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Post by indiehouse on Jul 27, 2015 9:09:57 GMT -6
That is what I'm doing. There is an unofficial "want" list in the other thread. I've contacted the first 10.. Some have paid, some have passed, some have not replied. I'll give those who haven't replied a week or two, since I know that not everyone comes here everyday. The units who people passed on will be offered to the next people in the list, etc. I just haven't done that yet. I'm focused on getting the paid units shipped in the next day or two. Sounds good! You probably won't get to me, but I would take an AD-DA unit and send payment within a couple of hours of notification. We can get emails immediately about private messages, so a week or two seems very generous, you're too nice. Even when I'm on vacation I check in here for new posts probably 20 times a day, just shows that I have no life. Then there are guys like me who didn't have instant notifications turned on (I think it might default to off?). I also check in daily to read the latest threads, but often don't actually log on unless I want to post. So, this scenario would cause a delay in terms of getting a private message in a timely manner. I did just turn notifications on for private messages, though. I guess I just didn't realize it was turned off. |
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Post by Johnkenn on Jul 27, 2015 9:34:00 GMT -6
Just stay automatically logged in (check the box).
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Post by LesC on Jul 27, 2015 11:36:26 GMT -6
Sounds good! You probably won't get to me, but I would take an AD-DA unit and send payment within a couple of hours of notification. We can get emails immediately about private messages, so a week or two seems very generous, you're too nice. Even when I'm on vacation I check in here for new posts probably 20 times a day, just shows that I have no life. Then there are guys like me who didn't have instant notifications turned on (I think it might default to off?). I also check in daily to read the latest threads, but often don't actually log on unless I want to post. So, this scenario would cause a delay in terms of getting a private message in a timely manner. I did just turn notifications on for private messages, though. I guess I just didn't realize it was turned off. The nice thing about staying logged in, is that you automatically see any threads marked as "New" if it has posts since the last time you looked. I stay logged in and then click "New Posts" at the top (actually I have a bookmark to it), and it automatically shows me all threads in every section that have posts since the last time I looked. It saves a lot of time. |
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Post by Johnkenn on Jul 27, 2015 11:51:16 GMT -6
Also, if you're logged in desktop view, there's a "participated threads" option at the top. Click it and it shows all of your participated threads.
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Post by mokobigbro on Aug 2, 2015 23:02:32 GMT -6
Hopefully I get in the 2nd batch.
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Post by svart on Aug 3, 2015 8:23:54 GMT -6
Ok, here's an update!
So as Johnkenn mentioned, I found a bug where sometimes the SPDIF transmitter IC wouldn't complete a reset when the ADC settings changed. It seems that even though the datasheet specifies a certain amount of time for reset, that time needs to be increased by a lot in order to ensure the part accepts the new settings. The symptom of the problem is a small change in noise floor at higher sample rates. I didn't even notice it until a person testing the unit in a audiophile setting mentioned it, so I went back and looked for the problem and found it.
It also seems that some chips are more apt to do this than others, so I've made the reset period a lot longer to account for all chips.
Unfortunately I also found that this reset process can cause a burst of hiss from the DAC board (before the DAC mutes itself) during reset periods, so I'm now working on pushing a MUTE command to the DAC board prior to resetting the SPDIF transmitter, so that nobody gets a pop during the changes.
A couple more days to test and I'll be shipping out the rest of the units.
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Post by tonycamphd on Aug 3, 2015 8:57:36 GMT -6
jeez man, I guess no one said it would be easy, way to stick to it and iron out the details!(i'd be knelt down trembling in a corner somewhere 8) Looking forward to hearing winetrees unit 8)
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Post by svart on Aug 3, 2015 9:07:51 GMT -6
jeez man, I guess no one said it would be easy, way to stick to it and iron out the details!(i'd be knelt down trembling in a corner somewhere 8) Looking forward to hearing winetrees unit 8) I mean, the ADC reset was an easy fix. The noise burst is to be expected, and a lot of units out in the world just allow it to happen, however, it's just a tiny bit of work to make the user experience better, so why not? Right now it's all working, but I'm getting a race condition between the SPDIF receiver locking to the signal and the unmute command, which I need to iron out and test. |
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Post by svart on Aug 3, 2015 11:17:58 GMT -6
So it seems that the SPDIF receiver IC outputs a somewhat random burst of toggles on it's mute output during a locking operation, which might be part of the reason for a burst of noise from the DACs.
I'm going to have to digitally debounce the input from the receiver before it goes to the DAC chips. Interesting.
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Post by jdc on Aug 3, 2015 12:50:25 GMT -6
I think the fact that I find all of this incredibly interesting means my gear addiction has full control of my life haha
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Post by svart on Aug 3, 2015 14:24:03 GMT -6
So after a few hours of working on the code, I made the realization that I was being a complete dunderhead about making this complex command/report structure, because it would have completely nullified being able to use the DAC portion alone.
So I thought about it for a little while, rewrote the DAC code a bit, and made it able to debounce the mute signal from the receiver chip on it's own, by the novel approach of delaying the next read after muting the DAC chips. That way it locks out the DACs from being unmuted until the receiver has had a stable signal for a short period of time.
Looking at the oscilloscope it seems to be completely stable now, rather than popping in and out of mute as the receiver spits out random mutes as it locks.
It seems to work correctly for both ADC resets and for completely unplugging the SPDIF cable.
I'll test it tonight in the studio and make sure it works right.
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Post by svart on Aug 5, 2015 13:48:16 GMT -6
So I tested the units, and everything looks pretty good. The noise problem is gone, and the hiss issue on reset is mostly gone, just a small click when the signal locks, but that seems to be related to how fast the interface reacts to a good/bad signal.
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Post by Johnkenn on Aug 5, 2015 14:28:45 GMT -6
Damnit...I don't want to send mine back...
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Post by formatcyes on Aug 6, 2015 20:47:50 GMT -6
I HAVE MINE yippppy... Thank you svart. Looks great wont be able to plug it in for a week (going skiing). All I need now is an RGOSpeeedwagon sticker for the front  |
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Post by Johnkenn on Aug 7, 2015 16:13:33 GMT -6
. All I need now is an RGOSpeeedwagon sticker for the front YES! |
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Post by drsax on Aug 17, 2015 12:16:08 GMT -6
The Svartbox is rockin' over here - sounds killer!!! I've got it in my mobile rig paired with the Apollo, but it's gonna be installed as the main AD/DA for the studio this week.
I've got a few sets of converters in use here - Lavry Blue, Original UA Apollo, SSL Alphalink, and the Svartbox. The Svartbox slays the SSL and Apollo, and exceeds the Lavry Blue by a decent margin also.
Svartbox > Lavry Blue > Apollo > SSL
Digging it!!! Now I need a second unit for my analog insert on my master buss cuz this one is staying parked as my main DA to my studio monitors!! I was gonna post a pic but can't seem to figure out how from my phone - can't find that option on my mobile interface.
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Post by Johnkenn on Aug 18, 2015 12:04:00 GMT -6
Wow...that's a huge endorsement. I had a Lavry Blue at one time and was really, really impressed with it. That was one I was considering grabbing again...but alas!
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Post by drsax on Aug 18, 2015 12:47:27 GMT -6
I really love the Lavry Blue. Very musical. And I'm gonna get lots more use out of it. But the Svart reveals things that have been missing in my DA. The Lavry DA has been awesome, but I find it so musical sounding and slightly softened in a way that I tend to push the highs too hard. That results in a few too many highs in the real world outside of my studio. Now - the Lavry AD on the other hand, I like that slight analog softness... Works out great for tracking!
Svart DA is so revealing in a good way. AD rocks too but I haven't had much time to acquaint myself the AD as much. But my initial impressions were that the Svart AD sounds outstanding. And quite accurate.
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Post by formatcyes on Aug 24, 2015 0:08:53 GMT -6
Finally got round to plugin in my RGO speedwagon. Holy $*&T this this rocks I thought my UH7000 converters where ok.. Not even close this thing kills it dusted of a Dave Hill europa1 I had lying around sweeeet. Thanks svart these things should be storming out the door there should be a far Q of people trying to get on the list. Sweeet. |
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Post by kcatthedog on Aug 24, 2015 0:25:04 GMT -6
Nice !
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Post by svart on Aug 24, 2015 7:53:32 GMT -6
OK folks, I'm back from my work trip to Thailand last week!
I have a couple more converters that need homes, so I'll be moving down the list this week and contacting some more folks.
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Post by Johnkenn on Aug 25, 2015 18:28:47 GMT -6
So - I know I'm biased - as I have one of these...but this replaced my Burl and I couldn't be happier. Perfectly flat and clean on the AD side - totally what I (don't) want to hear.
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Post by saxmonster on Aug 25, 2015 21:15:56 GMT -6
Hi Guys,
I don't have as much knowledge as you guys but in my project studio I have my mac running DP with a MOTU 2408 MKII Unit and mackie HR824 speakers. It is basically my sound card for everything. I use it obviously for DP projects I am working on for myself and friends but also for iTunes listening and movies, and all my mac sounds come out of it to etc.
Would I notice a difference when using this box along with my MOTU 2408mkII. If my projects / tracks have already been recorded into DP using the A/D converts of the 2408 how can this box improve them? Or would I just notice a different when the stereo outs are played through the svart box. And then anything new going in would be recorded through the svart box and sound better going in and the out too.
So confused with this stuff.
-Scott
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Post by drsax on Aug 25, 2015 22:02:29 GMT -6
Hi Guys, I don't have as much knowledge as you guys but in my project studio I have my mac running DP with a MOTU 2408 MKII Unit and mackie HR824 speakers. It is basically my sound card for everything. I use it obviously for DP projects I am working on for myself and friends but also for iTunes listening and movies, and all my mac sounds come out of it to etc. Would I notice a difference when using this box along with my MOTU 2408mkII. If my projects / tracks have already been recorded into DP using the A/D converts of the 2408 how can this box improve them? Or would I just notice a different when the stereo outs are played through the svart box. And then anything new going in would be recorded through the svart box and sound better going in and the out too. So confused with this stuff. -Scott Using the DA of the Svartbox to your monitors would provide a much more accurate sound. That in turn influences your mix choices. It would also equate to better mix translation in the real world. Using great converters not only improves my results, but I find myself making decisions much quicker. So it saves me time and makes things better sonically. It would slay your 2408. I used to have one of those a long time ago. And yes, Any newly recorded material through the Svartbox AD would also be much improved. |
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Post by saxmonster on Aug 26, 2015 6:36:57 GMT -6
Thanks Drsax.
So when I playback my audio does the audio go through the converters of the 2408 and then through the converters of the Svart box? Or does the spdif out of the 2408 just send a non converted (digital signal) to the svart box which then converts it using the higher quality converters back to analog and then out my speakers giving me a higher quality sound quality on the way out?
Do I need a word clock or anything like that to run these two boxes together?
Just trying to wrap my head around all this.
Would be great if this could be a kit we could build on our own but I guess there is programing of the chips that have too be done.
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