The Sonosax SX-DD2 preamplifier and converter inherits a long tradition of high quality circuits designed by Jacques Sax for the company's high-quality professional mixers and recorders. And given the company's reputation in professional audio circles, particularly among sound recordists, this device will naturally find its place in mastering studios, editing suites, archiving centers, and many other prestigious places where a wide variety of sources must be listened to and controlled. But this is also a product that appeals to the origins of the company, directly aiming also at the most demanding high-end audio enthusiasts.
With a combination of traditional Swiss building quality and price to match, the SX-DD2 is a product that will appeal to all those who have ever experienced and recognize the indisputable precision and reliability of a Sonosax product. Coupled with a pair of active speakers - including Sonosax' own SX-ADN2 2-way compact speakers - the SX-DD2 was designed to be a highly flexible and effective source selection and monitoring solution.
Sonosax built a few first units when it unveiled the design in 2017, and some sound engineers quickly adopted it as a high-end preamp for their private listening at home. As the company explains, that inspired Sonosax to promote the new device as "the result of our many years of research in the professional field, applied to home use."
The SX-DD2 preamplifier and converter supports either analog or digital audio sources in a different way. When an analog source is connected, the signal remains analog until the analog output. In parallel, the signal is also converted to digital, and is available on all digital outputs, namely AES, SPDIF, Optical and USB. This effectively, converts the SX-DD2 into a high quality stereo USB 2.0 interface to connect to a computer.
As Sonosax describes, the possibilities are varied. Users will be able to connect a turntable to the phono input and convert vinyl to high resolution digital audio, connect analog sources, balanced and unbalanced, and use the multiple analog output options to balance the signals from different devices. On the digital side, users can connect up to three SPDIF/optical and one AES3 sources. "During our tests of this device, we measured frequencies up to 40kHz, which requires sampling of at least 96kHz to record all the harmonics of a vinyl," Sonosax details. The SX-DD2 is optionally available with 19-inch rack adapters and an eRED-MOD (UpnP / DLNA) module for networking.
The price of the Sonosax SX-DD2 is set at CHF 6,300 (excluding VAT) - approx. $7,000 USD. Pre-orders placed for the first units before March 31, 2021 - which will be made in limited quantities - will be available for a special introductory price of CHF 3,900 (approx. $4,400 USD). Pre-orders will require a deposit of CHF 300 for the reservation.
A Bit of History
Sonosax was founded by Jacques Sax in 1977 in Lausanne, Switzerland and was initially focused on improving electronic circuits for mixing consoles, leading to the introduction of the Sonosax SX-B, the company's first mixing console, in 1980. This console was intended for professional applications and was adopted by audio engineers who used it for recordings, praising the quality of its microphone amplifier.
In 1982, the company introduced its modular Sonosax SX-A, a mixer with 12 to 24 inputs, immediately followed by the SX-C a mixer for PA systems, which included an auto-reverse cassette player, a radio receiver, talk-back microphone and a control speaker. The next model, the SX-S, was a battery-powered, portable mixing console with 6, 8 or 10 inputs, which was adopted in the film and television industry. The SX-S compact mixing console was effectively the product that projected Sonosax worldwide, with its strong, rugged, build, and facilities normally found only in studio consoles, covering the requirements of most OB and mobile situations. In March 1995, Jacques Sax was awarded a Technical Achievement Award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Hollywood for the technical qualities and design of the Sonosax SX-S.
In 1991, Sonosax introduced a microphone amplifier, the Sonosax FD-M4, which was praised for its quality, and was used in countless acoustic and live performance recordings, becoming almost a standard in classic music recording. In 1993, Jacques Sax took control of the Stellavox company, another Swiss company that was once the alternative to Nagra in portable reel-to-reel magnetic recorders, and was then focused on manufacturing the portable DAT recorder Stelladat. With this acquisition, Sonosax enters the recording space with new 2 and 4-track recorders offering built-in mixers.
Since the company moved to its current location in Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, in 2001, Sonosax combined all its development and manufacturing under the same roof, and launched the popular SX-BD1 portable microphone preamplifier and new portable mixing consoles, like the SX-ST, the model that finally supersedes the popular SX-S, featuring new microphones preamps with exceptional sound quality. The Sonosax SX-ST was extremely well received, and was selected by sound engineers for the most prestigious projects, from classical musical recordings to large-budget feature films, including James Bond movies, Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, among many others. The success of the SX-ST mixer encouraged Sonosax to expand its line of mixing consoles with built-in digital recording options, compact recorders, and several other products.
www.sonosax.ch
