I'm trying to build a 7.1 playback Windows PC that will have 2-way (or possibly 3-way) speakers at each main channel. Each individual driver will have its own external amplifier channel (RCA inputs), so I want the PC to have enough analog outputs that it can perform crossover and time-alignment duties between drivers. So, I need more than 8 outputs.
At first I thought it would be simple: I'd just buy a few DACs with 8 analog RCA outputs each (e.g. ESI Gigaport eX) and plug them all into the PC. But then I ran across many forum posts about clock sync issues when using multiple independent DACs.
I think I could instead use an interface like the miniDSP U-DIO8 with four SPDIF outputs and run each of those to a miniDSP Flex (or Flex Eight for 3-ways) to act as crossovers, but that's less than ideal because it shifts the crossover role outside of the PC and adds complexity.
The only thing I've been able to come up with is the Motu 8A. It still only has 8 analog outputs, but its manual says if you want to use multiple units together, linking them with its AVB Ethernet interface will avoid clock sync issues.
Any better ideas?
At first I thought it would be simple: I'd just buy a few DACs with 8 analog RCA outputs each (e.g. ESI Gigaport eX) and plug them all into the PC. But then I ran across many forum posts about clock sync issues when using multiple independent DACs.
I think I could instead use an interface like the miniDSP U-DIO8 with four SPDIF outputs and run each of those to a miniDSP Flex (or Flex Eight for 3-ways) to act as crossovers, but that's less than ideal because it shifts the crossover role outside of the PC and adds complexity.
The only thing I've been able to come up with is the Motu 8A. It still only has 8 analog outputs, but its manual says if you want to use multiple units together, linking them with its AVB Ethernet interface will avoid clock sync issues.
Any better ideas?