Metric Halo review

[bdiament]

Hi Telstar,

 

The easy winner was soundBlade.

The big surprise was just how good Wave Editor was as second best sounding, in view of the former costing $1800 and the latter costing $79. (!)

 

Still, soundBlade created the most open, cleanest sounding results in my experience. I find the Sonic "engine" within it (as well as within Amarra) impressive.

 

Relatively new (to me), Reaper ($60 for civilians) is also sonically impressive, easily beating out a number of considerably more expensive apps.

 

Note, all of these are designed for music production (not reproduction) whether as editing/mastering apps or in Reaper's case, as a recording/mixing app.

 

Best regards,

Barry

www.soundkeeperrecordings.com

www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

 

[cfmsp]

 

"The big surprise was just how good Wave Editor was as second best sounding, in view of the former costing $1800 and the latter costing $79."

 

Perhaps knowledge that both use iZotope's products internal to their own software would lessen the surprise. Specifically, I mean 64 bit SRC and Mbit+ dithering (also 64 bit). Perhaps there are other similarities as well. Interestingly, Wave Editor was originally a $250 package, but a new pricing strategy was implemented and all AE products were lowered to $79.

 

I've been using Wave Editor since I seriously got into computer audio - about a year and a half ago. It sounds great, but is non-starter as an iTunes-like music player. It's great for experimenting with upsampling, if that floats one's boat.

 

I'm looking forward to their new player. I find them to have the same level of support as Metric Halo, which is to say very high.

 

clay

 

 

[cfmsp]

"I noticed they use AES ins and outs so evidently non-asynch interfaces can sound good if properly implemented."

 

Any pro audio device worth it's salt will support several interfaces. The ULN-2 2D supports AES/EBU, Coax S/PDIF, Toslink, ADAT, and, yes, Firewire. There's nothing that can be inferred from the inclusion of AES in the ULN-2 (or ULN-8) vis-a-vis the async versus non-async debate, in my opinion. Indeed, it was the pro standard long before Firewire moved onto the scene.

 

That said, yes, any interface can sound good, if properly implemented. The debate is over which should sound best, all things being equal, and therefore, which could sound best for the least implementation effort/cost.

 

Per the cable comment, I use a very inexpensive, but properly engineered Firewire cable.

 

 

"But, I have yet to read a review in an audiophile magazine or website."

 

You say that like it's a bad thing. Over the years, I"ve bought many of my components prior to a review in an audiophile magazine - not becuase I have great ears (as I don't) but because I have good dealers AND I don't wait for reviews to purchase gear if I think it sounds great. E.g., Musical Fidelity A1 (1984 model), PSE Studio IV, Audio Physic Virgos, NYAL SuperIT, the Aleph 30 (originally called Volksamp), recently the First Watt J2, and of course, the ULN-2. The latter of which WAS spoken of very highly in pro audio forums prior to my purchase.

 

My point is - take some chances, trust your ears, and the advice of others. The (current batch of) reviewers are just people like you and me, who happen to have a job reviewing gear. They are certainly not infallible. Given the same opportunity, it could easily be you, or any one of us.

 

As for an official review of the ULN-2, please don't hold your breath. It's not likely to happen. Metric Halo are making/receiving NO overtures to/from the audio(phile) industry. It's not even because the audiophile rags don't know about the ULN-2, or don't have access to one. John Atkinson has been using an ULN-2 for years for on-location recording.

 

anyway, probably too much information, per my usual.

 

enjoy

clay

 

PS, in case it wasnt obvious, there's some satisfaction (at least for me) in leaping out ahead of the herd to buy something before it hit's the recommended components lists, and these days there is very little danger in getting stuck with an Edsel, due to quality of gear, and the Audiogon/ebay mechanisms for correcting a mistake. OTOH, it was pretty darn lonely here (as the only Metric Halo user on CA) until Barry showed up. So, perhaps not for the insecure.

 

EDIT: Re-reading this note this morning, I hope this doesn't come across as the least bit disrespectful to Labjr. Apologies, if so.

 

 

[cfmsp]

"As to cables, well, I'll just say I've had a pair of mic cables for several years now (which double as feeds to my power amps in the studio) that cost...you don't want to know. I'm looking to make the best possible sounding recordings I can possibly make."

 

Barry,

 

Do you mind sharing the mic cables you use? Presumably XLR?

 

I do a bit of ambient/nature recording, with low noise mikes (Sennheiser 30/40 mid-side setup) and preamps (Sound Devices & Grace V3) turned pretty much all the way up. Cables might make a difference to me as well.

 

thanks in advance,

clay

 

 

PS, for extra credit: Do you use Firewire cables at all? If so, do you find a difference? ...have a preferred cable?

 

 

 

[bdiament]

I think the fact that both soundBlade and Wave Editor use licensed versions of iZotope's 64-bit SRC and MBIT+ dither is showing that the makers of both are listening.

 

In the tests I described, however, neither of these was used. It was a simple gain change and save in each of the apps, so all I was testing was the sound of the apps themselves, not any third party add-ons. I'm sure adding other processing would have "stressed" all the apps further and increased the audible differences in the results.

 

Best regards,

Barry

www.soundkeeperrecordings.com

www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

 

[bdiament]

Hi Clay,

 

After listening to dozens of contenders (something I'm always doing) in a number of different setups/rooms, several years ago, I opted for Nordost throughout my system. (They replaced cables I'd had for years, that cost triple their price.)

 

The mic cables (or connection to my amps when I'm not doing a remote session) are Nordost Valkyrjas, yes, of course, XLR at both ends.

 

The change from the Mogami Neglex mic cables I used before showed the Mogamis to be superb at bundling newspaper. ;-}

 

I have not compared Firewire cables as yet and am using the one that came with my ULN-8.

 

Best regards,

Barry

www.soundkeeperrecordings.com

www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

 

[cfmsp]

 

"The mic cables (or connection to my amps when I'm not doing a remote session) are Nordost Valkyrjas,"

 

gulp,

thanks much, Barry, I think.

 

At least your newspaper bundling cords didn't cost hundreds of dollars per foot.

 

clay

 

[bdiament]

Hi Clay,

 

The Vakyrjas didn't exactly cost thousands of dollars "per foot" but no doubt, they ain't cheap.

 

Of course, my cable choices, like all my other gear, just represent how *I* hear it. Like the old saying says: "Your mileage may vary." I've heard lots of wonderful systems that are the result of completely different choices their owners made.

 

For me, it was about the "capture" of the sound coming from my matched pair of Earthworks mics. The output of the mic array (a stereo pair with a baffle of my own design between them) sees only the Valkyrjas before it is encoded by my ULN-8.

 

Best regards,

Barry

www.soundkeeperrecordings.com

www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

 

[bordin]

Hi there,

 

I had a chance to briefly compare my ULN-2 against my friend's Minerva at his listening room on some 44.1 lossless rips. He connected the Bel Canto USB Link 24/96 from his Windows notebook to the Minerva, via S/PDIF of course, even he managed to find which port is the master usb port i.e. the best usb configuration..

 

In a short, the ULN-2 was miles ahead of the Minerva, in that configuration. I believe the culprit is his Bel Canto interface so that we tested the hypothesis by using the Halo as a Firewire-2-SPDIF converter. The result confirmed our belief.

 

Listening to music using a Mac environment, particularly with a decent Firewire DAC, is totally another world. I should have realized this fact a long time ago !

 

However, I still believe asynchronous usb would offer the performance level of Firewire's. Any one has a report ?

 

PS I also discovered that playing CDs with iTunes 9.0 sounds better than using lossless rips. Bits may not perfectly ripped by iTunes, I guess.

 

[labjr]

I don't think either USB or Firewire is superior to the other since they both can be run asynchronously. The interesting part is how well the ULN-2 handles the SPDIF input. I don't know if I would call the Bel Canto the culprit as if it messed up the SPDIF conversion only for the Minerva and somehow gave the ULN-2 an unfair advantage. It appears the ULN-2 just has better clocking or reclocking of the SPDIF input than both the Bel Canto or the Minerva. Not really surprising. Just nails home Barry's point that it's not necessarily the interface or technology but the performance of the whole product.

 

 

 

[cfmsp]

 

Re the clock in the ULN-2, it was updated with the addition of the 2D card, a $550 upgrade that can be added to any previous model ULN-2 to bring it up to best possible performance.

 

I know Bordin's ULN-2 has the 2D, he emailed when he made his purchase.

 

Labjr, I agree with your observations above.

 

Bob Katz convinced me that the single most important characteristic in digital playback is a very high quality clock IN the DAC that is used as the Master Clock.

 

enjoy,

clay

 

 

 

 

[ackcheng]

Hello clay, Barry

 

while you are on cables. Have you tried Zaolla? I wonder if it is just hype!

 

Arthur

 

[cfmsp]

 

Bordin,

 

Did you listen via the Minerva's Firewire input? If not, you probably did not hear it at it's best.

 

 

"Listening to music using a Mac environment, particularly with a decent Firewire DAC, is totally another world. I should have realized this fact a long time ago !"

 

enjoy yourself!

 

clay

 

 

[bordin]

Clay & labjr,

 

Yes, my unit has the D2 card and DSP enabled.

 

In the unfair "competition", the ULN-2 was played via Firewire connection, obviously the best sounding configuration, while the Minerva was fed by the Bel Canto usb converter from an XP notebook.

 

I also had a chance to compare AES/EBU v.s. Firewire inputs of the ULN-2. My Lynx AES16e card was installed in the same machine. The music played through the AES/EBU of the Lynx AES16e sounds "muddy" compared to Firewire's in which sound stage and dynamics is also significantly better. I'm not sure what is the weakness whether the jitter from the AES16e or the conversion process in side the ULN-2.

 

It was recommended by a support engineer at Metric Halo to set the Halo as the master clock (Internal) and connect the Lynx AES16e through one of the AES/EBU inputs or the World Clock input. Then, salve the Lynx card to either channel. The SynchroLock works perfectly as the green light LED shows on the Lynx Mixer dialog.

 

Even with this synchronous reclocking configuration, the Firewire connection still outperforms the AES/EBU feed (a lot). In addition, the AES16e output on Windows XP sounds (Foobar2000 ASIO) worse than on OSX !! This should be from differences of audio processing capacilities inside Windows and OSX.

 

IMHO, Firewire-S/PDIF conversion of the ULN-2 is at very high quality, i.e. the best in my experience. But the Firewire (along with other components inside the ULN-2) wins hands down.

 

[Telstar]

Yes, they both are asyncronous (if implemented well), but I find firewire to be more immune of interferences from other devices. Find me a computer that doesn't use another USB device or two.

 

USB 3.0 will bring some real improvements, hoping as well a native audio driver class. Until then, firewire wins hands down.

Now, if only the manufacturers would dare to write drivers for windows...

 

[bdiament]

Hi Arthur,

 

I have not yet heard the Zaolla cables.

 

I see their website mentions silver conductors but I don't see anything about the outer jacket material or anything else.

 

Best regards,

Barry

www.soundkeeperrecordings.com

www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

 

 

[DanRubin]

I'm a little unclear about the details of the competition. To my mind, what needs to be compared is the ULN-2 as a Firewire DAC vs. the Minerva as a Firewire DAC. In other words, for both: Firewire in, analog out to preamp. Was this done?

 

People have reported that the Minerva is just so-so as a DAC through its other digital inputs, so comparing it with SPDIF in from the Lynx vs. the ULN-2 via Firewire is not an apples to apples kind of thing.

 

[bordin]

Hi Dan,

 

> for both: Firewire in, analog out to preamp. Was this done?

 

No, it wasn't. The Windows notebook doesn't have a Firewire port. It was just an exploration on what were available at my friend's place, the Bel Canto USB Converter. If I stop by his place next time, then I'll do a fair competition. :-)

 

[DanRubin]

Thanks Bordin. And you said: "PS I also discovered that playing CDs with iTunes 9.0 sounds better than using lossless rips. Bits may not perfectly ripped by iTunes, I guess."

 

This doesn't sound right to me, but I'm very curious about it.

 

[DanRubin]

If I purchase a ULN-2, am I correct that I will need some kind of TRS adapter to get analog out to balanced interconnects? Any recommendations? I want to be sure to order the right parts.

 

[bdiament]

Hi Dan,

 

Yes, the outputs are on pairs of balanced TRS connectors. There are monitor outs to feed power amps directly or analog outs, which can be taken to a preamp (if you wanted to use one).

 

You'd need either male TRS at one end of your cable or TRS to XLR adapters.

 

Best regards,

Barry

www.soundkeeperrecordings.com

www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

 

[DanRubin]

Thanks Barry. Any particular brand of adapter you recommend, or source for getting them?

 

Dan

 

[bdiament]

Hi Dan,

 

I haven't compared many adapters.

Neutrik makes some nice ones.

 

Check markertek.com

(Look for "audio adapters", then "phone to XLR".)

 

Hope this helps.

 

Best regards,

Barry

www.soundkeeperrecordings.com

www.barrydiamentaudio.com

 

 

[cfmsp]

 

"Check markertek.com"

 

Neutrik is what I use.

3-pole model is for stereo, so get the 2-pole model, NYS224 is the keyword.

 

shipping will cost much more than the adapters.

 

clay

 

 

[ciamara]

If there a couple of brave volunteers that would like to do some comparing at our showroom, I can make a half day available for you. We have the Weiss Minerva, Weiss DAC2, SS Model 4, Berkeley Alpha DAC and Lavry DA11. We will also have a second set of speakers in a couple of weeks (2-way bookshelf design with 7" hexacone woofer and folded ribbon tweeter), to offset the giant ones in here. I may also have the new Bricasti DAC in a few weeks, but more than likely, that will arrive in the new year.

 

I'll keep my opinions out of the equation here, in order to avoid even the appearance of a conflict -- as most of you know, we carry all of these products. I'm merely making the space available for you -- if you want it -- and I will leave it to you all to share your thoughts and opinions.