Snake oil update! 🐍

[steadyshot]

Another free tweak . Run it at very low volume for 2 hours

CASCADE Free Burn-In Disc – Tara Labs – The Cable Technology Leader

taralabs.com

 

[BowsAndArrows]

If you employ a good optical cable you get both total galvanic isolation and low jitter and good bandwidth.Even if 24/192 would not work for my dac I wouldn’t care since the difference from 24/96 is trivial .The cable itself does not radiate to the equipment and other nearby cables and also is immune itself from other nearby emi/rfi that also can transfer to the dac .

So in my case I would not upgrade anything else. I found the sweet spot for me in my current setup.

+1 agree with this as well. but in my case my active speakers don't have coax in, and WiiM pro doesn't have USB-out, so it's the best option overall. i have experimented with Wiim Pro > coax > S/PDIF ipurifier > toslink > speakers vs toslink the whole chain (since i recieved my oyaide DST-75R V2 snake oil special cable!! ). and there isn't much difference, but i reckon with the coax acoustic recordings sound a touch more "organic". it is a subtle difference tho

also +1 for the tara labs free burn in CD it's great for whenever you make a new change in your system. "play it through every week until you don't notice a difference in characteristics" is what they recommend. i do play it every couple of weeks, cos i make a lot of changes

 

[BowsAndArrows]

Many choose to ignore the complexities of engineering sound reproduction devices because they have been commoditized in our society to a certain degree... and also, many forget that science often progresses by choosing a direction that was previously thought to be "wrong" and that dogmatic thinking is not scientific. what IS scientific is understanding the limitations of the methods at our disposal, and having an unbiased view when it comes to hypothesis testing. As george bernard shaw said “All great truths begin as blasphemies.” a famous example in audio is Naim and their complete 180 on power cables. they used to be against the whole thing, and now they have their own line of them. you could call this shameless money grabbing... but idk - the market would weed out this type of thing over time - it's not a sustainable business model to try and "fleece" your customers repeatedly over a long period of time. eventually people will catch on

I'm familiar with some of the tests mentioned in the links above. I particularly remember the stereophile one about amps quite clearly. If you read about the work they did - there are actually a lot of nuances in how you use tools like A/B testing to get to the "truth" in this case. Like in all of science. Some of the excerpts are quite eye-opening. Well worth a read. https://www.stereophile.com/features/113/index.html there were differences that were reproducible in a subset of the listeners. and many of the letters express very nuanced arguments.

Similarly in the goldensound video - he doesn't entirely dismiss the place that measurements have in the hobby - but the key is his understanding of the limitations of the tools we have. you have to listen to what he says, though - its not good enough to click away because you disagree with the title and thumbnail.

I actually think there is a lot more to the nebulous concept of 'SQ' than what we can measure. So I guess I disagree with @onlyoneme as well. I believe trained active listeners would be able to reliably hear differences between DACs and amps even in anechoic chambers, given enough time to get accustomed to the sound and being able to choose what songs/audio clips to A/B with (but not the sequence)....

I'm with @Matterhorn on this one. if you've actually spent time listening to different components like DACs in the same setup then differences are not even subtle in many cases. (i will caveat this by saying that if measurements are complete, and two components measure similarly, then they do also tend to sound similar) i'll try and get into these ideas more in my next snake oil update for now i'm just tryin to keep the peace and trying my best to encourage people to understand that hearing is a complex topic and that there is a lot we don't know about it

 

[steadyshot]

What is your system @bowsandarrows ?

 

[Steve Woodhouse]

Many choose to ignore the complexities of engineering sound reproduction devices because they have been commoditized in our society to a certain degree... and also, many forget that science often progresses by choosing a direction that was previously thought to be "wrong" and that dogmatic thinking is not scientific. what IS scientific is understanding the limitations of the methods at our disposal, and having an unbiased view when it comes to hypothesis testing. As george bernard shaw said “All great truths begin as blasphemies.” a famous example in audio is Naim and their complete 180 on power cables. they used to be against the whole thing, and now they have their own line of them. you could call this shameless money grabbing... but idk - the market would weed out this type of thing over time - it's not a sustainable business model to try and "fleece" your customers repeatedly over a long period of time. eventually people will catch on

I'm familiar with some of the tests mentioned in the links above. I particularly remember the stereophile one about amps quite clearly. If you read about the work they did - there are actually a lot of nuances in how you use tools like A/B testing to get to the "truth" in this case. Like in all of science. Some of the excerpts are quite eye-opening. Well worth a read. I'm familiar with some of the tests mentioned in the links above. I remember the sterophile one about amps quite clearly. If you read about the work they did - there are actually a lot of nuances in how you use tools like A/B testing to get to the "truth" in this case. Like in all of science. Some of the excerpts from the letters are quite eye-opening. Well worth a read. https://www.stereophile.com/features/113/index.html there were differences that were reproducible in a subset of the listeners. and many of the letters express very nuanced arguments.

Similarly in the goldensound video - he doesn't entirely dismiss the place that measurements have in the hobby - but the key is his understanding of the limitations of the tools we have. you have to listen to what he says, though - its not good enough to click away because you disagree with the title and thumbnail.

I actually think there is a lot more to the nebulous concept of 'SQ' than what we can measure. So I guess I disagree with @onlyoneme as well. I believe trained active listeners would be able to reliably hear differences between DACs and amps even in anechoic chambers, given enough time to get accustomed to the sound and being able to choose what songs/audio clips to A/B with (but not the sequence)....

I'm with @Matterhorn on this one. if you've actually spent time listening to different components like DACs in the same setup then differences are not even subtle in many cases. (i will caveat this by saying that if measurements are complete, and two components measure similarly, then they do also tend to sound similar) i'll try and get into these ideas more in my next snake oil update for now i'm just tryin to keep the peace and trying my best to encourage people to understand that hearing is a complex topic and that there is a lot we don't know about it

I don’t agree with everything you’ve said, but you’ve laid out your case in a logical, non-abusive way.

Cheers.

I’d remind everyone:

Matrix HiFi --> Blind testing high end full equipments

 

[BowsAndArrows]

What is your system @bowsandarrows ?

at the moment since i moved, i have a compact system because my listening room is small and i've optimised my setup for near-field listening... i have a WiiM pro>coax(Oyaide DST-75R V2)>ifi S/PDIF iPurifier>toslink (ludic orpheus optical)>vanatoo transparent zero+ > LFE out (QED reference 40 sub cable) > ruark rs2 sub.

i previously had a bluesound powernode (v2) setup with Q acoustics concept 20 speakers. but the vanatoo + sub sounded better to me and was cheaper + more convenient (less separate boxes etc) for me in my new place especially.

in the past (as a kid) dad was always into hi-fi and he basically always had sony/pioneer separates in his system

 

[Wiimer]

Sorry for the off-topic.
This is an amplifier from a company called "Ause" in Japan. (WATERFALL Power 502L)

WATERFALL Power 502L | 逢瀬

2021/10/13　サイズ表記の修正、サイズ参考写真をアップステレオパワーアンプ / 廉価モデル定価23万円＋税（税込 253000円）WATERFALL Power 500と同等の性能デザインWATERFALL Power 500で採用した内容と同等のnCore＋独自前段回路を搭載しています。上記製品と同等のクオリティを大幅に廉価に実現するのが目標の製品となります。また同じnCoreでもIntegratedで採用されている電源一体型のM

ause-audio.com

This is a power amplifier powered by a Hypex NC500, what do you think of the validity of what is described on this website?

The price is 230,000JPY(+10%TAX)/1,500USD.
Do you think it's worth the price?

Thank you.

 

[Mr Ee]

Sorry for the off-topic.
This is an amplifier from a company called "Ause" in Japan. (WATERFALL Power 502L)

WATERFALL Power 502L | 逢瀬

2021/10/13　サイズ表記の修正、サイズ参考写真をアップステレオパワーアンプ / 廉価モデル定価23万円＋税（税込 253000円）WATERFALL Power 500と同等の性能デザインWATERFALL Power 500で採用した内容と同等のnCore＋独自前段回路を搭載しています。上記製品と同等のクオリティを大幅に廉価に実現するのが目標の製品となります。また同じnCoreでもIntegratedで採用されている電源一体型のM

ause-audio.com

This is a power amplifier powered by a Hypex NC500, what do you think of the validity of what is described on this website?

The price is 23JPY(+10%TAX)/1,500USD.
Do you think it's worth the price?

Thank you.

Yeah... just get one!

 

[bherren]

Sorry for the off-topic.
This is an amplifier from a company called "Ause" in Japan. (WATERFALL Power 502L)

WATERFALL Power 502L | 逢瀬

2021/10/13　サイズ表記の修正、サイズ参考写真をアップステレオパワーアンプ / 廉価モデル定価23万円＋税（税込 253000円）WATERFALL Power 500と同等の性能デザインWATERFALL Power 500で採用した内容と同等のnCore＋独自前段回路を搭載しています。上記製品と同等のクオリティを大幅に廉価に実現するのが目標の製品となります。また同じnCoreでもIntegratedで採用されている電源一体型のM

ause-audio.com

This is a power amplifier powered by a Hypex NC500, what do you think of the validity of what is described on this website?

The price is 230,000JPY(+10%TAX)/1,500USD.
Do you think it's worth the price?

Thank you.

You're better off getting one of the many nCoreX ones around for similar prices or even cheaper (I'm very happy with my Apollon NCx500 personally). Provides they ship to .jp of course...

 

[waldo]

Sorry for the off-topic.
This is an amplifier from a company called "Ause" in Japan. (WATERFALL Power 502L)

WATERFALL Power 502L | 逢瀬

2021/10/13　サイズ表記の修正、サイズ参考写真をアップステレオパワーアンプ / 廉価モデル定価23万円＋税（税込 253000円）WATERFALL Power 500と同等の性能デザインWATERFALL Power 500で採用した内容と同等のnCore＋独自前段回路を搭載しています。上記製品と同等のクオリティを大幅に廉価に実現するのが目標の製品となります。また同じnCoreでもIntegratedで採用されている電源一体型のM

ause-audio.com

This is a power amplifier powered by a Hypex NC500, what do you think of the validity of what is described on this website?

The price is 230,000JPY(+10%TAX)/1,500USD.
Do you think it's worth the price?

Thank you.

Maybe the best way to answer your question is to use the service listed on their 貸出 page.
Ause apparently will loan these out free for one-week auditions. You'd only pay for shipping from/back to them.

 

[Wiimer]

@bherren, @waldo, and @Mr Ee,

Thanks for the helpful suggestions.

Sorry, I should have clarified the intent of the question. What I want to know is not what this amp sounds like. This is about the description of the amplifier written here.

The web page reads:
"Equipped with an original countermeasure circuit that corrects the imperfections of nCore"

I wanted to hear from people who are familiar with nCore on this.

But this question was too out of place. Sorry.

 

[bherren]

@bherren, @waldo, and @Mr Ee,

Thanks for the helpful suggestions.

Sorry, I should have clarified the intent of the question. What I want to know is not what this amp sounds like. This is about the description of the amplifier written here.

The web page reads:
"Equipped with an original countermeasure circuit that corrects the imperfections of nCore"

I wanted to hear from people who are familiar with nCore on this.

But this question was too out of place. Sorry.

Ah I see. Check ASR maybe for measurements and discussions of ncore ?

 

[Musician]

ok, so now that the dust has settled a bit, thought i'd pop in with an update... please don't shoot me, it's not a snake oil update (one of those is coming very soon, and i promise to anyone who cares it's gonna be a good one! )

more of just an expansion on stuff that keeps coming up in other threads but i don't wanna pollute them with my blasphemous ideas!
to those that are clearly in one church OR other (most people on these forums seem to be measurementphiles ), please look away, go "enjoy the music" or whatever you need to do to keep calm before reading this! (mods please don't ban me and @ WiiM team - the offer to shut me up with free prototype mini v2 or ultra is still on the table)

anyways, been catching up on scientific audiophile's youtube content (will refer to him as S|A from now on - very balanced and quite funny) and he's pointing out an issue that comes up a lot. many people on here seem to completely disregard my point when i refer to the "limitations of measurements" (or how we apply them).

in his videos on the WiiM amp and the Fosi audio za3 + v3 - S|A points out important measurements that many reviewers almost never perform (erin's audio corner does some like the pink noise test on amps) and the ways that manufacturers can "game the system" (does anyone remember the VW fiasco?!! ) by making sure that the products test well under "standard ideal testing conditions" that they know the popular reviewers are going to use. (check out his short video on the za3 if you want to see a great example)

for example many of these new amps can easily play a 1 KHz test tone at the rated SPL through the speakers as mentioned on the spec sheet, but when a complex signal is used like pink noise (or multitone tests, or actual music) then they are NOT able to meet the specs they claim. obviously this affects every manufacturer to some degree or another - but it's much more rampant in the lower end class D amps than it is in the old-school class A or class A/B ones for example. this is what andrew robinson meant when he says "the problem with measurements is that they tend to show you the best WORST-case scenario" (and sometimes only that) in his "head to head" video of the WiiM amp vs onkyo AVR from @D1N0 's interesting thread...

the reason i need to point this out is because issues such as this would probably be quite apparent if you listened to an amp like this closely enough in a practical and realistc listening environment! you would maybe notice the lack of dynamics at medium listening levels, and obviously the lack of volume when you try to crank it up... i mean shocking, right?! you mean you actually need to listend to an audio reproduction device to evaluate it? haha!!

(as a side note - i DO NOT recommend listening to music loud (>75dB) for periods longer than a few minutes at a time WITH BREAKS!! acoustic damage that causes hearing loss is real, people - and i don't hear enough people talking about this tbh . it's worth pointing out much of these specific issues highlighted here might not apply to playing music at "normal" listening levels <70dB)

but anyways maybe these ideas can demonstrate the value of combining both listening and measurements when evaluating equipment, and trying to improve the application of both. and just to remind people that they are NOT mutually exclusive! after all - scientific thinkers must have an open enough mind to discover something new, right? all of this applies to snake oil stuff as well, by the way.

Dont pay attention to scientific audiophile in this case .
Amirms review of the WiiM amp shows multitone at 5 W and the distortion is very low ( 0,002 % ) even when playing many tones at the same time. Im sure the WiiM amp can give a lot more than 5 W with multitone If the distortion criteria would be 1 %.

 

[harkpabst]

Dont pay attention to scientific audiophile in this case .
Amirms review of the WiiM amp shows multitone at 5 W and the distortion is very low ( 0,002 % ) even when playing many tones at the same time. Im sure the WiiM amp can give a lot more than 5 W with multitone If the distortion criteria would be 1 %.

This test performed by Amirm did not even try to determine the max. output power for (whatever configuration of) multitone signals. He's just been measuring THD at a predefined 5 W output.

Scientific Audiophile is not scientific at all. That's a real shame, because scrap like that keeps us from concentrating on areas that really might have potential for improvement.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

Dont pay attention to scientific audiophile in this case .
Amirms review of the WiiM amp shows multitone at 5 W and the distortion is very low ( 0,002 % ) even when playing many tones at the same time. Im sure the WiiM amp can give a lot more than 5 W with multitone If the distortion criteria would be 1 %.

i don't really care tbh - i don't place too much emphasis on any one opinion that i encounter in the wild. + i'm not in the market for an amp anyways, so i'm just posting stuff on here so that everyone can maybe be exposed to some stuff that their youtube algorithm wouldn't show them... some people seem to already have preconceived ideas about things they don't even have direct experience of, so i'm trying to balance the conversation somewhat - i don't have a horse in the race

and yeah, @harkpabst if you actually watch the dude's other videos, you could gain from the tone that he's not trying to be so literal with everything... it's more of a light-hearted, humorous take on the topics.

 

[harkpabst]

@BowsAndArrows, you once mentioned that our view on music reproduction might not be as different as I think it was. Still not sure about that, but I must admit that your fluid and elegant style of writing catches me all the time. I wish I could master your language in a similar manner to express my thoughts.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

@harkpabst I think your posts are very articulate especially for sharing your thoughts on a complex topic in a different language!? hark Besides - chat GPT will be installed in your glasses/headphones/hearing aids in the future, so no need to worry about learning anything anymore haha

I'll be posting a lengthy snake oil update in the next couple of days. Hopefully it'll be entertaining for the group

 

[alpha_zulu]

And yes, sometimes it is difficult for a German to share and/or understand other languages' between-the-lines.

Yes indeed! Where can I sign?
That's why reading (and writing) here is a good exercise for me to improve my English.

 

[BowsAndArrows]

ok guys, enough teasing! time for the latest SNAKE OIL UPDATE! (SOU)
many thanks to @harkpabst and @Fender for encouraging me to continue to spew nonsense! i'm humbled. hopefully this doesn't disappoint... also a thanks to all those who are participating in the thread and keeping things relaxed. i might finally be able to see/hear beyond Black and White albums now and percieve some of the wonderful colours in life!!

(the B+W playlist is available at: https://open.qobuz.com/playlist/20768317 please feel free to add any albums that have B+W covers to it. )

all the "tweaks" will be graded in out of 5.

Since the last SOU i've made the following modifications to my system:

1. active speakers are now powered with: Audiophonics 24V/100W LPSU () + Titan Audio Nyx power cable () + MCRU (No. 18 model - really beefy cable) figure-8 power cable for subwoofer ()
2. all ICs have been "upgraded" () - returned the QED reference 40 subwoofer cable in lieu of the viablue NF-B cable with tellurium copper connectors + switched from Fisual pearl "medical-grade" plastic toslink>minitoslink cable to Oyaide DST-75R V2 coax (to connect WiiM Pro > ifi S/PDIF ipurifier)
3. optimised my Atacama speaker stands by filling them with Atacama atabites. ()
4. begun the process of treating anything that seems reasonable to me with fo.Q** special proprietary broad-spectrum damping materials developed with the support of JST (Japan Science and Technology Agency)! ( ) WARNING - extreme danger of snake-oil poisoning with these items. caution when procuring the products is essential, as imperfections in the cold storage chain can impact the performance and safety profile of the snake oil. Handling by untrained professinals is NOT advised!! I will not be held liable for any personal injuries sustained when handling or listening to the effects of these items - including but not limited to throwing your back out while busting a move to some Daft Punk. i started with my speaker>stand interaction. i've placed the fo.Q SB-2025 audio boards under my speakers on top of the stands (swapped out the Fluance high-density acoustic foam pads) and i've added the fo.Q CP-02 carbon fibre spacers underneath my PSUs (topping p50 LPS + audiophonics LPS).
5. Placed the entire digital chain of the signal on an (as of yet) unreleased bamboo, carbon fibre + liquidmetal "independetly-suspended multi-platform hydraulic component mounting system" (ISMPHCMS). () developed by Furutech in collaboration with Shunyata Research and Quantum Science Audio (QSA). they were giving these away at the bristol Hi-Fi show and i won one at the hot dog eating contest that QSA held on the sunday! apparently these will be released later on in 2024 alongside a bigger version that can accomodate chunky traditional separates. keep an eye out for them at Munich high-end. but be careful, this stuff is really RADIOACTIVE snake oil foo and it is not recommended AT ALL, outside of carefully monitored experiments. i think it looks pretty cool too

some eye candy for you pervs:


that's the digital signal chain sitting on the ISMPHCMS - WiiM pro sitting on the top platform
i know my cable management leaves much to be desired!! (any suggestions? preferably i don't wanna involve something like blu-tac)


the WLAN repeater in bridge mode - sitting on top of a double layer EMI shield "protecting" the digital chain below


speakers on top of the fo.Q audio boards



the Titan Audio NYX power cable going into the audiophonics LPS



Atabites - better than sand or lead imo. no fuss, no cleanup and hopefully non-toxic!

ok so now onto the impressions:

The biggest difference overall was from 1. I would even say that this has been a bigger jump in SQ than when i switched from wifi in my WiiM pro to ethernet (via a tp-link WLAN repeater in bridge mode) which was previously the biggest jump.
The sound is so much more textured and immediate... overall so much more enjoyable. I guess it's because the DAC/amp + crossover (in the active speakers) are all happier now with a cleaner sip of water from the LPS?!
I've noticed less fatigue/discomfort from listening at higher (than my average SPL levels). It's weird - the music is not as "annoying" to my ears over extended periods of listening... I rarely ever listen to music over 75 dB (peak) for longer than 20-30 minutes without a break, and this would usually come naturally sort of like when you've quenched your thirst... But recently it's been tempting to just keep listening to whatever is playing! so i have to consiciously take breaks now!! i’m now enjoying listening to overplayed songs that i’m very familiar with, too i found myself listening to "Duality" by Slipknot on repeat just because i was enjoying how amazing the drums sounded!

another thing that i noticed is that recordings seem to have an increased dynamic range - even those that are known to have been compressed in the loudness wars. e.g. i can still feel the percussion in my chest when listening, but i can do this at lower overall volumes. a cool semi-objective A/B test to do when a new change is made to your system is checking the dB(min) vs dB(max) using your SPL meter when playing the same songs… it’s obv not 100% scientific, but you might be surprised at the results there are other semi-objective benefits that i’ve noticed and pointed out in other posts - improved off-axis performance, more pinpoint soundstage and imaging - creating a “sphere” of music that feels more natural. along with the more subjective improvements like more life-like timbre and the increased “weight” of sounds in the room etc. i was listening to "Lost Forever" by Tony Njoku and now some of the sounds from the piano feel like they're coming out of the walls/cieling! it's a very well recorded album and now i feel really like i'm in the studio when they were recording it. before it felt a bit "detached". similarly when listening to "Birds" by Dominique Fils-Aimé, the double bass in the recording almost bursts out into the room and you "feel" its presence somehow...

Variation in performance of the system seems to have decreased as well. You know the way people say stuff always sounds better at night? Yeh well I was able to test this, and I'm happy to report that now my system pretty much sounds the same whenever I wake it up from sleep. Even when people are supposedly using microwaves etc during the day supposedly causing a reduction in the quality of AC you are getting from the mains outlet. There is still slight "thinning and drying" of the sound at times during the day, but much less than before...

The second biggest difference was with 4 - the fo.Q audio boards under my speakers especially. i noticed that sounds now have a more characteristic decay and harmonics that brings the overall effect closer to that of a live performance with real instruments... e.g. the decay of cymbal hits and rimshots is much more delineated and the timbre of instruments is much more pleasing. whatever you might say about the sonic qualities - the damping performance is truly phenomenal compared to the fluance high density foam. even at loud volumes i cannot feel vibrations at the top of my stands AT ALL (the unfilled part - they are approx 75% full of the atabites). i'm gonna continue to experiment with this vibration damping stuff (the sekf adhesive strips + carbon fibre spacers etc), and i'll see what kind of interesting uses i can come up with. the manufacturer recommends and people on other forums have tried these on capacitors within components + wrapping ICs and other cables in their system with sheets of the stuff. i'm thinking about swapping the fluance foam pad underneath my WiiM Pro for the fo.Q CP-01 carbon fibre spacers and maybe sticking some of the self-adhesive strips on the gaskets of my woofers + sides of the ipurifier etc.

more subtle ones were 2 + 3. i returned the QED sub cable because i didn't notice a difference in sound but i preffered the PRICE of the viablue cable. the rhodium-plated tellurium copper connecter also should (theoretically at least) improve the overall conductivity of the signal path. i did enjoy using the fancy new QED "Analoc 2" connectors cos you feel that you always get a reliable tight contact. but it wasn't enough to justify the price difference and the viablue cable is technically better in almost every single aspect - shielding, conductors etc. (except for flexibility/manouverability - it's much chunkier and the braided weave makes the bending radius even larger)

3 (atabites): i wanted them just to improve the stability of the stands and they did seem to reduce sibilance a slight touch - but it's subtle if there is a difference and keep in mind i only A/B'd this for a few days when i was using the fluance foam pads under my speakers so sonically i would say i'm uncertain they had a clear effect. but the added weight to my stands makes the whole setup feel more secure and high-end (haha how vain are we?)

i'm still evaluating the effect of 5 on my system so i will report back when i'm done with that... + i'm waiting on some ferrite cores and a new LAN cable to use between my WLAN repeater and the WiiM pro too in a common mode noise-rejection configuration... might be tempted to replace the generic cheapo USB cables in my system with supra/oehlbach ones like i advised @wqhpop to get. but overall, i feel like i'm pretty close to extracting the most out of my system from a sound reproduction standpoint, and so most of my future tweaks will probably involve room acoustics or vibration damping.

in the mean time, feel free to share if there's any foo out there that i should be spending my money on instead of pulling the trigger on an AIWA F-880 casette tape deck that i've been eyeing for a year now, and that keeps slowly increasing in price

** a lot of eagle-eyed readers and those trying to "read between the lines" etc will misunderstand my intentions behind introducing the community to this amazing fo.Q brand. i'm not an employee (the company is actually defunct now as far as i can tell ) i'm also not AT ALL trying to say "fo.Q" to the moderators or the users on this forum. just that i love this brand so much, it's now my favourite audio brand of all time even though i've only had the products a few weeks! probably says a lot more about my personality than anything else... i guess you could say i'm fo.Q'ed up in more than one way!

BONUS FOO for every WiiM user - it's Grade AAA premium snake oil available for the extraordinary price of FREE!! all jokes aside, a hi-fi company called audio engineers? must be garbage... right? you can decide for yourself - but i find this to be the most complete burn-in audio available for free that i combine with others. @steadyshot mentioned the excellent tara labs CASCADE CD which is also good. but for extra audiophoolery - you can use the ascending/descending sweeps in these burn in files to test for room modes/other glaring room acoustic issues by ear. + i like the sound of combining white noise, pink noise, blue noise, purple noise and brown noise on the same disc!! (pun intended)

https://audioengineers.eu/burn-in-and-fine-tuning/

 

[onlyoneme]

TL;DR