OCK-1: I expected a change, but not an improvement to this degree.
What made me order a clock from LHY Audio, although I haven't found any reviews yet? First and foremost, it's the very good reputation for Jay's Audio CD drive and DAC. So I embarked on a little adventure. Would I regret it?
For a long time, I couldn't bring myself to invest in digital because my analog chain sounded better and more familiar than digital alternatives. Besides, a few thousand records make streaming music unnecessary.
The audio chain was quite classic in design, with various amplifiers and speakers, and characterized by a lot of experimentation with setups and cables. This was fun for a long time, but also became tedious and boring at some point.
Interestingly, studio technology opened up the digital path for me. Currently I use Neumann studio subwoofers and monitors that are calibrated to my listening room with the MA-1 microphone. Music is sent from the PC via the USB interface and the Alldaq USB isolator to a Mutec MC3+ USB Reclocker, which transmits the PCM data stream after processing via S/PDIF interface directly to the Neumann subwoofer. The reclocker already uses a high-quality 1 GHz clock, but also allows synchronization with an external 10 MHz clock - this is where the Master Clock OCK-1 comes into play.
Since the Mutec MC3+ reclocker has 75 Ohm BNC inputs, I asked Alvin Chee from Beatechnik to supply OCK-1 in 75 Ohm version. Fortunately, this was no problem and the Master Clock was with me in a few days. Construction and design are of high quality, so I could concentrate on the connection to the reclocker.
OCK-1 has 3 outputs, where two outputs are sine signals and one output is a square wave signal.
Very high quality, broadband and fast electrical driver components, BNC connectors and cables are required to process a square wave signal without interference. The clean processing of the signals can only be accurately controlled by measurement, which is impossible without expensive measurement equipment. In an interesting paper John R. Swenson described under which boundary conditions a clock transmission with sine or rectangular waveform with as little interference as possible should take place. Based on this information I decided to work with the sinusoidal signal. As suggested in the paper, I put a 11MHz low pass filter in front of the reclocker. I use BNC cables recommended in studio technology for video transmission.
Reading along in relevant forums, one marvels in disbelief at possible improvements. I expected a change, but not an improvement to this degree. The lower and upper end of the frequency spectrum is broadened and clearer, the locatability of music sources is much improved, the room is presented wider and deeper, and the naturalness of the presentation is amazing.
The Master Clock OCK-1 has excellent characteristics and raises digital processing in my system to a level not expected. I give it a strong recommendation!
Georg@Germany
Equipment
PC Windows 10 with XXHighend Software Player
Alldaq USB Isolator
Mutec MC3+ USB
LHY Audio Master clock OCK-1
Neuman KH750 DSP
Neumann KH120
Neumann MA-1
Rittmann HF Technik 11MHz low pass filter
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