TOPIC:

hello, in my 2.2 setup i would like to use minidsp for room / speaker / sub EQ.

i would like to have the flexibility to use my own dac and pre-amp and change them out to suit my needs rather than using the dac or pre-amp in the minidsp.
this is for my 2 subwoofers and front L/R speaker.
which minidsp product would be right for me?
my source is a digital source

If you want to keep your DAC there is no perfect solution.

You either need a miniDSP with digital I/O which will go before your DAC but then not allow you to properly integrate your subs with crossovers or you need a miniDSP after the DAC with analogue inputs but this is not ideal as it will have to convert analogue to digital and then put it through its own DAC (so you might as well have not bothered using your own DAC) but it’s the only way to fully integrate your sub.

This topic has been discussed before and if you want to integrate your sub you need to drop your own DAC and use the miniDSP’s instead.

if i use the nanodigi 2x8 or the SHD studio before my DAC, i thought that would allow for proper integration of subs with cross overs. ? i see you say that it doesn't allow you to properly do this. why is that?

Because miniDSP takes the left and ‘splits’ it into two signals, one for the sub and one for the mains. And does the same for the right.

That means from your 2ch signal you now have 4 channels although two are for the left and two for the right.

Does your DAC have multi-channel in?

it does not have multi-channel in. is it possible to use 2 DACS (one for left signal and one for the right)
then from each DAC, send one port to the amp and one to the sub for the appropriate L/R signal.

That is an option so long as you bypass your amp’s volume control. You can’t change your main speakers volume without adjusting your sub at the same time right?

So you need to control volume at the nanoDigi (if it has that functionality) or at the source.

could you explain this a bit more, how would i bypass volume control?

I’ve not checked if the nano has volume control (presuming it does). The other compromise you are making is you will not have a volume display.

It becomes a little messy doesn’t it. The question you need to ask yourself is how good is your DAC? We all get attached to certain products... I have.. but there comes a time you have to let them go. Doesn’t mean you can’t maintain fond memories of them!

Let your DAC go.... then you get a DDRC24 or even better an SHD and everything is a breeze.

Thanks for the advice yes I agree.
So if I get rid of my dac .....how do I choose between shd, shd studio and ddrc nanodigi and 2x4 and 2x4 hd Which product is right for me ?

Well you need something with Analogue outputs - That rules out studio and NanoDigi. and general opinion seems to be not the 2x4 as the HD version is much better.

I'd personally go for something that includes Dirac so look at DDRC24 or SHD depending on what your budget allows.

hello ,
can i not just plug the minidsp SHD into my own DAC -> PreAmp -> Amp > Front L/R speakers
then connect my 2 x subwoofers directly into the SHD.

this gives me flexibility to change my dac and pre amp as needed and is a full crossover solution .

is this right?

Yes, this should work. But you have 2 devices in the line where volume can be controlled. The SHD and your PreAmp. This is a little bit risky to mess up the correct volume setting, I think.

kearkg123 wrote:

hello ,
can i not just plug the minidsp SHD into my own DAC -> PreAmp -> Amp > Front L/R speakers
then connect my 2 x subwoofers directly into the SHD.

this gives me flexibility to change my dac and pre amp as needed and is a full crossover solution .

is this right?

The main issue is that the L/R Speakers and subs have different gain paths, so will only be balanced in level if the preamp and amplifier volume aren't changed. What I effectively did was drive my sub from after the preamp gain so it was always balanced. That means I drive the sub with the same signal as the L/R Speakers but Dirac combined them very well. That was possible for me because my amplifier doesn't have a gain control.

If you do as you suggest and then change the volume on the preamp (or amplifier) the subs will never be properly balanced with the L/R speakers again. Now you may remember not to change those gains, or you may not. I didn't remember and had to recable everything as I suggest above and recalibrate after realising what I'd done. Eventually I replaced my preamp with the SHD as the only thing the preamp offered over the SHD was an RIAA input. I still send the sub exactly the same signal as the L/R speakers though.

in your first scenario where you were running the the sub after your preamp gain, how were you connecting it into your preamp?
were you using a single preamp output with Y adaptors? also would this method work for me even if i wanted to use an external DAC or would i have to go SHD > Preamp rather than SHD > Dac > preAmp.

in the second scenario where you decided to replace your preamp with the SHD, how do you send the sub the exact same signal?
are you using 3 ports on the SHD (one for left speaker into amp, one for right speaker into amp and one for sub) or another way?

If you use a y adapter you won’t get full sub integration. Remember what I wrote in an earlier post about the miniDSP ‘’splitting’ the signal. You want a crossover in the miniDSP then the sub only sees bass frequencies while the mains receive the rest. Of the miniDSP’s 4 outputs, 2 will be for left but with different signals, 2 will be for the right.

Does your amp have the ability to bypass the pre-amp section?