Luxsin X9 Smart Stereo DAC & Preamp

[dimon0869]

I would suggest such a VU-meter design. The top section is taken from the level indicator of the Soviet cassette deck 'Mayak-233'. The decibel indicator is from the 'Elektronika MK-56' calculator. On the top part, 'Л' stands for Left, and 'П' for Right. FeCr indicates the tape type.

(Instead of these specific indicators, one could probably insert something custom. Unfortunately, I don't have a Mayak-233 on hand, but I do have the calculator. If necessary, I can photograph the indicators in high resolution for digitization.)

As another option - I am all for it, and I also really wanted an option with linear gas-discharge indicators in the style of the reel-to-reel tape recorder Elektronika 004, but for some reason (as you can see), the engineers are very limiting our fantasies and wishes by the number of possible screens, why - I asked the question, but there is no answer to it yet. Therefore, I am really looking forward to at least what we have already come up with and what the developers promised to add.

 

[Roman Blagov]

As another option - I am all for it, and I also really wanted an option with linear gas-discharge indicators in the style of the reel-to-reel tape recorder Elektronika 004, but for some reason (as you can see), the engineers are very limiting our fantasies and wishes by the number of possible screens, why - I asked the question, but there is no answer to it yet. Therefore, I am really looking forward to at least what we have already come up with and what the developers promised to add.

If I remember correctly, on one of the forums, a developer mentioned a memory limitation. So, as I understand it, we won't be able to generate ideas for screens indefinitely.

 

[dimon0869]

If I remember correctly, on one of the forums, a developer mentioned a memory limitation. So, as I understand it, we won't be able to generate ideas for screens indefinitely.

I wonder if this memory is located on the processor crystal or is it a separate chip? If it is a separate chip, what prevents its volume from being increased?

 

[TynanW]

As another option - I am all for it, and I also really wanted an option with linear gas-discharge indicators in the style of the reel-to-reel tape recorder Elektronika 004

Yeah, you could do all kinds of really interesting a cool meters and displays, like an old CRT terminal and like you say gas-discharge displays / Nixie, 7 segment LEDs (etc etc)

 

[Roman Blagov]

Да, вы могли бы сделать все виды действительно интересных и крутых измерителей и дисплеев, типа старого терминала на ЭЛТ и, как вы говорите, газоразрядных дисплеев / Nixie, 7-сегментных светодиодов (и т. д.)

View attachment 472712

Looking cool!!!

 

[TynanW]

About the peak level hold on the channel level indicator, just to confirm: do you mean you’d like the indicator to stay at the peak level without dropping back down?

Most peak holds will be at least a second, often you will have an 'INF' (infinite) option where they are - like you say - held without dropping back down, both are useful, but if there was going to be just one option the peak hold that holds for 1+ second is the best option.

On more professional meters, the actual max peak value is displayed at the top of each (L/R) meter. And are held for much longer. Often will a little clipping light (between the peak values) which indicates when the signal has entered the last 3-6dBFS.

 

[TynanW]

I have our graphic guy quickly created some visuals as below, which one (or two) you guys prefer? or any other suggestion?

3 and 4 Lol.

But like I say, these weren't really designs, just quick sketches they can be improved quite a bit !

 

[TynanW]

those spectrum analyzers that were already in the latest firmware can be deleted

Noooo! Lol, there are going to people who love those designs, they are in all the promotional material, you can't sell a product with displays that aren't available.

"Tell me, is the number of possible screens with indicators limited by the amount of free memory in the device, or by something else?"

If memory is an issue I wonder, if there was a (growing!) selection of screens, and through the mobile app or phone app, users could download new displays, perhaps into a set of 2 (or more) user memory slots on the X9.

 

[TynanW]

On our device, with a small screen height, it will be very difficult to control the signal levels by channels - the indicator turns out to be very short and not very informative, which is why there was a request to make a separate picture with a horizontal long level indicator.

Let me do that (in safe / warning / over) . . . . I'll post a bit later once I've finished eating this giant plate of spaghetti.

 

[dimon0869]

Let me do that (in safe / warning / over) . . . . I'll post a bit later once I've finished eating this giant plate of spaghetti.

I am afraid to distract engineers from possibly more important matters than working on our proposals, and it is possible that the hardware capabilities are limited (although it seems to me that this is not an excuse and should be somehow resolved by the manufacturer), so I am now very pleased with the proposed option number 2, with a horizontal scale of the level indicator and am ready to stop at this proposed solution. And about the other, second option from the remaining three proposed by engineers, I have already written above.

 

[kolestonin]

Hello, I would like to ask how do you determine if it is a top tier DAC?
What are the main areas of focus?

I will just quote @amirm from the current review:

This lands the X9 near top of our ratings:

 

[SoySalsaPicante]

Hello, may I ask why some people prefer analog volume control? Does this simulation refer to the difference between potentiometers and encoders?

From a technical standpoint, digital volume control affects dynamic range in a way that analog volume controls do not. Typically, cheaper analog volume controls suffer poor left/right channel balance control at lower volumes, but the higher-end relay-actuated ladder volume controls like the one in Luxsin X9 does not have this problem. There’s also the issue of digital volume controls potentially, “forgetting,” where they’re at and suddenly blasting your speakers with full volume sound, whereas physical volume controls are not as likely to suffer this.

 

[Lux Maldini]

From a technical standpoint, digital volume control affects dynamic range in a way that analog volume controls do not. Typically, cheaper analog volume controls suffer poor left/right channel balance control at lower volumes, but the higher-end relay-actuated ladder volume controls like the one in Luxsin X9 does not have this problem. There’s also the issue of digital volume controls potentially, “forgetting,” where they’re at and suddenly blasting your speakers with full volume sound, whereas physical volume controls are not as likely to suffer this.

Thank you very much for your reply!

 

[TynanW]

I am afraid to distract engineers from possibly more important matters than working on our proposals . . .

True, but hey, we can dream : ) Also it sounds like Luxsin wants customer feedback . . . ?

. . . . . . or any other suggestion?

Horizontal Level Meter:

Below the meter are three touchscreen buttons.

From the left to the right:

RMS / PEAK this toggles between these two signal level measurement modes.

STUDIO this selects the colour mode, it cycles through 3 (or more) colour ways, in my example we have:
’STUDIO’ (standard studio safe / warning / over colours + relevant dBFS splits)
‘LUX’ (Luxsin cyan used throughout the interface)
’SUN’ (Orange/Red !)

HOLD (set to 500ms in the example) this cycles through different hold times:
500ms > 1s > 2s > 5s > INF > OFF
(off switches peak hold off).

(please watch in HD, Youtube is not kind to fine details !)

 

[Roman Blagov]

True, but hey, we can dream : ) Also it sounds like Luxsin wants customer feedback . . . ?


Horizontal Level Meter:

Below the meter are three touchscreen buttons.

From the left to the right:

RMS / PEAK this toggles between these two signal level measurement modes.

STUDIO this selects the colour mode, it cycles through 3 (or more) colour ways, in my example we have:
’STUDIO’ (standard studio safe / warning / over colours + relevant dBFS splits)
‘LUX’ (Luxsin cyan used throughout the interface)
’SUN’ (Orange/Red !)

HOLD (set to 500ms in the example) this cycles through different hold times:
500ms > 1s > 2s > 5s > INF > OFF
(off switches peak hold off).

(please watch in HD, Youtube is not kind to fine details !)

I think Luxsin should hire you! ))) Seriously though, from a programming perspective, I don't think the VU meter display module is supposed to be interactive (with buttons, etc.).

 

[Sokel]

True, but hey, we can dream : ) Also it sounds like Luxsin wants customer feedback . . . ?


Horizontal Level Meter:

Below the meter are three touchscreen buttons.

From the left to the right:

RMS / PEAK this toggles between these two signal level measurement modes.

STUDIO this selects the colour mode, it cycles through 3 (or more) colour ways, in my example we have:
’STUDIO’ (standard studio safe / warning / over colours + relevant dBFS splits)
‘LUX’ (Luxsin cyan used throughout the interface)
’SUN’ (Orange/Red !)

HOLD (set to 500ms in the example) this cycles through different hold times:
500ms > 1s > 2s > 5s > INF > OFF
(off switches peak hold off).

(please watch in HD, Youtube is not kind to fine details !)

Great work!
It may be a good idea to have a look at the treading this year's colors as we are short of trained to like what's around us.
keeping down to two colors only (including the device's colors too) with some corresponding shades seems to give a more premium feeling too.

 

[Roman Blagov]

Great work!
It may be a good idea to have a look at the treading this year's colors as we are short of trained to like what's around us.
keeping down to two colors only (including the device's colors too) with some corresponding shades seems to give a more premium feeling too.

By the way, I often use a black-and-white frequency response VU meter. But I really like the idea of the old-school color scheme as well — green, yellow, red. Ideally, of course, it would be great to introduce many VU meters. Both mono and colored, and analog ones, which I suggested above, for example.

 

[Sokel]

By the way, I often use a black-and-white frequency response VU meter. But I really like the idea of the old-school color scheme as well — green, yellow, red. Ideally, of course, it would be great to introduce many VU meters. Both mono and colored, and analog ones, which I suggested above, for example.

The appeal of the old colored schemes comes directly by the unique luminescence of the used leds of the era.
Can't really replicate that with a screen, I mean it was a fail even back then when they tried it in lower-tier gear, they looked cheap.

Black and white is a great idea but the screen has to be really good, any bleeding can destroy it.

 

[Roman Blagov]

The appeal of the old colored schemes comes directly by the unique luminescence of the used leds of the era.
Can't really replicate that with a screen, I mean it was a fail even back then when they tried it in lower-tier gear, they looked cheap.

Black and white is a great idea but the screen has to be really good, any bleeding can destroy it.

Oh, I wouldn't say that. I often use the yellow "warm" стрелочным indicator. And I love to meditate on it. It turned out to be really worthy!

 

[Sokel]

Oh, I wouldn't say that. I often use the yellow "warm" стрелочным indicator. And I love to meditate on it. It turned out to be really worthy!

Luck can get you there, that yellow may have been at the sweet spot.
The worst offender is always green, it must be the absolute right one (but it never is, even at the new leds)