Oz streamer (not HAKAI)
Posted: 2020-07-29 10:49
I have upgraded my Oz streamer (Snakai?) with a Gigabyte GA-N3150N-D3V motherboard and an RGeek mini ITX case plus power supply.
I guess this is more replacement than upgrade since all I'm retaining are the RAM, SATA cable and SSD.
This brings a nice upgrade in musicality. Sadly my Linn Axis is now my weaker source. Also sadly some of my ripped FLACs sound much worse than the same album via Qobuz. A few years ago I ditched the original CDs, so can't re-rip them. Most of my rips sound great though. I think this may be a result of experimenting with different ripping software years ago, but I can't really remember. I think the good rips were made with DBPoweramp.
My next step will be to replace the hub that connects the streamer and the NAS with a Netgear switch and blue jeans cables. I'm not expecting this to improve my dodgy rips, but I'm curious to hear the impact on sound.
I guess this is more replacement than upgrade since all I'm retaining are the RAM, SATA cable and SSD.
This brings a nice upgrade in musicality. Sadly my Linn Axis is now my weaker source. Also sadly some of my ripped FLACs sound much worse than the same album via Qobuz. A few years ago I ditched the original CDs, so can't re-rip them. Most of my rips sound great though. I think this may be a result of experimenting with different ripping software years ago, but I can't really remember. I think the good rips were made with DBPoweramp.
My next step will be to replace the hub that connects the streamer and the NAS with a Netgear switch and blue jeans cables. I'm not expecting this to improve my dodgy rips, but I'm curious to hear the impact on sound.