My reading of this thread, Bruce, is that you seem to prefer PCI cards for output rather than FireWire or USB. What about D/A conversion on the actual PCI card (eg Lynx L2) versus digital output to off-board DAC (eg, Lynx AES to Aurora 8)?
The best sounding conversion on a soundcard I've heard is the LynxTwo-B, which I have in my HTPC. The LynxTwo either has 4 in/4 out, 2 in/6 out or 6 in/2 out, if I'm not mistaken. What you will need to find is 8 out. You might have to go with one of the LynxTwo cards and a daughter card like the L22.
I don't know if you can run more than 1 E-mu card or not. Your choices are very limited in this area. Seems most manufacturers want to make more money going outside the box.
The best sounding conversion on a soundcard I've heard is the LynxTwo-B, which I have in my HTPC. The LynxTwo either has 4 in/4 out, 2 in/6 out or 6 in/2 out, if I'm not mistaken. What you will need to find is 8 out. You might have to go with one of the LynxTwo cards and a daughter card like the L22.
I don't know if you can run more than 1 E-mu card or not. Your choices are very limited in this area. Seems most manufacturers want to make more money going outside the box.
Bruce - Thanks for the advice. I really only need the last 2 channels should I decide to add subs so the LynxTwo 2in/6out sounds like a good answer in that I can add L22 if required. - Zydeco
Bruce: I recently purchased a music server that uses the lynx digital card and now I need an additional DAC (for output to my subs) and an A to D card . The guy from whom I purchased the server recommended the Lynx Aurora 8 since it does both and he was high on it and am wondering your thoughts on it.
Bruce: I recently purchased a music server that uses the lynx digital card and now I need an additional DAC (for output to my subs) and an A to D card . The guy from whom I purchased the server recommended the Lynx Aurora 8 since it does both and he was high on it and am wondering your thoughts on it.
Thanks in advance.
We have an Aurora 8 here in the studio that has served us well. The best thing about it is that you can change interface cards in the back allowing you to use USB, Firewire, MADI and Pro Tools HD link cables. You will need a special cable for your Lynx AES16 to connect to it. It will allow you have have 8 analog in/out and 8 digital in/out. Highly recommended!
I am currently using a TacT for room correction and preamp functions. It has separate DACS for mains and subs. I am investigating using some room correction software that will run on my server (e.g. Accourate). I will then need two DACS -- one for the mains (which I already have [Zodiac Gold Plus] ) and one for the subs (hence the Aurora).
Below the Pacific Microsonics A/D what's the best bang for the buck external ADC/DAC for up to 192k? I currently have a UA 2192 and am not entirely happy with it. Is the Apogee Rosetta any good, or still just prosumer?
All the reviews I've read of the MADA-2 praise it highly, above most everything else. Some even believe it is superior to the PM2 which may be a stretch IMO. Still, it's certainly up towards the top.
Are you referring specifically to ADC/DAC units? Forsell has also a DAC only unit - the MDAC2.
I have found this company many years ago , looking for information about the Forsell air bearing CD transport and DAC, a different company.
Forsell's site has a nice section on schematics that can be useful for DIY people - I have implemented one of their circuits to match FETs for an old electrometer. They also have some tube schematics they published in GlassAudio - people having allergy to tubes can suffer from some strange unexpected nausea when listening to their products.
Bill needed an A-D so that's why I recommended the MADA-2. Either one of Fred Forssell's converters are great! Fred Forssell.... should not be be confused with Dr. Peter Forsell, the inventor of the air-bearing turntables and such.
Your recommendation for a decent Lynx / RME soundcard outputting AES/EBU to an off-board DAC is interesting. What external DACs would you recommend for 6 or 8-channels D/A? And is there any merit (or issues) with multiple stereo DAC as opposed to pro-audio devices with multiple channels? "Common audiophile wisdom" talks about the benefits of quality power supply / output stages in hi-fi DAC but I'm not sure about the realisation of these benefits and whether multiple, separate, DAC introduces new problems.
Your recommendation for a decent Lynx / RME soundcard outputting AES/EBU to an off-board DAC is interesting. What external DACs would you recommend for 6 or 8-channels D/A? And is there any merit (or issues) with multiple stereo DAC as opposed to pro-audio devices with multiple channels? "Common audiophile wisdom" talks about the benefits of quality power supply / output stages in hi-fi DAC but I'm not sure about the realisation of these benefits and whether multiple, separate, DAC introduces new problems.
The main thing with using multiple separate DAC's are clocking issues. Just as using multiple A/D converters in a studio, one must be able to use a common (Master) clock and all the others will have to sync to (Slave). This is a major problem in larger studios where engineers bring in their own converters.
There are several DAC's that can be used for surrond files. The Playback Designs actually uses multiple stereo DACs for surround work. To keep it simple though, I'd recommend to stay with one box with 6-8 outputs. I use the EMM Labs DAC8-IV and the Digital Audio Denmark AX24 for surround work. Both of these have 8 outs. I'm sure there are more, but the only "Audiophile" surround DAC I can think of is the EMM Labs DAC6e
