The Dirac Live-enabled miniDSP SHD series brings to market a powerful stereo processor with network streaming over Ethernet designed from the ground up to achieve the highest performance with the greatest flexibility. With its floating point processor, 32-bit/96kHz converters, quad core ARM streamer, multichannel USB audio, Volumio network audio support, and more, the SHD series delivers natural, realistic and transparent sound to streaming audio.
In an effort to satisfy the needs of all miniDSP users, the company will release two versions of the SHD series: the SHD full rack mount unit, an analog and digital All-In-One-Does-It-All unit, and the SHD Studio, a more compact, all-digital solution that’s available at a lower cost and ideal for those who already own a DAC. The all-digital SHD Studio comes with all the bells-and-whistles of the full version, drops the analog I/O but adds AES/EBU digital outputs for professional sound applications.
The top-of-the-line SHD has, in addition to the network streaming port, 3 x digital inputs, USB Audio, and balanced and unbalanced analog inputs. Outputs are analog and digital for all four channels. Both versions of the SHD series come equipped with an embedded Volumio network audio music player that allows for the streamed audio to be controlled via smartphone, tablet, or desktop-based app. miniDSP also added their powerful but user-friendly DSP audio tuning software, with ten-band parametric EQ per channel, crossovers up to 48 dB/octave, compressor/limiter, and a 2x4 matrix mixer — for system tuning in applications ranging from integrating a single subwoofer to a two-way active speaker. On the SHD Studio, outputs 3 and 4 also drive the headphone jack on the front panel.
The SHD series joins an already-extensive portfolio of Dirac Live-enabled miniDSP products that combine miniDSP’s expertise in digital signal processing with Dirac’s expertise in audio optimization and room correction.
"Few in the industry are as passionate about audio as those at miniDSP, which is why our years of extensive collaboration have yielded such astounding results,” states Niklas Thorin, Dirac’s GM of High Performance. “The Streaming HD series is the ideal product to introduce Dirac Live to the streaming market, as it truly captures the full potential of our room correction capabilities. With this SHD series introduction, the bar has now been raised for high definition audio streaming.”
Dirac Live is a patented room correction solution that not only corrects the frequency response, but also the impulse response, of the loudspeakers in a room. Uniquely, the solution provides true impulse response correction over a large listening area, improving the depth, the positioning and distinction of individual voices and instruments.
Using multiple measurement and mixed phase correction, Dirac Live helps audio systems to create a natural, realistic and transparent sound with tighter bass and reduced room modes, in a way previously not possible.
“Regardless of hardware design and sophistication, certain external variables are always going to negatively impact audio quality – that is unless you implement a digital room correction solution like Dirac Live,” states Antoine Rouget, CEO at miniDSP. “Dirac Live reduces these variables and equips our products with the degree of performance consistency necessary to satisfy the discerning ears of the miniDSP community. We’re excited to work yet again with Dirac to introduce its Dirac Live room correction solution to the streaming processor market.”
www.minidsp.com | www.dirac.com
