Topic: M10 vs 722 Comparison files & poll

[Nick's Picks]

I dont want to vote...because I have no idea which is which..so i dont want to say A is XXX and B is XXXX...because I do not have experience enough with either pieces of gear to make such a claim.

I like B better.  That I can tell you.
Seems more detailed and clearer sounding to me.  Both of these qualities are very, very subtle.  I have not even convinced myself of these results yet as I go back and forth.  If this were a fooler and both samples were *the same*, I would not be surprised...because they sound it.

[page]

If another test needs to be done, I'm going to have to borrow another preamp. The other thing I hoped to accomplish with this test was to establish what unity is on the M10. Without giving anything away, I'm pretty confident it isn't 5 and I don't think it is 4. To establish that though I need to know what the difference (if any) between the 1/8" and xlr out is on the Sonosax SX-M2 and unfortunately nobody has answered that in the other thread.

The V2/V3 have multiple XLR outs right? Since the M10 can (evidently) handle signals upwards of +25dbu, it looks like just converting from balanced XLR > unbalanced 3.5mm would be all thats needed and then adjust levels on the M10 to match via a tone fed to the lunatec.

[johnw]

I don't have my V3 anymore, but from what I remember it only had balanced xlr out and digital out. I never owned a V2 so I'm not sure if that has both balanced and unbalanced out. The Sonosax had both, but I think the unbalanced out is 6dB lower. I'm not sure if the unbalanced and balanced outs are sonically different though. If I could get an answer on the Sonosax, I know the settings on the recorders and could calculate unity based on the 2 wave files. I'll reveal all the info tomorrow.

[page]

I don't have my V3 anymore, but from what I remember it only had balanced xlr out and digital out.

shaft, you're right, the V3 has 2 AES outs, but only 1 analog out.

[johnw]

SPOILER WARNING

















A=722, B=M10

If the Sonosax reduced the 3.5m line out by 6dB and the M10 was set at 4 and is still slightly louder than the 722 which had 1.8dB gain added, I would say unity is probably closer to 3 on the M10.

[it-goes-to-eleven]

In the future, putting SPOILER and some space as a warning would allow those of us who are still listening to avoid seeing the answer by not scrolling down.  Especially with summer activities, etc, delaying listening.

On this material, it was a close comp, close enough that I wanted to do more listening (I only have headphones and a laptop with me), and isolate more small samples.  I was preferring A in blind tests, for generally sounding more musical.  Picking out actual reasons, source A seemed a bit more full (especially on the bottom), and the cymbals seemed to have better detail and more air around them, especially the decay.  The would be most interesting to hear on cymbals that aren't going through a PA.

Maybe the v3 comp folks are thinking of is where the a/d of the v3 is sent to a digital in, and the analog outs to the m10.

[page]

In the future, putting SPOILER and some space as a warning would allow those of us who are still listening to avoid seeing the answer by not scrolling down.  Especially with summer activities, etc, delaying listening.

On this material, it was a close comp, close enough that I wanted to do more listening (I only have headphones and a laptop with me), and isolate more small samples.  I was preferring A in blind tests, for generally sounding more musical.  Picking out actual reasons, source A seemed a bit more full (especially on the bottom), and the cymbals seemed to have better detail and more air around them, especially the decay.  The would be most interesting to hear on cymbals that aren't going through a PA.

Maybe the v3 comp folks are thinking of is where the a/d of the v3 is sent to a digital in, and the analog outs to the m10.

1) He mentioned it at the bottom of the first page that he was going to post the answer today. It wasn't flashing or in red, but there was some warning.

2) I did get more of a euphoric reaction on A, and I told myself I was fooling to think that the cymbal decay was more defined on A, but I thought the bass on B was thicker. All of this upon repeated listening I figured was just my brain playing tricks on me since I couldn't replicate the experience when I listened over and over. 

3) Na, I was just looking for another pre-amp with two sets of outs was all. 

[johnw]

In the future, putting SPOILER and some space as a warning would allow those of us who are still listening to avoid seeing the answer by not scrolling down.  Especially with summer activities, etc, delaying listening.

I modified my post. Here's 2 additional tracks.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=EP29YWZB
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=ZTQBZRM1

Here's the results when you're ready
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=FS5YSS5M

[ArchivalAudio]

interesting
it's fairly hard (with my current - temporary speaker set up) to hear the difference - except for the lower db's on B
but it's cool to hear they are so close
thanx
for the comp
--Ian