Wadia 170iTransport

shack

Wes was at PF and mentioned the Wadia...but not to say it was the end all be all...but that it was a credible alternative. Much different that how a couple of you are trying to portray it.

F1nut

BlueFox wrote: »

Another prolific poster who knows everything, and does not mind telling you so.

Let’s see. Who is more credible? My own ears, along with high-end audio equipment critics who write for major publications, and are paid to evaluate equipment, or some Internet know-it-all.

Hmmmm… Decisions, decisions. Who is more credible?

Well, I guess I will have to go with the respected high-end audio equipment reviewers who know the difference between fact and opinion, versus an Internet know-it-all who thinks his/her/its opinion is a fact, while simultaneously not having the slightest idea as to what they are talking about.

You seem to have a problem with reading comprehension. My comments are based on actual experience, so yeah I know exactly what I'm talking about. You, on the other hand, have no experience with high end CDP's, only a $69 POS unit, so how about you stiffle because you're looking very foolish.

Face

After purchasing gear recommended by critics and on "Class A" lists, I've learned to take their advice with a grain of salt.

IMO, a friend who has experience with the gear and has nothing to gain or lose has more weight.

ben62670

Face wrote: »

After purchasing gear recommended by critics and on "Class A" lists, I've learned to take their advice with a grain of salt.

IMO, a friend who has experience with the gear and has nothing to gain or lose has more weight.

It took me a while to figure that out. Some critics seem to snuggle up with certain companies. Kinda makes you wonder sometimes:rolleyes:

amulford

Another prolific poster who knows everything, and does not mind telling you so.

Let’s see. Who is more credible? My own ears, along with high-end audio equipment critics who write for major publications, and are paid to evaluate equipment, or some Internet know-it-all.

Hmmmm… Decisions, decisions. Who is more credible?

Well, I guess I will have to go with the respected high-end audio equipment reviewers who know the difference between fact and opinion, versus an Internet know-it-all who thinks his/her/its opinion is a fact, while simultaneously not having the slightest idea as to what they are talking about.

Sorry, bud, but you are listening to their opinion. As you are entitled to yours, and everyone else is to their's.

I wouldn't be so quick to proclaim sovereignty. Not good form, you understand. Some people think true analog is still better than digital, are they wrong, too?

You are in the gray area of subjective opininion and personal preference. Leave it at that.

shack

Who is more credible?

Gee who IS more credible A high posting "internet know it all" who I happen to know personally for at least 5 years, who knows more about audio than many of the so called "experts" (I wonder how many of them have ever rebuilt a crossover?) and who's opinion I respect even if I don't agree with it...OR...a low posting "internet know it all" who started posting on this forum 5 months ago and is now going to tell us the error of our opinions....?

Tough choice....

Oh what the hell...I pick F1nut.

amulford

Crossovers? How about his Jolida AA TOP FUEL DRAGSTER MOD

A piece I personally heard, BTW. I'd put dollars to doughnuts that sounds a little better than this Wadia/Ipod bullsh!t...

I was just trying to be PC and sensitive to the FNG's feelings...

george daniel

Who was that masked man with the Jolida? My money's on him.;)

BlueFox

F1nut wrote: »

You seem to have a problem with reading comprehension. My comments are based on actual experience, so yeah I know exactly what I'm talking about. You, on the other hand, have no experience with high end CDP's, only a $69 POS unit, so how about you stiffle because you're looking very foolish.

I started this thread so that individuals who are interested in a music server can have some information on the new Wadia iTransport used with an iPod Classic. I provided my impression, along with two separate reviews, by two separate reviewers, in two separate magazines. This was done to help others make an intelligent decision, or just have some background information, regarding the Wadia iTransport.

Your contribution to the thread has been “I heard a Wadia once, a CD player sounds better. Nobody likes their baby called ugly. Go play with your toys.” Then, because you know everything, you told another poster, who relayed his first hand experience with the Wadia, “I'm not picking on you, but no, it's not that good.”

Very intelligent, very mature, very informative. This is typical of prolific posting Internet know-it-alls. They have little, or no, experience or knowledge of a subject, yet they do not have any problem with putting themselves up as an expert, and state their opinion as fact.

Now to provide some more information for readers who might actually be interested in the subject.

I have been pretty much listening to the Wadia since Friday night, and I love it. This has to be one of the best $500s ($125 iPod Classic, $379 Wadia) I have spent in the audio world. Of course, a DAC is also needed, but I already had a Benchmark DAC1 Pre.

As mentioned in the Wadia reviews posted earlier, the sound of the Wadia is going to be dependant on the DAC used. Since I have only heard a Benchmark DAC1, all I can say here is that there is no apparent difference in sound between the bit stream from my DVD player, and the bit stream from the Wadia. Perhaps another DAC might sound better, or maybe another DAC might sound worse. I do not know, but the DAC1 sounds great. As an FYI, the rest of the system is a Cambridge-Audio 840W power amp, and two PSB Synchrony One towers.

However, the big benefit here is the iPod/Wadia is making a great $500 music server. I have created two play lists, Rock and Roll, and Classical. The RR play list is selected songs from various CDs that are great to exercise with. The Classical play list is, so far, about 20 CDs imported into the iPod. Being a music server, it is possible to quickly select one album, one song, all albums, all songs, shuffle the albums, or shuffle the songs, depending on your listening mood.

Using Apple Lossless encoding for storing music, I have used about 2GB of the 120GB storage on the iPod.

So, if you already own a DAC, and are looking for an inexpensive music server with great sound, I have to recommend this product.

F1nut

Very intelligent, very mature, very informative.

Thanks! I'm also bad and worldwide.

Enjoy the toy.

lakesailor

BlueFox wrote: »

I started this thread so that individuals who are interested in a music server can have some information on the new Wadia iTransport used with an iPod Classic. I provided my impression, along with two separate reviews, by two separate reviewers, in two separate magazines. This was done to help others make an intelligent decision, or just have some background information, regarding the Wadia iTransport.

Your contribution to the thread has been “I heard a Wadia once, a CD player sounds better. Nobody likes their baby called ugly. Go play with your toys.” Then, because you know everything, you told another poster, who relayed his first hand experience with the Wadia, “I'm not picking on you, but no, it's not that good.”

Very intelligent, very mature, very informative. This is typical of prolific posting Internet know-it-alls. They have little, or no, experience or knowledge of a subject, yet they do not have any problem with putting themselves up as an expert, and state their opinion as fact.

Now to provide some more information for readers who might actually be interested in the subject.

I have been pretty much listening to the Wadia since Friday night, and I love it. This has to be one of the best $500s ($125 iPod Classic, $379 Wadia) I have spent in the audio world. Of course, a DAC is also needed, but I already had a Benchmark DAC1 Pre.

As mentioned in the Wadia reviews posted earlier, the sound of the Wadia is going to be dependant on the DAC used. Since I have only heard a Benchmark DAC1, all I can say here is that there is no apparent difference in sound between the bit stream from my DVD player, and the bit stream from the Wadia. Perhaps another DAC might sound better, or maybe another DAC might sound worse. I do not know, but the DAC1 sounds great. As an FYI, the rest of the system is a Cambridge-Audio 840W power amp, and two PSB Synchrony One towers.

However, the big benefit here is the iPod/Wadia is making a great $500 music server. I have created two play lists, Rock and Roll, and Classical. The RR play list is selected songs from various CDs that are great to exercise with. The Classical play list is, so far, about 20 CDs imported into the iPod. Being a music server, it is possible to quickly select one album, one song, all albums, all songs, shuffle the albums, or shuffle the songs, depending on your listening mood.

Using Apple Lossless encoding for storing music, I have used about 2GB of the 120GB storage on the iPod.

So, if you already own a DAC, and are looking for an inexpensive music server with great sound, I have to recommend this product.

You posted a good thread. Don’t be so hard on the ‘Internet experts. I used to be one of them and can say from personal experience it is pretty hard to admit that a $ 200 Ipod + $ 400 Wadia + $ 1000 (or more) DAC can sound pretty close to your $ 2000 (or more) CDP.

Some of us who have spent time with the Ipod/Wadia/DAC can admit that; and others; well they cannot. Don’t worry; there are guys with Ferrari’s who have a hard time admitting that a Corvette Z06 can keep up as well.

Personally I would still take the Ferrari just as I would take the hi-end CDP; however I have no problem admitting that the Wadia is a dammed impressive product when you factor in the price. Is it a toy ? Well if you would be happy to find one under your Christmas tree then I guess it could qualify as a toy. Personally I am OK with that.

hockeyboy

lakesailor wrote: »

Don’t knock it ‘till you try it. It works. Just remember you need a good DAC.

I have a question for the group since I listen to my docked I-Pod all the time (on a Marantz dock). If I get the Wadia, do I really need an external DAC? It seems that the DAC onboard my Marantz 8002 receiver would be a big improvement over the i-Pod DAC.

lakesailor

hockeyboy wrote: »

I have a question for the group since I listen to my docked I-Pod all the time (on a Marantz dock). If I get the Wadia, do I really need an external DAC? It seems that the DAC onboard my Marantz 8002 receiver would be a big improvement over the i-Pod DAC.

Yes, you do need an external DAC to properly take advantage of the Wadia’s abilties; however by definition your Marantz is an external DAC in so far as you would not be using the built in Ipod DAC. Many people mistakenly believe that simply using the Wadia alone will be an “upgrade” in sound quality.

Unfortunately if the Wadia is used as a stand alone unit you end up using the Ipod onboard dac chipsets. I would not suggest that the internal DAC onboard your Marantz would be in the same league as a Benchmark or a PS Audio Digital Link III or a Theta; however I do believe it would yield a considerable sonic improvement over a basic Idock.

Good Luck.

BlueFox

lakesailor wrote: »

I used to be one of them and can say from personal experience it is pretty hard to admit that a $ 200 Ipod + $ 400 Wadia + $ 1000 (or more) DAC can sound pretty close to your $ 2000 (or more) CDP.

Yes, the sound is important, and it would seem that a music server for $1600 that sounds as good, or pretty damn close for the non-believers, as a $2K-$3K single disk CD player is a good deal.

However, when you include the fact the music server holds 100s of CDs, provides instant access to any CD and/or song, allows the CDs/songs to be grouped in playlists, allows CDs to be played individually, sequentally, or randomly, and allows songs to be played individually or randomly shuffle through all the songs, it becomes a really good deal.

Thanks to the Wadia I now listen to much more music than ever before, since it is so easy to let the iPod shuffle through the songs. The drawback is I find myself spending a couple of hundred dollars buying new CDs every 2 weeks to feed the machine. When I purchased the iPod I was thinking that I would be able to buy lossless songs from iTunes, but Apple does not yet offer lossless tracks for sale.

sucks2beme

Look at it this way. You buy cds. You own the content. You can then make it
any format you want, at any bitrate and compression. And if the worse thing
happens, you can use the cds to re-create what you have.
Apple is chained to the content providers, including enforcing
digital rights management. I despise Apple and everything they stand for.
Long story!
I went a different path, using a pc to store the content.
Software was a free download to create the lossless flac.
Same with playback.
The debate of what sounds better will go on. I have heard
high end players, but have not spent any time with one in my system.
I'm fairly happy with the setup I've got. The people here have a lot of
experience with "high end". And with "pro" reviews. I've read some that
hold no water with me what so ever. I would respect the opinion
of many of the Polkies here over the pros. That you can take to
the bank. I know my setup is not high end, but at this stage of my life,
I'm pretty happy with the bank for the buck I got. If you're
happy with yours, then all is good with the world.

F1nut

However, when you include the fact the music server holds 100s of CDs, provides instant access to any CD and/or song, allows the CDs/songs to be grouped in playlists, allows CDs to be played individually, sequentally, or randomly, and allows songs to be played individually or randomly shuffle through all the songs, it becomes a really good deal.

I agree. It's perfect for those with Attention Deficit Disorder.

sucks2beme

F1nut wrote: »

I agree. It's perfect for those with Attention Deficit Disorder.

You know, I got a lecture last year on how CDP's were useless.
They were ok if you were doing something else, but real music
needed vinyl. If you couldn't get up every 20 minutes to flip
an album, you needed another hobby!
Each to their own. I still listen to my collection like albums.
I load one up, play it through, and then get up to choose another.
I know somewhere in the back of my brain I could create a playlist,
but old habits die hard.

BlueFox

sucks2beme wrote: »

You know, I got a lecture last year on how CDP's were useless.
They were ok if you were doing something else, but real music
needed vinyl. If you couldn't get up every 20 minutes to flip
an album, you needed another hobby!
Each to their own. I still listen to my collection like albums.
I load one up, play it through, and then get up to choose another.
I know somewhere in the back of my brain I could create a playlist,
but old habits die hard.

What I like is having the choice. Listen to the entire CD if that's the mood, or shuffle the songs of all CDs if that's the mood.

sucks2beme

BlueFox wrote: »

What I like is having the choice. Listen to the entire CD if that's the mood, or shuffle the songs of all CDs if that's the mood.

It's not my mood. I listen by album. The wife is a shuffler.
She doesn't enjoy music the same way I do. She's like 95%
of people out there. She couldn't tell the difference between
the low bitrate mp3 or flac, tube or SS. OF course, I can't see
the difference in home decor either. That's HER deal.
It's why these debates rage on.

BlueFox

The latest info on the Wadia iTransport. In the January 2009 issue of “the absolute sound” they name the Wadia iTransport as the “Next-Gen Digital Product Of the Year”, and say;

“..this innovation turns your iPod and outboard DAC into a no-sonic compromise music server you can use in a high-end system. The only requirement is that you store music on your iPod in a lossless format.”

And

“No other product we’ve seen in the last year is as revolutionary as Wadia’s iTransport.”

I have had the Wadia for almost 2 months, and now have about 500 “songs” stored on it. Other than 5 R&R songs the rest are classical albums. At this point I have used 12GB of the 120GB storage. On weekends I start the random shuffle of the songs, and even running non-stop it cannot play them all.

As they play I continue to be amazed at how great the music sounds through the Benchmark DAC1. What a great “toy”.

F1nut

Kool-Aid by the gallon.

BlueFox

Progress report time, I now have 718 “songs” on the iPod, which uses about 30GB out of the 120GB. Other than five R&R songs, the rest are classical. This means a song length ranges from 3 minutes to 20 minutes.

Musically, I continue to be amazed at how great this thing sounds. Of course, since the Wadia provides a bit perfect digital output stream from the iPod, the sound quality is primarily determined by the DAC being used. In my case, it is a Benchmark Dac1 Pre. I recently upgraded the digital interconnect from the stock cable to a Mapleshade cable, and that made a great sounding “toy” sound even better. Without a doubt, the Wadia and iPod have been a great purchase.

There just is not any way a CD player can compete with a music server and a DAC. The CD player is now the whip from the horse and buggy days.

F1nut

Put your money where your mouth is or STFU.

Face

bluefox wrote: »

there just is not any way a cd player can compete with a music server and a dac. The cd player is now the whip from the horse and buggy days.

:rolleyes:

f1nut wrote: »

kool-aid by the gallon.

heiney9

BlueFox wrote: »

There just is not any way a CD player can compete with a music server and a DAC. The CD player is now the whip from the horse and buggy days.

:rolleyes::rolleyes: I have both and while the music server is still new and I haven't spent a lot of time with it, not sure this is a true statement. So far I've been impressed. Both my cdp and Squeezebox use the same DAC. But give about 6 months of really doing some critical listening and then perhaps I'll agree.............but don't let the utter convenience of the music server cloud your judgment at this point.

The Squeezebox is certainly cool and the convenience factor is way off the charts...................but the jury is still out (for me) about whether it's as good as a stand lone cdp and DAC.

H9

P.s. Also the Ipod is NOT an audiophile device nor are the Itunes you are using. I rip all my own music using EAC to FLAC and keep it on a 750G hard drive.

P.s.s I forgot your using that iPod thingy :thumbs down: The Squeezebox is the next level or two up from an iPod regardless of what interphase product you're using Garbage in/Garbage out.

adam2434

Looking one of these Wadia things objectively, seems like it could be a capable transport if

1) It's using an error-free lossless or wav rip (errors in ripping or lossy formats would obviously compromise final sound quality)

2) It produces bit-perfect spdif

3) Its spdif is low in jitter and noise

or

4) Your DAC, system's resolution, and/or ears are insensitive to jitter or any other limitations it may have


2) through 4) really apply to any transport.


Whether it is as good as a CD transport, PC soundcard spdif, or Squeezebox spdif is in the ears of the beholder. Some folks report hearing differences in transports, others don't. Much of this could be determined by the quality and type of DAC you're using, and how resolving the rest of your system is.

Subjectively, I would not have a use for this product, as I don't own an iPod, nor would I buy one for the purpose of using the Wadia thing. I recently got a Squeezebox and stream FLAC, sending spdif to an external DAC. However, the Wadia certainly seems like it would deliver against its design goal of maximizing the potential sound quality from an iPod. That certainly doesn't prove it produces reference quality though.

Personally, I would have healthy skepticism and an open mind at the same time.

Fongolio

Why not just agree to disagree. Name calling and mud slinging is not necessary. I've heard high end cdp's that are mind blowing. I am NOT a fan of Ipod or Apple but I have read the articles discussed above and logic says bit perfect minus the possibility of jitter and clock errors should equal higher quality sound in a perfect error free system. I haven't heard an ipod playing lossless on the music server in question but leave room that it could sound equal to or better than a high end cdp. I can not judge that which I have not heard.

F1nut

I can not judge that which I have not heard.

I have heard, he hasn't and yet keeps proclaiming that it's better. Pffft.

Face

Apple lossless is a lossy format, for that reason alone, I can't see it being better than the original file.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lossy_compression

F1nut

keiko wrote: »

got vinyl?

:rolleyes:

lol....