Minidsp SHD Review Updated (DSP, DAC & Streamer)

[eisenb11]

I need to try more, but it’s quite subtle IMHO. I probably need a better measurement session though. I only realised I needed a mic profile afterwards.

Ah, another decision while measuring is mic pointed up (use the 90 degree profile for this) or pointed straight. Tried both and liked the latter, but read some people prefer the former. Former had a bigger stage, but seemed much less detailed to me.

For me, the Harmon curve pushed the vocals too far away. Liked the Nad and default the most. In the end, the default had a slightly larger sound stage. Probably different for everyone because of room acoustics. My room is moderately treated. Might try the Arcam one tonight.

 

[Iwf]

Ah, another decision while measuring is mic pointed up (use the 90 degree profile for this) or pointed straight. Tried both and liked the latter, but read some people prefer the former. Former had a bigger stage, but seemed much less detailed to me.

For me, the Harmon curve pushed the vocals too far away. Liked the Nad and default the most. In the end, the default had a slightly larger sound stage. Probably different for everyone because of room acoustics. My room is moderately treated. Might try the Arcam one tonight.

I’m trying to ignore room treatments or even the thought of it. Now if I could find some designer produced materials I might get past my beloved. Perhaps a standard lamp that acts as a bass trap !

 

[kokoon]

@kokoon

how did you achieve that, could I ask. After enabling the ROON plugin within volumio, it appears as an end point ROON , but you can’t enable it within ROON . You just get the unsupported message.

more interestingly I couldn’t tell the difference between the Pi based hi berry spdif output (@£100) and the SoTm SMS via USB (at £250 incl power supply)

I don't remember doing anything special. I'm seeing three devices - I2S, SPDIF and AirPlay. SPDIF doesn't make any sound come out of the SHD (probably the raspi's optical out, which is not connected) but the other two do. I would try uninstalling and reinstalling the plugin - as opposed to just enabling it. And in Roon's Audio settings, where the identified devices are listed, check their properties - maybe there's something off, like sample rates or bit depths...

 

[eisenb11]

I’m trying to ignore room treatments or even the thought of it. Now if I could find some designer produced materials I might get past my beloved. Perhaps a standard lamp that acts as a bass trap !

Room treatment need not look bad, but I wouldn't want to put it in my living room! ha ha My stereo system is in my office. The room treatment is effective and looks pretty cool. Bought my stuff from GIK Acoustics. Looks even better in person.

 

[Iwf]

Room treatment need not look bad, but I wouldn't want to put it in my living room! ha ha My stereo system is in my office. The room treatment is effective and looks pretty cool. Bought my stuff from GIK Acoustics. Looks even better in person.

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Nice speakers. I have the same, but powered by a Nord Class D purifi amp. The 805s are a little close to the wall though, aren’t they ? Is the printer part of the av setup then ?

Room treatment need not look bad, but I wouldn't want to put it in my living room! ha ha My stereo system is in my office. The room treatment is effective and looks pretty cool. Bought my stuff from GIK Acoustics. Looks even better in person.

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[eisenb11]

Nice speakers. I have the same, but powered by a Nord Class D purifi amp. The 805s are a little close to the wall though, aren’t they ? Is the printer part of the av setup then ?

Didn’t you know? Having a printer nearby increases bass detail and puts “sparkle” into the music while absorbing the “bad” harmonics! ;-)

For the speaker placement, I consulted with GIK and their recommendation was “good distance or no distance”, but not in between. Read a bunch of articles that backed that up. Since I don’t have enough room to go 2-3 feet out, I put them as close to the wall as possible which helps cancel boundary interference. These speakers are also front ported. EQ/DSP helps tame the bass, but with the MiniDSP I’m doing a 80 hz high pass to the speakers anyway with a 80 hz low pass going to the sub.

 

[Iwf]

Haha re the printer. Re the 805s thats interesting knowledge about siting them, even more about the B&w sub. Do you find it a good match for the 805s. I assume so.

my lounge doubles as a lounge, and HT theatre so im limited. That said your room treatment look funky enough to be considered.

 

[eisenb11]

Haha re the printer. Re the 805s thats interesting knowledge about siting them, even more about the B&w sub. Do you find it a good match for the 805s. I assume so.

my lounge doubles as a lounge, and HT theatre so im limited. That said your room treatment look funky enough to be considered.

For me the sub was a night & day difference. The 805s are great, but they felt a bit lacking in the low end - I felt like my music was missing something and put them high on my wish list. The sub fills in the missing low end and also increased the sound stage. Music felt "bigger"/more encompassing once I added it. The 80 hz high pass then lets the speakers handle the higher stuff without the pesky low end complicating things. The DB sub-series matches the 800-series speakers - I went with the smallest (DB3D) due to space and am very happy with it. It has DSP and EQ, but I have those disabled and am letting the MiniDSP handle all that. I consider the sub and the MiniDSP my best upgrades since I got the speakers.

Exactly the same thought on the treatment - you had my exact adjective. This set up had enough "funkiness" that I felt it would do the job, look cool, and add a little "fun" into the mix as well! The diffusors have kind of a retro vibe to them.

 

[Iwf]

Wow, I’ve just seen the price of the DB3D. For that sort of £ it should make all the difference in the world

 

[eisenb11]

Yeah, they're a bit pricey, a bit shy of getting another 805 speaker... but well worth it! If you look at the rest of the 800-series speakers, you don't see ones with 8" woofers (the DB3D has 2 of them) until you get to the 802.

 

[radix]

Bugger. Part of my decision for the SHD was to rid myself of the external end point, in my case a SoTM sms, with associated power supply. On the other hand I won’t worry about all things jitter, so maybe it’s a relief.

now with another set of measurements and a couple of new curves, I can really start listening.

The most notable differences are the calming of some the of the brightness of the Class D amps and better staging. So, so much to learn

Yes, as @eisenb11 pointed out, there's something funky with my particular plugin experience. I think most people use the volumio roon plugin just fine on the shd. I know I use it on a dedicated volumio pi I have just fine (unrelated to the shd).

My shd also takes a long time (maybe 30s or so?) for volumio to come out of standby, which I find annoying. I don't know if that's normal or just something wrong with my box.

I do need to contact tech support to resolve it.

Marc

 

[Glasvegas]

Pleased to say my MiniDSP SHD is arriving Fri, str from HK, with DHL express. Only ordered Mon morning , include uk taxes , its around £1200, including the Mic. I think £400 less than buying in the UK, accepting I might have problems with service , of course.

lwf,

Hope you are satisfied with your unit.

I wouldn‘t worry about service. I‘ve had excellent support from miniDSP.

Just recently I reported a problem with screen burn in. They responded prompty, and within 1 week a new display arrived from Hong Kong - even though they (wrongly) thought it was out of warranty.

OK, not exactly a major issue. However, I was impressed with the response.

 

[eisenb11]

I've exchanged emails with MiniDSP in the past. Very speedy (add time for time zone differences) and super helpful.

 

[Keened]

Is the SHD due for an official v2 update anytime soon? I see that there have been changes under the hood and some issues with certifications so I'd like to know if something else is already in the works before pulling the trigger.

 

[nick-v]

Is the SHD due for an official v2 update anytime soon? I see that there have been changes under the hood and some issues with certifications so I'd like to know if something else is already in the works before pulling the trigger.

The miniDSP dev team as a policy never let us in on what they have up their sleeve. I would love an updated Roon-Ready SHD with DLBC for dual subwoofers, but who knows... As it is, there isn't really much that competes with the current SHD, so you can't really go wrong.

 

[kokoon]

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[Willem]

This is very interesting: a digital preamp/DAC with a range of digital inputs (plus an analogue one), and four analogue outputs, for a power amp and two subwoofers. And it can run Dirac for only an additional $199.

 

[poxymoron]

This is very interesting: a digital preamp/DAC with a range of digital inputs (plus an analogue one), and four analogue outputs, for a power amp and two subwoofers. And it can run Dirac for only an additional $199.

Flexible Output versions: Unbalanced (RCA), Balanced (TRS), Digital (Future)

Digital Audio Output Connectivity

4 x Outputs (Post DSP) on USB Audio

4 x Outputs (Post DSP) on USB Audio

4 x Outputs (Post DSP) on USB Audio, SPDIF& TOSLINK

I'm confused, does it have digital out? They do say a future digital output, but the rear panel suggests that currently it does not.

 

[Guenselmann]

I don't understand the lack of Trigger out on miniDSP devices. They have to be used with external amps, so IMHO it should be a no-brainer to include that.

 

[Willem]

They would not be the only ones to lack a trigger output. However, there are two good alternatives. The first is to have a power amplifier with auto on/off, such as the Boxem Hypex/Purify power amps. The second is to use a master/slave power strip.