 speakers?
mR is much more higher resolution. better depth, better soundstage. PSA you miss out on some of the details. better separation. PSA forward.
Tonality definitely closer to the PSA but lacks the body and weight of the PSA.
Sounds closer to the microRendu.
Much more clarity and detail.
mR is more coherent, more natural tonality, good speed, timing is better. more organic than iFi. Just flows and sounds more euphonic without losing detail. not as anxious as ifi.
Tonality very close to mR. Not as smooth and coherent. Not as holographic.
mR is more cohesive, instruemnts sound more natural. Uptone more piecewise. but tone is very close. unsurprisingily.
iFi with the BX5a sound pretty dam good. More shine, more open sound.
Even with the Jitterbug, it improves the sound significantly. Much tighter bass, much more clarity, better separation. Please get at least a Jitterbug. Much more engaging.
(Silverplus + generic USB-A/B + AQ USB-B/mini adapter.). Using an adapter between the conditioner and the mini-adapter caused the sound to flatten out.
Fantastic bass and timbre. Very lush and sweet sound.
Has a more rounded sound vs the Regen but lacks in treble extension. Too cozy?
Has a much more rounded sound vs the Regen. Meat to the bones. Especially on vocals.
I think it sounds more true to the intention out of the cast. I just enjoy the extra resolution of the Regen more. W4S sounds like too warm sometimes.
A very mellow, heavy sound.
Amazing clarity, more transparent, more sparkle, more open.
Much prefer the iFi to the W4S with the Mojo.
W4S sounds veiled and smeared in comparison.
iFi draws you in.
Super dark background, you miss out on some of the dust in the air for cohesion but makes for a very detailed presentation.
Better separation than the Regen, vocals aren’t as well delineated on the Regen. Regen wins on tonality but iFi has more body and more dimension to the music. What do you value more?
Sometimes instruments and singers seem to be “too” separated. Causes sound to be piecewise.
A very clean and effortless sound. The most detailed of the cast.
Much more resolution, textures, and fuller sound than the Regen.
Much wider soundstage than the rest. Bigger sound that the rest.
Definitely flatter than the W4S but I enjoy the tonality more.
Lacks the depth from the other conditioners.
Still prefer this over the W4S for the Mojo. W4S sounds too veiled/overly warm. Uptone is more insightful.
Very cohesive sound, esp vs the jitterbug. Beautiful sound.
Much more textures than the jitterbug.
Uptone actually has a more natural tonality over the iFi, more cohesion, but lacks the same amount of dynamics.
Not as refined as the rest of the cast and very flat, even flatter than the Regen.
Not very engaging. Bass a bit looser. A bit fuzzy, not cohesive.
vs JB, much more clarity and a slightly darker background.
with JB more dynamic. Improvement for sure.
without JB, it’s veiled like a thin cloudy layer above the music. Dynamics on both ends hit a ceiling.
with the JB, the music opens up, much better extension, much more air around the performers. A much cleaner sound.
Unfortunately I didn’t try that combination. My guess is that it would’ve made the LANRover sound more holographic, more detailed, and definitely a darker background. When stacking these conditioners, I find that the sound takes more of the character of conditioner used closest to the DAC.
But in your Chord Dave Review you did not hear a difference when you used the Uptone Regen and the W4S Recovery.
Which USB conditioner did remove to lose the richness, body etc? I have a DAVE and I’m interested if it’s worth getting a conditioner.
Very good catch! I remember testing the conditioners quite thoroughly during the DAVE experiment. I really didn’t hear a difference.
I actually thought I addressed in the LANRover review but I guess I missed it. During the testing with the DAVE, I didn’t hear a difference with the Regen/Recovery. Both using the TeraDak DC-30W power supply and the stock (cheap) DAVE USB cable. In this case, I used a Chord SilverPlus and their STOCK power supplies and heard a discernible difference. Unfortunately I’ve don’t have all the pieces here to reaffirm but thought I would mention this. After spending so much time with these conditioners, I believe I will have to retract that statement and say that a USB conditioner would improve the sound of the DAVE.
I’m trying to connect PS Audio LAN Rover with MicroRendu. How did you connect the two? Best I can figure is to connect LAN Rover after mrendu. Could you shed some light on this? Would you lose benefits of mrendu and lps1 if LanRover after it?
I connected it directly after the mR. Not sure how you would connect otherwise since there’s no USB input on the mR from the LANRover (unless I’m missing something here). Personally I don’t think you lose the benefits at all. The LANRover just smooths out the sound. Some will prefer with or without the LANRover. I eventually just stuck with just the mR for a more energetic presentation.
Thanks. I’ll give it a try. Maybe I’ll add a lps-1 to power the LAN Rover.
Great article. Was contemplating either the ifi or the w4s to pair with my mojo so this was right up my street!
Question…the comment at the end re the usb adaptors, are you saying I’m better off using the usb a to micro cable supplied with the mojo to pair my mojo to my tablet as opposed to the chord Silverscreen usb a to b cable and an audioquest b to micro b adaptor?
Thanks Anthony! The purpose of the adapters is to keep the distance between the DAC and server as short as possible (more of a direct connection). From my experience however, some adapters sound worse than using a cable so that’s something to keep in mind. I would try both combinations and see what you prefer. My guess would be the SilverPlus + Audioquest being the better combination as the stock Mojo cable isn’t optimal.
Thank you Jay for a great review, I read it over and over with pleasure. Although currently using w4s RUR and ifi iPurifier 2 between audioPC and DAC, I’ve decided to try the iFi Nano iUSB3.0 as an upgrade to the setup. In a week when it artives I’ll find out how it can improve my already satisfying SQ.
Good to hear from you Thuan! Glad you liked the review. Please let me know your thoughts once you’ve tried the Nano! Which DAC are you running?
I’m using B.M.C. PureDAC mk2. I hope the current balance of warmth and resolution which I’ve been happy with will be preserved if not improve further after the Nano USB 3.0 landes. I guess it also depends on the rest of the audio chain.
The Nano USB arrived today and it immediately replaced the RUR/iPurifier2 tandem team. Initial impressions are: you’re spot on about the Nano’s contributions to the SQ. While letting the Nano burn in for at least a dozen hours more, I’ve already enjoyed its “holographic, x-ray into the music, separation, black background”. I’ve also noticed the decreased (not lack of) warmth and increase in treble energy the Nano iUSB3.0 is bringing to my setup, seemingly making it unforgiving to some recordings.
Hey Thuan! Yeah, I think with the Nano iUSB3.0, you might need something warmer in the chain but it’s amazing what this thing could extract from your music. In any case, I could see how some would be completely happy with its performance. It’s the blackest background I’ve ever heard on any USB conditioner ever.
I’m anticipating iFi Audio release of the iGalvanic3.0 which hopefully complements the Nano iUSB in tonality and richness. For the time being, I’m really impressed and appreciative of the Nano’s detail extraction capability. Thanks again for a truly thorough and thoughtful review.
Hi Thanks for the review.
Wow everything changes so fast….
OK Want to optimise my new headphone rig – Questyle 600i, so it has its own DAC. I could use my notebook and the ifi nano 3.0 – or Auralic Aries Mini and the ifi or am I better going the SOTM 200 route? As I am over 60, my high frequencies are shot so I prefer something which emphasises the high frequencies.
many thanks for any guidance you can give!
iFi products generally tilt towards the brighter side but never harsh. sMS-200 could also sound a bit lean but it’s generally