# MiniDSP Releases New Room Correction Solutions with Dirac Live (DDRC-22A and DDRC-22D_



## Todd Anderson

Room Correction solutions are vitally important to the vast majority of enthusiasts, especially for those of us that want to enjoy great sounding music in less than ideal acoustic environments. *MiniDSP* recently announced the release of two new stereo room correction product packages that are sure to turn heads and attract quite a bit of attention. The DDRC-22A (analog) and DDRC-22D (digital) audio processors are the first installments into the Dirac Series of high resolution units (24-bit 96kHz), resulting from a collaboration between miniDSP and Dirac Research (a premier player in high-performance digital sound optimization, room correction, and sound field synthesis).








"Dirac is well known for the premium audio quality and sound accuracy they have brought to luxury cars and professional cinema theaters around the world. We’re excited to embed Dirac Live technology into our line of room correction audio processors,” said Antoine Rouget, Managing Director of miniDSP. “With our focus on simplifying the achievement of excellent audio in a variety of settings, we’re thrilled to bring Dirac’s technologies to a broader set of listening environments.”

The DDRC-22A and DDRC-22D both ship with a hi-res audio processor unit, software, and a UMIK-1 microphone (with calibration file). Owners simply plug the USB UMIK-1 microphone into a computer and perform multipoint measurements (MiniDSP currently only supports Windows based systems, Vista SP1/ XP pro SP2/Win7/Win8; Intel Pentium III or later processor, AMD Athlon XP or later). Independent corrections for both time and frequency domains can be performed (10Hz-20,000kHz) and loaded into the 22A or 22D audio processor resulting in a full, rich, and focused sound. Users can preset up to four different filters.

The processor units are both small (1.6”H X 8.4”W X 7.9”D) making for easy integration into most system setups. The rear of the units feature a 5VDC power and USB 2.0 inputs, and either XLR analog audio inputs/outputs (DDRC-22A) or SPDIF, TOSLINK optical and AES-EBU digital inputs/outputs. The front of the units have a rotary/push encoder, a filter set indicator (filters 1-4), and (for the digital version) a digital input indicator light. An included remote control allows for real-time switching between preloaded room correction filters.

"It has been exciting to collaborate with miniDSP on this new product series," says Mathias Johansson, CEO of Dirac Research. "We saw a great match with miniDSP given their rapid innovation and commitment to providing audio enthusiasts with the latest technologies to enable excellent sound.”

The DDRC-22A and DDRC-22D are priced at $899 for full kits that include a UMIK-1 microphone. Users that already own a UMIK-1 have the option of purchasing a software/processor package for $824. For more information, or to order, *visit MiniDSP*.

_Image Credit: MiniDSP_


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## phazewolf

This unit looks very nice. Does anyone know if there are plans for a unit that can handle 7.1 in the works?

If so and if the price is the same or drop's some that will be a huge hit for sure and I would pick one up in a heart beat.

just looked into it and you can setup a house curve so can make there own. This is great news they just need a unit that can handle 7+ channels and the subs all in one unit.


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## Todd Anderson

I'll check with my contact.


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## Phillips

Hi any reviews in the pipeline?

How would it compare to the Antimode Dual Core 2.0?

Also how would it compare to the DEQX (though alot different price) does it deal with the timing of the drivers the same as the DEQX?


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## Flak

Phillips said:


> Hi any reviews in the pipeline?
> 
> How would it compare to the Antimode Dual Core 2.0?
> 
> Also how would it compare to the DEQX (though alot different price) does it deal with the timing of the drivers the same as the DEQX?


Yes, Dirac Live will compensate for delay of the drivers up to a maximum of 10 milliseconds,
also both Antimode and the room correction part of DEQX are traditional minimum-phase solutions while Dirac Live is a mixed-phase one.

Minimum-phase filters can successfully correct those regions of frequencies where the room has a minimum-phase behaviour, but this is not always the case as explained in this REW document:
http://www.roomeqwizard.com/wizardhelpv5/help_en-GB/html/minimumphase.html

We try to explain something about mixed-phase filters here:
http://diracdocs.com/Understanding more.pdf

Ciao, Flavio


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## blitzer

phazewolf said:


> This unit looks very nice. Does anyone know if there are plans for a unit that can handle 7.1 in the works?
> 
> If so and if the price is the same or drop's some that will be a huge hit for sure and I would pick one up in a heart beat.
> 
> just looked into it and you can setup a house curve so can make there own. This is great news they just need a unit that can handle 7+ channels and the subs all in one unit.


Well, you could get the Dirac Live software that handles 8 channels, but that would require you to have a computer to insert in the chain or as the HTPC.

http://www.dirac.se/en/consumer-products/dirac-rcs.aspx

There is a free trial as well, but this is most costly than the MiniDSP of course.


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## Phillips

Flak said:


> Yes, Dirac Live will compensate for delay of the drivers up to a maximum of 10 milliseconds,
> also both Antimode and the room correction part of DEQX are traditional minimum-phase solutions while Dirac Live is a mixed-phase one.
> 
> Minimum-phase filters can successfully correct those regions of frequencies where the room has a minimum-phase behaviour, but this is not always the case as explained in this REW document:
> http://www.roomeqwizard.com/wizardhelpv5/help_en-GB/html/minimumphase.html
> 
> We try to explain something about mixed-phase filters here:
> http://diracdocs.com/Understanding more.pdf
> 
> Ciao, Flavio


Thank you

Would be great to try one of these and compare to the Antimode Dual Core 2.0 (already own) and then keep which one is the best. I will not buy then find out that the Antimode was as good or better.


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## Flak

Phillips said:


> Thank you
> 
> Would be great to try one of these and compare to the Antimode Dual Core 2.0 (already own) and then keep which one is the best. I will not buy then find out that the Antimode was as good or better.


Sure,

let me say that the Antimode is a well engineered product but a different one... as the name implies it is targeted at correcting the room modes.
If you read through the REW document that I mentioned you will notice that the room behaviour at the lowest frequencies is where it is more likely to be minimum-phase.

As a result the Antimode choice of limiting the correction to the lowest frequencies is the correct one being it a minimum-phase solution.
So we are speaking about two different products, an "antimode" correction in one case... a full bandwidth impulse and frequency response correction in the case of miniDSP and Dirac Live.

Finally as you say testing is always a good idea, you can do it by downloading the Dirac Live (PC or Mac) free trial for two weeks from here: http://www.dirac.se/en/consumer-products/dirac-rcs.aspx
You will then be able to judge by yourself by carefully listening and by measuring the improvements in impulse and frequency response.

 Flavio


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## AudiocRaver

This sounds really intriguing. Would love to get my hands on one to try it out. I will prod at Sonnie and see if we can get one for a review and user guide.


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## Todd Anderson

phazewolf said:


> This unit looks very nice. Does anyone know if there are plans for a unit that can handle 7.1 in the works?
> 
> If so and if the price is the same or drop's some that will be a huge hit for sure and I would pick one up in a heart beat.
> 
> just looked into it and you can setup a house curve so can make there own. This is great news they just need a unit that can handle 7+ channels and the subs all in one unit.


MiniDSP does not release future product info... That's the official word. So, we'll all have to use our imaginations as to what the future will hold.


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## Phillips

Flak said:


> Sure,
> 
> let me say that the Antimode is a well engineered product but a different one... as the name implies it is targeted at correcting the room modes.
> If you read through the REW document that I mentioned you will notice that the room behaviour at the lowest frequencies is where it is more likely to be minimum-phase.
> 
> As a result the Antimode choice of limiting the correction to the lowest frequencies is the correct one being it a minimum-phase solution.
> So we are speaking about two different products, an "antimode" correction in one case... a full bandwidth impulse and frequency response correction in the case of miniDSP and Dirac Live.
> 
> Finally as you say testing is always a good idea, you can do it by downloading the Dirac Live (PC or Mac) free trial for two weeks from here: http://www.dirac.se/en/consumer-products/dirac-rcs.aspx
> You will then be able to judge by yourself by carefully listening and by measuring the improvements in impulse and frequency response.
> 
> Flavio


Thank you 

My laptop is not up to it spec wise.

To try it do i have to play the CD player in the laptop then connect to the receiver?


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## Phillips

AudiocRaver said:


> This sounds really intriguing. Would love to get my hands on one to try it out. I will prod at Sonnie and see if we can get one for a review and user guide.


+ 1


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## Flak

Phillips said:


> Thank you
> 
> My laptop is not up to it spec wise.
> 
> To try it do i have to play the CD player in the laptop then connect to the receiver?


Hello Phillips,

it's unlikely that your laptop will not be able to use Dirac Live, for testing purposes even an Atom netboook can work.... I've tried it myself with an Acer netbook and it was relatively slow only in aspects that do not affect the playback (i.e. filter creation)

Alternatively a test by a HTS reviewer would also be very informative... let's see what happens

 Flavio


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## Sonnie

AudiocRaver said:


> This sounds really intriguing. Would love to get my hands on one to try it out. I will prod at Sonnie and see if we can get one for a review and user guide.


And Tony with miniDSP would like you to have one for review... :T


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## AudiocRaver

Super! Looking forward to it!

Among other things, we will be able to A-B compare the results against Audyssey MultQE XT.


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## phazewolf

Only XT and not XT32? Any reason as to why or is that what you have on hand?


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## AudiocRaver

XT is what I have on hand. If we can finagle an XT32 AVR for review in the same timeframe, we will do that comparison. Probably the better choice. We have talked about doing an in-depth guide for the Audyssey Pro Kit, too, so the right AVR would cover all the above. I will work on it.


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## phazewolf

Thanks I am really interested in seeing how this comes out.


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## AudiocRaver

As am I. DRC implementations really intrigue me. Beyond Audyssey MultEQ and the upcoming DDRC unit, I have also worked with Denis Sbragion's free DRC (command-line), with Room EQ Wizard + HW/SW EQ, and with hand-tuning. I also get a kick out of the "never, ever EQ above 250 Hz" arguments. My basic view of "never-ever" arguments that do not involve probable loss of life is "Ooo, gonna have to try that."

It will be a fun review.


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## phazewolf

Myself I think it should be a setting of how high you want it to correct not it just does. That way everyone is happy.


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## AudiocRaver

My philosophy as well.


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## phazewolf

Anthem room correction will allow you to do just that but not in my price range not even close.


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## Flak

AudiocRaver said:


> XT is what I have on hand. If we can finagle an XT32 AVR for review in the same timeframe, we will do that comparison. Probably the better choice. We have talked about doing an in-depth guide for the Audyssey Pro Kit, too, so the right AVR would cover all the above. I will work on it.


As you say a comparison with Audyssey XT32 would be a better choice (i.m.o. of course),
thanks for trying that.

Also you will find really meaningful results if you will run a number of measurements in several positions within the listening area defined during the filter setup.

While it is easier to correct for a single individual point in space not only we have two ears in different positions but we do not usually listen with our ears in a vise and a wider listening area is definitely useful for home theater systems.

Very interesting for sure 
Flavio


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## AudiocRaver

Agreed. Varied setup mic patterns and analysis mic patterns will be called upon.


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## Phillips

To try the Dirac trial how do i connect this to my system, do i need to use the laptops CD player. This is a very old laptop 12 years old and is restricted in connections. I am missing something.


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## Flak

Phillips said:


> To try the Dirac trial how do i connect this to my system, do i need to use the laptops CD player. This is a very old laptop 12 years old and is restricted in connections. I am missing something.


Hello Phillips,

you can listen to your laptop's internal CD player as well as you can listen to any audio played by your computer because Dirac Live acts as a virtual audio card.
(you may even try connecting an external source, but only if you use an audio card, by using one of its inputs) 

Please note that you will need an omnidirectional measurement microphone (may be you can borrow one if you do'nt have it) and I suggest you get one in advance so that you will not waste part of your two weeks free trial.
Measuring your listening room will anyhow be fun and informative 

Flavio


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## Flak

AudiocRaver said:


> Agreed. Varied setup mic patterns and analysis mic patterns will be called upon.


Great AudiocRaver,
thanks for your time and knowledgeable approach.

Flavio


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## Phillips

> you can listen to your laptop's internal CD player as well as you can listen to any audio played by your computer because Dirac Live acts as a virtual audio card.
> (you may even try connecting an external source, but only if you use an audio card, by using one of its inputs)


Thank you

Can i just connect the headphones output to the receiver and use the CD player?

Do i setup Dirac up like i would for REW for test signals?



> Please note that you will need an omnidirectional measurement microphone (may be you can borrow one if you do'nt have it) and I suggest you get one in advance so that you will not waste part of your two weeks free trial.
> Measuring your listening room will anyhow be fun and informative


I have a UMIK, use it with REW.

Does Dirac EQ full range 0 - 20,000hz?
Also time align each driver or just as a whole speaker?

Thanks again


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## StanDingwave

*If you wanted 7.1 couldn't you just...*

Buy 4 units (4 x 2) to yield 8 channels? I guess you could not do digital I/O then.

But what do I know? My idea of "home theater" is watching Netflix on my laptop or Ipad 

As much as I love MiniDSP (I've had a 2x4 for a couple years, I probably won't get the Dirac unit) still, 
there is always the temptation:

:bigsmile: New gadget ... must purchase ... :spend: :devil: :spend:


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## bkeeler10

phazewolf said:


> Anthem room correction will allow you to do just that but not in my price range not even close.


You do know that you don't have to get one of their pre-pros to get ARC, right? It can be had in their receiver line. Admittedly, those also run between $1k - $2k. OTOH, good luck finding XT32 much under $1k.


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## Flak

Phillips said:


> Thank you
> 
> Can i just connect the headphones output to the receiver and use the CD player?


Yes you can, but if possible there are laptops where the headphone output can alternatively work as a SPDIF output (miniTOSLINK) directly i.e. acer aspire 5100 or with an adapter



> Do i setup Dirac up like i would for REW for test signals?


Setup instructions fot testing Dirac Live here: http://diracdocs.com/DiracLiveStereo_UserManual_1.0.4.pdf
setup instructions for Dirac Series miniDSP are different: http://www.minidsp.com/images/documents/Dirac Series - DDRC-22 User Manual.pdf



> Does Dirac EQ full range 0 - 20,000hz?


Dirac Live is a full range impulse and frequency response correction 20 - 20.000 Hz



> Also time align each driver or just as a whole speaker?


The complete response of the speaker is time aligned with different delays across the spectrum in order to reach an optimal impulse response, so in essence this will mean that each driver is time aligned

 Flavio


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## Phillips

Is there a chance that the DSPeaker Antimode Dual Core 2.0 can be added for comparisons.

If so please can you use the Antimode features, Manual EQ, tilt, etc.


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## Phillips

I think i will wait for the review + is there going to be any distributors in countries or is only Minidsp the supplier?


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## Flak

Phillips said:


> I think i will wait for the review + is there going to be any distributors in countries or is only Minidsp the supplier?


I don't know, you should ask miniDSP

Ciao, Flavio


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## Sonnie

Flavio... help me wrap my head around using the digital model... DDRC-22D.

OPPO 105 >>to>> DDRC-22D >>to>> Onkyo 3010 receiver via digital cables. 

This would be for two-channel music listening only. For Blu-ray movies/home theater, I have the following:

OPPO 105 >>to>> Onkyo 3010 via HDMI... and I let Audyssey XT32 do the duties.

I just switch between inputs on my Onkyo 3010 depending on what I am listening to.

My question... would it be preferable to leave Audyssey engaged and let the DDRC-22D go behind Audyssey and clean up the response even more... or disable Audyssey for the DDRC-22D input and only allow the DDRC-22D to do all the response filtering?

Thanks!


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## phazewolf

Too many devices trying to alter a signal is not the best idea I would personally use it on it's own the the Onkyo's room correction off.

One may do something bad like lower something a little too much and the next one will raise it back up.


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## Sonnie

Good point, although I was thinking the DDRC-22D would be seeing a fairly flat response from Audyssey, so it would not have to do much would it?

I was thinking of getting the best of both worlds with the different way they filter the response, but maybe it ain't necessarily the optimal path to take.


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## phazewolf

Try it both ways can't hurt.


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## Sonnie

Yeah... could do that. I can see what is happening with everything using REW. Set up a couple of different filter configs and switch between them by using the coaxial and optical inputs/outputs on the DDRC-22D and having two different inputs setup on the 3010.


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## Flak

Yes Sonnie 
I'm with phazewolf, I would disengage Audyssey when using Dirac Live.

Good listenings (and measurements of course)

Thanks for your time,
Flavio

p.s. I've just read the news so I'm editing my post... you've done a terrific job for all of us with HTS (which has become a reference thanks to the two of you) and everybody will miss you, but all the best with SVS now


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## Phillips

Any progress on reviews?


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## AudiocRaver

One of the digital I/o units has been shipped to me, arrival expected next week.


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## Phillips

AudiocRaver said:


> One of the digital I/o units has been shipped to me, arrival expected next week.


Great 
Would there be a possible comparison with the Antimode Dual Core 2.0?


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## AudiocRaver

I do not have access to the Antimode hardware.


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## rewjg

Any update on a review? I'm considering DDRC-22A to put in between my Emotiva XDA-2 DAC and Emotiva XPR-5 Amp. I mainly listen to music, so this stereo offering is perfect for me. I play my music from my PC via JRiver connected via USB to the XDA-2 then XLR's to the amp. This would work perfect for me to just fit right in between the DAC and amp. That's if I can play music using the pc at the same time Dirac Live is running on the same PC. Does anyone know the answer to that?


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## Flak

rewjg said:


> Any update on a review? I'm considering DDRC-22A to put in between my Emotiva XDA-2 DAC and Emotiva XPR-5 Amp. I mainly listen to music, so this stereo offering is perfect for me. I play my music from my PC via JRiver connected via USB to the XDA-2 then XLR's to the amp. This would work perfect for me to just fit right in between the DAC and amp. That's if I can play music using the pc at the same time Dirac Live is running on the same PC. Does anyone know the answer to that?


Yes, you can do that and you will have a remote volume control but what about using the digital version instead, before of your DAC?
That way you will stay in the digital domain and you will be able to switch between different digital sources (i.e. a CD player)
http://www.minidsp.com/images/documents/Product Brief-DDRC-22D.pdf

Ciao, Flavio


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## rewjg

Flak said:


> Yes, you can do that and you will have a remote volume control but what about using the digital version instead, before of your DAC?
> That way you will stay in the digital domain and you will be able to switch between different digital sources (i.e. a CD player)
> http://www.minidsp.com/images/documents/Product Brief-DDRC-22D.pdf
> 
> Ciao, Flavio


After further research, I agree the DDRC-22D would be better. That way, I stay in the digital domain and only do 1 D to A conversion.


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## AudioBaja

I got my DDRC yesterday. Just waiting to get the software uplinked. I'm pretty critical about room correction and never liked Audyssey, so I'll be interested to see how this does. 

My biggest beef is the inputs/outputs on the box. I got the analog one because it makes it more universally demo-able but would definitely prefer digital. Hoping they will move to a professional analog/digital unit and a home analog/digital unit rather than pro analog and pro digital. 

I'll post some thoughts during the week, though the real proof will be in different rooms with subs so it might be several weeks or so til I can really give it some hard work to do. But if it can make my digital active monitors sound any better without screwing up the treble like Audyssy that will be a good start.


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## TooSteep

A couple of questions for an interested newcomer:

How do you 'stay in the digital domain' with the 22D solution if you are using digital USB output from your computer?

How do you hook up a 2.2 solution? I have powered monitors (currently using analog RCA inputs) and will soon have externally amplified (iNuke) stereo subwoofers. How would I connect them to the DIRAC miniDSP box?

Thank you.


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## AudioPros

Wow, looking forward to learning more.


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## AudioBaja

Toosteep - you'll have to get a DAC and then split the signal. Cheap on the used market or there are some mini dacs for under $50. 

I have some preliminary observations. I just ran Dirac outside because I want to get a baseline correction for my demo DSP speakers as they are never in the same place twice. My speakers sound pretty darned good, but I've been slowly tweaking them to coax a bit better sound out of them. Most people are floored by them already, but with Dirac taken back out, they suddenly sound a bit Bose AM-5ish. And that shows in the measurements. My REW measurements must have taken into account too much reflection as the outside measurements were a lot different. And, in fact, Dirac fixed some EQ errors I made. I attempted to fix a few problems and managed to make them worse. Dirac blended the tweeter and midrange better, tightened up the bass, improved the spatial aspects of the speaker, improved vocal clarity. For instance, on "I'm beautiful", I always heard the first lyric like "My life is something something", until I put it through my DSP speakers and then I said "did he say 'brilliant'? I think is says 'brilliant'" Well, suddenly it was obvious that was what he said with Dirac overlaid. 

The system lacks the harshness and bass eliminating aspects of Audyssey. They made my speakers sound more lush and "liquid". Removed a touch of harshness and thinness in the lower treble. I was having a bit of a struggle blending the tweeter and woofer as they both have a broad dip in the same place - between 2000 and 3000 which is where they have to be crossed. So...I literally got dug out of my FR hole. 

So, it's not correcting my room, JUST my speakers impulse response. And doing a crazy good job. Now, granted, I might be able to get most of that from REW, but OTOH, if you have a room you want to fix at the same time, then it no doubt offers a whole 'nother level of correction. 

Of course, I need to, and will, try this on a lot of other combos and try to actually permanently get some rooms corrected, but I'm impressed. I suspect that the worse the speakers and/or room acoustics, the more benefit you'll get, but this was quite a benefit on speakers that are pretty high-end already.


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## AudiocRaver

rewjg said:


> Any update on a review? I'm considering DDRC-22A to put in between my Emotiva XDA-2 DAC and Emotiva XPR-5 Amp. I mainly listen to music, so this stereo offering is perfect for me. I play my music from my PC via JRiver connected via USB to the XDA-2 then XLR's to the amp. This would work perfect for me to just fit right in between the DAC and amp. That's if I can play music using the pc at the same time Dirac Live is running on the same PC. Does anyone know the answer to that?


Apologies, the review is almost done, got laid up with a sore back. Doing better, I should be able to have it posted within a few days.

Agree with the assessment to use the digital version for your application (via optical in - the PC has optical out??). The Dirac Live application on the PC behaves well with other audio applications, has for me anyway. Be aware that the DDRC-22D output is always running at 96 kHz, regardless of input bit rate, should not be a problem for you though.


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## Flak

AudioBaja said:


> Toosteep - you'll have to get a DAC and then split the signal. Cheap on the used market or there are some mini dacs for under $50.


There are a good news for people with TooSteep's requirements...

the Dirac Series has been so successful that a third model will be available from August... it does make the purchase of a DAC unnecessary:
http://www.minidsp.com/dirac-series/ddrc-22da

Ciao, Flavio


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## kevinkr

Anyone have any thoughts to add specifically about the DDRC-22A? The intended application is in a tube based system with balanced I/O between the amps and line stage. (Voltages are under 2Vrms) Currently in use is a Varicurve FCS-926 which is a 6 band parametric based room EQ - the improvements in sound quality are quite noticeable, but there are over 50 op-amps in the signal path, and the unit provides no time alignment or impulse response correction. 

If anyone has any thoughts to share on this specific unit I will provide additional detail about my system. (It's a bit complicated otherwise and no point cluttering up the forum if not relevant to discussion.)


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## Kal Rubinson

kevinkr said:


> Anyone have any thoughts to add specifically about the DDRC-22A? The intended application is in a tube based system with balanced I/O between the amps and line stage. (Voltages are under 2Vrms) Currently in use is a Varicurve FCS-926 which is a 6 band parametric based room EQ - the improvements in sound quality are quite noticeable, but there are over 50 op-amps in the signal path, and the unit provides no time alignment or impulse response correction.
> 
> If anyone has any thoughts to share on this specific unit I will provide additional detail about my system. (It's a bit complicated otherwise and no point cluttering up the forum if not relevant to discussion.)


While the DDRC-22a probably has fewer opamps, it does incorporate an A/D converter at the input and a D/A at the output which you may or may not find acceptable in your system.


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## kevinkr

Kal, thank you for the response. I've experimented with an early DEQX (2.6) loaned to me which it turns out unfortunately has some gain issues (bluntly it's broken) on one of the two channels I would use for stereo mode operation, but in general it seemed like a step in the right direction.

Audio engineering is a sort of a hobby for me these days, but my background is in analog and mixed signal circuit design so I am pretty well acquainted with the dichotomy represented by placing a digital processor in the signal chain of an otherwise all tube system. The current equalizer addresses two serious room modes quite effectively and despite the imposition of a lot of ancient solid state electronics in the signal path the audible benefit outweighs the deficits. (So far I don't think I hear anything too bad, some loss of HF air is about it.) Impulse response correction and time alignment seem like potential benefits I would be interested in.

While I am a pragmatic EE in a lot of regards I am looking for some subjective impressions of the hardware performance of this device before I commit to this. So I'm hoping someone with one of these processors in a fairly high end system can weigh in about things like perceived noise floor, dynamics, tonal balance, imaging and anything else they might think relevant.

Not a lot of stuff out there on this device, the few comments I have found were generally very favorable, but sparse on actual detail.


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## Kal Rubinson

I have not used this device but I have used the nanoAVR HD and the miniDSP 10x10 Hd. The nano is HDMI in/out and, at 24/96 processing/throughput, was pretty transparent unless I used much higher resolution. Even then, the difference is mostly trivial. The latter is hardware similar to the DDRC-88A and, therefore, is A/D/A; that was a bit less transparent but eminently listenable.

Are your sources analog, digital or both?


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## kevinkr

My sources are all analog, digital media is handled by a Sony HAP-Z1ES (having abandoned my media server in favor of this device) and a heavily reworked SCD-777ES, also play a fair amount of vinyl using all tube based hardware, so for me a solution with analog I/O makes the most sense.
I probably just need to save my pennies and continue to hunt for the right solution.


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## andyr

Kal Rubinson said:


> While the DDRC-22a probably has fewer opamps, it does incorporate an A/D converter at the input and a D/A at the output which you may or may not find acceptable in your system.


Kal, although I have used analogue active XOs for about 15 years, I am a digital newbie. I am being inducted into digital XOs and DSP since I am shortly going to take delivery of a pair of custom 15" subs. Having read a few pages of this thread - and gone off to explore the miniDSP/Dirac site - I understand you are a guru in these matters and would be grateful if you could tell me what delay the DDRC-88a can deliver (as I can't see this defined in the User Manual!  ).

I am told by my sub builder that the miniDSP 2x4 unit only goes up to 7 millisecs delay ... which may not be enough in my room, due to the position of my main speakers (Maggies) and the subs. If I need more, I am hoping that another miniDSP product can deliver this ... but which one! 


Thanks,

Andy


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## Kal Rubinson

andyr said:


> Kal, although I have used analogue active XOs for about 15 years, I am a digital newbie. I am being inducted into digital XOs and DSP since I am shortly going to take delivery of a pair of custom 15" subs. Having read a few pages of this thread - and gone off to explore the miniDSP/Dirac site - I understand you are a guru in these matters and would be grateful if you could tell me what delay the DDRC-88a can deliver (as I can't see this defined in the User Manual!  ).
> 
> I am told by my sub builder that the miniDSP 2x4 unit only goes up to 7 millisecs delay ... which may not be enough in my room, due to the position of my main speakers (Maggies) and the subs. If I need more, I am hoping that another miniDSP product can deliver this ... but which one!


I do not know but suggest you ask miniDSP.


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## andyr

Kal Rubinson said:


> I do not know but suggest you ask miniDSP.


Will do, Kal - thanks.

Andy


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## Mark Seaton

andyr said:


> Kal, although I have used analogue active XOs for about 15 years, I am a digital newbie. I am being inducted into digital XOs and DSP since I am shortly going to take delivery of a pair of custom 15" subs. Having read a few pages of this thread - and gone off to explore the miniDSP/Dirac site - I understand you are a guru in these matters and would be grateful if you could tell me what delay the DDRC-88a can deliver (as I can't see this defined in the User Manual!  ).
> 
> I am told by my sub builder that the miniDSP 2x4 unit only goes up to 7 millisecs delay ... which may not be enough in my room, due to the position of my main speakers (Maggies) and the subs. If I need more, I am hoping that another miniDSP product can deliver this ... but which one!
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Andy





Kal Rubinson said:


> I do not know but suggest you ask miniDSP.


I had asked the Dirac guys at a trade show about the total latency incurred by the correction process and it was suggested the delay range was typically 7-10ms. I haven't verified that, but will in the coming months with a few setups I'm doing, including one using 2 DDRC-88a's for an Atmos system. What you are asking about is the maximum difference between the near and far speaker. That's a good question worth checking into. The hardware is similar to the 10x10HD which does offer up to 15ms. It is an interesting question to see what range of max-min speaker distance difference the DDRC-88a can accommodate automatically. I'll have to look into that further.

That said, in most installations, the upstream preamp could always add additional delay offset if needed.


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## AudiocRaver

The PC version of Dirac Live can give up to +20 mS of delay on any given channel (minimum is 0, no "negative delay" is possible). One cannot see or change the channel delay settings in the DDRC series of processors. The max amount available will depend on a number of hardware and software factors. It does now show up in the specs anywhere.

I will try to get info from miniDSP.


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## Flak

Hi Wayne, Mark and Andy... ciao Kal 
the latency introduced by the Dirac Live correction can be determined exactly by looking at the Dirac's impulse response graphs... it's the distance in milliseconds between the "before" and "after" pulses (in maximum performance mode it's considerably less than expected thanks to a patented FIR+IIR solution)

Flavio


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## AudiocRaver

Thanks, Flak, I forgot about that.


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## AudiocRaver

Also, from miniDSP:

"There are only 2 versions of Dirac algorithms on our platform
- Stereo @ 96k (DDRC-22 series) = 23mS
- Multichannel @ 48k (DDRC-88/nanoAVR) = 13mS
[Latency]

Maximum per channel delay, we don't know, that's just depending on your setup..  We have more than 3000ms available but I really doubt that Dirac would ever make use of it"


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