The Puffin user manual is here. Second last page has all the processor specs. The ADC is the superb TI PCM1808. The DAC is an equally superb TI PCM5102A. The CPU is the ever-reliable ARM Cortex M4 80MHz. Conversion is done at 24/96. Most important, Parks has done a brilliant job of circuit design and programming to help bring everything together in a way that makes excellent sense and sounds great.
I can imagine someone using the Puffin with a CD player to utilize the DSP capabilities alone regardless of the phono pre. The functionality of this device is off the charts.
I have always been an EQ hater. I have long believed it just dulls the signal to cover up an existing issue with a system. I may actually still feel that way but I took the Puffin over to a friends house who is running a 1200 with Pioneer SX-680 and a pair of Sansui speaker and it really made that system come to life. What started out as dull and rolled off really snapped to attention and took the blanked off the speakers. A lot of this I think was giving the gain a healthy boost but the eq adjustments were very meaningful. In this spot I think the Puffin was the best phono to use.
My discovery of the SC-2's effect on the Elton John album was made strictly out of curiosity as to it's effect on that particular record, something I routinely check when new records arrive. When I'm playing clean records I always bypass the Sugarcube.
Interesting that you claim the processing of the Sugarcube flattens sound yet the Puffin does not even tho you said "Every processor you put inline with a phono signal from a cartridge affects sound". I recorded a sample via my RME ADI-2 and the same song via the SC-2 at level 3. I submitted the songs to a group of picky audiophiles online who had no knowledge I had the SC-2 or what the difference was between the 2 samples. For the first time EVER, unanimously they chose the SC-2 sample to the raw ADI-2 sample. Having used other click repair programs extensively over the years the SC-2 is the most transparent process I have ever used. Anyway this is a Puffin thread so I'll stop crapping...
I emailed Shannon and asked if he tried the Puffin with an outbord RCA switchbox for more inputs to see if it could be used in place of a preamp. He tried it and said NO because on the high gain phono setting there was a terrible ground loop. To bad. He said I never had any intentions of the Puffin being a replacement for a full featured preamp anyway. Just to make a great sounding do it all phono preamp. From what I read on this forum it seems like he succeeded.
That's exactly right. I'm not sure it's what you meant to write, but you're implying that both the Sugarcube and Puffin processing have to sound the same. That's obviously not the case. I'll say it again - every processor you put inline with a phono signal from a cartridge affects sound. Some components can make the signal sound poor; other components can make the signal sound good; other components can correct audible problems, still other components can make the signal sound great. The Puffin is not processing the cartridge signal in anywhere close to the same way for anything even vaguely close to the same reason as the Sugarcube. That should be obvious. That the Sugarcube does as well as it plainly can, according to so many satisfied customers, means to me that the small tradeoff in sound quality is completely worthwhile because a huge number unlistenable LPs become enjoyably listenable. That's what matters when using a Sugarcube. The Puffin, on the other hand, is a terrific phono preamp that has nothing to do with the Sugarcube or its specific sorts of signal processing. The Puffin can only do a very small part of what the Sugarcube can do, and can't be a substitute for the Sugarcube. The Sugarcube is not a phono preamp of any kind and therefore can't do any of the things the Puffin does. Again, it seems obvious that while both processors affect the signal it's inevitable that the signal effects are remarkably different.
Brilliant. Are you able to run two Turntables through The Puffin ? I want to try my vintage Sony PS-5520 with it.
Mine has developed a very annoying ground hum. It’s been running clean in the same system for a couple months, nothing should have changed. I’m going to switch tables this weekend If I get a chance and see if it goes away.
It's got bolts, you can pop the lid and check the solder joint for the ground post. At least, I would...after checking all the cabling. Sometimes entropy happens and a wire that hasn't moved in 10 years doesn't have a solid connection anymore.
Dennis0675- I hope your ground loop is a one off issue. Interesting that Shannon told me he got a ground loop when trying a RCA switch box with it for more inputs. Please let us know how you resolved it !
Hi all. New here. Just received my Puffin and I finally have a phone pre that can provide the gain I need for my Denon 103. Have it dialed in and all appears good and sounds great. One question.... How do you save settings for user entered menu selections? Set? seems counter intuitive, where Save might have worked better. Do you 'select' the user setting 1-4 first, and then change whatever they load to your own settings and the OS saves them by default? redjr
No. Configure everything first, then save the configuration. Remeber the warning in the manual that a large increase in gain from setting to setting can kill speakers, so turn down the volume before changing presets.
I just switched out the table and it is hum free. Something in the Debut carbon is the culprit, no big surprise there. Additionally, I think the Shure cart sounds better than the 2m blue. Some the the detail is certainly rolled off but not really in a bad way and the bass is much more full. I’m a bit shocked.
Dennis0675, Glad the hum wasn’t from the Puffin. What Shure cart do you have ? I have a Budgie and a V15VMR with original stylus and it still sounds good. Also have a Sumiko Blue Point II that sounds better. I’d like to get a Puffin but would then would also like a LOMC cart to go along. $$$ building up now !
The ability to run LOMC is the whole reason I ran across this box to begin with. I wanted the Cinemag SUT to go with the Budgie until I hit Shannon's website and BOTH were gone, replaced by this little dude. I don't have a LOMC cart yet but wanted to leave that option open. Seems like I'll be boxing up the Budgie or selling it (super tough decision) when the time comes.
I will be taking delivery of a Puffin tomorrow, thanks to this thread. Ordered from Amazon so if I for some reason don't like it, I can send it back but having had a Budgie and a Parks SUT in the past (but don't ask me to do a comparison, it's been too long for that and very different setup now), I have high expectations. I have had a number of phono pre's but again, there's enough of a difference in my current setup that comparisons are moot, IMO. I will be able to a/b it against a Mani though! For now I'll just be running it with my Shure M97Xe, and will hopefully have my Art9 back and re-tipped to try a .5mv MC out on it.
A couple off the cuff impressions after a few hours of listening: As a former budgie owner (and again, I'm not making any comparisons here, been too long/too many changes since), I had at least relatively high expectations for this little gadget. So far, I am more than pleasantly surprised by it. It seems pretty transparent to me, doesn't seem to be flattening the image, at least based on my memories of the Herron that preceded it. And no, I'm not saying it competes with the Herron, just that it should be taken seriously for what it is. Purists, I fear, will likely never consider this although, a $400 phono stage likely isn't in their wheelhouse anyway. The settings really do work. I haven't found much to fawn over on the TF functions, but, so far I'm at: Bass/Treble -1, Air +2, Tilt even, gain 48 db (Shure M97Xe), fine balance adjust -1L which brings both the ADC and DAC settings to an identical setting on a mono track in both mono and stereo mode. Hi cutoff is 15K and it really seems to help calm pops and clicks on bad records. I can see having a preset of 15 for those and 30 for good wax, and I don't remember if that's defeatable but same difference, a preset for fully off on quiet vinyl. Low cutoff is 20 Hz, but I may drop that to 15, however at 20 it seems to help overall room response which isn't surprising with a small room and two small sealed 12's in it. I've run through some metal, audiophile pressing of Crisis? What Crisis, some death metal, and I really don't find any fault with it so far. My ideal setup will be to keep the Puffin for all it does and, when I can find one, score a Herron VTPH1-MC for my MC carts to have an "all analog" option as well as a "this record doesn't require AAA but the Puffin can make it sound better" option. Well done, Shannon!
Bumping for input on this question. Has anyone directly compared the Lounge and Puffin? What say you?
Not the greatest comparison here but I had the Lounge Copla + Mk III on my current table and cart, but with a little different preamp/amp behind what the Puffin has. I did have the Herron VTPH-2 behind this same gear, though. With respect to the Lounge gear, it sounded nice, exceptional value, but I felt like I heard the preamp/headamp whereas with either the Puffin or the Herron, I don't "hear" them. That I would say the Puffin reminds me far more of the Herron than the Lounge gear should tell you something. It really is an outstanding device, Shannon nailed it. Can't wait to see what he does for firmware in the future, too.
I would be interested to know that too. I had stoped listening to cds a few years back when i reverted to vinyl. Then i purchased a Rogue audio Cronus Magnum 2 integrated tube amp and when i tried a few cds through it i was quickly pulling my stored cds back out of storage. I still play vinyl predominantly but because the tubes seemed to make digital music sound more liquid to me i bohght a node 2 as well....it would be cool to try the puffin out with cds. I have a budgie which i love and actually got an email from shannon yesterday where he suggested using the new telefunken E88CC 'Black Diamond' tubes in my budgie. I am going to ost a question about this tube and budgie combo in another thread as i have really only heard a lot of gold lion /budgie reviews.
I could do this but haven't been too curious, essentially it would just be adding some EQ to my CD player. I need a phonostage to play records and I like having the EQ adjustments but there isn't the need with CD's. I rather just have a straight signal from the DAC. It's a bit of a slippery slope as far as a logical argument is concerned. Why use the EQ for LP's and not CD's? The answer for me is that I need to add something to the chain to hear an LP and I'm keeping the EQ adjustment very flat for the most part. I'd rather just have a clean signal without a break from my DAC directly to my receiver. If you want your digital to sound better, getting a better DAC is the answer. The Puffin is better used for it's intended purpose. But...I haven't tried it so I'm speaking theoretically. Which means I'm just making stuff up.
