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New Amarra 4


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2 hours ago, mneveux said:

A4L has been running flawlessly for me going on a week now. I am using only FLAC files along with Tidal integration. I am really enjoying it.

 

Yes, it does sound great.  I've noticed the soundstage with A+ is more better defined, while A+L is more compacted.  Prefer the tone of A+L, but the detail and soundstage, to me, seem better with A+.

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On 8/24/2017 at 0:05 PM, DancingSea said:

Set the cutoff slope to 20 and pre-ringing at 0.7.  Did not use direct mode.

Hello DancingSea! I'm trying out the A+ Tube Saturator Vintage combination. Sorry, I'm new to this technology. Could you elaborate what the above means so I can try it myself and why you prefer an old version of Audirvana? I don't see these functions on the Tube Saturator. Cheers

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1 hour ago, DJ_Polaco said:

Hello DancingSea! I'm trying out the A+ Tube Saturator Vintage combination. Sorry, I'm new to this technology. Could you elaborate what the above means so I can try it myself and why you prefer an old version of Audirvana? I don't see these functions on the Tube Saturator. Cheers

 

Sorry about that, the settings are for A+, not the tube saturator.  I adjust the Wave Arts tube saturator to taste per each recording.  The cutoff slope of "under 5" (steepness, I believe) and pre-ringing at 0.7 was suggested to me by Damein, the creator of A+.  They are found in the "audio filter", and then "advanced parameters" in the A+ preferences.  It seems to reduce the "edge" in A+.

 

I tried A+ 3.0 but didn't find the sound to be different from 2.6.8.  I have no current need for MQA, thus have stayed with my older version.

 

I'm also revisiting copy_of_a's suggestion of the PSP PreQursor2, just wish it wasn't $69!

http://www.pspaudioware.com/plugins/equalizers/psp_preqursor2/

 

I still love much about Amarra 4 Luxe.  I switch off between them...

 

Below is copy_of_a's recipe for his plugins and A+ posted long ago in this thread.  I made the steepness 4, and the cutoff 0.7...  

 

"

FWIW here are my settings & plugins.

 

A+ prefs (from my Desktop computer with a little NAD D1050 DAC… but the actual settings are the same as in my main system):

 

Audio System -> Low Level Playback options:
- Exclusive access mode: engaged
- Direct Mode: disabled
- Large I/O buffer: engaged
- Integer Mode: engaged

 

Upsampling:
- steepness: 22
- Filter length: 500,000
- cutoff: 0,95
- AA: 100
- pre-ringing: 0,86
- Forced Upsampling: power of 2

 

AU:
1. PSP preQursor2*
2. PSP Mix Saturator
3. PSP X-Dither

 


Plugins:

 

preQursor:
- analog pre-amp: +8
- filterbands engaged but all set to zero
- output gain: -3db
- SAT: engaged

 

Mix Saturator 2:
- seperate Low and High filtering disabled
- saturation: 20%
- Shape: Valve 1 (the smoothest option)
- Mix (Dry/Wet): 65%

 

Dither:
- Mildly shaped Dither (Smooth NS „A“)
- (additional) Dither Shape: Flat
- Dither Level: High
- bit depth: 24bit

 

Now, as said above, it’s not my goal to exactly match Amarra’s sound.
This is less processing - A4 sounds bolder.
To get the same „richness“ as Amarra set the pre-amp of preQursor from +8 to around +12 and Saturation to 30%-40% (mix to 65%-75%)... in case you really use this plugin.
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7 hours ago, DancingSea said:

 

Sorry about that, the settings are for A+, not the tube saturator ...

 

Thanks DancingSea for that. I'm afraid the amount of new information is beyond my present ability to process.  I guess I need the computer audiophile plugin for my brain.

 

However, I can say that I have a preference for the Tube Saturator as it certainly makes the music I play much more exciting and gives the vintage sound and separation of instruments that I'm looking for.

 

I found that initially I was looking to replicate the Amarra sound, same as you guys, but for my purposes the Tube Saturator sounds even better, perhaps because the music I play was recorded in the 1930s and 40s.

 

I also found that when I apply Forced Upsampling the free version Tube Saturator Vintage starts distorting and slowing down esp. when using the EQ, so I think might have to purchase the new version.

 

I'll definitely play around with those settings as I'm still curious what they actually do. I'm actually quite impressed how much these EQ/Preamp plugins can improve the sound.

 

My personal sense is that Amarra will never be designed for managing music because it's basic purpose appears to be as a player for TIDAL. When I wrote to them they replied that music management features interfere with the sound quality, but I'm not convinced.

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5 hours ago, DJ_Polaco said:

 

I also found that when I apply Forced Upsampling the free version Tube Saturator Vintage starts distorting and slowing down esp. when using the EQ, so I think might have to purchase the new version.

 

 

According to Damien, the upsampling issue has to do with the settings in A+.  If the max sample rate for you DAC is above 192, which is the cap for the tube saturator, it causes everything to go haywire.  He said this can be overcome in the manual upsample settings of A+.  I'm trying to pin him down specifically how to do it.... will report back when I know....

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Still waiting for an update for Luxe???? 

Hopefully Sonic Studio working hard to fix some of the glaring problems like,

not being able to change track order in playlists

can't delete songs from playlist

can't delete playlists

Can't create playlists, change order and remove songs from iOS APP

& The rest

Any news Ralph on an update for issues your loyal customers have been reporting? 

:-)

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22 hours ago, DJ_Polaco said:

 

I also found that when I apply Forced Upsampling the free version Tube Saturator Vintage starts distorting and slowing down esp. when using the EQ, so I think might have to purchase the new version.

 

 

I went ahead and bought the paid version of the Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2 using their August sale coupon, 40% off.  I can share the coupon code if you want it.  Anyway, the paid version has 2 X upsampling built in, and it works without issue in my system.....

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On 8/27/2017 at 10:13 AM, DancingSea said:

I went ahead and bought the paid version of the Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2 using their August sale coupon, 40% off.  I can share the coupon code if you want it.  Anyway, the paid version has 2 X upsampling built in, and it works without issue in my system.....

 

Well, I've been researching the whole issue of saturation and how it works. Amazing. It will even help me understand my guitar playing. Anyway, it doesn't seem to be rocket science, as these saturators apparently distort the music by adding harmonics which had been added previously by the tube amps. I feel I understand better.

 

In the process of this research I found another free saturator: the Softube Saturation Knob

 

It doesn't look like much but I think it sounds darn good, and if there is a difference with Amarra 4 my ears can't pick it up. Tested on well known tracks of orchestral music.

 

There's little doubt that A4 is using this sort of saturation software as it would be too much of a coincidence that the results are so similar. Moreover, given that they're giving these out for free they must be standard fare in the industry.

 

I even think I prefer the Saturation Knob to the Tube Saturator, but since they're both free I don't have to decide. The Saturation Knob also doesn't have a problem with Upsampling (although I still have to find out that it does for me). Suggest you give the Knob a try!

 

 

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1 hour ago, DJ_Polaco said:

I even think I prefer the Saturation Knob to the Tube Saturator, but since they're both free I don't have to decide. The Saturation Knob also doesn't have a problem with Upsampling (although I still have to find out that it does for me). Suggest you give the Knob a try!

I found the registration process of Saturation Knob far too cumbersome to try the plugin...

 

The Tube Saturator Vintage (so the free version) attentuate high frequencies too much for my taste. As soon as you throw the plugin in the processing chain you'll lose spatiality and definition. The paid version ("Tube Saturator") has a second tube type (12AU7). This one leaves the high frequencies intact... Above all the paid version features a Dry/Wet mix button. This is very useful for fine tuning...

____________________________________________________

Mac Mini, HQPlayer | iFi Zenstream | Intona 7055-B | Singxer SDA-6 pro | Vincent SV237 | Buchardt S400 | SPL Phonitor One | Beyer DT1990pro | Avantone Planar II
Desktop: Audirvana Origin | Intona 7054 | SMSL M500MKII | NAD C 316BEE | Aperion Novus B5 Bookshelf | Lehmann Rhinelander | Beyer DT700proX

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Even though I made it through the cumbersome registration process, I could never get the Saturation Knob to work.  It caused A+ 2.6.6 to crash every time.

 

Like copy_of_a, I am enjoying the paid version of Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2.  Their 40% off sale ends in a few days, but $60 seems fair for what it does.  The paid version is much more efficient than the free one, which provides less strain on the rest of the system.

 

And I agree, having both a "Drive" and "dry/wet" adjustments is helpful, and the 12AU7 tube is very nice, though I like both tube options.  Depends on the sort of music.

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9 hours ago, DancingSea said:

Like copy_of_a, I am enjoying the paid version of Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2.  Their 40% off sale ends in a few days, but $60 seems fair for what it does.  The paid version is much more efficient than the free one, which provides less strain on the rest of the system.

 

11 hours ago, copy_of_a said:

The Tube Saturator Vintage (so the free version) attentuate high frequencies too much for my taste.

 

I tried it and I agree that it's very good for my purposes so will also buy it. Thanks for pointing out the issue with Tube Saturator Vintage. I did find it better than preQursor but still problematic in some way, so that solves the problem :)

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5 hours ago, DJ_Polaco said:

 

 

I tried it and I agree that it's very good for my purposes so will also buy it. Thanks for pointing out the issue with Tube Saturator Vintage. I did find it better than preQursor but still problematic in some way, so that solves the problem :)

 

CPN02425857065

 

Try that coupon for 40% off Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2.  Expires at end of August (couple of days).....

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I have most enjoyed using the Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2 with Fidelia.  For me, the combo more closely replicates, perhaps even exceeds, the Amarra sound with much fewer headaches.  Hopefully the developer will return to supporting Fidelia's evolution..

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14 minutes ago, mneveux said:

Does Amarra 4 Luxe have a shuffle mode. Can't find it. I made a large playlist of favorite songs but don't want to listen to them in the same order every time.

 

Yes. It's in the transport. Very annoying as it doesn't play all songs before repeating.  

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11 hours ago, DancingSea said:

I have most enjoyed using the Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2 with Fidelia.  For me, the combo more closely replicates, perhaps even exceeds, the Amarra sound with much fewer headaches.  Hopefully the developer will return to supporting Fidelia's evolution..

 

Is it still possible to get a licence for Fidelia? I think my demo's expired.

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On 30 août 2017 at 7:36 PM, DancingSea said:

I have most enjoyed using the Wave Arts Tube Saturator 2 with Fidelia.  For me, the combo more closely replicates, perhaps even exceeds, the Amarra sound with much fewer headaches.  Hopefully the developer will return to supporting Fidelia's evolution..

 

I tried Fidelia and I still find it also better than A4L. A slightly some more of air.
On the other hand, I prefer Fidelia with PSP PreQursor2, because with Wave Saturator2, it is just a little (slightly) too much "brilliant"

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14 hours ago, DJ_Polaco said:

 

Is it still possible to get a licence for Fidelia? I think my demo's expired.

 

Sadly,  I don't think so.  If you have a license, there are still active links to download Fidelia.  It has been removed from the App Store, and they are no longer selling it on the Fidelia website.

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hi dancing sea ...how are you? its a long tine we don't meet....i apologize for contradicting you but i have a very good news ...i have just bought Fidelia fro apple store!! it is in download just now...i will follow you next days about it

i hope to have another good sounding player as you and other folks have stated in these posts

ciaociao

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