheers,

Pearse.

Pearse, I am considering testing the MC3 + USB as a replacement for my (Teddy Pardo PSU + M2tech hiFace Evo) and between a dedicated fit-PC3 (also powered by a TP PSU) and a Naim DAC. How are you coming along with the MC3 + USB? Any new findings, impressions? Thanks, nbpf