Ediscreation

Overall Rating
1.2
Scientific Validity
0.1
Technology Level
0.5
Cost-Performance
0.0
Reliability & Support
0.5
Design Rationality
0.1

A Hong Kong-based audio manufacturer. Its optical network isolators lack scientific basis and can be replaced by generic technology, resulting in non-existent cost-performance. Their value as dedicated devices is unrecognized.

Overview

Ediscreation is a small-scale audio manufacturer founded in Hong Kong in 2014 by Edison Wong. The company’s main products are the “Fiberbox” series of optical network isolators, which claim to reduce network noise in computer audio systems. All products are designed and manufactured in Hong Kong, featuring a craftsman-like approach where the founder personally handles everything from quality control to customer service. However, the value offered by its products raises significant questions from a scientific and economic perspective.

Scientific Validity

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There is absolutely no objective measurement data from independent third-party organizations to support the sound quality improvement claims of Ediscreation’s products. Fundamentally, modern Ethernet communication is a packet-based transmission with error-correction capabilities, making it theoretically impossible for data to be degraded by noise. While some argue that electrical noise can affect downstream analog circuits, there is no scientific consensus that this impact reaches the human audible range. Although specifications like the OCXO clock’s jitter figures are published, there is no evidence that they produce a perceptually significant difference in the overall system’s sound quality, rendering most of the claims scientifically unverifiable.

Technology Level

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Ediscreation constructs its products by combining existing technologies often discussed in the audio industry for noise reduction, such as optical isolation, OCXO (Oven-Controlled Crystal Oscillator) system clocks, and linear power supplies. The component selection, including the 6061 aluminum CNC-machined chassis and high-quality connectors, is done carefully. However, all of these technologies are widely used in products from other companies, as well as in more affordable industrial and consumer-grade equipment. There is no technological originality or innovation to be found. It is merely a combination of industry-average technologies with no notable advantages.

Cost-Performance

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The cost-performance is non-existent. The flagship Fiberbox series is priced exorbitantly at over 3,500 USD. However, its core function—the optical isolation of Ethernet—can be achieved for around 50 USD using two generic fiber media converters (a pair for transmission and reception), such as the TP-Link MC220L, along with SFP modules. The calculation is: 50 USD ÷ 3,500 USD ≈ 0.014, resulting in a score of 0.0. Even considering the added value of being an “audio” product, there is absolutely no technical or performance-based justification for a price difference of several dozen times. This is equivalent to selling generic networking equipment in a fancy enclosure with a brand name at an irrational price.

Reliability & Support

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The company offers personal customer service, with the founder directly involved in support, and provides a two-year product warranty. Being manufactured in Hong Kong might suggest a certain level of production quality. However, the extremely small scale of the company raises significant concerns about its long-term business continuity and stable support structure. No objective reliability data, such as failure rates or Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF), is disclosed. Considering it is a nascent manufacturer with a limited track record, an industry-average rating is appropriate.

Rationality of Design Philosophy

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This is extremely irrational. The company’s design philosophy is based on the scientifically weak hypothesis that “noise via Ethernet degrades sound quality.” As a solution, it packages a function essentially identical to that of a generic fiber media converter with excessive specifications like an OCXO clock and a luxurious chassis, and sells it as a dedicated audio device at a high price. This approach, which attempts to create the illusion of value in a dedicated device for a function that can be replaced by inexpensive generic equipment, demonstrates a remarkably low level of rationality in its design philosophy. It is a profoundly irrational judgment in terms of both the validity of the problem it purports to solve and the cost-effectiveness of its solution.

Advice

The purchase of an Ediscreation product is not recommended at all. If you wish to experiment with electrical isolation of your network, you can build a functionally equivalent setup for less than 1% of the cost by using two generic fiber media converters from brands like TP-Link, which can be bought for a few dozen dollars. You should then determine for yourself, through blind testing, whether this setup produces any audible change in sound quality. Before investing in expensive audio accessories, it is strongly recommended to critically assess, from a scientific and rational standpoint, whether the problem the product claims to solve actually exists and whether the proposed solution is worth the price.

(2025.7.24)