M2TECH Young MKIII User Manual Download Page 1

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M2TECH

YOUNG M

III

HIGHEST RESOLUTION DIGITAL-TO-ANALOG CONVERTER

DIGITAL PREAMPLIFIER

USER MANUAL

REV. P

A – 8/2017

Summary of Contents for Young MKIII

Page 1: ...M2TECH YOUNG MKIII HIGHEST RESOLUTION DIGITAL TO ANALOG CONVERTER DIGITAL PREAMPLIFIER USER MANUAL REV PRA 8 2017 ...

Page 3: ...ons to other equipment in the system must be done when all equipment are off Failing to comply with this advice may lead to damage to the Young MkIII The label above printed on the product case indicates that the product when no more usable can t be treated as generic garbage but must be disposed of at a collection point for recycling of electrical and electronic equipment in compliance with the W...

Page 4: ...g every kind of amplifier The ability of setting the maximum output level to two values ensures that the maximum power will be reached even with the most inefficient tube amplifier whenever the YOUNG MKIII is used as a preamplifier The fully loaded remote control allows for total control of both YOUNG MKIII and most audio players running on the computer attached to its USB input as well as other M...

Page 5: ...omatic Switch Off 22 7 11 Using the remote control function keys for quick access to menu items 23 7 12 Checking Firmware Revision 23 7 13 Connecting a Bluetooth source 23 7 14 Power Mode and Standby 23 8 Using a Computer as Digital Source 25 8 1 Plug n Play Operation with Apple OSX 25 8 1 1 DSD files playback with Mac 28 8 2 Plug n Play Operation with Linux 28 8 2 1 DSD files playback with Linux ...

Page 7: ...il dealer Remove the YOUNG MKIII from the box and place it onto a stable base far from heat sources Avoid full sunlight on the unit Allow for ample room around the unit for venting The YOUNG MKIII is a high efficiency device therefore it doesn t produce relevant heat during its operation Regardless it s recommended to guarantee an adequate air flow around the unit Moreover every time it will mainl...

Page 9: ...s in standby mode this LED blinks to indicate to the user that the device can be switched on by the included remote control This LED is steadily lit during the firmware update procedure 3 IR receiver Aim the remote control to this point to send commands to the YOUNG MKIII 4 Display Multifunction OLED display During normal operation it indicates the listening level the selected source the swampling...

Page 11: ...send hot on pin 2 return cold on pin 3 If your amplifier requires hot on pin 3 and cold on pin 2 the connection will be inverting In this case the absolute phase can be obtained using the phase feature of the YOUNG MKIII please refer to chapter 7 for more details 7 Analog input Connect an analogue source provided with single ended line level output Female stereo RCA socket 8 AES EBU digital input ...

Page 12: ...is antenna clear from metal shields or covers 13 Power mode switch Enables and disables immediate operation as soon as power is applied 14 Power supply input Connect the connector from the stock 15V 1 2A adaptor or from the Van Der Graaf MkII 5 5 2 1mm jack with positive on tip 15 Trigger output Connect to the trigger input of any other device accepting 12VDC Female 3 5mm jack ...

Page 13: ...ged push and for awakening it DIM Display dimming DAC Instructs the remote to send commands using the DAC system code PHASE Analogue output phase toggle MENU Configuration menu access ESC Menu exit with changes discarded Cursor keys Allow for menu navigation OK Menu exit with changes stored VOL VOL Volume setting MUTE Mute toggle on off IN IN Input selection F F Functions setting to set various pa...

Page 15: ...of any device accepting 12VDC which you want to power subsequently to the YOUNG MKIII turn on Connect the plug from the stock wall wart or from the Van Der Graaf MkII to the YOUNG MKIII power input Figure 2 14 Connect the wall wart or the Van Der Graaf MkII to a mains outlet Both will automatically accept any voltage from 90VAC to 265VAC Switch the YOUNG MKIII on by pushing the front panel button ...

Page 17: ...eaning the Unit The YOUNG MKIII should be cleaned with a soft slightly damp cloth Do not use alcohol or any other types of cleaning fluids as they could damage the unit Avoid fluids from dropping or leaking inside the unit Fluids of any type poured into the unit will void your warranty Be careful not to scratch the Plexiglas front screen ...

Page 19: ...is equivalent of the minimum level possible 7 2 Mute Toggle The YOUNG MKIII is provided with a feature muting which allows for immediately lowering of the listening level by 20dB without touching the encoder knob This feature is useful when it is necessary to listen to another person for a while or to operate the source to change track answer the telephone etc Muting is toggled by a short press of...

Page 20: ...e of the current source will start flashing on the display Rotate the encoder until the desired source is displayed Then press the encoder again to confirm the new source will be selected Should the user change his her mind and keep the current source it is sufficient to push the button to the left of the front panel item 1 Fig 1 or avoid doing anything else After a few seconds the YOUNG MkIII wil...

Page 21: ...configurations without losing the current one when it proves to be the setting preferred 7 7 Choosing the Maximum Output Level The YOUNG MKIII can be used as either a normal source when it s connected to one of the inputs of an integrated amplifier or a preamplifier or as a preamplifier when it s connected to a power amplifier The two setups require the YOUNG MKIII to provide different output leve...

Page 22: ...negative values with increasing magnitude indicate decreasing listening levels For example a listening level of 15dB is higher than a listening level of 20dB In steps mode the maximum listening level is 192 while positive values with decreasing magnitude indicate decreasing listening levels For example a listening level of 40 will be higher than a listening level of 30 NOTE Choosing one mode or th...

Page 23: ...s possible whenever needed to update all controllers firmware by the USB port of the YOUNG MKIII Therefore it s necessary to access to YOUNG MKIII current firmware release information to decide whether an update is required or not This can be accomplished by accessing the menu as one of the items is that related to firmware revisions Of course a user can t change the displayed values by the front ...

Page 24: ...ver and the IR receiver will stay on waiting for an activation command from the remote control another push on the standby key a power on command from the app on any coupled Bluetooth source or any action on one front panel control Standby mode is indicated by a LED lit on the front panel item 2 Fig 1 NOTE Even in the off condition the YOUNG MKIII actually draws a very little current which is virt...

Page 25: ...2tech biz Look under Products and then under Young MkIII to find this driver for download to your PC Below the procedures to set a computer for music playback by the YOUNG MKIII are described Reader are advised that some details in the described procedures may differ depending on the operating system version installed on your computer and the player chosen by the user the following descriptions ar...

Page 26: ...biz Figure 4 To send the computer audio to the YOUNG MKIII it is necessary to select it in the Sound window as shown in Fig 4 It s possible to set some parameters related to the YOUNG MKIII operation specifically the sampling frequency at which the Mac will send audio samples to the DAC by the MIDI Audio window as shown in Fig 5 ...

Page 27: ...isplay one sampling frequency that is the one selected in the MIDI Audio panel Fig 15 This implies a real time resampling feature by the Mac s operating system which is seldom welcome by the user In this case another player should be used which is able to automatically change the above setting like Amarra PureMusic and Audirvana Unlike iTunes other players need to be properly configured to use the...

Page 28: ...est using them whenever possible 8 1 1 DSD files playback with Mac The YOUNG MKIII is able to play music files recorded with the DSD format A player able to send DSD data to the YOUNG MKIII in a standard format handled by the DAC must be used As an example the configuration of Audirvana necessary for DSD files playback is shown in Fig 7 Figure 7 8 2 Plug n Play Operation with Linux As explained in...

Page 29: ...meters The window displayed in the figure lists two M2Tech audio devices they are actually the same device that is the YOUNG MKIII it is therefore sufficient to select any one to choose the YOUNG MKIII as the output audio device By setting the YOUNG MKIII as predefined audio output device we make it available to all those apps which rely on the operating system to transport audio This is mandatory...

Page 30: ...ease Be sure that your player supports DSD and refer to the instructions provided by the player creator or install a player which you re sure supports DSD 8 3 Using the Young MkIII with Windows As explained in the introductory paragraph to the present chapter no Microsoft operating system natively supports USB Audio Device Class 2 To listen to music files with the YOUNG MKIII connected to a comput...

Page 31: ...iz it youngdsd html Here you ll find the compressed folder containing all installation files It s a self extracting file automatic extraction is launched by double clocking on its icon as shown in Fig 10 Figure 10 NOTE files are extracted in the folder displayed in the window usually the desktop For a better handling of the installation operation we suggest to create a temporary folder and extract...

Page 32: ...ER REVISION PRA AUGUST 2017 Copyright 2017 M2Tech Srl 32 M2Tech www m2tech biz Figure 11 Once the files are extracted open the temporary folder or the folder you have designated and run the setup application by double clicking on setup exe Fig 12 Figure 12 ...

Page 33: ...e 13 NOTE It may happen that the operating systems shows a warning window first stating that the setup application will modify the operating system Close the warning window by clocking on the OK button to let the setup program free to proceed Connect the YOUNG MKIII to the computer and switch it on Then click on the Next button to proceed with installation The window shown in Fig 14 will appear ...

Page 34: ...w seconds the window shown in Fig 15a will appear If necessary indicate a folder of your choice otherwise leave the one proposed by the setup Click on the Install button When the Young is off YOUNG MKIII or when the computer doesn t recognize the connection to the YOUNG MKIII then window shown in Fig 15b may appear In this case follow the instructions displayed in red and then click on the Next bu...

Page 36: ...s clicked on the Install button the installation procedure goes on and a new window appears that shows the progress of the installation of the various files which make the driver as shown in Fig 16 Figure 16 At the end of installation the windows will show the complete list of installed files and will enable the buttons located in the lower right angle of the window border as shown in Fig 17 ...

Page 37: ...REAMPLIFIER REVISION PRA AUGUST 2017 Copyright 2017 M2Tech Srl 37 M2Tech www m2tech biz Figure 17 As suggested by the instructions click on the Next button to confirm the installation The final setup window will appear as shown in Fig 18 Figure 18 ...

Page 38: ...the driver installation procedure does NOT complete with setup end In fact the operating system will recognize a new USB device the YOUNG MKIII of course and will begin a search for the best driver which is the one just installed to create an instantiation associated to the specific port to which the DAC is attached Should this happen reject the option of internet search for the driver files and p...

Page 39: ...irectly launching the uninstaller that can be found in the driver folder on the hard disk The same application is actually used in both cases the choice is up to user s preference When launching the Windows applications installation utility from the Control Panel the window shown in Fig 21 appears this also lists YOUNG MKIII driver Figure 21 By double clicking USB Audio Driver for M2Tech the unins...

Page 40: ...AMPLIFIER REVISION PRA AUGUST 2017 Copyright 2017 M2Tech Srl 40 M2Tech www m2tech biz Figure 22 It s sufficient to click on the Uninstall button to start uninstall A windows appears that shows the uninstall progress like as shown in Fig 23 Figure 23 ...

Page 41: ...iz At uninstall completion the window will show the entire list of deleted files and will enable the buttons located to the lower right corner of the window border as shown in Fig 24 Figure 24 Click on the Next button to confirm uninstall completion and to close the uninstall utility One last window will appear as shown in Fig 25 ...

Page 42: ...h Srl 42 M2Tech www m2tech biz Figure 25 Clock on the Finish button to close the application At this point if the user launched uninstall from the Control Panel it is possible to verify that the driver has really been uninstalled by checking for its absence from the applications list as shown in Fig 26 ...

Page 43: ...ich runs in background and allows user to optimize the driver operation and update the YOUNG MKIII firmware The panel can be restored in the foreground by clicking on the M2 icon present in the right part of the Windows bar or in the peripherals window depending on the operating system version installed on your computer When the YOUNG MKIII or any other M2Tech device is not connected to the comput...

Page 45: ...ith the player Fig 39 Two drop boxes are present one for the buffer shared with the operating system and one for an ASIO buffer which bypasses the operating system and needs a specific setting As a general rule a small buffer is to be preferred when low latency is required e g when the YOUNG MKIII is used to listen to a movie s audio In any event a small buffer needs frequent data transfers which ...

Page 46: ...ST 2017 Copyright 2017 M2Tech Srl 46 M2Tech www m2tech biz Figure 30 For every device associated to a driver instantiation a setting window is available In these sub chapter figures only one device has been detected Device 0 In Fig 31 its associated window is shown Figure 31 ...

Page 47: ...own in Fig 32 Figure 32 The XMOS based system used in the YOUNG MKIII allows for digital volume setting Anyway we suggest not to use this feature as the YOUNG MKIII has a built in analogue volume control which has much better sonic performance It s important to be aware that in case of the absence of sound the total mute in this window may be enabled one or both M buttons pressed The remaining two...

Page 49: ...s necessary to access the Audio Configuration utility from the Windows Control Panel Fig 35 Figure 35 Here the user must select Young MkIII UAC2 as predefined device as it s already been done in the case shown in Fig 35 From that moment on every sound produced by Windows or any application which relies on Windows to deliver its sound will be sent to the YOUNG MKIII It is also possible to tell the ...

Page 50: ... a player able to directly interface to the driver using a transfer mode like Kernel Streaming WASAPI or ASIO all are bit perfect modes as they ensure that no signal changes occur during the transfer from the player to the YOUNG MKIII 8 3 5 Configuring the player FooBar and JRiver Media Center A player able to communicate with the driver without using the operating system usually delivers better p...

Page 51: ...Bar s root folder the ASIO file which is downloaded from the FooBar website is an application which automatically installs the DLL in the right folder without any explicit action by the user It only needs to be launched by double clocking its icon Once the operation above is done FooBar can be launched to access the configuration windows by typing CTRL P or selecting the menu item Preferences from...

Page 52: ...us a proxy file to send DSD to a compatible audio device provided with an ASIO compliant driver like the YOUNG MKIII After installing DLL and proxy in the ASIO section of Output two ASIO objects will appear Fig 38 the M2Tech driver and the proxy foo_dsd_asio Figure 38 Double click on foo_dsd_asio to open the configuration window as shown in Fig 39 Figure 39 Configure the parameters as in the figur...

Page 53: ...is delivered provided with all the needed features to support various audio transfer modes and the various audio formats As with FooBar we ll skip the installation instructions for the player Access JRiver s option window and set ASIO in the Audio section as Output mode Fig 40 Figure 40 Then open the window for the configuration of the output mode Output mode settings which is obviously dedicated ...

Page 54: ...is point JRiver recognizes the capability to handle DSD in both DoP DSD over PCM and native format From the dropdown menu which is selected by clicking on Bitstreaming select Custom as shown in Fig 42 Figure 42 A window will automatically appear in which the user can manually set the bitstream configuration parameters Fig 43 Set parameters for DSD ...

Page 55: ...n which is usually enabled to cope with all those DAC s still the vast majority which can only accept sampling frequencies up to 192kHz Obviously this would lead to trouble with DSD128 which is same as a 352 8kHz PCM stream Therefore access the DSP and output menu and set the parameter related to the processing of files with sampling frequency higher than 192kHz as in Fig 44 Figura 44 JRiver confi...

Page 57: ...onnected This feature is very useful whenever the computer is placed close to an audio system therefore away from the user who can now conveniently use the YOUNG MKIII remote control Three keys are present on the remote control Fig 3 which allow to start pause and stop playback as well as to skip to the next or previous track This feature is not available with all players nor with all operating sy...

Page 59: ...most recent update from the M2Tech website 2 Connect the YOUNG MKIII to the computer with the stock USB cable 3 Turn the YOUNG MKIII on 4 Activate the driver management panel by clicking the big red T icon on the Windows bar or in the peripherals window 5 Select the Firmware Upgrade sub menu 6 Click on Browse to select the update file just downloaded 7 Once the file has been confirmed click on Sta...

Page 61: ...4Vrms 0dBFS single ended with adaptors high 5 4Vrms 0dBFS balanced normal 10 8Vrms 0dBFS balanced high Output impedance 100Ohm single ended with adaptors 200Ohm balanced Signal to noise ratio 120dB 0dBFS balanced A weighted 116dB 0dBFS single ended A weighted THD N 0 0008 3dBFS balanced 1kHz 0 003 3dBFS single ended 1kHz Sampling frequency PCM 44 1 48 88 2 96 176 4 192 352 8 384 kHz DSD formats 64...

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