Version 2.0 of the Starkrimson Stereo Ultra is all about power. Orchard Audio had a custom power supply developed to specifically work with our Starkrimson Ultra gallium nitride (GaN) amplifier modules. These new SMPS1K2 -SKU power supplies are developed and manufactured by Micro-Audio. Upsides Pictures are Worth 1000 Words… Here is what the power supplies …
Both DACs use Orchard Audio’s proprietary filtering topology and class AB headphone output buffers. Both DACs also have S/PDIF inputs and utilize an ultra-low jitter clock to effectively eliminate jitter. The major difference between the two boards is the DAC chip that is utilized (see more on this below). What are Customer Saying? Based on …
The 2023 Florida Audio Expo was my first “real” show. It was a great experience for me on multiple fronts. Setup The below image shows the setup of the Orchard Audio room. There were two systems:1. PecanPi Streamer –> Starkrimson Stereo Ultra –> Soundfield Audio M1V2 Speakers (outside)2. PecanPi Streamer –> Starkrimson Mono Amps –> …
A Rev 1.0 Starkrimson Stereo Ultra ($2900 configuration) amplifier is currently touring the US. Everybody is welcome to join in.Update:As of 04/01/2023, the tour amplifier is Rev 1.0 Starkrimson Stereo Ultra dual mono with capacitor upgrade ($3500 configuration). How does it work? You are responsible only for the costs of properly packaging and shipping the …
I am proud to announce that we will present at the 2022 Speakerfest in Phoenix, AZ. Orchard Audio will have three (3) audio demo setups at the event. Setup 1:Floor standing speakers (ELAC Uni-Fi Reference UFR52), driven by the Starkrimson® Stereo Ultra amplifier with the PecanPi® Streamer as the source. Setup 2:Bookshelf speakers (ELAC Uni-Fi …
Many people talk about speaker placement, and I agree this is very important. However, amplifier placement is also important. Why? It affects the damping factor at the speaker’s terminals. Why is damping factor important? The damping factor of an amplifier tells you how well it can control the load. In this case, the load is …
Product specifications often list the signal-to-noise ratio, sometimes written as “SNR” or “S/N,” but what does it mean? While the math behind SNR is technical, the concept is not, and this value can impact a system’s overall sound quality. SNR compares the level of a signal to the level of noise. In other words, it …
Streamer Questions: 1. Can an external DAC be used with the PecanPi Streamer?Yes. An external DAC can be connected to any USB port on the streamer. This will disable the streamer’s internal DAC. 2. What XLR to RCA adapters or cables can I use?The adapter must have pin 3 floating on the XLR side. This is a …
I cannot tell you the number of times I have heard a conversation about amplifier power go like this: “I hear that B&W speakers need at least 400W,” or, “I heard that Paradigm speakers are very power-hungry.” The fact is, there IS a way to figure out how much power your speakers will need and how to pair …
Want better sound quality from your phone/laptop/tablet/MP3 player? You need a dedicated DAC. What is a DAC (Digital-to-Analog Converter)? All data/media on your phone/computer/tablet is stored in a digital format (comprised of 0s and 1s). This includes all of your audio files (FLAC, mp3, AIFF, etc), and streaming audio (TIDAL, Qobuz, Spotify, etc). A DAC …
