Room EQ and subwoofer management hardware: Anti-Mode X2 by DSPEAKER

[Soundstage]

Hi,

The Finnish company DSPEAKER has released a new product with the Anti Mode X2.
How does the product ensure the alignment of the subwoofer(s) and the main speakers? Or is it just setting up EQ to get rid of the modes?
Also, the X2 is only equipped with RCA output. Is it possible to use an RCA to XLR if the power amp has XLR?
Finally, has anyone had some experience with the products from this brand? How do they compare vs DIRAC? Could this be the subwoofer integration toolbox for the dumb we were waiting for?

Anti-Mode X2 | DSPeaker

www.dspeaker.com

Thanks.

 

[Eetu]

The previous Anti-Mode 2.0 was tested by Amir and it did worse than similar models from MiniDSP. Same thing here, the stated SNR and THD seem to be a lot worse than on the Flex while costing roughly the same(?).

Haven't tried the software but I consider MiniDSP's plugins (and Dirac) quite easy to use.

 

[MCH]

As the OP suggests, the differentiator would be if the calibration process and sub integration would be easy and good. If that was the case, probably worth some sinad and snr loss for many people.

 

[Eetu]

As the OP suggests, the differentiator would be if the calibration process and sub integration would be easy and good. If that was the case, probably worth some sinad and snr loss for many people.

Sure, I agree.

Looking at the manual the XO seems to be fixed to 80Hz (at least for now). And it doesn't have an app or PC/Mac interface, seems a bit old-school working via a tiny screen?

And it was unclear to me if any FIR action takes place or only simple EQ and delay? Actually not even time-align was mentioned..

 

[Soundstage]

Sure, I agree.

Looking at the manual the XO seems to be fixed to 80Hz (at least for now). And it doesn't have an app or PC/Mac interface, seems a bit old-school working via a tiny screen?

And it was unclear to me if any FIR action takes place or only simple EQ and delay? Actually not even time-align was mentioned..

Agreed, but the bigger brother X4 is used by @Kal Rubinson. This one is recommended by and @sigbergaudio. Both gentlemen are using high end systems.
I could be wrong, but I think that the X2 and the X4 are based on the same algorithm?

 

[Eetu]

Ok, interesting, didn't know that. Would love to hear about their experiences with the system vs manual REW or Dirac/Acourate etc.

 

[voodooless]

This thing looks rather limited. It has zero configurability regarding the target response of x-over frequency. It's fixed at 80 Hz. For that amount of money, one would expect a lot more.

 

[Soundstage]

This thing looks rather limited. It has zero configurability regarding the target response of x-over frequency. It's fixed at 80 Hz. For that amount of money, one would expect a lot more.

Why would you need more than a tone control? I am not an expert and I don’t have 5000h to learn REW. I have a job and family and I want to enjoy the best sound in my limited spare time.

 

[voodooless]

Why would you need more than a tone control?

Because speakers have different off-axis performance ad directivity indexes. That means that they will not sound the same if you all EQ them flat (or whatever other target curve you have defined). Also, the room has a big impact on this. You'll want to have more control than just a simple tone control. The same goes for the bass area. Depending on room and type of house, a flat EQ may not be the thing for you. The tone controls of the X2 are a bit more flexible than most, so for some, this might very well be enough.

I am not an expert and I don’t have 5000h to learn REW. I have a job and family and I want to enjoy the best sound in my limited spare time.

The Flex has Dirac, no 5000 hours needed, nor REW (although it will give more insights), and gives a lot of flexibility.

 

[Soundstage]

Because speakers have different off-axis performance ad directivity indexes. That means that they will not sound the same if you all EQ them flat (or whatever other target curve you have defined). Also, the room has a big impact on this. You'll want to have more control than just a simple tone control. The same goes for the bass area. Depending on room and type of house, a flat EQ may not be the thing for you. The tone controls of the X2 are a bit more flexible than most, so for some, this might very well be enough.

The Flex has Dirac, no 5000 hours needed, nor REW (although it will give more insights), and gives a lot of flexibility.

I was not aware that the minDSP Flex with DIRAC could align the subwoofers and the speakers in one go?
Someone using the miniDSP SHD (a similar product, I would presume) is still working on the best solution after 6 months: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ation-routine-6-months-on.37531/#post-1321069

 

[voodooless]

I was not aware that the minDSP Flex with DIRAC could align the subwoofers and the speakers in one go?
Someone using the miniDSP SHD (a similar product, I would presume) is still working on the best solution after 6 months: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...ation-routine-6-months-on.37531/#post-1321069

Ah, I forgot about the sub-alignment . Well, yes, It will need some manual work, but should not take 6 months . Then again, we have no idea what the X2 actually does, do we? Are there any objective reviews out there that show that it actually works?

 

[Willem]

I use an Antimode 8033 to equalize my subs, and I have been more than happy. However, it is a pretty basic unit, but that also makes it ultra easy to use. Support has been excellent.
The Dual Mode 2.0 did not measure very well, and is now obsolete, I would think. Conversely, the X4 is an expensive high end unit that has received some praise. My hunch is that the X2 is a simplified version of the technology in the X4. What I cannot figure out is if its auto correction function has some upper frequency limit. The tone controls seem versatile and useful. So I think a more elaborate manual would be welcome, and of course some measurements and hands on experiences.

 

[Soundstage]

Ah, I forgot about the sub-alignment . Well, yes, It will need some manual work, but should not take 6 months . Then again, we have no idea what the X2 actually does, do we? Are there any objective reviews out there that show that it actually works?

Agreed . This is the point of this thread. Find users who have proof-tested the product.

 

[KxDx]

I'm hoping to find out more about this too. Not just distortion measurements but also how well it works in the real world. Doesn't seem to be available in the US yet though, so price and availability would also be a factor.

 

[Soundstage]

I use an Antimode 8033 to equalize my subs, and I have been more than happy. However, it is a pretty basic unit, but that also makes it ultra easy to use. Support has been excellent.
The Dual Mode 2.0 did not measure very well, and is now obsolete, I would think. Conversely, the X4 is an expensive high end unit that has received some praise. My hunch is that the X2 is a simplified version of the technology in the X4. What I cannot figure out is if its auto correction function has some upper frequency limit. The tone controls seem versatile and useful. So I think a more elaborate manual would be welcome, and of course some measurements and hands on experiences.

Interesting comments, thanks.
I note both units X2 and X4 are based on Anti-Mode 3 correction software. So, hopefully, they will deliver a similar performance.

 

[tw99]

I use an Antimode 8033 to equalize my subs, and I have been more than happy. However, it is a pretty basic unit, but that also makes it ultra easy to use. Support has been excellent.
The Dual Mode 2.0 did not measure very well, and is now obsolete, I would think. Conversely, the X4 is an expensive high end unit that has received some praise. My hunch is that the X2 is a simplified version of the technology in the X4. What I cannot figure out is if its auto correction function has some upper frequency limit. The tone controls seem versatile and useful. So I think a more elaborate manual would be welcome, and of course some measurements and hands on experiences.

On the 2.0, it stopped correcting by default at about 250hz or so. You could increase this manually.

I found the Antimode 2.0 to be very effective, it was easy to set up and use for room correction, and sounded fine, even if it didn't measure well. It's a pity they've removed some useful things like balanced output and a lot of the software features for this one.

 

[sigbergaudio]

The X2 use the same algorithm as the way more expensive X4. It may not be full frequency - but the Antimode algorithm focus on the lower frequencies even in the X4 (as it should). So it's very careful above around 500hz. The X4 also has a pretty expensive DAC and way more outputs/inputs.

I've written a bit about my first impressions with the X2 as well as the feature set here: https://www.sigbergaudio.no/blogs/news/antimode-x2-configuration-and-listening-impressions

Super quick summary: Very easy to set up, very good result. The manual configuration is not as versatile as on the X4, but it's good enough to get a good result in most situations. I guess the main limitation at the moment is the fixed crossover to a subwoofer, but they've said they're going to enable configuration of this in a future update. The product was released just a few weeks ago.

DISCLAIMER / FULL DISCLOSURE: We are distributors of DSPeaker in Norway.

 

[sigbergaudio]

Sure, I agree.

Looking at the manual the XO seems to be fixed to 80Hz (at least for now). And it doesn't have an app or PC/Mac interface, seems a bit old-school working via a tiny screen?

And it was unclear to me if any FIR action takes place or only simple EQ and delay? Actually not even time-align was mentioned..

It's a combination of FIR/IIR. It's actually (even for me that is very well versed in manual configuration and REW etc) very convenient that you just hook up a mic and have a screen onboard the device. It literally takes 5 minutes to get vastly better sound than you had to begin with (starting with no DSP).

 

[sigbergaudio]

This thing looks rather limited. It has zero configurability regarding the target response of x-over frequency. It's fixed at 80 Hz. For that amount of money, one would expect a lot more.

That's only partially true. The crossover will be configurable later on. And you can set a target response through both bass tilt, midrange tilt and upper frequency tilt. I've explained a bit about these features in the article I linked to further up.

 

[Kal Rubinson]

I had used the X4 to EQ the 3 subs in my weekend setup until I upgraded to MultEQ-X in the Marantz AV-8805.
I am not sure what I will do with it (or with the JBL BassQ that also EQ's up to 4 subs) as I am moving my main system to DLBC (and the upcoming enchancements).