SSL Alpha Link AX vs. Apogee Rosetta 800 vs. Lucid ADA8824

[space2012]

Found long ago this A/B/C ADC Test:
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/1271699-post151.html
& links still work!
when mixed i like Lucid midrange much more than the others.
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RichT
Lives for gear



Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Portsmouth, UK
Posts: 1,456


So the unit showed up today. We set up a very quick and probably-not-very-scientific test to put the converters through their paces.

We set up a small kit (as you'll see) and played a short passage of drums through each of the converters available to us.

The front end stayed the same for each take other than the converter.

The gear used:
Kick -> AT25 -> Buzz ARC
Snare Top -> AKG 414 -> Audient ASP08 -> Gyraf 1176 Comp
Snare Bot -> SM57 -> Audient ASP08
Overhead L + R -> Oktava MK012 (Matched Pair) -> Gyraf G9 Valve Pre

The drum kit was terrible! And the drummer, well he sucked! (it was me ) but you can get the idea.

Each converter was set to 24Bit 44.1Khz and clocked to our RME Hammerfall card in the computer EXCEPT the SSL (Here's where the science goes away). We could not get the SSL to slave to the PC at all. When the SSL was the master, there were no problems.

Unfortunately by the time we'd found this out we'd disconnected the other converters and as I say, this was a quick test. Otherwise I would of probably clocked the computer to each individual converters clocks.

Anyhoo, the files we have:

Apogee Rosetta 800
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/ApKick.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/ApSnareTop.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/ApSnareBot.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/ApOHLeft.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/ApOHRight.wav

Lucid ADA8824
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/LucidKick.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/LucidSnareTop.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/LucidSnareBot.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/LucidOHLeft.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/LucidOHRight.wav

SSL Alphalink AX
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/SSLKick.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/SSLSnareTop.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/SSLSnareBot.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/SSLOHLeft.wav
http://richtamblyn.com/files/ssl/SSLOHRight.wav

I've already formed my opinions on the differences between the converters. I'll wait and see what you guys think (and see if I'm correct in my judgements haha! )


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[lpkyer]

Thanks a lot for the test. To me the Rosetta was really the best...

[127Riot]

They all sound good. the rosetta seems to be more detailed with more bite.

[dlmorley]

I went with the SSL and in my own shootout I decided they were half the price of anything similar and a LOT cheaper than anything better.. For the money, can't be beaten.

[space2012]

Originally Posted by dlmorley

I went with the SSL and in my own shootout I decided they were half the price of anything similar and a LOT cheaper than anything better.. For the money, can't be beaten.

in this test:
A-D Conversion Test & Redux

the SSL is tested against AD-16x, digi192io, Lynx Aurora, and SSL int. clock vs. SSL with ext.clock and the diference is incredible.

SSL alphalink ax has a verry bad wordclock, but ext.clocked sounds close to the best.
the weird SSL midrange no doubt is wordclock, i thought it was the converters analog circuit design, but i now i know.

[Pierrele breton]

Originally Posted by space2012

in this test:
A-D Conversion Test & Redux

the SSL is tested against AD-16x, digi192io, Lynx Aurora, and SSL int. clock vs. SSL with ext.clock and the diference is incredible.

SSL alphalink ax has a verry bad wordclock, but ext.clocked sounds close to the best.
the weird SSL midrange no doubt is wordclock, i thought it was the converters analog circuit design, but i now i know.

Nice to read your post: your are the first I read about that: I observed the same thing on my own !!!
I'm very happy with my SSL on a external clock... Very nice gear for the price.

[Dubai]

Originally Posted by lpkyer

Thanks a lot for the test. To me the Rosetta was really the best...

in some DA converters listening dry Rosetta files sound better, but mixed(taking those files, making a mix, same for all converters), i liked more the Lucid.

Found: Apogee Rosetta800 A/D vs. Burl Audio B2 ADC

[billyindonesia]

LUCID sound better to me
APOGEE = dull
SSL = harsh

love the kick sound

[Lefrançais]

Originally Posted by Pierrele breton

Nice to read your post: your are the first I read about that: I observed the same thing on my own !!!
I'm very happy with my SSL on a external clock... Very nice gear for the price.

What do you use for external clock?

[krevet]

Originally Posted by space2012

SSL alphalink ax has a verry bad wordclock, but ext.clocked sounds close to the best.
the weird SSL midrange no doubt is wordclock, i thought it was the converters analog circuit design, but i now i know.

Im about to get my alpha link. Dont have much digital outboard gear so far, nothing with a clock input anyway. Do i need a wordclock right away then? Or should i only bother gettin one as soon as i start hookin up extra soundcards or digital fx racks?

[nukmusic]

i will check this one out.

[skythemusic]

Are there really problems with the ssl clock??

[schmuck]

Originally Posted by krevet

Im about to get my alpha link. Dont have much digital outboard gear so far, nothing with a clock input anyway. Do i need a wordclock right away then? Or should i only bother gettin one as soon as i start hookin up extra soundcards or digital fx racks?

I don't want to start an argument about quality, but from a technical point of view, the internal clock is regarded as the best way to do it lately. I am not saying that an external clock cannot not sound better to some ears, but technically it is certainly not superior. So maybe you give it a listen before you buy an external clock. I am very happy with the SSL converters (could only compare to RME 9632 and lately a lavry black DA - the ssl sounds great).

I think you are right that a dedicated clock really becomes more important as soon as you have several digital to analog converters (for the other direction you don't need it either- technically).

Edit: oops I just was being a smarta$$ in answering a well old question lol

[dlmorley]

Originally Posted by skythemusic

Are there really problems with the ssl clock??

No.

[elegentdrum]

Originally Posted by Lefrançais

What do you use for external clock?

I just decided to purchase the alpha link, and I hope the following logic is why the SSL clock did now work well for you.

When you ran the alpha link as master clock, were you using ADAT or MADI connections to the computer?

To my understanding, using the ADAT for audio and clock, is much inferior to using MADI audio and clock.

If you have a master clock designed to handle the lose ADAT clock I can see why you achieved better results is an external.

In general. The issue I have seen with digital streems in general is that any device will suffer a penalty for running with an external clock.

To get any two devices to comunicate digitally, one of them must be a slave. Unless they were designed to work together exatly, there tends to be problems. Also, once you create a feedback look of any kind, there also tends to be problems.

Most of my digital routing experience if from 10 years ago using a mix of ADAT and AES connections. Adat in general was poor digital transfer when two way communication was required. One way it tended to be just ok. (was using O2R w/adat cards, ADAT XT's, V8 Big block PC hardware system. In theory, that system had 8 tracks of computer and 24 tracks of ADAT running simultaniusly. In practice I had a rough time just getting time stamped transfers from ADAT to PC system and back to gain non liniar editing of 8 tracks. Back then I hated using the computer.