Peachtree Audio - Page 17

1) I'm sorry...no experience with IEM
2) Yes...lowers gain and a different gain curve altogether
3) It's a swap for your pot...no charge

[quote=rwinner;17923398]
rwinner....not right now, but stay tuned. In the mean time our friends at Wadia make a fine product

can the Nova play HDCD?

yes, but it cannot process HDCD...it will be like standard redbook

Just thought I would weigh back in on this thread. I've had the Nova for six months or so now. I just upgraded from Sunfire Cinema Duos and a Sunfire True Junior Sub to a pair of Mythos STS towers (also connected to a laptop and a wadia itransport). All I can say is that the Nova plays these speakers like a beautiful instument and squeezes every bit of sound out of those 0s and 1s. I have listened to music my whole life and loved it, but I never really loved the sound of music itself (outside of live concerts, especially jazz) until now. And I really think that a well mastered CD through the Nova (e.g. the Beatles and Can remasters) sound every bit as good as vinyl. It even makes my wife's music (e.g. Lady Gaga) sound great!!! Kudos to the Peachtree people, and thanks for making audiophile perforamce available in a simple set up at a reasonable price.

After 3 months of research and audition. Today I pull trigger on the Nova and Era D5. I have auditioned Totem Rainmaker, Monitor Audio RX2, Paradigm studio 20 & Polk LSi9. Those are fine speakers but none of them give me the experience that Era D5 delivered. When I heard Liszt's "La Campanella" coming out of D5, I know my research comes to an end.

I ordered rosewood finish, dealer said it will arrive next week. My temp setup is to use a cheap DVD player as a transport and connect to Nova via digital coaxial cable. Eventually I will buy the squeezebox touch when it become available.

I went over this thread and era speaker thread quite a few times and learned a lot, Thanks.

Is there anyway for me to get my hands on this pot (and related instructions on what to watch out for when I install it) without me sending in the entire unit? I'll just have my friends do the handy work for me.

I own a Nova. The debate now is will a Cullen modded Sonos truly upgrade the sound or isn't it already attempting what the sabre DAC is currently providing. In a different system I have a Modded Cullen Sonos into the Modded PS Audio DAC and the sound is wonderful.

Greetings all - Like a few previous posters on this thread I stumbled across it in a search for info about the Nova. The posts here have been exceptionally helpful and Dave Solomon & co. are clearly a class act with an obvious love of their craft, exactly the kind of outfit I'd like to support.

I'm re-doing my entire system to say good-bye to CDs and upgrading the thing all around - replaced my 15-year-old Cambridge Soundworks satellite system with a pair of B&W 684s, adding a Sonos ZP90 with an HP netbook as a music server, and am trying to figure out what to do about the receiver. The essential feature, of course, is digital inputs and it's been shocking to me how hard this has been to find at any price point (and how many people seem content, after blowing a few grand on quality components and speakers, to pipe all their music through a hissy 1/8" minijack!). At the same time I don't shell out big $$$ for serious audiophile-grade equipment so the prospect of getting the Nova and spending more on the receiver than I did on the speakers isn't the easiest pill to swallow. But I'm on the edge of doing it just the same. It just seems that the Nova has literally no competition if you want to drive a digital music system. Does anyone know of any alternatives to consider before I bite the bullet? So far the only thing I've seen at a lower price point than the Nova with digital ins and sufficient power is the Harman Kardon 3490 but I'm not even sure that's an upgrade over the Carver HTR I'm using now.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts and for all the helpful posts so far.

Just for clarity, the Nova is a two channel integrated amp with a very nice built in DAC. It's not a receiver. With the Nova you'll be improving your two channel sound, but you'll lose surround sound, unless your Carver has pre-outs, which will allow you to take advantage of the home theater bypass feature.

If the Carver has pre-outs, but doesn't handle the digital codecs, you'll be a bit lacking on the home theater end.

Obviously one way to improve your home theater is with a new receiver, and they can be pretty inexpensive, but they're not generally very musical. If you want to improve both your two channel and your home theater, you might consider both an inexpensive HTR and a Nova. The Nova can run all your two channel music, and you can run the Nova in home theater bypass mode for multi channel sources.

If you're giving up on home theater and want very nice two channel, the Nova is a very nice piece. With it you'll still have the option of adding a receiver later, and running through the Nova in bypass mode.

I hope that makes sense.

It's really a matter of what you want to accomplish, and how much you are willing to spend.

Yes, I should have mentioned, this is just about getting the best stereo music listening experience I can, I don't care about home theater. So all I need is something to feed the B&Ws with some kind of digital input to get the 1s and 0s from the Sonos.

In that case the Nova is definitely worth considering. It's a nice amp. It's a very nice preamp. It's an exceptionally nice DAC.

When I say that what I really mean is that this device delivers digital music in a way that might have you wondering if it's the same recording you've been listening to for years.

I got a ZP90 from Cullen ... I have it hooked up to my NOVA+Joseph Audios ....
I was really stunned by improvement compared to regular ZP90.

I recommend it highly. It is pricey, so I am sticking to one zone only.

HTH

My personal taste is two channel but it is also logistically prudent. I do not have the time or inclination to have satellites in my living room.

I watch 1080P .mkv in 2 channel from the PC (with FFDshow and the like) or Blu-Ray from the Oppo.

Stunning fidelity that engulfs me in a full-blown audio-visual experience.

Hi All,
Next phase complete. We just launched the iDecco and Decco 2. Both are now live on our site. Same DAC/Pre as the Nova w about 1/2 the inputs and power, but well suited for desktop, stand alone DAC or for a preamp.
The dock on the iDecco is hardwired directly to the DAC and can now truly take the place of a CD player. or at least give you HQ playback through the dock.

Best wishes,
David

Okay, we are sitting patiently, waiting for phase 3

Congrats on the Decco2 and iDecco.

Phase 3 in development as we speak...
This is sooo much fun!

Phase 3 (*cough BNC) sounds really fun! enjoy!

Sorry if this is a silly question, but is it possible to run a "firmware" update on the DAC in the original Decco? (Or this this a hardware upgrade?)

And is there a big difference between docking an iPod on the Decco and streaming iTunes through an Airport Express/optical cable to the Decco?

I am interested in your test. Do you know if Nova re-sampling when you feed it 24/96? Did you compare feed Nova 24/96 with feed native sample rate and let Nova do the up-sampling, did you hear any difference.

The reason I am ask is that I bought a Yamaha DVD-S1800BL player from Amazon that allows you to set either output 48 or 96. Thanks you.

I'll throw out something that might help, but I have to admit that I sometimes get confused, so feel free to set me straight.

If the 48 or 96kHz setting in your player is a limit only, and it does no upsampling, 96kHz would likely be a safe bet, since all you are telling the player to do is pass along the signal.

That said, chances are the only digital signal you might be passing along to the Nova from your universal player is redbook cd at 16/44.1. The Nova will likely do a nicer conversion than your player, but you'll want to audition to be sure.

I suppose you might also be considering sending downmixed 2 channel LPCM to the Nova. I haven't tried this since I also have a multi channel receiver in the mix, and my player is decoding the multi channel source material.

All that said, it doesn't hurt to audition the different options, and believe your ears.

If I got something wrong here please refer to the disclaimer above.

You guys on this forum talk way over my head. I do not understand 95% of the techinical information discussed here. That's OK, I envy all of you for having the IQ to understand it.

I do understand one thing---I am so happy with the way this system sounds! I had read about a "burn-in" on the Nova, and a "break-in" on the Totem Arros, and that sounded strange to me. We have had the system for about 2 months and I can honestly say, "it's a fact". I don't understand how, or why it works, but it does. I listen to the system with the Sonos (90 hidden in back of Nova) and am amazed! When I first got the system I was worried about not having enough bass but held off on a sub-woofer purchase. The Arros have 10 lbs. of lead shot in each, and with the hours we have put on the Nova and speakers have made the need of a sub-woofer a mute point, saving me $$$$.

To say we are thrilled is a understatement. This system seems so simple.

(1) Nova---with Sonos hidden in back (w/Raphosdy account)

(2) Totem Arro Speakers

THAT'S IT---That's all we see in or living room. Endless music selections, clear clean crisp sound, 1 classic looking componet, and 2 speakers.

Ok guys, just wanted to let you all know that I love this system!!!

"Thank You" to those who build this equipment, and those that understand it, and push the creators to improve the systems. Oh yeah,,,the musicians too.

Hi Terrya, thank you for your answer. the Yamaha user manual didn't say clearly if the player will do up-sampling or not, here is what I copied from the manual:
"48KHz
Select this to play back discs recorded at the sampling rate
of 48 kHz. All 96 kHz PCM data streams (if available) are
converted to the sampling rate of 48 kHz.
96KHz
Select this to play back discs recorded at the sampling rate
of 96 kHz. If the 96 kHz disc is copy protected, the digital
output is automatically converted to a sampling rate of 48
kHz.


I am under impression that Nova can not decode multi-channel so you have to send downmixed 2 channel LPCM to Nova. Am I worng? However, this player can not send multi-channel digital signal out but only analog so it probably doesn't matter anyway.

Sure I will be test both case and I will report back my finding. This will be something next week or later, because the Nova is at the dealer's office and he is waiting for the Era D5 to arrive sometime next week so I can pick them all together. I bought this player because It also support SACD playback so I am going to test that with a Hybrid SACD to see if I can hear any difference.

I suspect this setting is simply used to limit the sample rate to what the receiver or amp can handle. As I suggested earlier, you're probably only going to let the Nova decode cds, which are 44.1kHz. So either setting will probably yield the same results.

That said, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to audition 96kHz DVD-D audio to the Nova, but if it's protected it will be downsampled to 48kHz and likely won't sound as good as the analog signal to the Nova. Then it will be a matter of knowing what's downsampled and what isn't. Probably easier to let the player handle it unless the auditions make it obvious that you want the Nova to do the conversion. I'd be surprised if that's your conclusion.



You are correct. The Nova is two channel and needs to see a 2 channel LPCM signal.



I'd be surprised if this is true, but if you are connected only to the Nova, 2 channel is all you get. For the most part, 2 channel is much cooler anyway.


The Nova has a really nice DAC, but if the CD layer sounds better converted by the DAC in the Nova than the SACD layer decoded by your player, you might want to rethink your new player. I think you're going to find the sound of the SACD layer to be richer, less truncated, and more organic. It'll still benefit from the quality of the preamp and amp in the Nova however. You should enjoy a nice listening experience that only gets better over time.

FWIW I'm using all analog and all digital outputs from my player. They all get used. It's easy to do an A/B comparison. I've concluded that letting the player handle the hi rez material, and letting the Nova upsample the low rez material (including redbook cd) renders the most pleasing results.

Hi everyone,

I'll be using the Novas with a Wadia 170i transport to decode Apple Lossless files on my iPod.

My question to those with more knowledge than I have is this: the Nova provides 80 watts X 2 channels (into 8 ohms -- at least that's what some info on the web says, like specs at the Crutchfield site, but the manual says "into 6 ohms") in a hybrid tube/solid-state design. The speakers I'm currently most interested in (Salk SongTowers, 4 ohms nominal, specs here: salksound.com/speakers_songseries_songtowerqwt_specs.shtml) recommend 30-150 tube watts and 80-250 solid state watts. Any thoughts on whether the Nova has sufficient power for these? Will I run into any problems if I pair the Nova with the SongTowers? Anyone done this? [this will be in a large DR/LR space, approx. 17' X 35', hardwood with rugs]

Thanks for any advice, I really appreciate it.

Sorry, I think I did not stated 100% correct. It should be "this player WILL NOT output 5.1 sound from either SACD's or DVD-A's digitally (via HDMI or Optical)."

I have not compared the upsampling in the DAC to my software upsampler.

This is due to the fact that my sound card locks sample rate at 96kHz and doesn't auto-switch sample rates. since I do a Purevinyl type RIAA setup (but on Windows) and have quite a bit of 96kHz downloads and vinyl rips.

I just leave the system at 96kHz.... it's really a pain to have to switch anytime anything other than 96khz is queued, and I'm lazy.

If I get the chance to compare I will, but pretty busy.

Sounds like if you don't hear a difference you would just leave your player at 96kHz, and be lazy like me.

DC

Thank you doctor

I thought I'd chime in with my experiences with the PT Nova. My reasons for purchasing it were a bit different but demonstrate another angle on why the PT is a good product. I have a 5.1 AVR system with a low to mid level AVR with pre-outs. I recently upgraded my front speakers to Paradigm Studio 20's which of course led me to want to improve the quality of my amp and music listening experience.

I looked at upgrades to the AVR like the Arcam 600 or 500 or the NAD T785. Both seemed like good options but they're very expensive and also seem to have some growing pains with HDMI.

I considered separating the two systems, getting an integrated amp, and using a switch on the front speakers but that seemed onerous.

With some time and research, I eventually came upon the PT. The HT bypass brought it all together. Now I have a stereo only high quality music listening system for CDs, DVD-As, SACDs via a Yamaha DVD750 universal player and for LPs with a Project Debut III turntable and phonostage. For TV and BluRays, I have a reasonably good system with the AVR driving the center and surrounds and the PT driving the front speakers and sub. I'm less concerned with movie and TV sound quality than music quality so this set up works for me. I've sacrificed the multi-channel portion of my DVD/As and SACDs for now. If necessary, I can run some cables to my AVR for low-fi multi-channel music.

On the analog vs. digital topic and byy's post, my Yamaha manual has the same exact text. I concluded that by using an analog connection from the Yamaha to the PT and using the Yamaha's DAC (which goes to 24 / 192), I would get the best quality sound from DVD/A's. I have both optical and analog connections hooked up so I can compare them. For now, I'm using analog with hi-rez DVD/As and SACDs and LPs, and toslink for regular CDs. I'd like to hear others opinion on this too.

Anyway, I've had the PT for several weeks now and am happy with it overall and would recommend it. It works well for my complicated requirements:

ATV to PT (toslink)
Project Debut III turntable to PT (analog)
Yamaha DVD-750 Univeral player to PT (analog and toslink)
Sony BD HDMI to AVR
DirecTV DVR HDMI to AVR
WII - composite to AVR
Yamaha RX-V665 AVR (aka "the cheapest AVR with pre-outs")
Samsung LCD - one HDMI from the AVR
Paradigm Studio 20 v5 Front speakers
Paradigm Titan surround speakers (the older model)

snip

My system is set up about like yours. I run a toslink from my player to the Nova, and a coax from my player to my home theater receiver. This allows for faux surround sound when I want it. I'd like to swap these but I've used up all my toslinks to the receiver, so it gets the coax out. These connections are exclusively for redbook cd. I play 2 channel to the Nova alone 99% of the time.

I'm also using the multi channel analog out from my player to my receiver. While I tend to prefer two channel, and often target the 2 channel layer of hi rez multi channel disks, some hi rez recordings (Diana Krall, Dark Side of the Moon, Jazz at the Pawnshop, etc) really sound nice in multi channel.

I've also got an express bringing itunes to the Nova via toslink, and an express bringing itunes to my home theater receiver via toslink. This way I can do two channel or faux multi channel itunes as well. I run in 2 channel mode to the Nova 99% of the time.

My turntable plays only through the Nova. No subwoofer. No surround. Just beautiful organic 2 channel.