Smithie,
The HDCD decoding problem would suggest the Data from the CDR is no longer 'Bit Accurate" most likely your CD player is having trouble reading your CDR - corrupting the Data Stream.
Clock Lock issue is very strange - are your sure it’s not the input Lock Light? I cannot understand how the Light can flicker when the Switch is "Off" as there’s logic that disables the Clock Lock Circuit - suggests a Dry Joint on the PCB.....
John
The HDCD decoding problem would suggest the Data from the CDR is no longer 'Bit Accurate" most likely your CD player is having trouble reading your CDR - corrupting the Data Stream.
Clock Lock issue is very strange - are your sure it’s not the input Lock Light? I cannot understand how the Light can flicker when the Switch is "Off" as there’s logic that disables the Clock Lock Circuit - suggests a Dry Joint on the PCB.....
John
hi john
thanks for getting back to me,you might be right concerning signal lock light.
when i got it that light never came on(second one in from the left marked locked) so i asumed it ment locked when using the clock lock switch on the back,but if im reading your post right then the locked light is just stating that its locked to the output of the transport,if thats the case then me popping the lid means ive cured a fault that i never knew was there...cool!
is there no indicator light for the sync switch on the back when in use?
thanks for your thoughts regarding the hdcd problem,does that mean the cdr is deteriating and losing the bits or the marantz dr6000 recorder cant read its own recordings properly??? in which case that sucks!
anyway hope your well and have settled in over there ok.
all the best
smithie
(ps ive resisted the urge to ask how your new gear is doing...but its been hard)
thanks for getting back to me,you might be right concerning signal lock light.
when i got it that light never came on(second one in from the left marked locked) so i asumed it ment locked when using the clock lock switch on the back,but if im reading your post right then the locked light is just stating that its locked to the output of the transport,if thats the case then me popping the lid means ive cured a fault that i never knew was there...cool!
is there no indicator light for the sync switch on the back when in use?
thanks for your thoughts regarding the hdcd problem,does that mean the cdr is deteriating and losing the bits or the marantz dr6000 recorder cant read its own recordings properly??? in which case that sucks!
anyway hope your well and have settled in over there ok.
all the best
smithie
(ps ive resisted the urge to ask how your new gear is doing...but its been hard)
Hi Smithie,
Guess it was a loose connection on the 'Lock" LED.
“Clock Lock” is only indicated on the Transport - and not the DAC.
Yes, sounds like your CDR recorder is fading - try different Media (Discs). If the Bit Error is so large that HDCD does not decode correctly, then this will also have a large impact on Audio quality. CD Error correction can hide a multitude of sins you did not know existed – but the Data will no longer be "Bit Accurate" if the error rate becomes too large.
John
Guess it was a loose connection on the 'Lock" LED.
“Clock Lock” is only indicated on the Transport - and not the DAC.
Yes, sounds like your CDR recorder is fading - try different Media (Discs). If the Bit Error is so large that HDCD does not decode correctly, then this will also have a large impact on Audio quality. CD Error correction can hide a multitude of sins you did not know existed – but the Data will no longer be "Bit Accurate" if the error rate becomes too large.
John
Hi All,
Just been reading about your problems Smithie with your HDCD recordings. Have you managed to sort it? Well at least you had an excuse to open her up at last!
I've finished building my PSU and it has improved the sound immensely. Still haven't put it in a nice case yet as I've been too busy enjoying the music. Well until today that is.
I tried my first HDCD disc this morning and the HDCD indicator didn't light until it got to a very quiet passage at the very end of the third track! It doesn't light anywhere else!
Could it be down to my Rotel RCD965BX I'm using as the transport? Anyone got any ideas as to why this is happening?
Oh and did anyone see that Isomagic on ebay recently - went for £132. Much more than the usual Dacmagic's.
One last thing - I'm determined to use the Isomagic with my computer and have bought a PCI sound card with optical and co-ax outputs. Can't say I can hear a difference between them but I'd really like to try a USB connection incorporating the 'clock lock' feature from the Isomagic. If anyone has some idea how to do this please let me know.
Thanks,
Gray.
Just been reading about your problems Smithie with your HDCD recordings. Have you managed to sort it? Well at least you had an excuse to open her up at last!
I've finished building my PSU and it has improved the sound immensely. Still haven't put it in a nice case yet as I've been too busy enjoying the music. Well until today that is.
I tried my first HDCD disc this morning and the HDCD indicator didn't light until it got to a very quiet passage at the very end of the third track! It doesn't light anywhere else!
Could it be down to my Rotel RCD965BX I'm using as the transport? Anyone got any ideas as to why this is happening?
Oh and did anyone see that Isomagic on ebay recently - went for £132. Much more than the usual Dacmagic's.
One last thing - I'm determined to use the Isomagic with my computer and have bought a PCI sound card with optical and co-ax outputs. Can't say I can hear a difference between them but I'd really like to try a USB connection incorporating the 'clock lock' feature from the Isomagic. If anyone has some idea how to do this please let me know.
Thanks,
Gray.
.
Gary,
I've been working with DVD player recently and have yet to find one that gives a "Bit Accurate" Digital output.
Some players seem to attenuate the output by a fraction of a dB, and / or have "Dynamic Range compression", lower level signals are “Bit Accurate”, but higher levels become compressed.
Try to use a CD player as the transport - also the Jitter from the DVD player is also much higher.
Sound like a problem with your Disc copy - try using the original...
John
I've been working with DVD player recently and have yet to find one that gives a "Bit Accurate" Digital output.
Some players seem to attenuate the output by a fraction of a dB, and / or have "Dynamic Range compression", lower level signals are “Bit Accurate”, but higher levels become compressed.
Try to use a CD player as the transport - also the Jitter from the DVD player is also much higher.
Sound like a problem with your Disc copy - try using the original...
John
I have been using a toslink to hook the signal out of my Diskmagic to my Dacmagic, and having read this thread I though i would try using a coaxial connection to see if it would change things. Indeed the sound seems different.
However the manual seems to suggest that clock locking only works with optical signal out. Indeed on startup the dacmagic now no longer does that buzzing thing which I take to be the two machines establishing the clock lock (a muting relay probably). This suggests that there is now no longer clock lock.
Anyone care to express an opinion on this ?
Shoog
However the manual seems to suggest that clock locking only works with optical signal out. Indeed on startup the dacmagic now no longer does that buzzing thing which I take to be the two machines establishing the clock lock (a muting relay probably). This suggests that there is now no longer clock lock.
Anyone care to express an opinion on this ?
Shoog
John,
I've tried two CD transports and the optical output from my PC (running foobar 2000, ASIO and Kernal Streaming) and even a PS2 and they all give identical results. It's a new original CD I've tried and also a ripped copy of it using EAC which also behaves the same. It lights up the HDCD LED towards the end of a few of the tracks. I'll try and find some more HDCD encoded CD's in case I have a duff disc. I just hope it's not a problem with my Isomagic
.
Hi Kram,
Well basically it's a fairly standard regulated PSU. I found a decent sized toroid from a Home Theater System which had 2x13.5v and 2x15v output voltages. I used the lower voltage to power a standard 1A 15v regulator for the Digital stuff. The higher voltage runs through two bridge rectifiers which in turn powers 4 1A regulators keeping the negative and positive rails independant. It's based loosely on the circuit at http://www.zero-distortion.com/techno/powersupply/powersi_05.htm with regulators stuck on the end. The biggest improvement in sound quality has been extra clarity with more air and space on appropriate recordings. Mind you I was using a very 'quick and dirty' circuit before so I don't know how it compares to a standard PSU. It was well worth the effort though.
Gray.
I've tried two CD transports and the optical output from my PC (running foobar 2000, ASIO and Kernal Streaming) and even a PS2 and they all give identical results. It's a new original CD I've tried and also a ripped copy of it using EAC which also behaves the same. It lights up the HDCD LED towards the end of a few of the tracks. I'll try and find some more HDCD encoded CD's in case I have a duff disc. I just hope it's not a problem with my Isomagic
.Hi Kram,
Well basically it's a fairly standard regulated PSU. I found a decent sized toroid from a Home Theater System which had 2x13.5v and 2x15v output voltages. I used the lower voltage to power a standard 1A 15v regulator for the Digital stuff. The higher voltage runs through two bridge rectifiers which in turn powers 4 1A regulators keeping the negative and positive rails independant. It's based loosely on the circuit at http://www.zero-distortion.com/techno/powersupply/powersi_05.htm with regulators stuck on the end. The biggest improvement in sound quality has been extra clarity with more air and space on appropriate recordings. Mind you I was using a very 'quick and dirty' circuit before so I don't know how it compares to a standard PSU. It was well worth the effort though.
Gray.
Thanks Gray,
I am going to use 2 of Rod elliots P05 boards. One for the analogue section and one for the digital part if that is possible.
does anyone know if the power supplies to the digital and analogue parts of the circuit are seperated on the PCB its self or are they all connected to one power rail?
there are 8 wires that come from the power socket on the DAC so I have assumed that the analogue and didital is supplied separately.
+/- 15v & ground for digital
+/- 15v & ground for analogue
so that is 6, what are the other 2 for?
Mark
I am going to use 2 of Rod elliots P05 boards. One for the analogue section and one for the digital part if that is possible.
does anyone know if the power supplies to the digital and analogue parts of the circuit are seperated on the PCB its self or are they all connected to one power rail?
there are 8 wires that come from the power socket on the DAC so I have assumed that the analogue and didital is supplied separately.
+/- 15v & ground for digital
+/- 15v & ground for analogue
so that is 6, what are the other 2 for?
Mark
Hi Shoog,
Did you pick up anything about how the 'clock lock' actually works? I presume the Discmagic is clocked from the Isomagic and the Discmagic then only sends the digital signal minus timing information back? I'd love to be able to use 'clock lock' as from all the info I've read on the subject the DAC should provide the master clock. I gather this is the method used in professional studio equipment.
Cheers,
Gray.
Did you pick up anything about how the 'clock lock' actually works? I presume the Discmagic is clocked from the Isomagic and the Discmagic then only sends the digital signal minus timing information back? I'd love to be able to use 'clock lock' as from all the info I've read on the subject the DAC should provide the master clock. I gather this is the method used in professional studio equipment.
Cheers,
Gray.
If memory serves me well the power supply is split to three power points.
Like you said +/- 15V and a single supply that's regulated down to 5Volts
An externally hosted image should be here but it was not working when we last tested it.
Sorry can't help further my Isodac is long gone but also remember you had to power up the DAC before you hook-up data to prevent an issue with levels,I amsure RicherSounds added a slip note.
I don't know how the clock lock works, but I think you are right in saying that the DAC provides the master clock. I would assume that it is a formatted signal which makes DIYing nearly impossable without technical information.
I switch on both the DISKMAGIC and the ISOMAGIC at the wall socket simultaniously and I don't get issues with output levels - though there is a warning in the manual about this.
The DISKMAGIC can be got for about £100.00 on Ebay. I also read that it always had a reputation for misstracking - which I have found to be the case at the end of long CD's. Maybe it would be better to wait for his new transport - which I understand will maintain the clock lock feature. Its been manufactured in China so hopefully price wont be outragious.
Shoog
I switch on both the DISKMAGIC and the ISOMAGIC at the wall socket simultaniously and I don't get issues with output levels - though there is a warning in the manual about this.
The DISKMAGIC can be got for about £100.00 on Ebay. I also read that it always had a reputation for misstracking - which I have found to be the case at the end of long CD's. Maybe it would be better to wait for his new transport - which I understand will maintain the clock lock feature. Its been manufactured in China so hopefully price wont be outragious.
Shoog
In CLock Lock Mode, the IsoMagic provides a 128Fs Clock to the transport (5.6448 MHz) – you would need to multiply this clock by x2 for Philips based machines (11.2896 MHz Master Clock), or x3 for Asian based machines which use a 16.9344MHz Master Clock.
Its easy to implement the clock locking system, the hardest part would be finding a source of Optical Toslink RX module for the received clock at the Transport end.
The output from the Transport remains standard SPDIF, so you don’t need to modify this.
John
Its easy to implement the clock locking system, the hardest part would be finding a source of Optical Toslink RX module for the received clock at the Transport end.
The output from the Transport remains standard SPDIF, so you don’t need to modify this.
John
Thanks John,
I'm way out of my depth here but as I'm using a USB M-Audio Transit I wondered if it was possible to use Clock Lock to provide the clock for the AK4584 that provides the SPDIF output as it can operate in Master or Slave mode using an external clock? And maybe utilise the optical input of the Transit to carry the Clock Lock signal?
Or maybe I should find a copy of 'Digital Electronics for Dummies' if one exists and try to get my head around this fascinating subject!
Amazing really - I happen upon a £10 IsoMagic and now I go to bed every night with a headache from studying all the digital audio and PC audio forums!
Does anyone want to buy it? Divorce is looming!
Gray.
I'm way out of my depth here but as I'm using a USB M-Audio Transit I wondered if it was possible to use Clock Lock to provide the clock for the AK4584 that provides the SPDIF output as it can operate in Master or Slave mode using an external clock? And maybe utilise the optical input of the Transit to carry the Clock Lock signal?
Or maybe I should find a copy of 'Digital Electronics for Dummies' if one exists and try to get my head around this fascinating subject!
Amazing really - I happen upon a £10 IsoMagic and now I go to bed every night with a headache from studying all the digital audio and PC audio forums!
Does anyone want to buy it? Divorce is looming!
Gray.
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