miniDSP 4x10 Hd sounds really good!

Just wanted to give my recommendation for the miniDSP 4x10 Hd. It's a really nice product and a bargain for the price.

I've tried both GroundSound DCN28 and DEQX HDP-4. I haven't compared all of these together but have compared each one to my reference Lynx Two-B soundcard (going straight to amps). Speakers Geddes Abbey and Hypex nCore power amps. I have been running the miniDSP with unbalanced outputs so far by the way.

Sound quality using digital in, the miniDSP is better then GroundSound. Not doubt. When it comes to a comparison to the DEQX HDP-4, I'm not 100% sure. The DAC in the DEQX sounded too bright IMO and was sort of sticking out. I'm not hearing this with miniDSP. Compared to Lynx Two-B both the miniDSP and DEQX has a tiny veil over the sound. The Lynx Two-B sounds a bit more clear and transparent. Not sure which comes closest, but overall I think the miniDSP is the best. It was hard to distinguish it from Lynx Two-B. I believe there's a difference in transparancy which makes the music sound a bit more real with the Lynx, but the difference is really small. Very impressive for a product for this price.

The software is also very easy to use. There are a few things I'm missing, but they may come in future upgrades.
A strongly recommended product. Much better then the Behringer DCX2496. There's no noise with the miniDSP.
 
Hi Omholt,

thanks for sharing. I am in the process of pondering getting this unit.

This thread made me think, though:
New miniDSP 2x8 / 4x10 card

I know the Lynx, and its a good reference.

Do you notice any high frequency noise?

Cheers,
Achim
Well, what would that sound like? Like mentioned I believe my Lynx Two-B sounds a bit more clear, but they are very close.

I see they mention that the 2x4 board measure the same as 2x8. The latter has higher SNR, so they should be different. I don't know if that would show up in their measurements though.
Summary Table | miniDSP

Edit: I see now that the noise is above 50Khz. Not sure even a dog would hear that....

To me the miniDSP sounds really good and subjectively and non objectvely :D, I think it's better than the DEQX HDP-4.

I'm still looking forward to the coming Hypex DLCP. I do believe there are rooms for some improvements, but I could live fine with the miniDSP 4x10 Hd. I definetly couldn't with the Behringer DCX2496 or GroundSound DCN28.
 
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I'm still looking forward to the coming Hypex DLCP.
Me too, if I knew it would be out in January, February, I'd wait. But this has been such a long story coming...

I do believe there are rooms for some improvements, but I could live fine with the miniDSP 4x10 Hd. I definetly couldn't with the Behringer DCX2496 or GroundSound DCN28.

Thanks for trying to rank this...

I just found a European distributor for miniDSP. So I guess it should even be possible to buy a unit with a certain return policy: Juoigâ
 
Thank you for sharing your experience.
I own both the 2x4 and the 2x8. I have not compared them directly but they both sound good to me.
The only bad thing I can say about miniDSP is that the analogue inputs are really noisy. Digital input is the only way to go.
The MiniDSP support is also very helpful.

Armand
 
Thank you for sharing your experience.
I own both the 2x4 and the 2x8. I have not compared them directly but they both sound good to me.
The only bad thing I can say about miniDSP is that the analogue inputs are really noisy. Digital input is the only way to go.
The MiniDSP support is also very helpful.

Armand

I don't get any issues with noisy analogue inputs (using balanced) on the 2x8. My speakers are reasonably efficient, my amps are Ncores, dac is Buffalo/legato. Sounds very clean.

I look forward to any comparison with the DCLP though, if there's a quality improvement there I shall ultimately go that way too.

Mark
 
i dont get any noise issues with minidsp , anyway i dont use the analog inputs anymore that´s why i bought the nanodigi , since i have other dacs i think i´ll stick with minidsp and forget the overpriced Hypex

here´s a scheme of how my setup is connected

SETUP.jpg
 
I don't have any problems with noise using analogue in (unbalanced at the moment) from my Lynx Two-B soundcard.

Still, I want to those last percentages. So I'm going to buy a Hypex DLCP.

Hypex is just 6 channels. I need 10 or 12 channels. It has not had much publicity yet, or else I would have read about it already. Any good reviews out there? If it is even possible to use on on each speaker, I don't want to spend 2 times 550 Euro = 1100 Euro on the freakin' crossover.
 
Well, what would that sound like? Like mentioned I believe my Lynx Two-B sounds a bit more clear, but they are very close.

I have the Lynx L22 which is the two channel version of the Lynx Two-B. It might be an older version, but I got so much less noise with a $44 DAC from Ebay, connected via toslink with RCA out to the amp. The Lynx L22 PCI was more alive, yes, and the chinese DAC was a little more dead, but the cheap DAC was clean and produced a sound that I could learn to like. I can give up some good feelings I have with my Lynx L22 for a 6-7 way system with a proper XO and less noise.

I used in my comparison a 103-110dB 1 watt sensitive Trio/the Cat setup with a Fane 8M, Community M200, Beyma CD10nd speaker with a nice Chinese 2A3 AMP with all American NOS tubes. The XO was a noisy but usable Behringer CX3400 (analog active). I was not alone in thinking the difference between a $44 DAC and a $640 two channel soundcard was very small. My GF (a very important but often forgotten HIFI abbreviation) liked the Lynx L22 only slightly better.

Obviously, I find the CX3400 too noisy, and limited with its 6 channels and it just does not sound good enough.

The cheap DAC was very impressive and I might get more of them to a minidsp nanodigi 2x8. Problem is not the price of the DACs, but the need of more than 8 channels from the 2x8 Minidsp Nanodigi!



Can I use one minidsp nanodigi 2x8 on each speaker with 6 DACs and 6 channels? That would be 12 channels in stereo.



Minidsp have not responded via mail in a three days now. Maybe they have gone bankrupt...
I might just order a minidsp 4x10HD directly from a company in Oslo. I could pick it up on Monday after a bus ride. If I can live with 44 dollar ebay dacs, I should be able to live with these. DACs are different, but speaker driver choise are more important. Being able to choose any driver you like is fantastic!

If it is too noisy, I will give minidsp hell for it here on the forum, and then return it, as this Norwegian company has to follow normal business practise. I read about people being refused by Minidsp to return broken items.
Well, I guess you have to get a response before you can be refused. Right now, Minidsp seem to be non-responsive to my simple questions.

It is good people with sensitive systems have approved of the 4x10HD. I might divide the 2 or 3 bass+midbass channels with an analog XO, as bass and digital plugins usually are a bad combination. Problem is they will overlap, as I will experiment with the Cat's almost-fullrange injection channel, and I can't fix that with a CX3400 or any other typical analog XO. Here I really need the minidsp's flexibility.

I would enjoy the 192kHz of the nanodigi againt the 96kHz of the 4x10HD. I record myself playing music and I can totally hear the difference between the two. Yet, would I want to experiment with crazy synth with my expensive and sensitive hifi setup? One day a VST plugin crashes and speakers are blown to pieces. I might just live with the "crappy" 96kHz and record in 192kHz using cheaper, less breakable stuff.
 
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Hypex is just 6 channels. I need 10 or 12 channels. It has not had much publicity yet, or else I would have read about it already. Any good reviews out there? If it is even possible to use on on each speaker, I don't want to spend 2 times 550 Euro = 1100 Euro on the freakin' crossover.
You can link two Hypex DLCP boards together and get 12 channels. Read the manual. ;)
 
Hmmm.. Strange you have not noticed the input noise. Maybe there is something wrong with the analogue outputs on my soundcard? It is an M-Audio Firewire Audiophile with SNR of 106dB. Should be good enough. Guess I will have to run a few tests.
Not unlikely. M-Audio has a bad reputation or at least use to have one.
The SNR of Lynx is higher by the way.