Network Bridge/Scarlatti DAC combination. What's specifically needed for DSD

I bought a Network Bridge (NB) to work with my Scarlatti DAC and would like to use the combination to play DSD files that are recorded on my Korg MR-2000s (which records in “DSD1” and “DSD2”).

Should I be able to play one or both formats on my NB/Scarlatti and what are the requirements?

Does this require a Dual AES connection between the NB and Scarlatti? Can I play “DSD1” with a single AES connection?

I’m a bit bewildered partly because of naming conventions (is DSD1 the same as DoP/64?) and the fact that the dCS documentation is a little confusing.

HELP!

I’m not familiar with Korg’s naming conventions, but my assumption is that what they call DSD1 is the same as DSD, DSDx1, or DSD64. In that case the Scarlatti is capable of playback using single AES or S/PDIF (RCA). DSD2 is likely the same as DSDx2 or DSD128 and in that case the Scarlatti will require a dual AES connection.

In both cases you’ll need to configure your playback software to output in DoP (DSD over PCM) format and your Scarlatti will need to be at the most recent software revision (1.30).

Edit to note / clarify: The Scarlatti doesn’t support DSD128 on any input. Only DSD64. In order to play DSD128 the files will either need to be downsampled and saved as DSD64 or played back using Roon.

Thanks for the quick answer.

So, assuming that “DSD2” is the same as DSD128, I should be able to play the format on my Scarlatti. Both my NB and Scarlatti have the most up to date firmware.

As far as “playback software”, I assume there is nothing I need to do if I use Mosaic as my music player. Is there anything I need to do to ensure DoP is used if the file format is a DFF file?

Sorry… my bad. I was trying to do too many things at once when I replied to this. You don’t need to worry about DoP when using the Network Bridge. It takes care of the data packing for you without any intervention regardless of the file format. This is true whether you’re using Mosaic or Roon as the playback engine.

Yes, that is correct.

Don’t forget to ensure that DSD DOWNSAMPLING is set to OFF and AES DOWNSAMPLING is set to DISABLED under the DEVICE tab in Mosaic.

I got around to testing my NB/Scarlatti combination and trying to play DSD64 files that were recorded on my Korg MR-2000s.

Unfortunately, the only thing I heard was “low-level noise with faint music in the background”, as described in the support FAQ (“What is DoP (DSD over PCM)?”).

The FAQ describes the process as “taking groups of 16 adjacent 1-bit samples from a DSD stream and packing them into the lower 16 bits of a 24/176.4 data stream. A specific marker code in the top 8 bits identifies the data stream as DoP, rather than PCM. If something goes wrong…the output will be noise with faint music. This can happen if the computer erases the marker code by applying a volume adjustment.

The Korg doesn’t seem to have the ability to allow me configure the marker to record with a volume adjustment marker or a DoP marker. I presume this functionality should be added by the NB.

  1. It seems likely that the NB is not correctly setting the marker for DoP when it sends the data to my Scarlatti…

  2. Is there a way I can pre-process that data through some transcoding program that will put the DoP marker into the DSD stream? Clearly, this will take some software skills…

p.s.
My Scarlatti is running version 1.30 (and is set with DSD and AES downsampling, as above)
My NB has the following versions:
APP version: 1.0.2 (62)
Main Board Version: 1.02
Network Board Version: 1.0.2 (502)

Can someone get back to me ?

Either 1) my NB does not seem to be doing the necessary packing correctly OR
2) my Scarlatti does not seem to recognize the DoP markers

I added my version info in one of the replies in this thread.

The Network Bridge settings should be as follows:

Dual AES Sample Rate: 88.2K
AES Downsampling: Disabled
S/PDIF Downsampling: 192K
DSD Downsampling: Disabled

This is per the table on p.12 of the Network Bridge manual: https://www.dcsltd.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Network-Bridge-Manual-V02.pdf

Are you connecting with Dual AES or another method?

There DoP packing is being handled automatically during playback, but there’s a chance that Mosaic isn’t properly recognizing the files from your Korg or the DAC isn’t recognizing the stream correctly.

When a DSD track is playing what is displayed for format and rate in the Now Playing area of Mosaic Control? What is shown for format and rate on the front panel of the Scarlatti.

Please note that there’s an error in one of my responses above in that the Scarlatti doesn’t support DSD128 on any input and the Bridge doesn’t have any defined downsampling setting to get from DSD128 to DSD64. In order to play DSD128 files you’ll either need to downsample them in an editing package or use Roon for playback. Sorry about that, but I had Debussy on the brain when I responded.

  • I am trying to playback a DSD64 recording that is recognized as such by Roon. Other than through the NB/Scarlatti, it sounds fine on any music renderer I’ve tried (i.e. Roon gives you the ability to play to another “Zone”. the DSD file sounds fine)
  • I have a single AES/EBU cable connected between the NB and Scarlatti.
  • The NB settings are set exactly as you specified.
    Though you don’t mention this, I have set the Scarlatti’s Dual AES setting to both “Off” and “Auto”. Since I’m only using a Single AES/EBU cable, I presume it shouldn’t matter.
  • The Scarlatti Displays the digital stream as 24/88.2, Locked @88200, Input is PCM, No De-Emphasis Applied.

I don’t have access to Mosaic at the moment, so I’ll fill in that info later.

Playing the file using both Mosaic and Roon produced the same noise/faint music playback.

OK, if you’re not using Dual AES then you need to set Dual AES sample rate to 352.8. What’s likely happening here is that the bridge is sending DSD64 over Dual AES, but since you only have one AES connection to the Scarlatti it’s missing half of the signal.

Well, that seemed to work!!

Seems a little non-intuitive that I need to change a Dual AES (sample rate) setting when I’m only using Single AES connection but, nonetheless, it worked.

I am able to listen to DSD64 using a single AES/EBU cable.

Will I be able to playback DSD128 if I acquire and hook up a second AE/EBU cable? I assume this should possible…

A big THANKS for your help!!

The bridge doesn’t know that you only have one cable connected and the formatting of the bitstream between dual and single AES is quite different. You have to tell the bridge up-front how it is connected and that’s done by setting the Dual AES sample rate.

No, the Scarlatti cannot decode DSD128.

No, the Scarlatti cannot decode DSD128.

In that case, is there ANY advantage in getting and hooking up a second AES/EBU cable?