XACT S1. The music server you've been waiting for

[celebrat]

Actually Matt;
I must modify my original statement. I stand corrected. The more I listen to the streaming, the more I feel it is pretty much indistinguishable to local files. I was listening to few SACD tracks that were local and they are amazing. Consequently, I am in no real hurry to downloand my files. I will choose carefully which ones I do put on the Xact S1. Rarities one of a kinds etc. Thank you for your follow up with this.

Fred (Celebrat)

 

[matthias]

Hope you are right, would be nice to listen to the XACT S1 at HE Munich but unfortunately it seems not to be possible.

Matt

 

[Marcin_gps]

During first 2 years of R&D of XACT S1 I'd been listening to Qobuz exclusively. It sounded so good I did not care for local files. But last year I started finetuning playback of local files and for me the sound is quite a bit better. I have a lot of CDs and SACDs, Japanese limited releases, that I ripped myself. So I switched back to local files (again). I still use Qobuz for discovering new music and when I find music I really like, I try to get it in the best possible quality.

XACT S1 sounds good without fancy network switches. I did not use any switch during R&D. I wanted the S1 to perform without extra tweaks and I think I managed to achieve that.

Yes, sadly, I won't be in Munich this year. When I registered last year there were no sound rooms left. I was hoping to find a partner I could share a room with, but all my contacts already had plans for this year. I will be working with dealers to organize local events though where customers can experience the product.

Marcin

 

[Marcin_gps]

JPLAY iOS app, which comes with XACT S1, featured in Qobuz Magazine. (the article available in French)

JPLAY, une solution de lecture unifiée efficace | Qobuz MAGAZINE

JPLAY est une application de lecture musicale qui intègre Qobuz de façon complète. Le logiciel, disponible sur l’App Store depuis peu, permet de piloter différents lecteurs réseau et enceintes connectées, quelle que soit leur marque, avec la promesse d’un son de qualité.

www.qobuz.com

 

[springson]

I just received the S1? which sounds good and is easy to control via Jplay. Jplay ios is a wonderful app better than roon for me. But, There is a bug for tidal. More details, will update later

 

[t.arni]

Hello,

for anyone who may be interested, I would like to briefly share my experiences with the XACT S1.



About my history with Computer Audio:

I have been involved with computer audio for more than 5 years. I was trying to get the maxiumum out of an Single Audio PC and my final setup was:

Supermicro server board

XEON low power CPU with about aprox. 20W TDP

Apacer Industrial RAM

Apacer SLC SSD

JCAT SATA cables

JCAT Signature LAN and USB Cables

And of course all the accessories from JCAT ( USB XE + LAN XE ) Optimo 3 DOU for USB and LAN Cards

AND the OPTIMO S ATX power supply from JCAT, which was another huge step forward.



I tried several Windows Server versions (2019 - 2016 - 2012) in Core mode and Gui. Contrary to many other opinions, I ended up with 2012 because it just sounded the most natural to me. Yes 2016 has more attack and the bass is more on point (too much?) but overall 2012 has the most natural sound for me.



At the end the sound was really very good ( I thought ). I work in a high-end hi-fi shop in Vienna and have a good overview of what is currently possible on the digital and analog side with the well known brands. I have to honestly say that I am of the opinion that the good old vinyl turntables with really good cartridges and phono amplifiers is still the measure of all things. (for me)



But: What came out of a PC setup with JPLAY, Audiophile Optimizer and the JACT products was really very good (at least that's what I thought)

When Marcin then announced the XACT S1, I was of course curious and ordered one to test. I was very skeptical. The small part can't possibly sound better than my Monster PC setup with the 30 kg ATX power supply S ATX.



But what should I say:

After the first few notes it was immediately clear: This sounds clearly better than anything else I've heard from a digital source.

Sound is always difficult to describe, but I'll try:

In short: Everything Marcin has described so far is true. Any rest of “digital” sound is gone. In my opinion, this is best heard on cymbals. Cymbals sound as real as I've ever heard from a digital source. Voices have a texture and energy that is incredible. The immediacy of the piano attack is so real as never before. And so on….

Long story short: It just sounds “analogue” and perfect to my ears. The right tonal balance between warmth and details - unbelievable spatiality - absolutely black background.

The perfect sound: Everbody has another imagine of what sounds perfect. One loves the analytic way of “disassemble” and the next loves the sound of “bad” tube amps without any kind of resolution and details. So who is “right”. I love the organic way of listening to music. And for me marcin gets the point to 100%. But this doesn’t mean that it would be the perfect server for everyone

If you have the sound of a nearly perfect vinyl setup as a reference in your ears, you should try the XACT S1. That is what I can say tell you with a clear conscience



I really don't want to advertise Marcin here. As you can see, I just registered here today. I just wanted to share my enthusiasm for the product and draw attention to the fact that this is really an extraordinary product (to my ears ;-)

Happy listening , Thomas

 

[Marcin_gps]

I just received the S1? which sounds good and is easy to control via Jplay. Jplay ios is a wonderful app better than roon for me. But, There is a bug for tidal. More details, will update later

Thanks for the report. The Tidal issue is fixed now, only some regions of the world were affected by it. Please post an update when you check the fix.

Best regards,
Marcin

 

[matthias]

I just received the S1? which sounds good and is easy to control via Jplay.

Please can you shed some light on how the S1 compares to your other streamers in your signature (Dual PF ultra, Taiko, Aqua Linq)
Thank you

Matt

 

[springson]

try to do...

 

[Chupi]

Hello ,


I'm French and I don't speak English as well as I should

I have owned an XACT S1 for a few weeks and I would like to share with you my listening impressions.

I spent a lot of time getting to know the streamer's personality, I compared it to two others that I own, an Esoteric N03t and a Melco N1zs20/2a.

I was a dealer for 15 years and now retired, this allowed to me to test and evaluate a lot of products

With the XACT I just want to listen music, i find the sound smooth and relaxed, not at all hifi
It is both richer and organic
The treble has no aggressiveness, with excellent definition, perfectly integrated with the midrange.
Voices are fleshy with body and substance, giving great emotion.
The bass is full-bodied and tight.
What impressed me the most, compared to the other two streamers, was the realism of the reproduction.
This mix of richness of timbre and definition, which I had never experienced before, never falls into an analytical effect that quickly becomes tiring.
It was like the XACT s1 created a emotional human connection between the music and the listen

 

[Marcin_gps]

Thank you for your reviews!

 

[Tonari]

Nice system.!! Thanks for sharing your impressions on the server.

 

[ChrisTaiwan]

I am a user of pinkfaun. I just had jcat’s xact-s1 in my study system for three days. I immediately found that this is the best digital streamer next to pinkfaun. I expect the integrated switch function to be available soon. Macin although I I don't know you, but you're really cool,?tks

 

[ChrisTaiwan]

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?????????????????????????? YouTube ?????

???????????? MusicVault ???/??????7???????????SOTM USB??????????????????? 15TB??????????????????????? Xact S1 ??????????????? Sound Scence ? Neal Van Berg?MusicVault ??????????

???????Aurender????MV????????????????????????????????? Bricasti M3 DAC????????????? MusicVault ?????? Bricasti ???????????

?? Jcat Xact S1?????????????????Marcin ??????? SQ?????????? Qobuz?????????????????? Xact ????????????????? MusicVault ? Bricasti ???????????Xact ?????????????????????????????

??????????????? Xact ???????????????????? USB ?? FemtoServer ????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 3D??? 2 ? GR ?????????????????????????????????Xact ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

?????????? Xact??????????????????????????

Hi Matt
As I said, I really do not stream much at all. Mostly limited to my car. There is some YouTube concerts etc.

I previously used a MusicVault server/computer which I really liked. It is more than 7 years, old used a SOTM USB card I installed. That is where all my music files reside (about 15TB) and I played direct fom there. It is a good server, but the Xact S1 is in another league. I am actually good friends with Neal Van Berg of Sound Scence, maker of the MusicVault.

I evaluated the Aurender at home and performance was simular to the MV. Crazy money for the same performance ,so I did not purchase. I also have a Bricasti M3 DAC with streamer card and that is very good as well. I would serve files from the MusicVault and stream (again rarely) from the Bricasti.

Back to the Jcat Xact S1. Since I don't have my music loaded into it yet (Marcin said that would be best SQ) this past Saturday, I just subscribed to Qobuz so I would have my tastes in music available. The sound from streaming with the Xact actually sounds superior to either the MusicVault or the Bricasti. That blew me away. The music from the few files loaded on the Xact is actually was superior to the streaming by a very wide margin. Regardless of format.

This guy Marcin is really onto something. He designed the actual motherboard in the Xact. The entire unit utilizes a linear power supply from motherboard to his USB Card and his FemtoServer card. The music comes out of a dark invisible background. More Dynamic, Richer tonality and Clean. Bass is deep and articulate. Imaging seem more 3d in space. I have 2 GR research open baffle subwoofers (which I love dearly); I had to adjust output down a bit to compensate. The Xact sounds like analog, is how I can best describe it, but without the analogue limitations. For me it is an expensive purchase, but I do beleive it adds to my listening pleasre. That is what it is all about.

I am working on getting files into the Xact. I'll say more when I do and the unit is full broken in. Thanks

How to import music files from your NAS to XACT?

 

[Johnax]

Hello. Congrats on launching theXACT S1. I have been looking into building my own high end music server / streamer using Jcat USB XE and Network XE cards and a fanless silent PC with Streacom fc9 case running Linux and Roon server. This would replace my Roon Nucleus. I estimated that would cost me about $6000 to build including the external LPS I wanted to use. While on the Jcat website I discovered the XACT S1. The XACT S1 appears to be priced at about 13.2k USD (12k euros). So a little more than double the cost.

So my question is what should I expect in sound quality improvement using the XACT S1 as opposed to my DIY server / streamer? Will the main benefit of the XACT S1 will be the improved mother board? Is the Jplay software supposed to sound better than the Roon software running on Linux? I’m currently using a separate Taiko extreme switch so I don’t need the switching capabilities of the XACT S1. Any thoughts welcome.

 

[Marcin_gps]

How to import music files from your NAS to XACT?

I sent the instructions to Chris via email, but I will write here in case other users would like to know. Copying music over network is done using SMB protocol. In human language:

1) From a Windows PC:

Windows Explorer -> Network -> double-click on XACT

Or

Type: \\XACT in Quick Access field and press 'Enter' key



2) From a Mac:

New Finder window -> Network -> double-click on XACT

Hello. Congrats on launching theXACT S1. I have been looking into building my own high end music server / streamer using Jcat USB XE and Network XE cards and a fanless silent PC with Streacom fc9 case running Linux and Roon server. This would replace my Roon Nucleus. I estimated that would cost me about $6000 to build including the external LPS I wanted to use. While on the Jcat website I discovered the XACT S1. The XACT S1 appears to be priced at about 13.2k USD (12k euros). So a little more than double the cost.

So my question is what should I expect in sound quality improvement using the XACT S1 as opposed to my DIY server / streamer? Will the main benefit of the XACT S1 will be the improved mother board? Is the Jplay software supposed to sound better than the Roon software running on Linux? I’m currently using a separate Taiko extreme switch so I don’t need the switching capabilities of the XACT S1. Any thoughts welcome.

Hi @Johnax,

Thank you for the compliments.

Other than the feedback from customers you can read above (more feedback will come soon),

Based on our impressions vs. a PC powered by OPTIMO S ATX PSU, USB XE & NET XE - both powered by OPTIMO 3 DUO PSU and other music server upgrades from JCAT, XACT S1 offers more natural sound with softer edges, better tonality which results in more realistic playback. Whether it suits listener's taste and system, I'm not sure. So far 9/10 customers were very happy with this sound signature, which was done by me in my own system.

PC-based music server seems to offer more perceived details, but this is not a real resolution. Details and resolution are not the same thing. PC-based server is sharper and more digital sounding.

Also, PC-based music gives more flexibility as the user can install and configure software and hardware in any way. It can be an advantage or disandvatage.

XACT S1 is a closed pre-configured system. The advantage is 1-click setup. Simple as it can be. I'm constantly working to improve the firmware and features in JPLAY app.

The Switch/router is a secondary functionality. The main operation is music server/player.

I've just finished fine-tuning and testing new software upgrade.

The XACT OpenWRT switch/router OS.

And the new firmware upgrade for XACT OS.

What's new in XACT OS:

- sound quality improvement
- automatic copy of files from USB storage to XACT's internal drive. (if USB drive is connected to USB-HDD port at power on, copy executes. XACT will shut down automatically as soon as all files are copied. No user intervention is required)

The XACT OpenWRT switch/router OS:
- Default Configuration is switch. Just connect LAN cables and press power button. WAN port is configured as DHCP client and gets IP and internet from main router. In the picture below XACT switch is on top and connects to XACT server below.




The sound quality of 2x XACTs in tandem is simply exceptional.



For Router Configuration user has to enter the IP address of the XACT OpenWRT in a web browser. There is a graphic interface where user can configure router as with any other router. See the screenshot below.





XACT OpenWRT switch/router OS is loaded from a different SD card. I will include two SD cards with every XACT S1 unit.


Best regards,
Marcin
--

 

[Johnax]

I sent the instructions to Chris via email, but I will write here in case other users would like to know. Copying music over network is done using SMB protocol. In human language:

1) From a Windows PC:

Windows Explorer -> Network -> double-click on XACT

Or

Type: \\XACT in Quick Access field and press 'Enter' key

View attachment 114018

2) From a Mac:

New Finder window -> Network -> double-click on XACT

View attachment 114019


Hi @Johnax,

Thank you for the compliments.

Other than the feedback from customers you can read above (more feedback will come soon),

Based on our impressions vs. a PC powered by OPTIMO S ATX PSU, USB XE & NET XE - both powered by OPTIMO 3 DUO PSU and other music server upgrades from JCAT, XACT S1 offers more natural sound with softer edges, better tonality which results in more realistic playback. Whether it suits listener's taste and system, I'm not sure. So far 9/10 customers were very happy with this sound signature, which was done by me in my own system.

PC-based music server seems to offer more perceived details, but this is not a real resolution. Details and resolution are not the same thing. PC-based server is sharper and more digital sounding.

Also, PC-based music gives more flexibility as the user can install and configure software and hardware in any way. It can be an advantage or disandvatage.

XACT S1 is a closed pre-configured system. The advantage is 1-click setup. Simple as it can be. I'm constantly working to improve the firmware and features in JPLAY app.

The Switch/router is a secondary functionality. The main operation is music server/player.

I've just finished fine-tuning and testing new software upgrade.

The XACT OpenWRT switch/router OS.

And the new firmware upgrade for XACT OS.

What's new in XACT OS:

- sound quality improvement
- automatic copy of files from USB storage to XACT's internal drive. (if USB drive is connected to USB-HDD port at power on, copy executes. XACT will shut down automatically as soon as all files are copied. No user intervention is required)

The XACT OpenWRT switch/router OS:
- Default Configuration is switch. Just connect LAN cables and press power button. WAN port is configured as DHCP client and gets IP and internet from main router. In the picture below XACT switch is on top and connects to XACT server below.

View attachment 114021


The sound quality of 2x XACTs in tandem is simply exceptional.

View attachment 114022

For Router Configuration user has to enter the IP address of the XACT OpenWRT in a web browser. There is a graphic interface where user can configure router as with any other router. See the screenshot below.


View attachment 114020


XACT OpenWRT switch/router OS is loaded from a different SD card. I will include two SD cards with every XACT S1 unit.


Best regards,
Marcin
--

Marcin,

Thank you for your reply and description of sonic differences of XACT S1 and computer server / player. Since you mentioned “Whether it suits listener's taste and system, I'm not sure. So far 9/10 customers were very happy with this sound signature,” can you offer a home trial period with 30 day money back (assuming buyer pays return shipping for any returns, which shouldn’t be many)?

Also thank you for clarifying the use of XACT S1 as a server / player versus a switch / router. Do I understand correctly that one XACT S1 unit cannot be configured as both a server / player and switch? That requires 2 units? If configured as a switch / router can a single unit be both a switch AND a router? Unfortunately I don’t really understand the functional difference between a switch and a router, so apologies if my question makes no sense.

 

[Marcin_gps]

Marcin,

Thank you for your reply and description of sonic differences of XACT S1 and computer server / player. Since you mentioned “Whether it suits listener's taste and system, I'm not sure. So far 9/10 customers were very happy with this sound signature,” can you offer a home trial period with 30 day money back (assuming buyer pays return shipping for any returns, which shouldn’t be many)?

Also thank you for clarifying the use of XACT S1 as a server / player versus a switch / router. Do I understand correctly that one XACT S1 unit cannot be configured as both a server / player and switch? That requires 2 units? If configured as a switch / router can a single unit be both a switch AND a router? Unfortunately I don’t really understand the functional difference between a switch and a router, so apologies if my question makes no sense.

Yes, absolutely. Please send me a PM or email via jcat website.

Correct. It can not be both server'/ player & the switch at the same time. It'd compromise sound quality. Both functionalities use different operating systems.

Granted, using XACT S1 as a switch makes it arguably world's most expensive switch, but it delivers.

That said, the entire R&D and fine-tuning by ear was done without a switch. I wanted the S1 to perform good on its own, without extra tweaks. I wrote about it before.

Best regards,
Marcin

 

[B_andy]

Granted, using XACT S1 as a switch makes it arguably world's most expensive switch, but it delivers.

Marcin,

For people who are looking for solutions to improve their system (audiophile switch, audiophile NAS)... if they already have a player (in my case Auralic G2 full set) such functionality is not stupid (switch with SSD disk).
Of course, you have to pay for additional functionality that you will never use... however, if you still need a switch (Melco/Silent Angel...) and an audiophile SSD storage... 99% of the time you have to buy a player (Melco/Fidata...)

Pozdrawiam, Andrzej

 

[Marcin_gps]

Marcin,

For people who are looking for solutions to improve their system (audiophile switch, audiophile NAS)... if they already have a player (in my case Auralic G2 full set) such functionality is not stupid (switch with SSD disk).
Of course, you have to pay for additional functionality that you will never use... however, if you still need a switch (Melco/Silent Angel...) and an audiophile SSD storage... 99% of the time you have to buy a player (Melco/Fidata...)

Pozdrawiam, Andrzej

Hi Andrzej,

Of course. The S1 can act as a pure music sever or transport (player) or both music server&player or switch/router. It’s quite flexible and will get even more flexible with softwares updates. I’m planning to add Audio CD ripping functionality next.

Apart from software updates, the S1 is prepared for hardware upgrades that will be available to all customers in the future - this is already in R&D phase.

if you’d like to demo the S1 in your system, please send me a PM.

Best regards,
Marcin