Name one product that should be included in your HiFi setup?

[Jasonovich]

What product/device in your HiFi setup you consider to be the most essential and why?


I use three digital transports for each of my HiFi setups in the Study, Bedroom and Diner but the one product that really shines is my Vovofox AP05S.

If you have all your music on a hard drive or like to access your NAS server, I think Vovofox AP05S Music Player and DAC with bespoke FPGA technology is an important inclusion to your HiFi setup. As a DAC it is able to support up to 32-bit/384kHz PCM & DSD512 decoding. It has two headphone sockets but nothing special, it's there if you need it.

As a DAC, the sound quality is really good but I'm using it mainly as a digital transport, the USB output feeds into my DAC/Streamer Matrix Mini I-4 and is able to play DSD natively, I have 2TB internal NVME M.2 SSD installed.

If you want to access the music remotely from your PC or laptop, it's fairly seamless, just enter \\192.168.* in the Window's Explorer address bar. You can access the internal M.2 SSD by entering *(IP address of this device).

It really is the most versatile product, you can have it standalone in your bedroom, plug in your headphones and you're fixed. I would add a good headamp, if that is something you're thinking about doing.

Probably the most under rated product in my HiFi collection but it's the vital cog in the wheel that turns and like magic, we have music.

 

[landco]

What product/device in your HiFi setup you consider to be the most essential and why?

DSP processor, of course. Room is a 80% of sound quality

 

[GSV Ethics Gradient]

There's no 'of course' here - I'd go for speakers that work in your listening space.

 

[skinnypuppy71]

Roon..😁

 

[RoA]

 

[abacus]

Speakers.

Bill

 

[Integralista]

In my case, "collection" of my Rega turntables and CD player from Audia Flight, which sounds like .... analogue, stress free. 😃

 

[gasolin]

room correction and isoacoustics stands

yes it's 2 things

 

[Angle Poise-Lamp]

Headphones, can’t listen to headphones without them…

 

[Al ears]

A phono cartridge.
Couldn't play my record collection without one.
😎

 

[Winter]

Audeze lcd 5 . Maybe one day !

 

[RTHerringbone]

Streaming service subscriptions 😎

I thoroughly enjoy listening to my growing vinyl collection, but most of my listening time is spent working upstairs and I love being able to switch a playlist from running through my headphone amp to the main system when I go downstairs to make lunch and do a crossword 🤓 Seamless listening throughout the house.

 

[daytona600]

Room Treatment & if you play Records a RCM

 

[jjbomber]

My ears!

 

[PieterG]

From the music source to your ears it's a chain of components that doesn't work if a single link is missing. And i tend to agree that headphones and wine are often essential to the whole listening experience.

To answer your question properly: in my listening chain the most essential component is probably the least expensive piece of audio hardware i own... the Wiim Pro.

Why?

• I stream almost all the time, and this little device pulls everything into my setup. I get along with the WiiM app very well, too.
• It's basic but my DAC takes over as soon as the digital signal leaves the WiiM. Practically no unused features on the streamer, it's used as a network transport with a source selection app.

 

[Al ears]

From the music source to your ears it's a chain of components that doesn't work if a single link is missing. And i tend to agree that headphones and wine are often essential to the whole listening experience.

To answer your question properly: in my listening chain the most essential component is probably the least expensive piece of audio hardware i own... the Wiim Pro.

Why?

• I stream almost all the time, and this little device pulls everything into my setup. I get along with the WiiM app very well, too.
• It's basic but my DAC takes over as soon as the digital signal leaves the WiiM. Practically no unused features on the streamer, it's used as a network transport with a source selection app.

Glad we agree on the decent bottle of wine...... 🙂
I don't currently stream so no Wiim Pro for me, the wine will have to do.

 

[PieterG]

Glad we agree on the decent bottle of wine...... 🙂
I don't currently stream so no Wiim Pro for me, the wine will have to do.

Think of wine as an R2R DAC: it tends to add warmth, body, musicality... to life.

 

[davidf]

I'm going with well designed speakers that work with the room rather than against it. That's the biggest step towards a great sounding system without room treatment or digital room correction.

 

[Al ears]

Think of wine as an R2R DAC: it tends to add warmth, body, musicality... to life.

And there was me thinking warmth and musicality came from valve amplifiers.....

 

[Al ears]

I'm going with well designed speakers that work with the room rather than against it. That's the biggest step towards a great sounding system without room treatment or digital room correction.

They do exist.......
🙂

 

[Jasonovich]

Think of wine as an R2R DAC: it tends to add warmth, body, musicality... to life.

Love your analogy, if R2R is wine, then Chipset DACs are caffeine in your coffee! ☕ 🙂