Chord
Company Ethernet switch
September
22, 2021
Roy,
Great article on the Chord Company GroundARAY. Chord also makes the
English Electric 8S Ethernet switch. Do you or any TAB staff have experience with
or thoughts on that product?
Sheldon
Simon
The
English Electric 8S network switch, a Chord Co. product, is one of a rash of
audiophile-quality switches hitting the market -- perhaps the best known being the SOtM
models. As anybody who has tried these devices will attest, they make a significant
contribution to the quality of network-based file replay. That’s far from surprising,
given that commercially available network switches from the likes of Netgear are intended
for computer rather than audio use, where priorities are more to do with transfer speed
than signal integrity. In practice, higher-grade computer hardware, such as off-the-shelf
Cat 8 cables, can actually deliver lower audio quality than theoretically lower-spec
examples, a reflection of these different operational priorities.
What
sets the English Electric 8S apart is its relatively modest price and the specifics of its
approach. Starting with a carefully selected donor unit, Chord Co. has chosen to use a
substantial metal housing that delivers both effective shielding and better mechanical
performance. Just handling the 8S induces a sense of confidence. The company has also paid
significant attention to the grounding arrangements of the bank of eight Ethernet sockets.
To keep the price reasonable they have opted for a selected plug-top supply, rather than a
modest external, linear power supply mounted in a separate case -- an entirely performance
related decision. It’s an object lesson in value engineering -- delivering the
biggest bang for your bucks. In use, compared to standard hardware, the 8S delivers a more
coherent and richly colored musical performance, with improved separation, dimensionality
and rhythmic integrity, making file replay a far more enjoyable experience. Units like the
SOtM sNH-10G (with its matching external power supply) go further still, especially in the
realms of transparency and banishing audible grain, but do so at a cost of around five
times the price of the English Electric 8S.
Don’t
be surprised if a matching, purpose-built, high-quality linear power supply appears in due
course, offering users an upgrade path. Meanwhile, I’m happily using the plug-top
supply at present, as it keeps the price down and the value high. As always, you pays your
money and takes your choice, but, for me, the English Electric 8S switch, used in
conjunction with audio-specific network cabling (yes, Chord Co. does that too) sets the
minimum standard for acceptable network audio replay. -Roy Gregory
E-mail
list
September
1, 2021
Marc,
Please
add me to your e-mail list.
Davis
Schmidt
You've
been added. To join TAB's reader e-mail list and find out about new articles
first, send e-mail to rl@theaudiobeat.com.
-Marc Mickelson
