2. misc-audio
  3. 149167-380

Digital room correction

When will there be a simple, affordable 1 box solution where digital room correction can be dropped into any 2 channel system? A number of years ago, I owned a McIntosh MEN220 which was a really cool solution, it worked reasonably well and for the time it was introduced, it checked most of the boxes off. The digital technology inside that piece of gear was state of the art 10 years ago (24/96) but when is there going to be an update or an alternative solution?

I don’t really keep up with this stuff so please forgive me if there has been something introduced. I see a good part of this type of technology now in most decent subwoofers. It would be really cool if you could drop something into a tape loop on a preamp if it exists. Thanks in advance.
ghasley

Showing 2 responses by mike_in_nc

mike_in_nc
1,123 posts
 
For an all-digital system, the miniDSP SHD Studio should suit your needs. It is digital in, digital out, and can be dropped into a system while leaving the rest of it intact.

For a system with analog sources, it’s more complicated, because there have to be ADC and DAC stages somewhere, so dropping a box into "any system" may not be the optimal way of doing this. It reduces the number of conversions to use DSP that is built into a DAC-preamp, like the DSPeaker X4, Anthem STR, or miniDSP SHD (not the Studio version), to name just a few.

You mentioned sample rate. I recently got the Anthem STR Preamp as my third or fourth preamp with DSP. The DSP sounds cleaner than previous models to me. I don't know how much of that is due to using 192 kHz as the DSP frequency, and how much is due to other improvements over past models. A long-distance friend with the X4, which I believe does DSP at 96 kHz, says that it, also, sounds better than older units to him.
mike_in_nc
1,123 posts
 
Regarding the SHD, Hans Beekhuyzen has a review on YouTube. You may be able to find more reviews around. I know that Kal Rubinson has reviewed some of the other miniDSP products for Stereophile.

miniDSP is known for lower-cost solutions to room correction. The SHD line looks like a step up from older miniDSP products, and I suspect it would work very well between a G1 and your DAC. The SHD Studio has Dirac room correction, considered one of the best available  algorithms, with a lot of flexibility. By using the all-digital version, you are leaving the conversions to the gear you own already.

Deer Creek Audio is a stocking US dealer. If you're in Europe, you can buy more easily from miniDSP directly.

Mike

P.S. I own the SHD (full version with DAC), which we use in our TV system. I have not had a chance to try it in the main "audiophile" system.

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