M•AD-824
Quick-Start Guide
4
6.) Select the Desired WORD LENGTH (16, 20, 24 bit).
Enter program mode and the Word Length lamps illuminate (the first function in the list). To
set the Word Length
,
toggle “Up” (
SET
) until the lamp next to the desired word length stops
blinking (16, 20, or 24 bits). The Word Length you just
set
can now be
selected
by clicking
DOWN.
Selecting
by clicking the switch “Down”
both
enables
the Wordlength you just
set
and
changes
the display to indicate the status of the next function-
7.) Optional SOFT SATURATION.
Again- while in Programming Mode if the lamp is blinking, the function is not selected
or is “OFF.” If it stays lit, it is selected or “ON.”
Analog Soft Saturation
This is an analog peak limiter to help protect against overloads. The MAX lights still indicate
when the maximum input level of the converter is exceeded and the resulting digital
waveform will be “clipped.” An internal 3-position jumper, J6, enables the threshold to be
lowered or raised for the analog soft saturation feature. Please refer to the LavryBlue
Operations Manual for details.
Digital Soft Saturation
Select this option to emulate an overdrive condition of magnetic tape. Signal levels below -12
dBFS digital are raised 6db’s. Above this level, a transfer function that emulates analog tape
saturation is applied to the waveform. As a result signal peaks that would have reached
“0dBFS”are reduced by 6dB’s. Please keep in mind that enabling this mode automatically
adds 6dB more level as seen on the meters of the M•AD-824 (for signals below the –12dBFS
“threshold”), so the point at which the “saturation” starts is “-6dB” on the meters. The MAX
lights still indicate when the maximum input level of the converter is exceeded and the
resulting digital waveform will be “clipped.”
Please Note- If your music source has a fairly high average level, and the input is already
high enough that the signal peaks are near “0dB” on the meters, you may find that you want
to lower your input level when you switch this function “ON.” This may mean that the
increase in level is less than the maximum 6dB’s possible, but at that point (with that much
“saturation”) it will probably sound noticeably distorted. This function is not supposed to
replace a limiter, if that is what is called for. The design is optimized to prevent an occasion
loud peak from causing clipping if the level was raised in a program source that has a
relatively low average level with occasional peaks that are much louder- a “wide dynamic
range.”
The next two settings on the MAD front panel are METER functions, so they will be
addressed after the Dither and Noise Shaping functions. Click the switch down (Select) until
the Dither, ABC-1, and/or ABC-2 lamps start blinking.
