Clocking digital

[Rick Sarson]

Being a saddo hifi type as well as a noise boy I recently had the clock on my SACD player upgraded. I had it done to my CD player quite a few years ago and, once again, the results were a startling improvement in the sound. The kind of thing that even wives/girlfriends notice. It set me thinking. Has anybody any experience of this sort of thing www.apogeedigital.com/products/bigben.php Apparently vidiots have been using them for some time on really big and complex video stuff. Any thoughts?

[Simon Ryder]

I have heard of people upgrading M7CLs and LS9s with better word clocks. I have also heard many technical arguments against it. Why not rent (or borrow) one and try it next time you go out with one. Supposed to be very easy to do.

Let me know how you get on if you try it.

[Rick Sarson]

What are the technical arguements against, please?

[Simon Ryder]

Try this thread on PSW Rick.

srforums.prosoundweb.com/index.php/mv/msg/36353/0/0/5744/

[Rick Sarson]

Hmmm. Difficult. The really technical stuff in the white papers is too technical for me. Maths and me have never been friends! But looking at those threads it seemed that the gist was those who had tried it said it worked and those who hadn't said it was rubbish and there was no science behind it. It does seem to me, from my position of relative ignorance, that the clock is the most fundamental building block of a digital device and that if it is a poor clock then (surely?) that digital device will not work as accurately/well as if it had a good clock? The hokum behind the CD player thing that got me into this train of thought was that manufacturers of CD players build to a price and that replacing the cheap clock would improve the functioning of everything it controls i.e. all the digital cicuits in the CD player. The evidence of my ears says that there was a significant gain in audio quality, which is subjective but I stand by it nonetheless. A PM5D, being a reasonably expensive desk, would (I hope) have a good clock in it, whereas an LS9, being a budget desk, might not. There is definitely something odd about the LS9 clock, you try getting a CD or MD player to sync with it. It is close enough for signal to pass but 'clock error' flashes constantly until you disable the notification. But then using a £1200 clock seems a bit excessive on a £3000 desk. You are right I will have to get hold of one and try it.

[Simon Ryder]

I would love to know how you get on.

I may be moving away from Yamaha now that the A&H T series iLive is out. Trounces the M7 on features at an LS9 price. Just putting one on an install now, so will see how it gets on.