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The Musician Forums => Music Technology & Pro Audio => Topic started by: Blueberri on January 17, 2007, 10:21:29 AM

Title: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: Blueberri on January 17, 2007, 10:21:29 AM
Mga sir, can you give me some ideas on how i can utilize the s/pdif input on my 1010lt.
what piece of hardware do i need to convert an analog stereo signal into digital?and into the 1010lts s/pdif input??

thanks!!
Title: Re: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: KitC on January 17, 2007, 11:17:49 AM
S/PDIF is a digital protocol, you need an analog-to-digital converter to be able to use that input. HINT: Some mobos have s/pdif OUTPUTS. That means you CAN use the mobo line in as a A/D converter and send the output thru it's digital outs. The caveats are: the 1010LT uses coax digital so if your mobo only has optical s/pdif ports, you're screwed, and most mobos output at 48 khz so you will have to set your project samplerate to match before even recording anything. (Ever wondered why you can't get the tuning to some songs? the difference between 44.1 khz and 48 khz is about a quarter of a semitone.)
Title: Re: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: rocketboy on January 18, 2007, 04:54:48 PM
Sir KitC, how about another PCI or USB interface with SPDIF OUT?  WIll it work the same way as mobo spdif's?  I think the cheapest way to go is the M-Audio Duo w/c has a standalone mode but unfortunately is discontinued. 
Title: Re: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: KitC on January 18, 2007, 07:28:48 PM
Sir KitC, how about another PCI or USB interface with SPDIF OUT?  WIll it work the same way as mobo spdif's?  I think the cheapest way to go is the M-Audio Duo w/c has a standalone mode but unfortunately is discontinued. 

Any device that can route it's analog input to it's s/pdif output is fair game. Some cards do not pass signals from their input to the s/pdif output so you will have to check fully on that. If the Duo has selectable samplerates, even better especially if you are mixing down to cd; I'm not fond of samplerate conversions is why.
Title: Re: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: Blueberri on January 18, 2007, 11:25:41 PM
any suggestions on a specific pieace of hardware that can do this?? ived been looking around and puro optical ang nakikita ko, or yung AES/EBU outputs na xlr ang connector (could these be converted to coax??).

i was thinking a 2 channel mic pre with s/pdif out na rca type/coax. a nice stereo pair i could use as overheads din.

thanks!!
Title: Re: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: KitC on January 19, 2007, 12:05:24 AM
M-Audio has an optical to coaxial (and vice versa) s/pdif converter called the CO2 (http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/CO2-main.html). Just not sure if it's available here.

Very few mic pres out there that come with s/pdif attached. There's the SM Pro Audio ADDA 192-S (http://www.smproaudio.com/ADDA192S.htm) and the ART DSP II (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ART-DPS-II-Stereo-Tube-Preamp-with-Digital-Out?sku=180631).
Title: Re: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: rocketboy on January 19, 2007, 12:59:53 PM
What do you guys think about behringer's SRC2496 ultramatch pro?  Anyone here tried it? No preamps though....

http://www.behringer.com/SRC2496/index.cfm?lang=ENG
Title: Re: S/PDIF on M-audio Card
Post by: KitC on January 19, 2007, 04:48:47 PM
It appears to be a straight A/D D/A converter. The strength of a converter lies in it's clock. If the timing is jittery, the worst you can experience is collapse of the stereo image. Some people even complain of tonal shifts such as reduced highs and, strangely enough, muddy lows (ask Roger Nichols about that). Behringer products are not known for having the best clocks, but they also have equipment that DO shine. I've never heard of anything bad about this converter yet, but like always, YMMV and Caveat Emptor!