SpeCS & prICIng - My Hiend

NEXT-GEN DIGITAL
The Transporter’s front panel features a big bright vacuum
fluorescent display (VFD) on the right side that can be configured
to show VU meters, EQ volume bars, song title information, or
nothing at all. The left half of the front panel has another VFD
that keeps track of what’s playing when you’re not navigating
through the Transporter’s many menus. In the center of the
Transporter’s front panel is a large circular knob. In addition
to serving as a volume control, it’s also a navigation knob that
moves you from one menu choice to another. If you use the
remote to operate the Transporter, you’ll never touch the front
panel except to clean off accumulated dust.
The remote that comes with the Transporter is almost the
same remote that you get with the basic model Squeezebox.
The only difference is that the Transporter’s remote lights up
when you push any of its buttons. However it doesn’t supply
any feedback about whether your keypunch selection has had the
desired effect. You have to look at the Transporter’s front-panel
display to ascertain the remote’s efficacy. For the added cost of
$299 you can buy the Logitech Duet’s remote and use it with
the Transporter. The Duet remote does all the things a good
remote control should do—lights up, has a color display, and,
most importantly, tells you where you are in the Transporter’s
multi-tiered menu system. Frankly I’m disappointed that the
Transporter lacks the far superior Duet remote, but since the
Transporter came to market over a year before the Duet, it’s
not surprising that it doesn’t. Fortunately many Logitech dealers
will sell you a Transporter bundled with the Duet remote if you
wish.
With four digital inputs a Transporter should be able to
support and control a fairly complete digital-only music system.
I appreciate that it includes a pro-standard AES/EBU digital
input. But some prospective users may not be as pleased by the
Transporter’s analog output choices.
With only two pair of analog outputs, both tethered to a digital
domain volume control, anyone in need of a fixed-level analog
output has limited options. Sure, he can set the Transporter’s
volume level at 0dB to get a fixed line-level out at 2.0 volts
unbalanced or 3.0 volts balanced, but this effectively bypasses
the Transporter’s volume adjustments. While many users who
incorporate a Transporter into an existing multichannel system
set up the Transporter in this manner, if your inclination is
toward a more minimalist system with the Transporter as your
sole preamp you may have to do without a fixed line-level analog
output.
A possibly more problematic shortcoming is that while the
Transporter has three jumper switches located inside its chassis
to attenuate the analog output level by 10, 20, or 30dB, this
attenuator only works on the unbalanced RCA outputs, not the
balanced XLR connections! Why is this an issue?
To get the best sound out of a digital volume control that
truncates bits at lower volume levels (digital volume controls throw
away one bit of resolution per 6dB of attenuation—Ed.) you should set
up your system so that the volume control is nearly all the way up
for critical listening. If you use the unbalanced outputs you can
take advantage of the Transporter’s built-in attenuators. But if
you want to run balanced interconnects between the Transporter
and your power amplifier you’ll need to insert a fixed attenuator.
Otherwise the signal level could be excessively high. But what if
you need to use that balanced output for a subwoofer? You’re
34 June/July 2009 The Absolute Sound
going to have a devil of a time getting the levels between the two
outputs to match up precisely. That 30dB difference will require
your subwoofer input level to be set so low that it may not track
accurately. It’s really a shame that Logitech didn’t see fit to make
the internal attenuators for both analog outputs.
Since I wanted to hear how the Transporter sounded at its best,
I kept it installed in my desktop system for a good part of the
review period. There I mated it with my vintage but completely
refurbished Accuphase P-300 power amplifier. The P-300 has
variable volume attenuators located on its front panel, so I used
the Transporter’s outputs at full level and adjusted listening levels
with the Accuphase’s input controls. While this method worked
well for me, it doesn’t solve the problem for most prospective
users whose power amplifiers lack volume adjustments.
Up, Up, and away
Setting up the Transporter is easier than setting up a Squeezebox
Duet. That’s because the Transporter has a built-in expert system
that leads you through the initial installation. To access your
music library the Transporter requires a computer or server with
Slim Devices’ SqueezeCenter software installed on it. I mated the
Transporter with a Music Vault II (reviewed in this issue) preloaded
with SqueezeCenter, so the Transporter would have its
own unique wireless network courtesy of the Music Vault. Once
set up the Transporter recognized the Music Vault’s installed
music library as well as my Internet radio station favorites.
During the review period the Transporter occasionally
dropped the wireless feed from the MusicVault, but in every
case after ten seconds it began playing the tracks again with no
further issues. I was a bit surprised that the Transporter had any
connection issues since my Duet, Apple TV, and Sonos systems
are farther from their wireless hubs and have never had any
dropouts. One of Logitech’s technical experts suggested that the
problem may not have been the wireless network interface, but
SpeCS & prICIng
Type: WiFi (802.11g) and/
or Ethernet-connected D/A
processor with digital-domain
volume control (range-adjusted
with resistor jumpers)
Digital inputs: TosLink, coaxial,
BNC, AES/EBU, word-clock
(BNC)
Digital outputs: TosLink,
coaxial, BNC, AES/EBU
Analog outputs: One pair RCA,
one pair balanced XLR
operating systems supported:
Mac OS X 10.3 or later, 733MHz
Pentium running Windows
NT/2000/XP, Linux/BSD/
Solaris/Perl 5.8.3 or later
Sample rates supported:
44.1kHz, 48kHz, 88.2kHz, and
96kHz
Audio formats supported:
linear PCM, 16 or 24 bits/
sample
maximum output levels: 2V
RMS, single-ended; 3V RMS,
balanced
Dimensions: 17" x 3" x 12.25"
Shipping weight: 11 lbs.
Price: $1999
logIteCh
455 National Avenue
Mountain View, CA 94043
(650) 210-9400
slimdevices.com
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