Auralic Aries S1 streamer + PSU option
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- čas přidán 5. 06. 2024
- Over the years Auralic network players got more upmarket and thus more costly. With the Aries S1 and Vega S1 Auralic introduces a new range of more affordable streamers. In this video I take a look at the Aries S1 and the optional power supply upgrade.
Contents of this video
00:00 - Introduction
00:27 - Start of program
01:19 - Where to use
02:34 - The front
03:15 - The back
04:02 - The inside
05:43 - In use
09:31 - How tested
12:09 - Sound quality #1
11:12 - The PSU S1
12:44 - Inside the PSU S1
13:24 - Sound quality #2
14:02 - The wrap
Relevant videos:
The BS about network switches and the like…: • The BS about network s...
About my reference setups, March 2024: • About my reference set...
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Great comparison of the two power supply options. I have been relatively happy with what folks call the ‘Stone age’ Aries (which I refer to as the ‘original’ Aries). I like them so much, I just bought a second unit for my second system. It is now possible for me to stream the same source on both systems at the same time. However, if I had known Auralic was coming out with the S1, I would have held off. The S1 will be my next streaming purchase as I find the price of ‘all-in-ones” a bit steep.
Thank you, Hans, for all you do to help us old analog dinosaurs climb into the digital age.
PS: I can attest that the Optical S/PDIF is a weak link. It has completely failed on one of my units.
My grand children are crazy about dinosaurs 😁
Thanks. Very useful and perfect timing. I had booked a listening session for next week., so your review is timely. Looking to upgrade my G1
Perfect!
As Hans said the S series is the entry level, wouldn’t auditioning the S1 be more likely the opposite of an upgrade?
@@richardgrant418 that’s what I intend to find out. I see it more as future proofing with the Tesla 3 engine, so maybe a sideways move. But not prepared to spend around 5k for the G2.2. If there was a G1.2 maybe I would go for that.
Its look amazing and is with in my budget, very interesting review, thank you Hans.
My pleasure!
Another very informative article Hans, many thanks. I still run the original Aries LE in a secondary system and it has given me 10 years of trouble free entertainment. The only problems I had were poor routers.
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Thanks Hans. Very thorough as always. Very interested in the Dirac implementation. I would connect this to my Vega G2
Excellent!
tx for review - looks tempting indeed. As scary as power via hdmi looks, I can sense the possibility for separation of noise, and resulting gains in SQ (think isolation of usb output stage).
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Thank you
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Thanks for your introduction to this new S1 product . Soundwise I would have liked to know if this S1 is as good or better than the previous Aries G1 . And if this S1 plus power box is as good or better than the Aries G1 plus Hoerwege power supply card…
I reviewed the Aries G1 quite some time ago on another setup. My guess is that the Aries S1 is at least as good, with the optional PSU even better.
Thank you Hans, for another great review. I think that when you refer to Aires 1 in the video, you mean Aires G1, or am I wrong? If I understand correctly, the new ranking for streamers/network players is: 1st Aries G2 / 2nd Aries S1+Optional PSU / 3th Aries S1 / 4th Mano Ultra MK3 / 5th Arce / 6th Aries G1 / 7th 200 Ultra Neo + SBooster / 8th Emerson Digital + SBooster / 9th Rivo + Farad 3.
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I understood the Aries S1 somewhere between the Aries G1 and the Magna Mano Ultra…with the Aries G1 ranking above the new S1 and the Magna Mano ranking below. The new PSU pushing the Aries S1 to near G1 but still below. 🤷♀️normally Hans rankings are very clear but this time somehow less clear 😬
There must have been some confusion in this explanation, because the Mano Ultra was above the 200 Ultra Neo and the G1. Unless Hans wanted to say that the S1 was below the Mano Ultra and above the G1, but after seeing the rest of the video, this position doesn't make sense. I think it is correct to consider that the S1 is better than the Mano Ultra.
I own the Aries G2.1 with Hoer-Wege PSU. An outstanding streamer! Every Auralic Aries product unfortunately has very medicore spdif and aes outputs. On the other hand the USB output is just magnificent. If you are testing it only using aes output, you are missing out a lot of performance the unit can deliver.
I really don't understand your comments on the AES3 outputs. They really are very, very good!
Please compare it to the USB output and you will see the difference. It is huge. I tested on several dacs.
I guess it depends on the DAC it is used with.
The AES and USB sound differences depends on your dac quality. USB carries the data without the clock. If your dac is top quality compared to the streamer then the USB will sound better than AES since AES uses the clock in the streamer. At least this is my understanding. For this reason and as an example, Grimm Audio Mu1 uses the AES output for up sampling and not the USB output.
it depends on your dac mostly... mine sounds horrible on USB. I use aes.
Hi Hans. How does the S1 stack up against the magna mano streamer? Would appreciate your viewpoint. Thank you!
Like I said in the video
A very nice looking streamer similar in size and shape to the DCS Lina and the upgraded external power supply is a bonus that can be added at a later date to help spread the cost, however it was unusual to see a HDMI socket to transmit the external power supply rails. I like the idea of Dirac intergration within the streamer I've not seen that before, very swish.
Yes, exactly
Which "Aries 1" do you refer to (11:09) in the comparison / ranking of the S1?
Aries G1.1, or the stone-age plastic-housing Aries 1 you also mention?
The first Aries 1, not the 1.1
Excellent review Hans. I wonder why you favor connection the streamer to the DAC using SPDIF? Why not AES EBU or especially USB? Is connecting via SPDIF sounds better than via USB in your opinion??
On good devices and short quality leads the difference between AES/EBU and SPDIF is extremely small (if any) while USB Audio Class 2 is hardly ever equal (let alone Audio class 1)
Thank you Hans, excellent review, I am considering buying a network player for my dac weiss 204, but I will wait for the review of the network player from Nagra if the price offered is reasonable
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Hi Hans, hope you're well. Will you review the Vega S1 by any chance?
Don’t know yet
I wonder why it doesnt provide a HDMI for I2S.
Also, I didnt quite understand "half way between Magna Mano and Aries 1" - which "1"? And on what side is that, compared to the Magna Mano?
The first Aries 1, not the 1.1
@@TheHansBeekhuyzenChannel even though the original Aries 1 is positively Paleolithic you can pick them up for under 1k! oh and don't forget about the baby Aries
with all your many comprehensive streamer reviews, I'd really be interested if you could one day dip into Lumin streamers. Those "look" apealing to me as a streamer upgrade at one point in the future
And Android app 😊
Not in the foreseeable future
Ditto
Is DSD natively supported on Aries S1? If yes, up to what bitrate?...I was looking on the manufacturer's webpage but there is no information about the DSD format. Thnx...
It does do DSD and I have tried DSD128. I don't have DSD256 tracks so I didn't try that.
Thank you!@@TheHansBeekhuyzenChannel
Any news when Dirac live will be available ? also will it be the full version ?
It's waiting for Dirac approval. No definite date available yet.
How does this stack up with the DMP-A8 as a streamer only?
As I said in the videos...
Is the Lightning DS app stable? There are a lot of negative reviews on this topic..
Early versions were not the best. The current version is very fast and stable as I showed in the video.
Kann ich nur bestätigen, nutze die Ligthning DS täglich! Läuft 😊
I agree with Hans, the Lightning DS app undergoes constant revision and updating. New features being added periodically. Although my 30+ year old Spotify-using son immediately proclaimed it the clunkiest interface he had ever seen. It works, and I can easily navigate to every function I need.
Direc live for the full range or limited to the lower frequency’s?
That has not be disclosed. But I think upgrading from limited to full range is less than € 100. And if your loudspeakers are good, you might not need the full range version.
@@TheHansBeekhuyzenChannelYour verb tense in English would be better rendered’has not yet been disclosed’ or, at least, that is how I interpreted what you wrote.
I´m a little confused by your earlier statements where you mention that strictly digital circuits (like this bridge) benefit from good switching power supplies where DACS function better with linear ones 🤔
OK, let me correct this a bit. The power supply needs to be able too supply current very fast since digital signals are in fact analog square waves that have extremely high rise times. SMPSU's do that by nature, LPSU's need to be rather over dimensioned to do that. Like the Sean Jacobs PSU for the Chord Dave (czcams.com/video/HgyEruy_fX0/video.html)
HDMI pwr lead - interfence? or they were going to add PC?
No, it's just power.
The buttons on the top are a bit naff. Why not simply use a touchscreen? I'll most likely buy the Altair G1.1 for it's great DAC performance. Thanks for the overview.
Touch screens are fingerprint magnets. Quite some people don’t like them.
My beef with Auralic is that they change models too quick. There will be a S1.1 in 6 months and another one not too long after that.
They are moderate increments, If I still would have my Aries 2, I would still enjoy it.
Do you think that upgradable and modifiable electronics is now a feasible option for manufacturers? With these electronics there appears to be a significant need.
how much $ is the PSU?
999
As I said in the video: € 999
price of the PSU please?
1k€ - was stated somewhere
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And again, those Auralic noobs still support only iOS. On that way they loose 80% of customers. Pointless.
Somehow I think they will be aware of that
@@TheHansBeekhuyzenChannel I hope so, but that lasts too long. Maybe they are fan of apple or they don't have Android developers. That is shame for such a big brand.
That's my problem with them too. Was really interested but don't have any Apple products. Bought a Innuos Pulse instead.