RuneAudio 0.3 vs Auralic Aries Mini

[Discovery]

I visited a good friend today, and took my RPI2 with me. My friend has a high-end set-up very similar to mine (Quad Electrostatics, nCore power amps, MDAC, etc.), together with his new recent addition, his Auralic Aries Mini. We connected the Pi to the DAC via coax (Digi+ output) and the Aries Mini via USB.

I covered the DAC display so neither of us knew what was playing then we both played the same track on our respective equipment and swapped sources. The remote control cycles through the inputs so, after several quick presses, neither of us knew which was selected. Then we started listening.

The difference was clear. One was flatter and dull, the other had more life and vitality and a wider frequency response. "That'll be mine then", stated my host. I removed the DAC display cover and, to his surprise and my delight, the Pi was the selected source.

Take a bow, RuneAudio.

[ACX]

This is the kind of posts I love to read Thank you for your feedback!

[Discovery]

My pleasure - you deserve it.

To be explicit, the Aries Mini was using a custom linear power supply and so was my Pi (I bought mine from Tomanek in Poland, who designed it specifically for the Pi - 5v, 2a).

I also have a HifiBerry Digi+ board on my Pi and I took the output from the S/PDIF for the DAC as the Aries was using the USB input on the DAC. This isn't significant because I've had the USB, S/PDIF and optical outpus all connected simultaneously to my DAC and I can't tell the difference when I switch between them mid-song so standard USB output on the Pi is fine.

Lastly, if any doubt remains, I am now building a Pi for my friend...