KEF X300A

Active speakers dominate the studios.
At the home, they are rare.
However recently a couple of companies released active speakers targeted at the home or at least at the desktop.


KEF X300A
Active 2way speaker with 24/96 asynchronous USB input.

Website KEF
Price: $799 (pair)

Monitor Audio WS100

Wireless active desktop speaker.

The wireless connection is done using SKAA, a proprietary protocol.

It can transmit audio lossless up to CD quality.

Range is about 10 m so pretty much like Bluetooth but lossless.

A review by Audiostream.

Frequency Response:	80Hz - 25kHz
Maximum SPL (each @ 1M):	99.5dBA
Power output (RMS):	Bass 2 x 20 watts Tweeter 2 x 10 watts
Drive unit complement:	2 x 75mm (3") C-CAM Cone Bass Driver 2 x 19mm (3/4") C-CAM Gold Dome Tweeter
System configuration:	Sealed box
Auxiliary input impedeance/sensitivity:	10k ohms/300mV
Wireless system:	SKAAtm 2.4GHz
Wireless range:	Up to 10 metres
Signal to noise SNR:	>95dB
A.C. input voltage:	90-264V (auto range)
Amplifier category:	Class D - high resolution amplifiers
Power consumption:	<0 .5=".5" 14.5="14.5" ax="ax" standby="standby" td="td" watts="watts">
Electrical approvals:	ErP, CE, CB, cTUVus, FCC, IC, GOST
Dimensions (each) (H x W x D):	125 x 120 x 120mm (415/17 x 43/4 x 43/4")
Colour/Finish:	Silver cabinet with black glass top and black grille
Weight (each)	1.8kg (4lb)

Website: Monitor Audio
Price: $399.00

Elispson Planet LW

You won’t find many speakers in this blog.

A box, a couple of drivers and a passive crossover have nothing to do with digital.

This one is different.

It is an active speaker so each driver is powered by a dedicated amplifier.

What sets it apart is that there is no analog input.

It uses a wireless connection to get the data from a PC or a iSomthing using a dongle.

Elipson calls it WELL. Wireless Elipson Lossless Link, the internet says it is based on KLEER technology so lossless audio up to 16 bit/44.1 kHz over a 2.4GHz radio link.


2-way active speaker with coaxial driver
2 x 50 W / 4 ohms ICEpower amplifier
Mid-bass driver: 6.5 " (165 mm)
Fabric dome tweeter
Frequency response: 42 Hz - 20 kHz

Website Elispson
Price €1690 (pair)

Bryston BDA 2

Another DAC with the almost mandatory asynchronous USB input.

 

 • Dual 192K/32Bit AKM DAC’s
• Independent dual power Supplies
• Discrete Class A analog output stage
• Selectable synchronous upsampling (176.4K/192K)
• Independent analog and digital signal paths
• Inputs: 192/24 USB (1, asynchronous), COAX (2), OPTICAL (2), AES-EBU (1) BNC (2)
• Fully differential balanced XLR and unbalanced RCA stereo outputs
• Transformer coupled SPDIF and AES EBU digital inputs
• SPDIF COAX bypass loop output

Website: Bryston BDA 2
Price: US$ 2395,-

BNC connectors

You need a true 75 Ohms cable for SPDIF over coax.
Best is to terminate it with true 75 Ohm connectors.
If you don’t you still have an impedance mismatch.
RCA connecters are not 75 Ohm.
That is the reason why BNC connectors are recommended.
Some go as far as to change the RCA receptacle on the DAC by a BNC and buy a cable terminated with BNC.
Be careful because many BNC connectors are 50 instead of 75 Ohm!

Wellshow - BNC Connector Introduction
Digital cables - The Well-tempered Computer

Ayre Acoustics QA-9 USB A/D converter

AD converters are typically for the pro world.

You need one to record digitally.

The music lover does playback only so needs the reverse of an AD, a DAC.

More and more people start to use a PC as a source for play back.

Why not digitize all of your analog sources?

Ayre Acoustics thinks we will do and launched an AD converter targeted at the home.

A review by JohnAtkinson

Website: http://www.ayre.com/

Price: $3950

iFi iDAC

Small pre-amp with line out and headphone out.
24 bit / 192 kHz asynchronous USB input
ESS Hyperstream Chipset

Specifications:
Signal to Noise Ratio:	>111dB(A)
Dynamic Range(-60dBFs):	>111dB(A)
Crosstalk:	<-102db td="td" z="z">
Total Harmonic Distortion(THD):	<0 .005=".005" td="td">
Jitter:	Below measurement limit
Frequency Response:	3Kz to 33KHz + 0.1dB/0.3dB
Headphone section:
Output Power:	>150mW(15Ω)
Signal to Noise Ratio:	>97dB(A)
Total Harmonic Distortion:	<0 .003=".003" mv="mv" td="td">
Noise:	<-86dbu td="td">
Output Impedance:(Zout):	<10 td="td">
Power Consumption:	< 2.5W
Dimensions:	158(l)x68(w)x28(h)mm
Weight:	193g(0.43lbs)

Website: iFi
Price: US$ 299

Electrocompaniet PI 2D Integrated Amplifier

2 x 100 Watts integrated amplifier with digital and analog inputs.
Digital inputs: two Coax, two TOSLink and one 24/192 async USB
Analog input: 1 balanced XLR input and four single ended RCA inputs.

Technical specifications:
• Input impedance ( Single Ended ): 60 kOhm
• THD + N: < 0.005%
• Output Impedance: < 0,03 Ohm
• Frequency response: 1 – 225kHz
• Channel separation: > 120 dB
• Noise floor ( 1Vrms, 20 - 20 kHz, balanced): <-130 br="br" db="db">• Damping factor: >300
•Rated output power
8 ohms 2 x 100 W
4 ohms 2 x 165 W
2 ohms 2 x 220 W


Website: Electrocompaniet
Price: €3.150

AURALiC Vega DAC

DAC supporting both PCM and DSD over USB.
PCM from 44.1KS/s to 384KS/s in 32Bit (352.8KS/s and 384KS/s USB only)

DSD64( 2.8224MHz) and DSD128(5.6448MHz) - 'DoP V1.1' standard, USB only

Frequency Response: 20 - 20KHz, +/- 0.1dB*
Signal/Noise:126dB, 20Hz-20KHz, A-weighted
THD+N:<0 .0003=".0003" 0dbfs="0dbfs" 20hz-20khz="20hz-20khz" at="at" p="p">Dynamic Range:130dB, 20Hz-20KHz, A-weighted

Digital Inputs
1*AES/EBU
2*Coaxial
1*Toslink
1*USB 2.0 buffered by ActiveUSB™

Analog Outputs
1*Balanced(output impedance 2.2ohm)
1*Single-ended(output impedance 50ohm)

Website: AURALiC
Price: US$ 3499 / € 3299

AURALiC Sanctuary Audio Processor

Sanctuary audio processor, the heart of VEGA, is based on multi-core ARM9 architecture with calculating capability at 1000MIPS which is ideal for handling multi-channel high resolution music. AURALiC also introduces the second generation ActiveUSB ™ to VEGA that separates the USB PHY into a discrete chip to future reduce EMI  from computer. Resorting to these technologies, VEGA not only support DXD format(352.8KS/s and 384KS/s PCM signal in 32bit) but also able to decode DSD stream at 2.8224MHz and 5.6448MHz in native though 'DoP V1.1' transmission standard.

Megahertz Upsampling

By using the latest ground breaking algorithm, megahertz upsampling technology can process and up-sample all incoming PCM format to 1.5MHz at 32bit depth. These not only improve the precision of DAC, but also create a new Nyquist frequency for all PCM signal which farther away from the top end of audio frequency. As a result, our engineers are able to design a bran-new analog circuit structure with more bandwidth and faster slew rate. Comparing to previous design, the new structure is more transparent to audio signal with lower distortion and less noise, it also lets red book CDs sound more rich and smooth.

Femto Master Clock

The purpose of Femto master clock is to give DAC an ultimate clock with extremely low jitter and phase noise. It utilizes aerospace grade crystal oscillator, ultra low noise linear power supply and temperature compensation technology to generate master clock with extremely low jitter performance at 82 femtoseconds(0.082 picoseconds). What's more important, the phase noise which affect sound quality a lot has been dramatically reduced to -168dBc/Hz. Driving by such amazing clean clock, VEGA can easily reproduce the music details in the 'last bit', represent a rock solid stereo image you may never experience before.

Fully Customized Digital Filters

VEGA has six built-in digital filters which are developed under AURALiC's subjective auditory sense and objective testing data relationship models. These filters are specially designed to optimize the listening experience for different music and format. The linear phase filter exhibits perfect in-band ripple and out-band attenuation performance while the minimum phase filter is better for enjoyment as it has no 'pre-ringing' effect. There are also slow roll-off filter and several noise filters for native DSD conversion. To maximum usage of these filters, VEGA allows its user to customize according to different formats, tuning sound best to personal preference.

AURALiC ORFEO Class-A Output Module

In order to drive various loads, matching different power amplifiers, VEGsA is equipped with AURALiC's patented ORFEO Class-A module as the output stage which inspired by Neve 8078 analog console’s circuit design. The principle of this module is to use a mass of small signal components with best linear characteristic. By packing them though a thermal balance procedure and bias the transistors into Class-A, ORFEO achieves impressive performance with open loop distortion less than 0.001%. The ORFEO module used in VEGA has been selected and tweaked for lower noise while maintains its driving capability for 600ohm load without distortion raise.

Iriver AK100

A portable media player supporting lossless formats like WAV and FLAC up to 24 bits / 192 kHz



MODEL AK100 Specifications:

Display 2.4” QVGA(320X240) IPS Touch Screen
Audio Format WAV, FLAC, WMA, MP3, OGG, APE
Sample rate FLAC, WAV: 8KHz ~ 192KHz(8/16/24bits per sample)
Output Level 1.5VRMS(No Load)
Audio Frequency Response 10Hz to 20KHz +/-0.02dB (24bit 48Khz, No Load)
Signal to Noise Ratio > 110dB (1KHz 0dB, 24bit 48Khz, No Load)
Crosstalk < -120dB (1KHz 0dB, 24bit 48Khz, No Load)
THD+N < 0.0009% (1KHz 0dB, 24bit 48Khz, No Load)
IMD SMPTE < 0.003% (24bit 48Khz, No Load)
Clock Source Clock Jitter 50ps
Storage Flash Memory 32GB [NAND] SD Slot MICRO SD [Max 32GB] slot x 2
DAC Wolfson WM8740 24Bit DAC
Decoding Support up to 24Bit/192kHz Bit to Bit Decoding
Interface USB 2.0, OPTICAL IN/OUT, Headphone Out
Battery Capacity 2,000mAh 3.7V Li-Polymer
Battery Playback Time Max 16hours
Charging time About 5 Hours
Size 59.2[H] X 79 [W] X 14.4 [D]
Weight 122g
Support Firmware upgrade
OS Windows 2000/XP

Website: Iriver

Price: € 799,-

Benchmark DAC2 HGC

DAC with volume control, line and headphone out.
DSD over USB ( DoP 1.0)
Supports USB(async) 1 & 2. Driver for Win.
2x4 32-bit DACs
Output: RCA/XLR

Website: Benchmark
Price: US$ 1995

MusiCHI media player

The suite consist of 4 applications allowing you to rip, to tag, to play and to manage the libraries independent of each other. This allows you to e.g. play and rip at the same time while doing some tagging.

This suite is primarily targeted at Classical and Jazz.
It offers different styles to manage a classical and a jazz collection.
Beside the conventional tags it adds

• Period or style
• Album Artists (aka Performers)
• Instruments
• Grouping
• Composition

It comes with its own database (CHIClean) containing an impressive list of composers (> 2500).
The compositions of major composers (Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Chopin, Dvořák, Handel, Haydn, Mahler ,Mozart,Schubert, Schumann and Vivaldi) are available.
This allows you to tag your compositions in a consistent way.
Interface supports English and Français


There is a tutorial on how to tag classical music.
It is a bit hidden in the Blog but obvious written by somebody deeply immerged in classical music.
The Zen of Classical Music Tagging (Part1)
The Zen of Classical Music Tagging (Part2)



Website: MusiCHI

Metrum Acoustics Hex

Non oversampling dac.

Dual mono, 8 Dacs pro channel in differential mode.

Inputs:

2x optical Toslink, Coaxial 1x BNC and 1x RCA.
Optical 44 - 96 kHz sampling rate .
Coaxial , USB and AES/EBU: 44 - 192 kHz sampling rate.
AES/EBU module optional (€ 168.00)
USB module optional ( € 168.00).
The USB input is not UAC2 (USB Audio Class 2) compliant but uses the M2Tech proprietary drivers for Win and Mac.

Output voltage:
RCA : 2 Volt RMS full scale.
XLR: 4 Volt RMS full scale

Frequency response:
1Hz - 20 khz - 2.5 dB 44.1 kHz sampling rate.
1Hz - 65 kHz - 3dB 192 kHz sampling rate.

Distortion: 0.03 % THD
Noise :-130 dB related to 2 Volt RMS output

Jitter: < 35 pico Seconds

Website: Metrum Acoustics
Price: Hex € 2185

Primare DAC30

USB audio class 2 compliant DAC with USB receiver by XMOS

• 24 / 192 Khz
• Crystal DSD DAC CS4398 (BD32)
• Fully balanced analogue output stage (BD32)
• Inputs: 1x asynchronous USB-B, 1x AES/EBU, 3x Optical, 3x Coax S/PDIF
• Outputs: 1 pair XLR and 1 pair RCA (both 4,3V)

Website Primare
Price € 2350

Burson Conductor

Headphone amplifier/ Pre amplifier / DAC

Inputs

1 x USB Connection
1 x Coaxial RCA (Support up to 24bit @ 192Khz)
1 x Toslink / SPDIF (Support up to 24bit @ 192Khz)
2 x RCA line level input


Outputs
1 x headphone jacks 6.35mm
1 x RCA Pre Amp output
1 x RCA DAC direct line out


DAC Specification
ESS SABRE32
Channel Separation: 140 dB @ 1KHz, 130 dB @ 20KHz
THD+N: 0.0005% @ 1KHz, 0dBFS
COAX & Toslink / SPDIF : 32 bits / 44.1K, 48K, 88.2K, 96K, 176.4K, 192KHz


USB Specification
Tenor TE8802
OS Requirement: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Mac OS X
USB : 24 bits / 44.1K, 48K, 88.2K, 96K, 176.4K, 192KHz
Support up to 24bit @ 192Khz with 10ppm low jitter clock
Asynchronous Transfer Mode


Website: Burson
Price: $1.850