Title: USB NOS1 first impression w/768 driver Post by: KnB on September 16, 2011, 12:36:07 pm Finally I made it home again were my usb dac have been waiting.
My system have changed a lot and a direct comparison with the original nos1 will be impossible. First feedback sent to Peter this morning; Peter, W7 vanilla now, have not done any proper test, but find the sounds more natural now, heights are more smote, I think it was sticking out more with sp1. Yes more organic is the word I would use. AND YES this exceeds my expectations, witch was already high... What have you done? my system is totally changed and cant find any downside...... Was very happy with my old dac, but can not start to explain the changes, it is impossible. Thanks, this is what its all about! Note that I have not tried the 384 driver, went directly to the brand new 768. Back to the music :grazy: Title: Re: USB NOS1 first impression w/768 driver Post by: manisandher on September 17, 2011, 01:16:43 am It's late and I've just returned home after some work travel. Although I'm absolutely shattered, I just had to write something before going to sleep.
I think the new 768 driver might be the single biggest improvement Peter has ever made! Why? Because it finally allows Arc Prediction to sound as it should. I've just compared 4x, 8x and 16x AP, and it seems pretty obvious to me that none of us have really been hearing what AP is really capable of... until now. Peter, thanks so so so much for sticking with the challenge of getting 24/768 out of a computer. I don't know how much effort you put into this, but all I can say is that it has paid off. For the rest of you, I know that sometimes my enthusiasm can get the better of me, but nevertheless, I've always tried to be as objective and fair as possible in my posts. But to hell with objectivity right now. Beg, borrow or steal (well, preferably not steal) what you need to get hold of a USB NOS1 - it's the only way you'll ever be able to hear 16x AP. I'll post more thoughts tomorrow... Mani. Congrats KnB! Title: Re: USB NOS1 first impression w/768 driver Post by: Nick on September 18, 2011, 06:35:17 pm KnB,
Congratulations from me also, I hope you are enjoying it all the more after the wait. Mani I tend to agree the 768 driver does something very, very special indeed. Just got back after a weekend away and cannot draw myself away from listening. I have been trying a few settings and seem to have come across a sweet spot. Basically I have started with Perter's signature settings with the following changes. USB buffer set to 4ms in the NOS USB driver control panel buffer settings tab. In XX I have the buffer set to 3072 using adaptive mode, and CPU scheme 2 set in processor settings. Could be specific to my system but I'm getting a really engaging and very nice sound from these settings. See what you think guys. Best nick. Title: Re: USB NOS1 first impression w/768 driver Post by: PeterSt on September 18, 2011, 08:19:42 pm Ok, what I get from it, is that there are a couple of guys out there who don't get any sleep anymore, drink too much, ask me where they are, and don't have any time to put up some real posts.
But I can summarize this in advance; Here's a compilation of phrases that were sent to me lately (in random sequence of state of the owner) : (oh, I hope you don't mind, but this is all out of context of course, but NOS1 related anyway. No no, the Holy Cow's are not about breaking windows ... :)) YEAAAA it's just soooooooooooooo gooooooooooood, see i'm having resort to longer words to elevate my superlatives. this is something everybody can hear after 2 seconds. AND YES this exceeds my expectations, witch was already high... What have you done? Bloody hell I'm so impressed - again ! Surely we've reached the endpoint now? How many times have we said this though??? Again thanks for great sound!! It shows 32 - 705600 on the xx front page. ANother ting: I have increased the volume on the bass system. Could not get to bed last night/morning, tired as hell but what a nice time!!!! sound are very open, and there cant be much more to remove.. my system is totally changed and cant find any downside...... I'm running out of effective language ! And obesely another(or 2-3) blanket are removed from the sound stage This is just fantastic!!! just felt like shouting it out!!! I should sleep now, but I guess not, hehe. just to let you know I have sound, now I need some time, but here is a big change Holly cow!!!! Volume is not important, at least for now :) What stroke immediately was the amount of details (organic), speed, bass definition. I have not slept on 2 days..... Still I cant describe sound changes, I do not find the words.. because of this driver, I have a completely new DAC now! Sorry, I've had too many sleepless nights lately... Thanks, this is what its all about! I don't want to stop listen to music. Thanks Peter I really was not ready for this at all can not start to explain the changes, it is impossible. Ok. Testimony this testimony that, and I am really not like that. But mind the last one - each of the "contenders" said something like that, and I was the first one. It needs new vocabulary - somehow. So, this must be why the extended descriptions stay away thus far, right guys ? haha What is (the most) important for me anyway, is that this is all about existing NOS1 users. So, it is relative to the original NOS1. And I can tell you - I have been afraid for many weeks. Afraid of that it couldn't be done with USB. It was the most hard I can tell you. But it worked out in the end. Well, that is what my ears told me, but now see above ... :love: Peter Title: Re: USB NOS1 first impression w/768 driver Post by: Nick on September 19, 2011, 08:34:17 pm I have been trying a few settings and seem to have come across a sweet spot. Basically I have started with Perter's signature settings with the following changes. USB buffer set to 4ms in the NOS USB driver control panel buffer settings tab. In XX I have the buffer set to 3072 using adaptive mode, and CPU scheme 2 set in processor settings. Could be specific to my system but I'm getting a really engaging and very nice sound from these settings. An update on these suggested settings, don't bother with them :) I had my DAC misconfigured :(, I should have had switch no. 5 set to on. The settings above were compensating for my misconfiguration. I am back to Peters settings which sound absolutly great again. Nick. Title: Re: USB NOS1 first impression w/768 driver Post by: boleary on May 15, 2012, 04:00:38 am Hi Peter, I just spent the last 4 hours glued to my couch. My wife came in at one point and asked me to please never change a thing again. Acording to her, "This is all I've been asking for all along, the sound is so sweet and detailed." She then described it as the sound of a two inch tape used in a recording studio. Never having been in a recording studio I wouldn't know, but the sound is the best ever.
I can't believe it still has to break in. Thank You so very, very much. Brian Title: Re: USB NOS1 first impression w/768 driver Post by: PeterSt on May 16, 2012, 09:59:19 am Hey Brian,
So the best got better again eh ? Well, that was the intention. Now wait until you hear 0.9z-7 and find yourself *under* the couch for a couple of hours. But women are strange creatures, aren't they ? Not from you(r wife) alone I slowly learned that women hardly ever like men's audio hobby, but that this will be so because we men think all sounds okay, while the woman thinks it sounds like sh*t. We want it to sound good, while they just perceive it without real notion, except for that it disturbs in the first place. But probably distorts. Your remark about "a wife" suddenly being explicitly interested in "music" has come across a dozen times in this forum, and even more by private email (with delicate examples, hahaha). One can also see this happening by the example of regularly people coming by (visitors) and obviously the chance that the man (or woman) is an audio freak is small. Now, don't think the man will ever say something about good sound or anything. He is just not interested, apart from possibly knowing - and liking the music (or not). With the woman there's -in my experience- always a remark in the sense of "oh, and ah" and "sounds so real here !". Such a woman is considered to be the same woman as our wives. Women seem to have sensors we should have too but which have been forgotten to apply in our bodies. I think we all know about the curled toes in our shoes "if she only doesn't tell me to turn down the volume !". But what, I think, really happens is that at such a moment we sure know things aren't right. We don't want to admit it and we don't want to recognize it. And turning down the volume is no option that I know of (selecting another album is). But I myself recognize that no such thing as being afraid of a question about turning down the volume happened for a year (which is since the NOS1-USB). Things really get good when your wife asks you where the heck actually that volume knob sits, and she wants to turn it up (wasn't that Gerard who said something like that ?) haha Peter |