I am running Rossini apex for a few months now with extream satisfaction.
Out of curiosity, oneday I went to a dealer and listened Rossini apex with Rossini clock for a few hours. Being not a teck geek and not having a ultra sensitibe ears, I frankly did not not hear the difference with or without Rossini clock.
Adding a clock would reduce a jitter threrefore produce more clear sound, but I did not recognized the differences.
Is it normal to some people or are my ears/brain too dull?
There are numerous posts in the archive about the effect of adding a system clock. Worth using the search facility and reading some of them.
The main advantage of a system clock is in a multi-box system such as Vivaldi or Rossini with Rossini Transport. This is because it is necessary for the units to be synchronised using the same timing reference to avoid the creation of glitches. A clock only 'supplying a single unit like Rossini DAC is subtle in subjective effect . In fact it is then basically the same as the clock in Rossini albeit with the reference crystal placed in a better environment where e.g. the available space allows it to be away from other components which can affect it.
It may not be easy to hear this in a shop demonstration which can involve unfamiliarity and /or distractions. If possible I would recommend arranging a home demonstration and one where you might have it for a few days as many find that its benefits become very apparent once familiar and it is hen removed.
You may well find that the sound is not very much affected but that the music is in terms of naturalness, flow etc.
I would also advise that it is best not to approach this with proprioceptions of what you think it will do.
You are not the only one. I have a three box Vivaldi stack and hear no difference when the clock is in or out of the loop.
That said I would not try and talk anyone out of adding a clock.
Thanks Pete.
I read comments about adding a Rossini clock before I go to the dealer and actually judge with my own ears.
I still wonder if putting the clock in the well sealed seperate box is the absolute solutuion, which is the different approach such as EMM.
I am very relieved I an not the only one ^^
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My own observation is that people’s sensitivities to clocking vary widely. Some consider the differences night-and-day significant, to the point where we have a number of customers using Vivaldi clocks with Rossini and Bartók DACs, while others say they can’t even hear them. I myself am somewhere in between.
I recently demonstrated the Lina and Bartók APEX DACs at the Stockholm High End Show and as part of the demonstration turned the Lina clock on-and-off several times to show the difference it made. I did this presentation six times over the course of two days to audiences of about 20-30 each time. Each time I asked the audience what they thought, the vast majority said they heard a clear difference.
Of course with packed rooms I realize there was a certain amount of peer group pressure on folks to say they heard difference (or at least to keep quiet of they didn’t!) but what interested me was that the people who said they heard a clear difference described what they heard in terms that rhymed well with my own impressions.
All I would say is if you don’t hear a difference don’t panic! And please continue to enjoy your Rossini APEX - it’s a great DAC!
All dCS DACs do have a clock inside, the external clock is a reference to the internal one, making it more stable.
Thanks ^^ I may later uphrade to Vivaldi apex without the clock ~
I’m very satisfied running an Aurender W20SE synced by the wordclock output of my Vivaldi Apex dac…
My own experience can be summed up as there is maybe a minor improvement when adding the clock (in my case Rossini clock and Rossini Apex Dac)… Now after assimilating the sound with the clock in place remove clock - its absence is profound. Replace the clock and bliss returns.
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This seems to be the description / explanation that I have heard used the most and seemed to tally in with what we found at Munich last year when we had Lina, Bartok (headphone version) and Rossini all set up with Lina Headphone Amps and Lina Clocks so that people could do their own comparisons between DACs, the Bartok Headphone amp and the Lina Headphone Amp and - as is relevant here - with and without the external clock.
The general comments that we got from people was that they noticed far more when the clock was removed from the system than when it was added.
P
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Exactly my experience. Back at the time when Scarlatti/Paganini required a hardware upgrade for an improved USB interface ( moved to the clock) I returned my Paganini clock to the factory . No worries whilst it’s away; it doesn’t add much. WRONG. instead of being happy to listen without the clock I spent the next couple of weeks returned to vinyl and FM radio.