The ADA8XR is a highly configurable device which incorporates a pair of eight-channel analogue interfaces and a pair of eight-channel digital modules - the combination of which can be specified by the user. Believe me - these are very good figures indeed! Design Philosophy Full specifications are available on the Prism Sound web site, but to give an idea of the standards we are talking about here, spurious anharmonic artifacts are stated as being below -130dBFS and distortion is under 0.0006 percent. While it is fair to say that the ADA8XR doesn't quite match up to the stratospheric specifications of the AD2 and DA2, it is still seriously impressive, both technically and sonically, and Prism Sound's veneration of engineering excellence is still very much to the fore. This nominally eight-in, eight-out system costs roughly the same as a single AD2 or DA2, so makes multi-channel working for surround applications much more practical and cost-effective. However, the subject of this review is a modular and multi-channel A-D and D-A system, the ADA8XR, which has to rate as one of the most complex and comprehensive converter systems I have ever reviewed. I have heard them described as 'severely uneconomic', but then we are well into the realms of diminishing returns, in which proper no-compromise engineering costs significant money! The company's flagship two-channel Dream converters, the AD2 and DA2, are probably the most technically accomplished currently available - not to mention the most neutral and transparent sounding too. Cambridge-based Prism Sound have been one of the standard bearers for conversion technology since 1994. Exceptional A-D and D-A conversion, digital audio interfacing in multiple formats, and Firewire connectivity make this high-end workhorse something for any studio owner to aspire to.Ĭonverter technology has come on in mighty leaps and bounds since we all went digital in the early 1980s following the introduction of the CD.
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