I am looking at Innuos streamers. Assuming PhoenixUSB Lite on both models, how does the sound quality, tonality, sound characteristics of these two options compare (using Sense). Interested in Innuos' view as well as those who have listening experience or have upgraded. For streaming do you believe the ZEN NG to be a meaningful, worth it upgrade over the Pulsar?
Pulsar vs. ZEN NG for streaming
- Thread starter GSOphile
- Start date
Yes, the ZEN Next-Gen would still be an upgrade over a PULSAR as a streamer. The depth of the tuning and customisation on the mainboard is a lot deeper, the NGaN regulation is a step forward, and the firmware-level AudioCore and RTK make an improvement too. Whether it's worth it would be up to you ultimately so i do suggest trying an audition if that is possible. It can be tricky to describe sound characteristics at any great length, but I would say that you should even more transparency, precision and neutrality. It becomes just that bit more 'hi-fi'.
Stephen, thanks for your timely reply. One reason behind my question is that from the product descriptions, the Pulsar PSU appears to have more in common with the ZENith NG than the ZEN NG, leading one to question whether the ZEN NG's PSU might be a step down from the Pulsar's?
Based your description of the ZEN NG's sound, would it also be fair to say that relatively speaking the Pulsar might sound slightly warmer and more analog?
Based your description of the ZEN NG's sound, would it also be fair to say that relatively speaking the Pulsar might sound slightly warmer and more analog?
I recently went from Pulsar to ZENith NG (so, not ZEN NG, as your question) — but I suspect somewhat likely sound signature differences — so thought I would weigh in to the extent potentially helpful. Stephen’s description of the differences ring true to me. I notice in particular that the ZENith NG is more transparent and present in the upper midrange and especially the treble, but it is not at all etched or fatiguing (although perhaps that is also system dependent). So, I guess in that sense you might describe the Pulsar as slightly warmer or more analog. I would generally describe my sound preferences as warm/analog, but I prefer the ZENith NG to the Pulsar — yes, more neutral/transparent, but not at the cost of making the listening experience a game of finding new sounds in familiar recordings — the music still just washes over me but just with a bit more sense of presence. And, in fairness, the differences are not to my mind night and day — clearly audible, but more in the nature of emphasis/shading — along the lines of what I am used to getting with good electronics when going up the model line. Good luck in your upgrade path.
