essence
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Just a small writeup of my current desktop audio chain with a focus on the software side.
Foobar(+EBU R128 Compressor) > VBMatrix (+eqAPO) > Voicemeter (+Element) > Dirac > Analogue output
Voicemeeter allows for three separate virtual audio paths which I set to:
Voicemeeter makes it convenient to switch between the various outputs depending on the format conversion needed.
Element routes audio between the two virtual voicemeeter interfaces and through corresponding upmix/downmix plugins
I also use EBU R128 Compressor plugin in foobar, which provides realtime track-to-track loudness balancing, (without editing the file tags which most replaygain implementations needs) extremely useful when listening to vinyl tracks on the same playlist as standard tracks.
eqAPO allows for easy injection of additional DSP, eg PK Harmonic for distortion control. I can also easily switch my output between multichannel -> stereo (along with associated corrected filters) in Dirac. For Dirac I mostly only limit correction to < 300hz.
Currently I use okto dac8 for multichannel playback and a D90 III discrete for stereo content.
My analogue chain consist of:
D90 III Discrete / Okto dac8 > 3x topping pre90 (one with ext90 to switch between multichannel/stereo) > 4xPurifi 1ET400A 0gain/bypass > sointuva (fronts) + confidence c1 (rears) + v1500 (sub #1) + dn12 (sub #2)
I am currently running two subwoofers, PSA V1500 and a DN12. However, one of my subs (V1500) is directly tied to my left/right output hence invisible to the system, its integrated using the MSO and the geddes method. So essentially the system only sees a 4.1 output.
The volume control is handled by 3x topping pre90s (yes I did get a 3rd unit solely to integrate my subs) with amplification done by purify 1ET400A in 0gain/bypass mode. I use a signal repeater and a surface dial (+home assistant & IR blaster) to simultaneously control all 3 (yes it can desync occasionally) but the tactile feedback on the knob followed by the clicking of the pre90 relays feels extremely satisfying.
*you may have to turn the volume up a bit to hear the tactile feedback
The surface dial also dual functions as playback control, its software aware at least within windows and can its actions can be configured depending on the active application.
Why go through all the effort for a convoluted setup? Well it just makes content creation much easier when all individual audio tracks are captured pre-processed and I can easily select the exact mix needed for the final output.
Eg. When I take a full screen capture of a demonstration sometimes I would only want my own voice captured othertimes I would like to include audio of the entire group discussion, remove background music etc.
For vinyl playback I can capture pre+post riaa/clickrepair and always have a backup if anything goes wrong.
Hope this helps anyone either trying sub integration or are having other surround sound playback issues. (theres not many of us...)
Foobar(+EBU R128 Compressor) > VBMatrix (+eqAPO) > Voicemeter (+Element) > Dirac > Analogue output
Voicemeeter allows for three separate virtual audio paths which I set to:
- downmix audio (mostly movies & rare multichannel content) to my unique 4.2 setup (default)
- upmix audio to surround sound (nugen, peace, gerzon)
- direct output, which I usually use for vinyl playback for records that require clickrepair in real time (yes I consume most of my vinyl digitally, no pitchforks please…)
Voicemeeter makes it convenient to switch between the various outputs depending on the format conversion needed.
Element routes audio between the two virtual voicemeeter interfaces and through corresponding upmix/downmix plugins
I also use EBU R128 Compressor plugin in foobar, which provides realtime track-to-track loudness balancing, (without editing the file tags which most replaygain implementations needs) extremely useful when listening to vinyl tracks on the same playlist as standard tracks.
eqAPO allows for easy injection of additional DSP, eg PK Harmonic for distortion control. I can also easily switch my output between multichannel -> stereo (along with associated corrected filters) in Dirac. For Dirac I mostly only limit correction to < 300hz.
Currently I use okto dac8 for multichannel playback and a D90 III discrete for stereo content.
My analogue chain consist of:
D90 III Discrete / Okto dac8 > 3x topping pre90 (one with ext90 to switch between multichannel/stereo) > 4xPurifi 1ET400A 0gain/bypass > sointuva (fronts) + confidence c1 (rears) + v1500 (sub #1) + dn12 (sub #2)
I am currently running two subwoofers, PSA V1500 and a DN12. However, one of my subs (V1500) is directly tied to my left/right output hence invisible to the system, its integrated using the MSO and the geddes method. So essentially the system only sees a 4.1 output.
The volume control is handled by 3x topping pre90s (yes I did get a 3rd unit solely to integrate my subs) with amplification done by purify 1ET400A in 0gain/bypass mode. I use a signal repeater and a surface dial (+home assistant & IR blaster) to simultaneously control all 3 (yes it can desync occasionally) but the tactile feedback on the knob followed by the clicking of the pre90 relays feels extremely satisfying.
*you may have to turn the volume up a bit to hear the tactile feedback
The surface dial also dual functions as playback control, its software aware at least within windows and can its actions can be configured depending on the active application.
Why go through all the effort for a convoluted setup? Well it just makes content creation much easier when all individual audio tracks are captured pre-processed and I can easily select the exact mix needed for the final output.
Eg. When I take a full screen capture of a demonstration sometimes I would only want my own voice captured othertimes I would like to include audio of the entire group discussion, remove background music etc.
For vinyl playback I can capture pre+post riaa/clickrepair and always have a backup if anything goes wrong.
Hope this helps anyone either trying sub integration or are having other surround sound playback issues. (theres not many of us...)
