New set of questions (digital outs, hardware eq)

BLACKonBLACK98 · 06-08-2008, 04:28 PM

once again this is in high end simply because of the level of recommendations i am looking for ("high end solutions"). feel free to move it if you must.

so... i have decided that i would like to add an equalizer to my system. i have been looking through the car audio 1/2 din 4-7 band equalizers. i just want to make simple frequency adjustments, and the addition of a volume knob doesn't hurt.

background on my system:

simple set-up using high end gear
dynaudio esotec system 242
tru steel series s44/s500/ssld6 (may or may not use depending on eq chosen)
onkyo se-90pci sound card (may or may not use depending on output question below)

digital outputs:

i'm not 100% on these. would an onboard digital out provide the most accurate reproduction of sound or will the signal be altered similar to what can occur with a dac?

would there be a difference (good, bad, or none) between the digital out on my motherboard vs. the digital out on my pci soundcard?

digital signal AND hardware eq:

are there any simple eqs made for car audio that offer digital inputs/analog outputs?

i am aware of the 701 which fits the bill, but it has bells and whistle that i don't require. i would also have to buy the stand alone controller which makes the cost vs. benefit questionable when compared to an analog eq imo.

hardware eq:

what i would like to see:
5-7 bands of equalization
1/2 din size
line driver
clipping indicator led (not a must)

any recommendations?

i really like the zapco sp7-sl but symbalink takes it out. the arc xeq looks good, and i have checked out some of the standard clarion/rockford/audiocontrol stuff. i find it interesting how similar the design of almost all of these eqs are.

Felix509 · 06-08-2008, 06:50 PM

Quote: Originally Posted by BLACKonBLACK98

i really like the zapco sp7-sl but symbalink takes it out. the arc xeq looks good, and i have checked out some of the standard clarion/rockford/audiocontrol stuff. i find it interesting how similar the design of almost all of these eqs are.

Why would symbilink keep you from using the SP-7, you can convert to and from unbalanced quite easily..

BLACKonBLACK98 · 06-08-2008, 06:56 PM

cause paying the premium for something and using it as something else doesn't make sense to me. if you strip away the symbalink is it any different than an analog model that costs less? (serious question)

on another note... i'm looking at the alpine pxe-h650 which looks like it could work well (i know, i know... its completely different than what i asked about). any thoughts on this?

tons more (probably basic) questions left to answer...

thanks.

Felix509 · 06-08-2008, 09:46 PM

The Zapco units are pricey for sure.. You would also have to buy a Zapco power supply to power it, si that is even more $$. They are definitely geared to usunf with symbilink equipped amps..

Without the symbilink it is still an above average EQ, very high quality. It has it's place and may not be right for you..

I have no experience with alpine DSP, but there are lots of people that have great succes with them...

I am using a Zapco DSP-6 now for all of my processing and it has digital input , absolutely love it.. I am not using symbilink either, though.

As for a difference in digital output, If my understanding is correct, the main difference will be the quality of the clock in the digital circuit.

The unit sending an SPDIF output will encode timing as well as the music information.. The receiver will sync to this timing, so the quality of the sending clock may make a difference in jitter.. WIll you ever hear a difference, i have no idea.. Jitter would make your bass less defined and the highs more harsh if it was enough.