That is the Commscope FFWLCLC42-JXF003
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All very interesting and thanks, Paul. It does indeed appear to be more complex than I’d imagined. Since I’ve got the SFP arriving Wednesday it makes sense to proceed with the cable that is paired with the Finisar transceiver as part of the AD kit. I sure hope this is “the one” for me. Chasing perfection can get quite costly. The Cisco SFP seems intriguing for sure but hopefully I will be satisfied with the Finisar.
Cheers,
Just on sound quality comparisons of these cables, I am firmly of the way of thinking that any sonic differences will be caused by out of audio band noise generated by the convertor at the receiving end. As such my evaluation of such matters is always guided by the ‘the calmer and smoother sound is the better sound’. Any deviation from this mantra will be suggesting that the ‘more detail’ type of sound cause by intermodulation distortion is better but in my experience this always eventually leads to fatigue.
This has so far resulted in me sidestepping optical links because all the ones I have tried have resulted in a slightly fatiguing sound hence why my current favourite solution is an Innuos PhoenixNET which has the calmest sound.
Having said that I am very interested in trying these latest suggestions for SFP. I have a suspicion that the receiving device will also be playing a significant role in the success of the sound of any SFP so it would be useful to know what each SFP is plugged into when reporting back on how they sound.
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Yes, the FMCs matter just as much as SFPs - maybe even more so.
Thanks. That aligns with my thinking and may be why so far I have not been happy with the sound quality of any fibre network.
One possible factor is increased power consumption in fiber solutions which may result in higher noise levels. It appears that if this translates into audible noise, you or your setup could be more susceptible to it. Did you ever try passive DAC cables?
But it seems to me the sound quality characteristics described by various users in relation to the CISCO align with what you’re seeking in sound quality. I look forward to hearing more about your experiences with it. Would it be that simple?
Out of interest, I understand that the new Network Acoustics switch has recommendations from the manufacturer for users not to use the optical connections with its new network switch “because the conversion between an optical and electrical signal undermines the benefits of this approach, the only exception being very long runs of ethernet. These SFP ports are included for ‘use with future products’. “
Perhaps they have come to to the same conclusion as I have regarding the noise of the conversion process outweighing the theoretical noise blocking of using fiber?
Sorry, I’m not quite sure what you mean by passive DAC cables?
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One short remark:
AFAIK, there is no galvanic isolation with DAC cables, so there must not be ground loops between devices.
Matt
Try Network Accoustics. You can return anything after 30 days if you don’t like it. If you love Squeeze (Audio) like I do, you will be very happy with Network Accoustics. It goes very well with Squeeze Sound. But I have everything. Also the Muon Pro filter after the switch. Because everyone needs to know that switches also generate noise and this noise is then reduced again by the Muon Pro filter. I think you won’t think about fiber optics anymore once you hear the combination from Network Accoustics.
Thanks but I suppose Nick never had galvanic isolation
Christian, Thanks. I own the Muon Pro filter and associated cable. I have tried using it between the PhoenixNET and my Oladra but to my ears it either did nothing or possibly even added noise artefacts. Plenty of people swear by the Muon Pro so I will give it another go . . . . . .
In reality I think I have already given up on fiber optics and I am only playing with them whilst I work up some energy for my next large experiment which is going to be building a linear power supply for one of my hi fi devices which has smps in it at the moment. The linear power supply is a big undertaking because of the complexity of the build hence the procrastination.
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Hmmm, can a passive filter add noise? Or noise artifacts? With the Muon Pro Filter the sound opens up further. So you can hear more details here and there. The sound seems louder. The room opens. I totally agree with you and am also very sensitive to louder music. I find it more stressful. That’s why I like the offline sound. The softer and quieter or more analogue digital music sounds (which I also like), you might think that something is wrong. This type of music also has to be critically questioned whether it is correct or not. With my Tempus Switch the sound feels louder, more open and clearer. That was also the case back then with PhoenixNet and Aurender. It’s getting louder. Would mean more stressful for our beloved sound properties. But I think we are on the wrong path to this kind of understanding, whether right or wrong. With the tempo everything becomes more organic, with the squeeze sound it becomes even more solid. Michael Jackson was in front of me at times today. Actually a sound that doesn’t appeal to me at all. Or maybe I don’t know what’s good or bad. Squeeze audio is also louder. Louder than Roon. And would you say Squeeze is therefore noisier? Well, that’s all really funny. So many sound characteristics that I have gotten to know so far. I also lost an Ideon Audio 3R Master Time. Sounded way too thin and at times too stressful to me. I then even switched to the rather poorer coaxial digital 75 ohm output from the Aurender N200. Sounds much more organic and freer. And we’re talking about a significantly worse clock than the one built into the Ideon. Who caused more noise or did the Ideon clean up so much that it sounded so perfect that it was annoying? I don’t know, I didn’t like it. So far I haven’t had a quieter sound with all the switches I’ve owned, rather louder. Listen to Melco S100 with ADOT Fiber Kit, you’ll run away, it sounds terrible. And what was advertised about it…