TOPIC:

Hey Folks,
Please advice on the minidsp SHD settings, since I probably do something wrong. I wanted to substitute my preamp Musical Fidelity 6pre with SHD, however once it is hooked up as preamp with Diract turned off + with all the settings to default  - the sound goes muddy and dull like it goes through a blanket - almost no heights just muddy mids and bass. However once Dirac is turned on - the things getting better - even with with default target curve sound gets bass, mids, heights, however it is dull and flat. I think  it is expected and well known Dirac default curve.

After that I apply Harman curve +4 DB and some up mids to have warmth - the sound gets better an alive, but anyway I don't get that airy and surrounding sound with wide soundstage when I use my current setup Streamer(CA Azur851N)  -> Preamp (MF6pre) -> Poweramp(Parasound a23+) -> Pair of ELAC FS 247.3  .

So the questions are :

1. Is it natural for SHD to sound so muddy when it is hooked directly to poweramp  with default settings and disabled Dirac? I thought it should sound as ordinary preamp without any sound coloration?
2. What should I change in my settings to get that warm, surrounding sound with wide soundstage which I have with MF6pre ?

What I'm trying to achieve:

Currently I have the following setup:
Streamer(CA Azur851N)  -> Preamp (MF6pre) -> Poweramp(Parasound a23+) -> Pair of ELAC FS 247.3  The soundstage is wide, heights clear, mids could be better since it is a cold sound acoustics (I compared it to BW 706 S2 which has a very lively mids) however bas is sooo boomy and overwhelming in my apartments. So I purchased minidspSHD in order to decrease the room modes by having SHD as a preamp and applying the Dirac settings but soundstage and overall SQ is poorer than in my system with phase ports plugged with my HiFi  socks  

Another approach I wanted to try is to add a subwoofer to the system and have SHD as a preamp and crossover if Dirac results would be not so good. But here again I have the situation with dull sound when Dirac is turned off.

Guys, will be happy to get any help on the situation.
Thanks!

P.S Will post screens with the curves shoortly
 

Have you checked the configuration in the plugin? It's possible there is a low-pass filter being applied...

Thanks for reply Ultrasonic. I've just updated the firmware and thought everything  is settings set by default? Could you please tell where I can check it?

Anmi wrote:

Thanks for reply Ultrasonic. I've just updated the firmware and thought everything  is settings set by default? Could you please tell where I can check it?

I think it may be that default settings are usually OK on the SHD but they defnitely aren't on some other miniDSPs. 

It's probably best if you have a read through the manual if you've never used the plugin at all but where you want to look for crossover filters and PEQ is on the output tab for the preset you were using.

Ultrasonic post=56931"Have you checked the configuration in the plugin? It's possible there is a low-pass filter being applied..."

He's saying that the bass is muddy, which a low-pass filter would not cause.

chad2057 wrote:

Ultrasonic post=56931"Have you checked the configuration in the plugin? It's possible there is a low-pass filter being applied..."

He's saying the the bass is muddy, which a low-pass filter would not cause.

No, @Amni said the 'sound' was muddy, which to me means dull and hints at a rolled of treble.

Either way, checking plugin settings it still a good idea to rule out any issues  .

Anmi wrote:

the sound goes muddy and dull like it goes through a blanket - almost no heights just muddy mids and bass. 
 

^Actually I'd definitely understood correctly  .

Thanks again! Indeed, just reset the settings and things got better. Just started to play with the curves. For now restricted Dirac to 400Hz and playing further.
P.S once the Dirac turned off the sound becomes muddy again but not so much as it used to be prior resetting the settings. Am I getting used to Dirac or it does some crossover adjustments?
P.P.S What is the best way to modify the sound - by playing with target curve itself all the time or leave it flat and adjust in PEQ?  Or apply for instance Harman target curve and everything else modify in PEQ?

 

With no PEQ, crossovers or Dirac filters applied the SHD is essentially transparent. There should not be a big difference to your old pre-amp so I'd encourage you to check everything in the plugin.

From the testing I've done I don't think there is any point using PEQ and Dirac over the same frequency range. Where I have used both I've used Dirac over the bass region and applied PEQ filters at high frequencies (based on time-gated measurements to give a quasi-anechoic response), but this is not a common approach.