Vero 2 SPDIF output transformer?

General Discussion
1

Hi all,

I’m planning on getting either Vero 2 or Pi 3 + Hifiberry digi+. The stronger hw seems to favor Vero 2, but audio is very important to me, so I’m looking at the output transformer version of digi+. Now, I can’t find any info on it, does anyone know if Vero 2 has an output transformer on its SPDIF? And if so, is it shielded or not?

Thx in advance,
Marcus

2

Hi

There is an SPDIF digital output which can output 5.1. It is not optical but rather a digital coax output. You can use an adapter like this and it will work fine (other users have reported success with this adapter):

Sam

3

Thx for the reply Sam, actually I was wondering about that too before reading up on the forum. But what about output transformer? Like the one on the transformer version of Hifiberry digi+? Is there such a transformer to reduce “jitter” on the coax digital output?

Thx again,
Marcus

4

Hi Marcus,

Jitter is not really going to be an issue. Whether you are streaming DTS or Dolby Digital or PCM audio (stereo being decoded by Vero 2), you are sending a bitstream. The Vero 2 doesn’t have a dedicated clock for the audio output, but this isn’t necessary.

Let me know if you have any further questions

5

I’m sorry I’m a bit of a noob here, but is such a “dedicated clock” the same as an output transformer?

What I’m looking for is what is described for ex on this page:

The author of that page writes
“With a little research I found out that high-end professional gear comes from the manufacturer with an isolation transformer built in to the S/PDIF output which completely separates the sheild of the digital cable from the ground plane of the device.”

6

Ok, I found some more experiences from people using the digi+ with transformer, and it seems it can actually create more problems and worse sound if not both the dac AND the receiver are properly grounded. So for most of us that means an output transformer is not actually wanted.

Sorry for taking up your time with this, hopefully someone with the same thoughts as me can have a use for this thread.

Best regards,
Marcus

7

Not at all. I understand you are curious about how to get the best audio. I personally do not think you will have any problems with the digital audio outputs on the Vero 2. The HifiBerry is also a good DAC if you go for the Pi route.

Sam