Cleaning Up Computer Audio

HiFiMike67

New Member
I am entering the fifth year of my obsession which is High Resolution Computer Audio. I have long preferred PC's and ATX format towers due to the versatility they lend toward this sport. I learned years back that like all things High End Audio, certain kinds of tweaking (which should just be considered part of the design w/HRA) will improve the end result. I have posted many items related to this topic as a whole; hoping that my experiences can benefit others and/or that it would open the door for others to share their experience from which MY system would benefit.

The latest series of "things" in the high res computer audio world I have been pursuing are related to cleaning power and signals. Here are some items I have tried over the last couple of months which show promise in regards to cleaning supply power and/or cleaning the datastream.

-AUDIOQUEST JITTERBUG (around $50): I realize this has already been reviewed more times than the first hybrid car, but there is good reason for it. It works and it offers more improvement than it's price would suggest. To read all application details just look for a review online. I use one on my USB digital cable and one on my USB music input. It's as if a layer of electronic haze was lifted. Smoother highs and more palpable mids. Tighter bass with more weight. Improved focus. It's as if the lens was cleaned and the focus knob was tweaked a little.

-ELFIDELITY HDD FILTER (around $25-from China): Yes, from China. What helps though is this is a legitimate audio company with original ideas, the construction of their stuff is decent and they (unlike many Chinese "schlopp houses") have a website; and kind of a nice one at that. It must be translated and the English is broken up, but one can find a way through it. Probably the best way to purchase their product is to go on ebay and search "elfidelity" where lots of stuff will pop up. This item is a single circuit board that cleverly plugs into the power and data input on the HDD then in turn you plug the power supply and data cables into the filter. This filter is comprised of multiple capacitors, resistors and inductors. The results? Cleanliness. Odds are it will reveal grungy or grainy areas you may not have known you had, but now you do, because they are missing. Another layer of electronic haze will go away. At first things sound a little lean with this device in place but after approx. 24 hours of break in (with music playing) that will be gone and replaced with a performance capable of being harmonically rich, when the recording dictates it. What surprised me was the new level of bass definition that appeared. That alone is worth it. The only drawback I can hear is the stage isn't quite as deep as it was before; but this could be break in? It has less than 50 hours of break in on it. I will follow up with more information later. Right now it seems, a stupid-high level of performance for the price.

-ELFIDELITY PCI/PCIe FILTER CARD (around $50): This device is meant to plug in where there are empty PCI or PCIe slots available. I believe FIRMLY in using a separate USB card for one of these slots (preferably with a silicon oscillator) for use as the computer's digital out. Having one of these filter cards plugged in as well really cleans stuff up. This card's appearance is really something. A few resistors and ROWS of capacitors. It's like this big frequency-tuned filter bank. Basically, with the exception of reduced stage depth (I really believe that will go away in time, we shall see). just read what the other Elfidelity filter did sonically and you'll know what this one does. $$$-wise? WELL worth it. It makes that dedicated digital out behave better and it's not subtle.

Elfidelity offers more filters that I will be trying and I will be buying more Jitterbugs. For the time being at least, it appears that the effects of filters in a PC is cumulative. As time goes on I will be reporting more results.
 
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