Recommended System Configurations
Pace-Car compared to Off-Ramp or Overdrive USB interface
The Pace-Car is the bomb. However, the Off-Ramp 3 and USB interface on the Overdrive are both very close to the Pace-Car performance when using a high-performance USB cable. You may actually not hear a difference between USB and Pace-Car in your system. Even though our USB interfaces are Adaptive and not Asynchronous, they still outperform all other USB interfaces on the market, Asynch or Adaptive. Very low jitter.
The Pace-Car has the advantage that it sounds virtually identical with ANY source driving it. All of the devices and cables that drive the Pace-Car are not important. No mods or power or batteries for these will make any difference, so don’t waste your money on these. All of the Pace-Car Configurations sound identical, so select one based on your needs and user interface preferences rather than worrying about performance. The Pace-Car output is what matters, and this is always great.
Pace-Car Configurations
1) Laptop » USB cable » Tascam US-144 » S/PDIF coax cable » Pace-Car 2 » I2S cable » Overdrive DAC
or
Laptop » USB cable » Tascam US-144 » S/PDIF coax cable » Pace-Car 2 » S/PDIF coax cable » Your DAC
Advantages:
- Lowest jitter to the DAC
- Supports 44.1 and 96
- Asynchronous USB 2.0 compliant so the USB cable is not important - saves money
- No tuning of the Pace-Car 2 required
- Automatic switching from 44.1 to 96 and back
- Cheap cable from Tascam to Pace-Car 2
- Tascam US-144 powered from the USB cable - saves an outlet
- S/PDIF cable input to Pace-Car provides Galvanic isolation - eliminates ground-loop
- Compatible with all player software
Disadvantages:
- Custom driver must be loaded
- Must bypass KMIXER if using a PC
Mode 2 Required:
- Tascam US-144 modded by Rick Cullen
- Two Master Clock cables
Options:
- Superclock4 for 44.1
- Superclock4 for 96
2) Desktop » Lynx AES16 » AES cable » Pace-Car 2 » I2S cable » Overdrive DAC
or
Desktop » Lynx AES16 » AES cable » Pace-Car 2 » S/PDIF coax cable » Your DAC
Advantages:
- Lowest jitter to the DAC
- Supports 44.1 and 96
- No tuning of Pace-Car required
- cheap AES cable from Lynx to Pace-Car
- Galvanic isolation at the AES cable input to the Pace-Car - eliminates ground-loop
- Compatible with all player software
Disadvantages:
- Desktop noise
- Must switch between 44.1 and 96 at the Pace-Car 2
- Custom driver must be loaded
- Must bypass KMIXER if using a PC
Mode 1 Required:
- Word-Clock cable
- AES input
Options:
- Superclock4 for 44.1
- Superclock4 for 96
3) Transporter » S/PDIF coax cable » Pace-Car 2 » I2S cable » Overdrive DAC
or
Transporter » S/PDIF coax cable » Pace-Car 2 » S/PDIF coax cable » Your DAC
Advantages:
- Lowest jitter to the DAC
- Wireless
- Supports 44.1 and 96
- No Tuning of the Pace-Car required
- Cheap S/PDIF cable from Transporter to Pace-Car
Disadvantages:
- Cost of Transporter
- Must switch between 44.1 and 96 at the Pace-Car
- Must use the Squeezecenter for playback interface
Mode 1 Required:
- Word-Clock cable
Options:
- Superclock4 for 44.1
- Superclock4 for 96
4) Mac Mini, Macbook, Wadia iTransport, AirPort Express or Apple TV » Toslink » Pace-Car 2 » I2S cable » Overdrive DAC
or:
Mac Mini, Macbook, Wadia iTransport AirPort Express or Apple TV » Toslink » Pace-Car 2 » S/PDIF cable » Your DAC
Advantages:
- Lowest Jitter to the DAC
- Supports 44.1 and 96
- Uses iTunes
- Galvanic isolation with the Toslink cable - eliminates ground-loops
Disadvantages:
- Pace-Car must be tuned, but can be used with other devices in Mode 1 or 2
- Only works with the computer it was tuned for
Mode 3 Required:
- Tuning of Pace-Car to the Mac, AirPort Express or AppleTV
Options:
- Tuned Superclock4 for 44.1
- Tuned Superclock4 for 96
5) Sonos, Squeezebox3 or Duet » S/PDIF Coax » Pace-Car 2 » I2S cable » Overdrive DAC
or:
Sonos, Squeezebox3 or Duet » S/PDIF Coax » Pace-Car 2 » S/PDIF coax cable » Your DAC
Advantages:
- Lowest jitter to the DAC
- Galvanic isolation at the S/PDIF input to the Pace-Car - eliminates ground-loops
- Wireless
- Always bit-perfect because its networked
- Sonos converts 16/44.1 into 24/44.1 for improved sound quality
Disadvantages:
- Must use player software specific to the source device
- Limited to 44.1
Mode 2 Required:
- Slave-Clock mod to the source device by Rick Cullen
- Master-Clock cable
Options:
- Superclock4 for 44.1
Off-Ramp configurations:
6) Laptop » USB cable » Off-Ramp 3 » S/PDIF coax cable » your DAC
Laptop » USB cable » S/PDIF coax cable » Overdrive DAC
Advantages:
- Lower cost than Pace-Car
- Supports 24/44.1, 24/88.2 and 24/96
- Converts 16/44.1 into 24/44.1 for improved sound quality
- Can use any player software
- Galvanic isolation at the S/PDIF coax output
Disadvantages:
- USB cable quality matters
Options:
- Superclock4 for all sample rates or Ultraclock for all sample rates
- High-performance USB cable
7) Laptop » USB cable » Off-Ramp 3 » I2S cable » your Northstar or Stello DAC
Laptop » USB cable » I2S cable » Overdrive DAC
Advantages:
- Lower cost than Pace-Car
- higher performance due to I2S interface
- Supports 24/44.1, 24/88.2 and 24/96
- Converts 16/44.1 into 24/44.1 for improved sound quality
- Can use any player software
Disadvantages:
- USB cable quality matters
- Not galvanically isolated
Options:
- Superclock4 for all sample rates or Ultraclock for all sample rates
- High-performance USB cable