a analog 5.1 downmix puts the surround in the difference of left and right... you can get it out again with this thing..
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New Schiit SYN - Analog Surround Sound Processor
- Thread starter Guddu
- Start date
I bought it in the 90s but back then I had sh___y speakers and no center nor sub, shouldn't have been a good listen. right now I am using the one made by Chase Technologies in the 90s also, it has lineouts for the center and surround speakers.
I would like to see more analog inputs and maybe a sub volume control.Nice presentation.
But there always needs to be room left for improvement. Now I can see the "Syn 2" being released in a couple of years, right?
it's an enhanced Dynaco with three more functions.
1. Mic
2. Preamp outs for all 5.1 channels
3. not a big ugly black box
I would consider it for 2.1 channel preamp personally, as at $399 with a built in dac, its appears to be a decent value. I never have had a need for "audiophile" surround sound personally, but I can see the appeal.
What I mean by this - the original mix that came out of the studio is in stereo.
By turning it into "surround" via this process, you're changing the mix and deviating from "how it was meant to be heard". You may or may not care about that, I do to an extent.
but doesn't it let the user listen to music both ways, two-channel and in surround? or do you mean you are ok with how an AVR "deviates" music in multi channel mode but not the way the SYN does it?
I never liked music in any of the dsp modes of an avr, they truly sounded fake: small hall, big hall, stadium... it's laughing stock.
This thread is becoming a fine demonstration of Brandolini's law.
My philosophy is the "best" way to listen to a recording is with as few alterations as possible, although I'm starting to come around on crossfeed for headphones. So, I don't really like the idea of upmixing. If the recording actually comes as a multichannel mix, to me that's fine.
It's not like I look down on anyone that does like upmixing or any other kind of DSP, but IMO the point of hi-fi is to get as close to "the original" as possible, so making changes to the audio via upmixing is a big step in the opposite direction in my mind.
Some might argue (on a philosophical basis) that stereo mixes are already 100% artificial, and unless you're listening on nearfield monitors, your experience has no hope of matching "the original", so "the original" isn't a very meaningful concept in the first place. Those people might have a point, but we all have our preferences and quirks.
D
Deleted member 48726
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To you.
And I'm gonna report spam from your side.
and a pair of stereo sub outs.
DynamicRanger
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DISCLAIMER: If this post reads like ad copy, that's intentional. My overall point is about the marketing of Syn and what I see as a missed opportunity.
I think the marketing for Syn is backwards. Based on what I've read in this thread, the "Schiit Happenened" megathread and elsewhere, Syn conceptually emerged as an alternative to home theater surround, but that doesn't necessarily mean that's how it had to be marketed. This thread provides ample examples of people rightly criticizing the device for not being ideal for its top-line purpose: as a surround processor in a home theater setup.
Instead, Syn could be presented as a quadraphonic processor for music, resurrecting the music-first, sit-down-and-listen vibe of the anything-is-possible 1960s and 1970s. To really sell it, Syn could incorporate the old SQ, QS and CD-4 quad standards. I can't comment on the technical or legal feasibility of that, but the prospect of having a little box that can decode any quad records you find at a flea market or seek out online is intriguing and very true to Schiit's brand.
Schiit's artisinal surround processing can be applied to any stereo signal to get that immersive feeling everyone was striving for in the 1970s. Think of it as a natural extension of tone controls: just like tweaking the frequencies, but also the position/separation of multiple channels. I don't know how successful Loki and Lokius have been in terms of sales, but even if they haven't been successful, forge ahead as if they have been, as if Loki is the return of tone controls from their decades-long exile.
The overall tone of Schiit's brand (and certainly the color scheme) aren't exactly evoking a Captain Freakout Sweetwater Jamboree, "far out, man", Laser Floyd at the planetarium vibe, but a subtle wink to that might get the imagination going for an audience looking for it, if you catch my drift.
Schiit says (I'm paraphrasing here): "It's a never-obsolete surround system that sidesteps many of the perennial problems of digital AVRs! 5.1 surround for movies and games! And hey, you can use it for music, too, isn't that neat?"
Instead of that, how about this: "Qudraphonic LPs failed because people didn't want to buy another set of speakers. But it's not the 1970s anymore! Speakers are cheaper, better sounding and more efficient than ever before, so let's see what we've been missing for the past fifty years! If quad is good enough for Frank Sinatra and Wendy Carlos, why not give it a shot? And Syn isn't just for the listening room! The surround processor can also output a center channel for a viable alternative to standards-based digital AVRs!"
The overall pitch is similar to the Loki tone controls: Schiit is taking another look at a basic expansion of hi-fi capabilities that was hastily rejected in the past, fixing some of the issues and putting it in a tidy box.
I think the marketing for Syn is backwards. Based on what I've read in this thread, the "Schiit Happenened" megathread and elsewhere, Syn conceptually emerged as an alternative to home theater surround, but that doesn't necessarily mean that's how it had to be marketed. This thread provides ample examples of people rightly criticizing the device for not being ideal for its top-line purpose: as a surround processor in a home theater setup.
Instead, Syn could be presented as a quadraphonic processor for music, resurrecting the music-first, sit-down-and-listen vibe of the anything-is-possible 1960s and 1970s. To really sell it, Syn could incorporate the old SQ, QS and CD-4 quad standards. I can't comment on the technical or legal feasibility of that, but the prospect of having a little box that can decode any quad records you find at a flea market or seek out online is intriguing and very true to Schiit's brand.
Schiit's artisinal surround processing can be applied to any stereo signal to get that immersive feeling everyone was striving for in the 1970s. Think of it as a natural extension of tone controls: just like tweaking the frequencies, but also the position/separation of multiple channels. I don't know how successful Loki and Lokius have been in terms of sales, but even if they haven't been successful, forge ahead as if they have been, as if Loki is the return of tone controls from their decades-long exile.
The overall tone of Schiit's brand (and certainly the color scheme) aren't exactly evoking a Captain Freakout Sweetwater Jamboree, "far out, man", Laser Floyd at the planetarium vibe, but a subtle wink to that might get the imagination going for an audience looking for it, if you catch my drift.
Schiit says (I'm paraphrasing here): "It's a never-obsolete surround system that sidesteps many of the perennial problems of digital AVRs! 5.1 surround for movies and games! And hey, you can use it for music, too, isn't that neat?"
Instead of that, how about this: "Qudraphonic LPs failed because people didn't want to buy another set of speakers. But it's not the 1970s anymore! Speakers are cheaper, better sounding and more efficient than ever before, so let's see what we've been missing for the past fifty years! If quad is good enough for Frank Sinatra and Wendy Carlos, why not give it a shot? And Syn isn't just for the listening room! The surround processor can also output a center channel for a viable alternative to standards-based digital AVRs!"
The overall pitch is similar to the Loki tone controls: Schiit is taking another look at a basic expansion of hi-fi capabilities that was hastily rejected in the past, fixing some of the issues and putting it in a tidy box.
In which case it would be...the Involve Surround Master.
A product that already exists. And has the (to me) same crippling deficit: no digital out.
What went around, hangs around.Return of the Hafler "ambience retrieval" box?
I mean, matrix "quad" was a thing ca. 1972.
mhardy6647
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I somehow don't doubt that.
For some people, 'getting as close to "the original" as possible' requires something like quad.
Particularly if one (such as myself) listens mostly to 'live' recordings that were done in some sort of concert situation, whether it be at a stadium, a concert hall, a Gasthaus (also called Gasthof, Landhaus, or Pension) or just outdoors somewhere.
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