Thank you so much for your insight into the miniDSP SHD and the Dirac setup process. My system rocks because of you. Best - Lee

Your tip about not trying to correct up around the 20khz range is a very good one. Firing extra energy into a tweeter that wants to roll off in that region can audibly upset its performance further down the frequency range.

@AudiophileJunkie

4 ай бұрын

Yes and I think it's caused people to blame "DSP" as a generalization when they weren't sophisticated enough to understand what they could do to fix it. Now, we have a product that does it for you.

Maybe one of the best videos about Dirac I’ve seen, simply and accurately explained without bs. Lowering the eq curve below the target curve is very important something most people don’t mention or know. Cutting frequencies is preferred above boosting. Also calibration to the Harman target for speakers is a must. I hear people talk about a flat curve al the time which is the stupidest thing to do imo, you don’t correct for a flat anechoic room but to the Harman target. I totally agree with your statement that first comes speaker placement, second acoustic treatment and finally Dirac for the icing on the cake 👌🏼🔈🔉🔊

Thank you for this series.. super helpful. Got my SHD and the rest of my system should arrive this week so I'll be going down this rabbit trail soon!

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Great... Good luck with yours... I'm sure you'll love it.

This is a great series of videos. Thank you. I'm looking at minidsp as the next part in my journey. Likely the shd or studio with an external DAC though. (denafrips) and dual stereo sub pair as well. Excited to measure and dial everything in!

Excellent video, and so much helpful information e.g. to lower total curve for to not boost the signal at all as it is digital, thanks for this !!

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

Very helpful video. Thanks! One other comment about setting the crossovers in the minidsp and the four filter presets. You have to make those crossover adjustments for all four CONFIG options in the minidsp. Those 4 CONFIG options in minidsp map directly to each of the 4 preset filters in Dirac Live.

Love the chart!

Jason, thank you so much for this. This is all so new to me. I am going to get the Mini DSP SHD Studio version for my 2ch system. I've done a LOT of room treatments with bass absorbers . I will measure with REW first to see how good it is and then get the Mini DSP unit. I plan to run it in the digital domain before my DDC/DAC by inputting my streamer and CD Transport signals into it and then SPDIF to the DDC unit. I hope this works!

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

I personally would use the DAC inside the minidsp, but you'll have the option to try both. Best of luck... It should be ear opening too hear the control you will have over the sound now.

@esylsten

Жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie Interesting because I have a $3000 DAC and a DDC before it, I would think the external DAC would have the advantage. (Dinafrips Venus II and Hermes DDC) Thanks

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

You will be surprised how good the DAC is.

@esylsten

Жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie The "Mini DSP SHD Studio" doesn't have a DAC, just the SHD. (SHD w/o a DAC type version I think.)

Nice that there is growing content for the minidsp shd on KZread, looking forward to get mine soon. At 16:27 you mentioned you will let us know on how you verify the things you've just set up in dirac. That's gonna be a future video? What are you using for measurements besides dirac? REW?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

The video I did on EQ for audiophiles a couple videos back is the one where I show what to do next. You would go through that same exercise whether you use Dirac or not, but I do it after I run Dirac. This ensures the Dirac corrections match up to what my ears hear and like. No matter how many times I run Dirac, I always do minor EQ adjustments afterward to further fine tune things to my ears. However, it does take a lot of experience and practice to do manual EQ changes. Some you may like on certain songs and not others, so it's important to target an area only after you've listened to a bunch of songs with the same issue to address. Or go through your test tones in meticulous detail to see if your ears find each one balanced. It should be much better than prior to Dirac, but there may still be adjustments needed.

Thanks. Really enjoyed these videos. I have Forte IV's with a single KEF KC62. Trying to decide on initial crossover settings for each. Do you recommend doing this by ear or is there a good measurement resource I should use as a starting point?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

I use my ear after letting Dirac do most of the correction based on measurements. Most of us don't prefer a flat response or even the default curve of Dirac, so you can use test tones afterwards and use EQ to balance out what your ears tell you.

Can I ask exactly how you have the SHD implemented in your chain? Do you use it to control volume? If not, so you have it’s volume set at 0.0dB or attenuated slightly to prevent digital clipping?

Hey man! Love your videos! I had a question (may seem like a really stupid question), does using a lot of components this, i.e. computer -> minidsp shd studio -> dac -> pre amp -> amp -> speakers, introduce some delay in sound. Would it affect a movie watching or gaming experience?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks...I don't have any issues with delay, but it can be a factor in certain cases. It's usually addressable though. One thing about your example... The minidsp is your dac and preamp, so everything is done internally and not getting converted multiple times by different components across different cable lengths etc. The server would have HDMI out and should sync well with the USB out to the minidsp. I play KZread all the time using my server. Now, with my cable TV signal (and DVD), I make sure to run the HDMI into my SSP. In most SSP, the video and audio are processed and synced. If you run video straight to the projector/TV and audio separately to the SSP, then it can add audio delays. Hope that helps.

Great video, glad to see the patience you put up to explain the process. One question about the DAC, how good is it compared to mid-end high-end DACs $1-2K, $2-3K?

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

I use the DAC and have owned over $15k DACs... Don't miss them one bit

Thanks a lot for your video. I got one shd and I’m planning to use it to replace my analog cx. So it’ll be between my preamp and two amps, will do the cx and dirac live and parametric eq. Analog inputs from the preamp to analog imputs of the shd and then using the four analog autputs to my power amps. My fear is will the preamp function of the shd degrade the sound? I really don’t need shd to act as preamp. Any advise is appreciated. Thanks

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Don't sweat it... That's just Audiophile neurosis. If they put a5 figure price tag and and a fancy chassis around it, nobody would worry. It's a state of the art preamp and actually better than most high end preamps that just flavor/coloration devices

Is it possible to set up fixed gain on 0dB? Basically I wanted to disable pre amp function and use miniDSP SHD as a streaming platform. Doable or not? Thanks!

Thanks for the great review of SHD with Dirac Live insights. I have several months head start with your experiences and reached similar conclusions. Sure wish I had access to your insights prior to going through my own learning curves. I have one question that I have not figured out myself and you don’t seem to have addressed. The filter check boxes for the currently programmed filters on the left column in Dirac Live, what is their use and effect? If you check one of these does the RTA engage that filter during measurements? Or?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks...I wish I hadn't gone through the learning curve either :) As for your question about the filter boxes, I think you are referring to the 4 different options you can save. Each Dirac curve should apply to the corresponding 4 presets you can choose. You can save different presets and dirac curves to test various things. A simple change like the crossover point might change your Dirac measurements, so this allows you to save different ones you can easily swap out. Conversely, you might manually change the suggested Dirac curve corrections and this allows you to save several different ones you can easily change and listen for preference. Hope that helps.

@martinhansen6974

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the response. I’m not sure you understood my question? I am very familiar with the 4 sets of filters you can store. My question is after you create and store these, and run Dirac Live again, it shows these filters on the left hand column next to radio buttons you can click on and off. These show up on the left during measurement process and filter generation process. Typically the last filter you used is already checked. Have you figured out what checking or unchecking these boxes does to measurement or filter correction process in Dirac Live?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

I think it's just telling you which position the current measurement is going to replace. It defaults to the first one when you first choose and you can fill up to 4. Then, I think it clicks the previously used one as the next one that will change if you re-run measurements and save.

@martinhansen6974

2 жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie Thanks!

Excellent video. Thank you! I have a unique question. I own a live music venue in Japan. I have two QSC K12.2 for my PAs and one QSC K118 for my sub. They are all powered speakers. Each speaker has two XLR inputs. My question is about playing music with the SHD. I could connect the SHD separately from my mixer. So my live music EQ could stay independent of my background music. Can I use the XLR outputs on the SHD to play music on my speakers? I think the answer might be found in the output voltage of the SHD and the input voltage requirements of the powered speakers. I heard that the preamp (SHD) voltage output should be almost double that of the amps input voltage. Am I on the right track? It would be super cool if I could use the SHD for live music EQ too, but that might be pushing it. Any thoughts? Thanks!

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the comment. I'm not sure I'm the perfect person to answer all your questions since I don't use it in that scenario. However, miniDSP support seems really good and could answer for those specific pieces. In general, the SHD should have no problem with powered speakers or anything you put before or after it. A powered speaker is just an amplifier and speaker combined. In fact, those amps inside the speaker are typically designed to be friendly with all preamps and sources, so I don't think it will be an issue. You have 4 configurations you can save on the SHD, so you can use it in a variety of manners and swap between them easy. I suspect your active speakers have some level of DSP/crossover too. Thus, if you wanted the SHD to just be an input switch and volume control, you can turn off all processing to compare. Ideally though, I'll think you'll want to turn off as much processing in the speaker as possible if using all of the SHD DSP. Or... Take one set of Dirac measurements and then tweak whatever you can on the speakers to improve them before taking a final set of Dirac measurements. Just make sure that you keep the speaker's settings constant after taking measurements with those settings. Hope that helps a little bit.

@johnreardon4944

2 жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie Thank you for the reply! I definitely want to try out all of the options like you explained in your videos. I already have the UMIK-1 that I've played around with at home with REW. I think I am capable of learning the SHD well. At the very least, if it's not best suited for my venue, I can still enjoy it at home. Win win. My only concern was the home stereo verus pro audio output voltages that drive the amps. The new QSC K12.2 powered speaker has a 1/8 inch jack for those who might use their phones to play music. My Samsung Android won't make anywhere near an acceptable audio volume when I tried it exactly how the QSC instructions suggested. I also tried it with a Denon Integrated amp through the preouts. That didn't work either. Hence my question to you. I hope the SHD XLR outputs will produce sound on my QSC speakers. I mean, they have 2000 watts each. I'm also writing this in case another person has a similar question. Whenever I get the SHD, I will let everyone know how it works with powered PA speakers without running it through a mixer. Thanks again for the response and videos! I'm a new fan of your channel now!

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

I took a quick look at the QSC and it appears that it has adjustable gain on the inputs. Unless there's some weird problem with input impedance, I think you should be fine.

this is the video i was waiting for, i need to give dirac another go. i also have question about the umik-1 mic, what is the orientation you should measure with, facing forward or upward? did not see anything on that when i downloaded the calibration file and only found one file.

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

You should point the mic straight up. However, you can try different things just to see how it impacts the measurements. Ultimately, you're going to calibrate everything to your ears (via listening to music afterwards), so it's good to experiment a lot with mic positions and orientation to see if one gets you better results than others. Good luck revisiting Dirac!

@miroslavbazitov183

2 жыл бұрын

Strange - I got two calibration files - one for each orientation. Also thank you for the great series - great advice without the judgmental and nonessential ‘audiophile’ talk

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the feedback. That's news to me if you got 2 calibration files for different orientation, but it makes total sense. I know with other versions of Dirac I've used in the past, they've specifically said to point the mic up. Maybe that's why this time there wasn't specific guidance since there are calibration files for both.

Informative videos. I just got the minidsp ddrc-22 for my 2-channel system. Spent hours yesterday trying to get it going. I’m not getting any audio during the test tones or if I just try and stream through it. Support forums haven’t really helped. System is Auralic Aries G1 (aes/ebu out) to minidsp to dac to preamp to amp. I’ve tried using the optical and coax outs from the minidsp to my dac and nothing. Any thoughts?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

That's strange but check the sound icon in the bottom right of Windows. Is it attached to the SHD? Disable all the other sound options of your server. Also you can do a hard reboot by pulling the power cord on the SHD and re-plugg. I had to do that once when switching quickly between the 4 output settings. It can get hung up and lose audio output.

@dailyfrenchie9047

2 жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie when I opened the sound settings the minidsp isn’t even an option as a device.

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Well at least you identified the problem. I think you just need to make sure the driver got installed correctly. It should then pop up as an option. There will also be a program running in the background in addition to the shd software when working correctly. It's even got it's own small window. Thus, you need to get to that level of having everything work first. It can't be anything further down the chain of those things aren't working.

It's pronounced Dee-Rac, not Dye-Rac. Paul Dirac was a Britich mathematician who suggected the Dirac delta function...

Would you recommend EQ (SVS app) and phase dialing the subwoofer before using Dirac?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah.. You should try to dial in the sub as much as possible.. Especially volume. Phase is very important too.

The MiniDSP SHD convert all input to 96kHz sample rate before it process the signal. I wonder if it is a good idea to do this conversion in Roon instead prior to the MiniDSP? Which is best?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

I doubt it would matter much, but if you don't have a powerful server for running roon, I guess you could make the argument that it saves processing and heat at the server. The reverse could be argued as well, but I think it's negligible either way.

Thanks!

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

Thank you!

Excellent! Any idea how use MiniDSP with Dirac Live 3 to set up a room for three subs?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

You could daisy chain hookup your subs. You wouldn't have separate crossovers for each one, but it would still be more control than most have.

@gregorystevens5173

2 жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie One thing is still a mystery to me, namely, why not use Outputs 3 & 4 as independent channels for separate subs each one dedicated to a respective left and right speaker? The literature seems to suggest that only one of those outputs can be used for subs (although there is a reference to a config that uses separate woofers so I don't see why it couldn't work for subs).

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah I covered that option in one of my videos. You can absolutely use channel 3 and 4 as stereo sub channels

Hi You talk about moving the target curve downwards to avoid adding any gain. This to avoid clipping. However, would you not achieve exactly the same effect by limiting the master volume control instead, i.e., if you filled in a dip with +5dB and then reduced master volume with -5dB. Regards Dag

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Yes... You could build in headroom in other manners, but the routing of everything in the SHD goes through Dirac first, so I find it best to just do it there. Plus, I can put the curve exactly on my lowest dips/measurements to ensure I'm not taking out too much or too little headroom via other means.

@sudd3660

2 жыл бұрын

how do you get clipping anyways? on my shd studio i can max out the gains at +32 db and i still can hear any distortion or clipping.

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

I don't think you're adding 32db of gain. That would definitely give you digital clipping. Maybe you're taking it from somewhere else. Plus, I think Dirac maxes out the actual gain at 10db. I've never tried to add 32db to test, but I'm guessing your "corrected" curve you can toggle wouldn't show that much added. Various versions of Dirac have carved out 8-10db for you to play with, so some gain can be fine, but some of that is eaten up just in level matching your 2 speakers. Thus, it's best to be cautious. Also, many have reported you shouldn't go higher than -10db on the volume control of the SHD. They claim that gives you the headroom needed for Dirac. Again, I can't say for sure because I don't push my luck and test the max gain. I can easily pull things down and still have enough total gain in my system to listen as loud as I can stand. Others might not have good enough uncorrected rooms and/or not enough gain in their amp such that bringing the level down isn't as great an option. Thus, it falls under my recommendation to play with it under your scenario and make sure it's optimal for you. The versatility is there to do what works for you.

@sudd3660

2 жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie that much gain still work fine in my system, that is a great result for minidsp. the specifics are: +12 un outputs channels and +20 in the PEQ. and i checked, they provide volume gain for each step. i have only tested it below 30hz. it is a surprising result, my dac's are at max volume, same with the digital source volume. the plan is to get more powerful subwoofer power amp so i dont have to do this.

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

That makes sense... Under 30hz you really can't tell digital clipping or distortion compared to higher frequencies.

Even though most of us old timers cannot hear above 12-14Khz doesn’t mean those frequencies need not be adjusted correctly. Having all frequencies in time and in phase at all frequencies matter. For example. If 12Khz, 16Khz, and / or 20 KHz is not adjusted to the correct amplitude ( which affects phase ) then all the rest of the audible frequencies are going to be affected. Clarity, dynamics, impact, and overall tonality and realism will suffer. 😢 Every frequency matters, even if it is outside the range of what said person can hear including above and below limits. 😊

Please what hardware minidsp do I need for room connection?

@AudiophileJunkie

2 жыл бұрын

Everything you need comes with the miniDSP SHD if you order with the mic.

But if you lowens the target curve and you place the curtains, the volume in the not corrected curves will be higher, or not?

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

They will be uncorrected... So it may be higher or lower in theory, but remember that this is from a suite is 9 measurements in different places from your ears, so it's not going to be 1 for 1 identical to what you hear and measure where your ears are. That's why I advocate using EQ afterwards to your tastes and ears. Plus, the curtains will be at extremes where there is almost no content and not as audible... Usually those being louder is actually a benefit to human tastes.

@dieterleonard2309

Жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie Ok, I understand. Thank you from Belgium...

@dieterleonard2309

Жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie Another question. If there is a big dip in the bass region, does Dirac "understand", that it makes no sense, to fill this frequencies with energie?

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

That's tough to answer. In one sense it does because there is a max amount of gain it can add with the algorithm. However, any amount you add can cause problems and not really fix a null. Thus, I like to help it along and manually choose the curve such that it doesn't try to do anything that won't really benefit me.

@dieterleonard2309

Жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie OK. There are dirac user, who push the dirac curve up to the 12 db level (+6,5 db= max with the slider from the Dirac Auto Curve) to obtain a louder volume. This is just the opposite of your approach. Why does this slider allows to do so?

very nice video, please, I have one question, my sofa has 5 seats, for each seat I need measu 17 times, thak you for the attentions, have a good evening

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

There is an option for the type of seating and then it will give the the number and placement of measurements. The one thing about choosing the option for a big sofa is that it will sound better for a wider audience, but less optimal at the sweet spot. Thus, you could do it 2 different ways and safe each as a different configuration in the miniDSP. When you're alone, choose the ideal option for that and when you have a sofa full of listeners, choose that option. Hope that helps.

@josedesouzajunior6688

Жыл бұрын

@Audiophile Junkie thank you very much, another question, my center speaker is 4 ohms the others are 6 and 8 ohms, I can switch to 4 ohms impedance on Dirac Live ??

@AudiophileJunkie

Жыл бұрын

No... That's usually a setting on tube amps where you choose the tap that better matches your speakers. You can't do that in Dirac since it's not a digital setting. Indirectly, you can achieve the macro point of your question. You can change volume levels in Dirac to make sure each speaker is level matched such that it doesn't matter if the speakers have different sensitivity and your amps have different gain.

@josedesouzajunior6688

Жыл бұрын

@@AudiophileJunkie thank you. I have Onkyo TX-RZ50

this is bad advice for a newbie?

Is it worth investing money and time in to this if you have a really bad room? I have an open floor plan with 100% hard surfaces except the couch, and adding room treatments would not work cost wise and aesthetically.