Auro-3D, Dolby Atmos TrueHD, Quadraphonic et cetĕra

[Alexander M]

A project has been launched to explore the feasibility of high-quality playback of multichannel audio content using a USB stereo DAC array.

Interfaces: ASIO and WASAPI Exclusive

Formats: PCM and DSD

Playback scheme: the source content is split into pairs using the standard FR+FL, RR+RL, etc. scheme. The resulting two-channel files are played back by a specially created application through a matrix of connected DACs.

Preliminary results are cautiously optimistic.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

How does/will this differ from the already demonstrated use of a USB hub to distribute channels to 3-4 DACs?
https://www.stereophile.com/content...ion would be,told the results were impressive.
https://www.stereophile.com/content/music-round-86-playback-designs-audioquest
https://www.stereophile.com/content...tereo192-DSD is,stack of three Stereo192-DSDs.

 

[ppataki]

I wanted to ask the same question: why not use an RME Digiface USB or a miniDSP U-DIO8 and connect stereo DACs (or even FDAs) to them?
This is what I had been doing for many years in both my systems

Otherwise the clock sync becomes a nightmare

 

[Alexander M]

How does/will this differ from the already demonstrated use of a USB hub to distribute channels to 3-4 DACs?
https://www.stereophile.com/content/music-round-93-minidsp-ripping-sacds#:~:text=A logical solution would be,told the results were impressive.
https://www.stereophile.com/content/music-round-86-playback-designs-audioquest
https://www.stereophile.com/content/music-round-61-page-2#:~:text=Briefly, the Stereo192-DSD is,stack of three Stereo192-DSDs.

These are rare, highly specialized solutions.
My goal is to create an app that can work with most available DACs, with Hi-Res support up to DSD1024 49.2 MHz, and with 6 DACs.
An important aspect: DAC synchronization is purely software-based via the ASIO or WASAPI driver.

 

[Alexander M]

I wanted to ask the same question: why not use an RME Digiface USB or a miniDSP U-DIO8 and connect stereo DACs (or even FDAs) to them?
This is what I had been doing for many years in both my systems

Otherwise the clock sync becomes a nightmare

Insufficient sound quality.

 

[ppataki]

Insufficient sound quality.

Can you elaborate that?
How would the RME or the U-DIO8 impact the sound quality?

 

[phoenixdogfan]

A project has been launched to explore the feasibility of high-quality playback of multichannel audio content using a USB stereo DAC array.

Interfaces: ASIO and WASAPI Exclusive

Formats: PCM and DSD

Playback scheme: the source content is split into pairs using the standard FR+FL, RR+RL, etc. scheme. The resulting two-channel files are played back by a specially created application through a matrix of connected DACs.

Preliminary results are cautiously optimistic.

Sound great. I could use my Octo Dac 8 Pro, and any one of the number of USB two channel DACS I have lying around and create a 5.1.4 or a 7.1.4 layout, Now if we can just find a way to decode Atmos and DTS-X on a PC.

 

[Alexander M]

Can you elaborate that?
How would the RME or the U-DIO8 impact the sound quality?

Low bitrate. No DSD support

 

[ppataki]

Low bitrate. No DSD support

Low bitrate is a nonsense, you can send up to 192kHz/24bit PCM which is more than enough

I agree DSD support is not there though, but I am not sure how much that would be needed (Jriver can decode DSD to PCM in real-time)

 

[Alexander M]

Now if we can just find a way to decode Atmos and DTS-X on a PC.

There are official apps for decoding Auro-3D and Dolby Atmos TrueHD. Some labels, such as 2L, offer recordings in 24-bit 352.8 MHz DXD (WAV) format with 7.0.4 discrete channels.

 

[Alexander M]

I agree DSD support is not there though, but I am not sure how much that would be needed (Jriver can decode DSD to PCM in real-time)

DSD allows you to completely eliminate jitter, upsampling and delta-sigma conversion in the DAC.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

These are rare, highly specialized solutions.
My goal is to create an app that can work with most available DACs, with Hi-Res support up to DSD1024 49.2 MHz, and with 6 DACs.
An important aspect: DAC synchronization is purely software-based via the ASIO or WASAPI driver.

Nope. While the miniDSP and PlaybackDesigns use proprietary hardware, the Mytek solution is a simple ASIO driver that recognizes the individual DACs connected to the USB hub. Easy with a PC and even easier with a MAC as the source.

 

[kyuu]

DSD allows you to completely eliminate jitter, upsampling and delta-sigma conversion in the DAC.

Are any of those actual problems, though?

 

[Alexander M]

Are any of those actual problems, though?

Absolutely.

 

[Alexander M]

Nope. While the miniDSP and PlaybackDesigns use proprietary hardware, the Mytek solution is a simple ASIO driver that recognizes the individual DACs connected to the USB hub. Easy with a PC and even easier with a MAC as the source.

However, this ASIO driver is proprietary and could only work with Mytek DACs. It's not a one-size-fits-all solution. I didn't find any mention of this driver on the Mytek website.

I think many would be interested to know that simpler solutions are possible using components from any manufacturer, in different price categories.

 

[voodooless]

Absolutely.

Like what? And no vague stuff, come with actual objective receipts.

 

[Alexander M]

Like what? And no vague stuff, come with actual objective receipts.

I have no desire to get sidetracked in this thread. Sorry.

 

[voodooless]

I have no desire to get sidetracked in this thread. Sorry.

It's literally the main reason for this idea to exist in the first place. I would hardly call that sidetracking..

 

[Alexander M]

It's literally the main reason for this idea to exist in the first place. I would hardly call that sidetracking..

The main idea of this thread is to use an array of high-quality audio DACs for multichannel audio playback instead of receivers with their mediocre internals. The content could be PCM or DSD, and the DACs could be delta-sigma or native DSD.

As for the issues of jitter and delta-sigma DACs, there have been so many articles, studies, and discussions on these issues in the last decade that I thought everyone already knew everything.
Ask an AI about it; it will explain it better than I can

 

[LTig]

DSD allows you to completely eliminate jitter, upsampling and delta-sigma conversion in the DAC.

And I thought almost all content available in DSD has been upsampled from PCM at the last production step ... so what?