Review and Measurements of RME ADI-2 Pro (comparison to ADI-2 DAC)

[Purité Audio]

Well it has some really interesting and valuable features, one client uses it’s EQ facility extensively , I have experimented with tone/loudness and the low level listening feature, it is a solidly designed and engineered unit.
Keith

 

[Krunok]

Well it has some really interesting and valuable features, one client uses it’s EQ facility extensively.
Keith

To what purpose? To compensate for the room factor? That would require some serious measurement with the professional equipment beforehand..

 

[Purité Audio]

A usb microphone and REW software which is free.
Keith

 

[Krunok]

A usb microphone and REW software which is free.
Keith

I thought so. I do believe that UMIK-1 mike that goes with it can do a descent job as long as you know to measure with it.

 

[Krunok]

I guess EQ is being done in digital domain without affecting the phase?

 

[bartzky]

Hi! Some measurements from the ADI-2 DAC and Pro taken with the Pro's AD:

(Taken from my German review)

Residual Noise, 524288 FFT Points

DAC Phones (blue): -108,56 dBu
DAC IEM (green): -113,83 dBu - limit of the Pro's ADC. Real value should be around -118 dBu
Pro (red): -108,27 dBu

THD 1 kHz 0 dBu -1 dBFS 30 Ohm, 131072 FFT Points

DAC Phones: -115,1 dB (0,00018%)
Pro (not shown): -112,7 dB (0,00023%)

THD vs Frequency 0 dBu -1 dBFS 30 Ohm

DAC Phones (blue)
Pro (red)

THD+N vs Level 30 Ohm

DAC Phones Low Power (blue)
DAC IEM (green)

The IEM Out starts clipping at about 550mV. That equals the volume setting "-10" at the Phones Out at 0 dBFS. Until clipping starts the IEM has the advantage. So if you choose a setting lower than -10 dB at the Phones Out the IEM Out should be used instead.

 

[watchnerd]

Did you guys play with the Crossfeed function?

I have.

It's as good an implementation as I've heard, but I think I'm just not a huge fan of what crossfeed does.

 

[amirm]

Hi! Some measurements from the ADI-2 DAC and Pro taken with the Pro's AD:

Welcome to the forum and thanks for posting that.

 

[watchnerd]

Sure it is. Not that it will sound any better than $80 Topping D10 though, but it would certainly make one much more satisfied to have it, myself included. It's simply in the human nature..

As a preamp, probably no major difference. But as a headphone amp....I would expect some audible differences due to amp power with harder to drive phones.

 

[nefilim]

I returned my ADI-2 Pro and ordered a ADI-2 Pro FS - just received it. The box & manual etc all still says "ADI-2 Pro" but the front panel of the unit itself includes "FS".

pro tip: I got it a lot cheap than US MSRP - and I didn't pay any import duty from Deutschland....

 

[NTTY]

I have.

It's as good an implementation as I've heard, but I think I'm just not a huge fan of what crossfeed does.

Thanks. On my side I think I like it but the result is variable depending on the headset.

 

[Rod]

Thanks. On my side I think I like it but the result is variable depending on the headset.

I have tried crossfeed in the past but didn't care for it. But in the RME the crossfeed helps with the he-400i. I set mine at 2.

 

[Elix]

This leaves me personally in a quandary of not having a reference class DAC when I return the ADI-2 DAC to its owner tomorrow.

Try Lynx Hilo: https://www.lynxstudio.com/products/hilo/

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/gea...s/862592-lynx-hilo-vs-prism-orpheus-lyra.html

To date the Hilo remains the most transparent of any converter I've tested (50+ in the infamous Ultimate Converter DA/AD Loopback Thread) whether it be loopback null tests, blind listening tests (as I setup in the mastering forum with a selection of good ears and monitoring), or all the distortions RightMark Audio Analyzer tests for. Needless to say, that impressed me quite a bit which is why I recommend it so often that a few guys are sure I work for Lynx lol. I don't, but I love when a company hits one out of the park and for a price far less than it should be.

 

[amirm]

Try Lynx Hilo: https://www.lynxstudio.com/products/hilo/

I have to sell a bunch of stuff to afford it now at $2,300 list price. Looks nice though.

Last time I bought a Lynx product was 20 years ago. It was a PCI DAC/ADC.

 

[gvl]

pro tip: I got it a lot cheap than US MSRP - and I didn't pay any import duty from Deutschland....

Do not forget to pay CA use tax or they will come after you.

 

[nefilim]

Try Lynx Hilo: https://www.lynxstudio.com/products/hilo/

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/gea...s/862592-lynx-hilo-vs-prism-orpheus-lyra.html

that test is fraught with problems according to the RME guys, their concern sounds legit but this is not my area of expertise, perhaps Amir could comment: https://www.forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.php?id=26885

 

[amirm]

that test is fraught with problems according to the RME guys, their concern sounds legit but this is not my area of expertise, perhaps Amir could comment: https://www.forum.rme-audio.de/viewtopic.php?id=26885

I didn't know anyone was using diffmaker for scoring of products. I fully agree with RME folks that this is wrong. There are infinite ways for the tool to go crazy even with simplest differentials. I have wasted hours with it and even in the cases of simple control signals, it either crashes on me or produces incorrect results.

 

[NTTY]

I have tried crossfeed in the past but didn't care for it. But in the RME the crossfeed helps with the he-400i. I set mine at 2.

My 400i headset broke last week, unfortunately. I had to return it before testing with the RME. It's a shame because my wife was enjoying it a lot.

The effect of the crossfeed is variable depending on the headset (I'm using the Sennheiser HD650, Oppo PM-3, Audio-Thechnica M50x and M70x) and the type of music played. Sometimes I like it, and sometimes I feel like it removes more than it adds. So I can't really let it turned on, but it's still a nice feature to play with. I'm far from being done with testing it anyway.

 

[nonsynchro]

Try Lynx Hilo: https://www.lynxstudio.com/products/hilo/

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/gea...s/862592-lynx-hilo-vs-prism-orpheus-lyra.html

Review is almost 5 years old ...
I assume they've updated the product but measurements/comparisons might not be as relevant.

 

[Ellixion]

Is the head amp part on par with the DAC?