@PAR
Pete, I understand that the Rossini Clock provides separate clock feeds for 44.1 and 48.0 group files. So, from a convenience factor, I understand that using a Rossini Clock with a Rossini DAC is better than using a Paganini Clock.
You also state that ‘the newer clocks are better than the old ones’. Does this mean that a Rossini Clock sounds better than a Paganini Clock? I usually don’t like to evaluate equipment based on weight but I couldn’t help but notice that a Paganini Clock weighs 23.1 pounds and a Rossini Clock weighs 18.3 pounds.
Do you have specifics on what makes a Rossini Clock sound better than a Paganini Clock?
Brian, I can’t comment about the Rossini clock, but can say a couple of things about the Paganini: first, it sounded better than the Puccini u-clock and from what I remember from an email exchange with dCS it is a technically more capable design. So clocks do differ. Second, I’ve seen a picture of a Paganini without the top: it is mostly empty space. A bit disturbing, actually. What follows from that, in my opinion, is that in comparing weights of clocks we would mainly be comparing the casework, not the electronics.
“Sounds better” is a difficult concept to deal with as opinions will differ person to person and system to system. I can say that they will not necessarily sound the same. Better technology? dCS ensures that each generation performs better than its predecessor. From the user manuals there is a hint that the crystals’ temperatures are maintained differently in the Paganini and Rossini and I think it can be taken that the later implementation has been chosen as it is superior. However there may well be other factors that only dCS engineers will be aware of.
Weight is an essential consideration in respect of wordclocks, I am currently in discussion with the UK government Department for the Environment to attach my DAC and other components directly to Big Ben when its restoration is complete. 23 pounds? 18 pounds? Huh, Big Ben weighs 30.7 metric tonnes !!
Seriously, as Simon says, the weight is mostly about the casework.
Actually I have realised that Brian’s comparison of the weight of the Paganini clock and the Rossini Clock is a bit misleading as Rossini was not a replacement for Paganini. It is regarded as such because it occupies the second down place in the dCS hierarchy of product ranges. However Paganini was not actually replaced and Rossini and clock are conceptually the descendents of Puccini and the U Clock ( everything in one box plus the option of a clock, not a four box stack of full sized components like Paganini).
Both U Clock and Rossini Clock share the lineage of being half height components whereas Paganini Clock has a full size chassis. Hence much of the weight difference. U Clock weighed 7.5kg (16.7lb).
