This is interesting. How is the sound clarity when connecting via BT vs 3.5mm jack from a mobile phone or laptop. ?
Compatibility of Yamaha R-S202 and wharfedale 9.1
- Thread starter Aby
- Start date
I don't have a DAC yet. Connecting directly from my laptop to an amplifier via the 3.5mm jack.
Quite decent actually. Before getting my AV Receiver, that is how i connected my PC to my Marantz PM6006 (my most used source for playing music is my PC). Unless you do a side by side comparison of BT vs digital/analog connection, it'll be very very difficult to tell the difference from perception or memory alone. In fact, the difference will be imperceptible to an untrained ear even in a side by side comparison.
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I believe the Yamaha RN202 has an inbuilt DAC (it has to in order to decode the signal from the digital inputs). Getting a decent outboard DAC (something like a Schiit Jotunheim, Chord Mojo or IfI Audio XDSD) for an entry level amp will return very little gains and an entry level DAC to bypass what is already the inside the Yamaha won't yield any improvement in SQ. In fact, if you have your PC hooked up directly to an amp using a 3.5 mm cable, then you can give BT connectivity a skip and concentrate on which amp gives you best SQ. If required for conveniences sake, you can get a BT receiver later.
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humblebee
Active Member
This model only has BT as digital input. So you can play from your laptop or mobile. I believe that the dac of yamaha must be better than the dac of your laptop.
But on the other hand BT must be limited to 128kbps as its not aptx.
There is another thing called input sensitivity matching. Its better to match output of dac to input of amplifier. This is measured in mV. Set output mV of dac to minimum mV of amp. This way over wattage can be prevented. This is the technical way of doing it.
The other way is by experience where you know how high the volume must come from your system and you dont exceed that.
Many members can tell this.
Also my practical experience after such a matching on my own system says that we set output of dac to be more than that of amplifier minimum. Sound quality improves this way. Most amps are like 200-300mv sensitive. Better to set it at 500mV.
But on the other hand BT must be limited to 128kbps as its not aptx.
There is another thing called input sensitivity matching. Its better to match output of dac to input of amplifier. This is measured in mV. Set output mV of dac to minimum mV of amp. This way over wattage can be prevented. This is the technical way of doing it.
The other way is by experience where you know how high the volume must come from your system and you dont exceed that.
Many members can tell this.
Also my practical experience after such a matching on my own system says that we set output of dac to be more than that of amplifier minimum. Sound quality improves this way. Most amps are like 200-300mv sensitive. Better to set it at 500mV.
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humblebee
Active Member
Or rather for low end amplifiers (ones costing less than $2500) the output should be set to 1000mV. Sound quality improves.
And for higher end amplifiers, the output should be set to 500mV. Thats because they are very sensitive and extra data comes which is noise.
And for higher end amplifiers, the output should be set to 500mV. Thats because they are very sensitive and extra data comes which is noise.
Thank you everyone. Finally I got my Marantz PM 6006 yesterday. I am noting down my experience here for the benefit of others.
Due to Covid 19 situation my chances of auditioning before purchase was very much limited. So I mainly trusted reviews and youtube clippings and the samples provided by the forum member @apbinu etc. Since my existing amp was a very basic one, I somehow wanted to know the feel of the hifi brand. So I was almost sold on to Marantz for that reason. I visited the showroom and saw their setup. It was connected to Marantz CD player and running a FS speaker. The sales team played a very high quality audio CD and it was a mind blowing experience. He was happy to switch multiple speakers (all were FS) and it was sounding really good on all speaker sets. He changed the loudness and direct mode etc again it was really good . Now I asked him to run a normal MP3 (CD) file just for my curiosity in the same setup. The experience changed drastically, it sounded very normal. In fact very much similar to my 4000 Rs amplifier. so I was almost sure on the spot that I need to find a better source for my songs otherwise this investment is not going to make any sense. Since my thought process(read it as an itch to buy a hifi brand in a life time) was to buy it, I went ahead and purchased it. I got it and connected to my laptop that runs spotify (free) and to my Wharfadale 9.1. It was much better than my previous set up. I was able to hear all the instruments very clearly. am I happy? of course yes . But is it really worth the investment ? probably not . The reason, it is definitely a good amp but a lot depends on the source from which you play and your speakers too. If you have high quality audio sources then probably it is worth looking into Marantz for music . PM 6006 alone is not going to make great wonders just because it is in the equation. But definitely expect positive impact in the sound clarity. Now I have connected the Laptop directly to the PM6006 via the 3.5mm jack. probably I shall try to find a way connect to the DAC of PM 6006 and might find a difference in SQ. The dealer was very open in mentioning that a DAC is must need in the equation otherwise I will be getting only half of the benefits of this amp. He was suggesting to connect it to DVD / CD player which has USB audio jack and see if I can stream from my mobile to it. And then connect it to the amp. I had similar setup before , ie DVD player's out is connected to the AMP and the mp3s are played from the DVD player. There was a great difference in SQ when it was played from a DVD player and a PC. The DVD player was sounding much better. So I guess If I can find a way to utilize the DAC of the PM6006 from the laptop the experience might change(the other option would be to somehow stream from laptop to DVD player and then AMP).
So if anyone (with similar setup, usage, budget, audio source) is looking for an amp then my suggestion would be to look at Norge first. Please make all efforts to listen and if you find it an absolute no go then probably look into other options. This can vary a lot especially , if you have a high quality audio source already / you didnt like the sound signature of Norge etc.
Thanks again all the valuable forum members who were kind enough to provide your valuable suggestions. Much appreciated.
I would like to hear the comments of the FMs those who have gone through the similar process of connecting Laptop (3.5mm jack)directly to the AMP and if they find an alternative approach to improve the SQ.
Kindly note, PM6006 is NOT a bad choice at all, infact it is a great amp. My intend was to state that its performance is purely based on the setup and there are VFM options like Norge available which can give very similar results! .
Due to Covid 19 situation my chances of auditioning before purchase was very much limited. So I mainly trusted reviews and youtube clippings and the samples provided by the forum member @apbinu etc. Since my existing amp was a very basic one, I somehow wanted to know the feel of the hifi brand. So I was almost sold on to Marantz for that reason. I visited the showroom and saw their setup. It was connected to Marantz CD player and running a FS speaker. The sales team played a very high quality audio CD and it was a mind blowing experience. He was happy to switch multiple speakers (all were FS) and it was sounding really good on all speaker sets. He changed the loudness and direct mode etc again it was really good . Now I asked him to run a normal MP3 (CD) file just for my curiosity in the same setup. The experience changed drastically, it sounded very normal. In fact very much similar to my 4000 Rs amplifier. so I was almost sure on the spot that I need to find a better source for my songs otherwise this investment is not going to make any sense. Since my thought process(read it as an itch to buy a hifi brand in a life time) was to buy it, I went ahead and purchased it. I got it and connected to my laptop that runs spotify (free) and to my Wharfadale 9.1. It was much better than my previous set up. I was able to hear all the instruments very clearly. am I happy? of course yes . But is it really worth the investment ? probably not . The reason, it is definitely a good amp but a lot depends on the source from which you play and your speakers too. If you have high quality audio sources then probably it is worth looking into Marantz for music . PM 6006 alone is not going to make great wonders just because it is in the equation. But definitely expect positive impact in the sound clarity. Now I have connected the Laptop directly to the PM6006 via the 3.5mm jack. probably I shall try to find a way connect to the DAC of PM 6006 and might find a difference in SQ. The dealer was very open in mentioning that a DAC is must need in the equation otherwise I will be getting only half of the benefits of this amp. He was suggesting to connect it to DVD / CD player which has USB audio jack and see if I can stream from my mobile to it. And then connect it to the amp. I had similar setup before , ie DVD player's out is connected to the AMP and the mp3s are played from the DVD player. There was a great difference in SQ when it was played from a DVD player and a PC. The DVD player was sounding much better. So I guess If I can find a way to utilize the DAC of the PM6006 from the laptop the experience might change(the other option would be to somehow stream from laptop to DVD player and then AMP).
So if anyone (with similar setup, usage, budget, audio source) is looking for an amp then my suggestion would be to look at Norge first. Please make all efforts to listen and if you find it an absolute no go then probably look into other options. This can vary a lot especially , if you have a high quality audio source already / you didnt like the sound signature of Norge etc.
Thanks again all the valuable forum members who were kind enough to provide your valuable suggestions. Much appreciated.
I would like to hear the comments of the FMs those who have gone through the similar process of connecting Laptop (3.5mm jack)directly to the AMP and if they find an alternative approach to improve the SQ.
Kindly note, PM6006 is NOT a bad choice at all, infact it is a great amp. My intend was to state that its performance is purely based on the setup and there are VFM options like Norge available which can give very similar results! .
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Congrats on your new purchase @Aby, see if u can take advantage of inbuilt DAC on 6006 using following DVD (hdmi) —> TV (optical/coaxial) —> PM6006 DAC. Hope it helps improve the SQ... give it some time and hours of play time for the amp and speakers to sync.
However been said that, I personally had used PM6005 in past currently got Norge Concerto gold 1000, I would recommend others who are looking for entry level IA, please go check/audition Norge 2060/Norge Concerto Gold 1000 if u like it then invest in good external DAC. Overall experience will be highly satisfying.
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Congrats! Thats a very good amp. If you want a dac, can get a ifi audio zen or one of the schiit models (modi or magni i think) if you don’t want to spend too much. Otherwise, you can look at the xDSD. However, try and borrow one to check the improvement and see if its worth the investment.
humblebee
Active Member
I would suggest that you get PM5005 because there is a thing called equivalence. Think system level. 6006 is a bit too much for 9.1.
Save money and get Audioquest Beetle or IFI iNano one which have BT, USB and optical inputs.
Save money and get Audioquest Beetle or IFI iNano one which have BT, USB and optical inputs.
Well, I was almost about to buy 5005. But the only thing pulled me back is the fact that the capacitor in 5005 are Chinese and the ones in 600* series is Japanese. Probably the other way I am looking at is, a speaker upgrade in future would help me
Yogesh
Well-Known Member
This will not be the optimal use of the integrated amp (in your case, DAC integrated)
PM6006 does not have a true aux input that can boost up or clean up the signal from laptop
Depending on the format of music you intend to use, narrow down on at least one "good" source.
- streamer + SPDIF transport (eg. Allo Digione)
- CD/BD/DVD player, assuming you have CDs in your collection
- USB DAC to be used with your laptop (eg. Schiit Modi 3)
I have recently purchased Allo Digione. You may read about it here.
SPDIF Transport: Allo Digione or Allo Digione Signature Bundle (seeking opinions)
This thread is specifically to elicit opinions about Allo Digione and/or Allo Digione Signature My rig: CCA (opt) or Laptop (USB) -> Parasound 200Pre (DAC out) -> Lyrita DHT (Preamp) -> AKSA (Pwr amp) -> KEF R300 + REL T9i CCA (opt) or Laptop (USB) -> Parasound 200Pre (Preamp) -> Parasound...
www.hifivision.com
Cheers,
Raghu
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Sure, please PM me.
Thank you very much. I am seriously considering this option since I already have an RPI 2 simply resting in my shelf. And my daughter wants the laptop for her studies. My audio sources are streaming sites. So prefer something that I have control over. Let me go through your thread.This will not be the optimal use of the integrated amp (in your case, DAC integrated)
PM6006 does not have a true aux input that can boost up or clean up the signal from laptop
Depending on the format of music you intend to use, narrow down on at least one "good" source.
- streamer + SPDIF transport (eg. Allo Digione)
- CD/BD/DVD player, assuming you have CDs in your collection
- USB DAC to be used with your laptop (eg. Schiit Modi 3)
I have recently purchased Allo Digione. You may read about it here.
It may suit your use case and free up your laptop too.SPDIF Transport: Allo Digione or Allo Digione Signature Bundle (seeking opinions)
This thread is specifically to elicit opinions about Allo Digione and/or Allo Digione Signature My rig: CCA (opt) or Laptop (USB) -> Parasound 200Pre (DAC out) -> Lyrita DHT (Preamp) -> AKSA (Pwr amp) -> KEF R300 + REL T9i CCA (opt) or Laptop (USB) -> Parasound 200Pre (Preamp) -> Parasound...
Cheers,
Raghu
Thanks
humblebee
Active Member
If you wish to upgrade, here is a blog entry I have made...
Budget Component System for the East
A blog about whats wrong with music in the digital age and how to assemble your own honest high fidelity music system.
silverflutelko.blogspot.com
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