nothingman
Senior Member
Really happy with my SHD purchase so far (October 2020, so I guess I have the latest hardware). I have a few gripes like others but you can't argue with the level of audio performance, inputs, and DSP customization in this unit for $1200.
Tell me if I'm crazy, but the one thing that keeps cropping up for me is the 4V max output. Without Dirac, I don't think it's really a problem, but it becomes one with Dirac enabled which, per the manual, means you shouldn't bring the volume above -10db because you need to give Dirac that much room to guarantee it won't clip while boosting frequencies. -10db is more of a voltage drop than you might think, especially when your source signal is nowhere near approaching full strength.
For many recordings, even -10db louder than I'd normally listen, but for quiet signals, I need more voltage going to the amp. Given the limitations that running Dirac introduces, the SHD should probably be capable of something like 8V so that we don't take as much of a hit by the -10db volume limitation. Basically what would be nice is a unit that could produce ~8V but then have a low-gain/high-gain setting for folks who want the max SNR and then those of us needing some extra juice. Since something like the Benchmark DAC3 outputs 12v(+24dbu) at 0db, I don't think I'm way off base here. Again, tell me if I'm crazy.
I know this partly comes down to amp power and speaker sensitivity, but I'm using mainstream stuff here. Amp sensitivity is rated at 185w/8ohm @ 1.43v input (NAD C298), and JA's sensitivity measurement on the speaker is 84.5db (LS50 Meta).
Tell me if I'm crazy, but the one thing that keeps cropping up for me is the 4V max output. Without Dirac, I don't think it's really a problem, but it becomes one with Dirac enabled which, per the manual, means you shouldn't bring the volume above -10db because you need to give Dirac that much room to guarantee it won't clip while boosting frequencies. -10db is more of a voltage drop than you might think, especially when your source signal is nowhere near approaching full strength.
For many recordings, even -10db louder than I'd normally listen, but for quiet signals, I need more voltage going to the amp. Given the limitations that running Dirac introduces, the SHD should probably be capable of something like 8V so that we don't take as much of a hit by the -10db volume limitation. Basically what would be nice is a unit that could produce ~8V but then have a low-gain/high-gain setting for folks who want the max SNR and then those of us needing some extra juice. Since something like the Benchmark DAC3 outputs 12v(+24dbu) at 0db, I don't think I'm way off base here. Again, tell me if I'm crazy.
I know this partly comes down to amp power and speaker sensitivity, but I'm using mainstream stuff here. Amp sensitivity is rated at 185w/8ohm @ 1.43v input (NAD C298), and JA's sensitivity measurement on the speaker is 84.5db (LS50 Meta).