Lynx Hilo Now Available

[CoolColJ]

Here is a frequency sine sweep and phase responce loopback with my cheap gold TRS cables
Not even -0.25db on either end.... Frequency top curve with the left axis, phase responce the bottom one with the right axis

Any difference in sound will be due to harmonic distortion and/or phase changes from reflections within the cable. Or software induced jitter
My other cables tested exactly the same, even if they do sound slightly different from each other....

[CanDude]

Originally Posted by Rev. Eslam

Greetings from sunny Manila CanDude and welcome to this forum!
The high-end Antelope are AFAIK the most expensive converters on the market so why pay exhorbitant prices when the Hilo fully satisfies one's requirements, both sound-quality and in functionality?

Thanx! Wow, Manila, my work has an office in Manila, I know some guys there. Haven't visited Manila yet, though. It'll have to do with the heat from my Hilo...

[CanDude]

I use Vovox Sonorus Direct S200 XLR to XLR cables from Hilo Monitor out to my Event Opal monitors via Neutrik TRS to XLR adapters. Do you think the adapters degrade the sound quality? Since my room is a mess it probably doesn't matter, but... and I'm mostly a can dude anyway.

[CoolColJ]

Do a loopback and find out

Having said that Loopbacks don't reveal everything our ears can hear....

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by Rev. Eslam

Greetings from sunny Manila CanDude and welcome to this forum!
The high-end Antelope are AFAIK the most expensive converters on the market so why pay exhorbitant prices when the Hilo fully satisfies one's requirements, both sound-quality and in functionality?

I think metric Halo uln 8 is one of the most expansive audioterfaces with multi i/Os but in the same time of of the best audiointerfaces.

While i think right now on the market Lynx has monopoly and Hilo is only one of it's kind and the best audiointerfaces with a small number of I/Os, but maby other manufactors will catch up with Lynx

Hilo is amazing audiointerface but I think the main weak points of Hilo are:
1) no mic and instrument imputs
2) no dual Converter technology on all analog I/Os like headpones out and monitor outs
3) no Thundrbolt and USB3 native support
And pobably Lynx competitors will take thouse weak points in to account


P.s. So how is going ur Hilo story?!
Did u aranged the agreement that Santa Claus will bring Hilo under the Christmas Tree this year to u?

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by CanDude

I use Vovox Sonorus Direct S200 XLR to XLR cables from Hilo Monitor out to my Event Opal monitors via Neutrik TRS to XLR adapters. Do you think the adapters degrade the sound quality? Since my room is a mess it probably doesn't matter, but... and I'm mostly a can dude anyway.

I was told by some knowladgable people that they told me: stay away from adapters ( and even a very expansive ones) as possible as u can. Have a cable with propiate connectors in the first place, because the connectors of the cable is the weakes point then even the cable itself and when u use adaptors it really degraded the sound.

P.s.
So that's why i never use adaptors and i would prefer 15 ft cable with a propiate connectors then 0.5 ft cable with adaptors on the both ends

[OralnHardly]

Originally Posted by Rev. Eslam

Greetings from sunny Manila CanDude and welcome to this forum!
The high-end Antelope are AFAIK the most expensive converters on the market so why pay exhorbitant prices when the Hilo fully satisfies one's requirements, both sound-quality and in functionality?

err...because it takes months to get an email response from the company?

I'd really like to have a noted ME weigh in on this piece. There really doesn;y seem to be a lot of users out there. Any noted engineers using this piece...links would be appreciated.

[Rev. Eslam]

Originally Posted by OralnHardly

err...because it takes months to get an email response from the company?
.

I'm "glad" it's not only me then. They need to hire more staff it seems.

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by Rev. Eslam

I'm "glad" it's not only me then. They need to hire more staff it seems.

I think it is not only u.
When i parchased Hilo there was a paper in it which was signed by Lynx CEO and it was seid in it if u have any ideas about improving Hilo email it to setern email and when i sended email with my ideas and then my mail serves seis the massege cannot be delivered because the adress u entered does not exist

[Jezzta668]

Originally Posted by Rev. Eslam

I'm "glad" it's not only me then. They need to hire more staff it seems.

This^

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by theguy

did everybody see the latest apogee offering (quartet)? it's pretty, and i bet the software applet is sweet, but if quartet sounds like duet, folks, i'll take hilo over the apogee every day of the week. ps: i have an extra new/sealed hilo i'm letting go for cheap. pm me.

I see u post about "u have a new/seled Hilo " awry Tuesday here inthis thread, i see u are badly wanting to sell it

P.s.

i just looked at Apogee web site, i pretty think it is a decent audiointerface , but it has too many I/Os, i do not think for 1300 dollars they can feat thear convertors on pair or better then Hilo's, i think that interface should be on pair with Rme Baby face or Fireface UCX or in the best case on Fireface UFX.
How ever i really like there aproach of touch screen

[chilly7]

It looks like Hilo from Lynx is not alone any more Rubicon Atomic AD/DA Preamp | Antelope Audio
i do not know the price but i guess it shoud be no less then Hilo considering the fact that it looks like the manufactor claims in using alien technologies again in their new product
P.s.
I know Antelope is known to make super stuning music equipment and by "stuning" i mean stuning!!!
So i think their new product should be no less then that.

[CanDude]

Originally Posted by chilly7

It looks like Hilo from Lynx is not alone any more Rubicon Atomic AD/DA Preamp | Antelope Audio
i do not know the price but i guess it shoud be no less then Hilo considering the fact that it looks like the manufactor claims in using alien technologies again in their new product
P.s.
I know Antelope is known to make super stuning music equipment and by "stuning" i mean stuning!!!
So i think their new product should be no less then that.

I think Antelope Eclipse is more suitable for this forum. Cheaper too, just $6k...
I think I've red somewhere that Eclipse has the same DAC as Zodiac Gold. I compared Hilo DAC and Zodiac Gold (+ Voltikus). Hilo won, bought it. Missing the Antelope smoothness a little bit though. I hope I'll see Igor Levin (mr Antelope) again next year at the High End show in Stockholm, then I'll ask him if he deliberately voiced the Zodiacs to sound "analog". Maybe he'll say my hearing is bad...

[Bunjji]

Originally Posted by chilly7

3) no Thundrbolt and USB3 native support

None of Lynx's products use USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt, but the Hilo, like the Auororas, uses a LT card which makes it possible for USB 3 in the future

[CanDude]

BTW My Hilo has played music 24 hours a day for 9 days now (without any problems, of course). I'm waiting for a black-faced Hilo. When I get it I'll just switch. Then I'll hopefully be able to compare a "burnt-in" Hilo with a fresh one. Anyone think I'll hear any difference?

Hm, maybe the black-faced Hilo will sound darker than the silver-faced...

[nms]

Originally Posted by chilly7

It looks like Hilo from Lynx is not alone any more Rubicon Atomic AD/DA Preamp | Antelope Audio
i do not know the price but i guess it shoud be no less then Hilo

Alone anymore? This is nothing like the Hilo really. The Eclipse is more similar. lol.. as for the price being no less than Hilo.. try several times the cost of Hilo!

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by nms

Alone anymore? This is nothing like the Hilo really. The Eclipse is more similar. lol.. as for the price being no less than Hilo.. try several times the cost of Hilo!

Well i think it is similar because it is DA/AD converter....
But looks like it is even better then Hilo in terms of converter technology and clock and etc....
The intresting feature of it is atomic clock? So does it mean it has a mini nucler reacor in it?

[chilly7]

And intresting topic about clocking in Antelope music products Keyboard at AES 2011 starting in the middel of the video, honestly i do not realy understen it but the men looks like he knows wat is he tolking about. Does anybody knows if what kind of clocking Hilo has? And what actualy it means?

[nms]

No but I know that you should forget about it and go make music lol.

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by nms

No but I know that you should forget about it and go make music lol.

No, to forget it
Yes, to make music

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by CoolColJ

Here is a frequency sine sweep and phase responce loopback with my cheap gold TRS cables
Not even -0.25db on either end.... Frequency top curve with the left axis, phase responce the bottom one with the right axis

Any difference in sound will be due to harmonic distortion and/or phase changes from reflections within the cable. Or software induced jitter
My other cables tested exactly the same, even if they do sound slightly different from each other....

what software did u use?

[CoolColJ]

Originally Posted by chilly7

what software did u use?

Room EQ Wizard - when calibrating the audio interface it allows you to do such a sweep and then display the graph
There are probably other tools that can do the same thing.

It is possible the difference I hear between the cables are a result of phase changes - someone did say audio signals can reflect back into the cable when they hit different materials and connectors etc

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by CoolColJ

Room EQ Wizard - when calibrating the audio interface it allows you to do such a sweep and then display the graph
There are probably other tools that can do the same thing.

It is possible the difference I hear between the cables are a result of phase changes - someone did say audio signals can reflect back into the cable when they hit different materials and connectors etc

Thank u

[nms]

Originally Posted by CoolColJ

It is possible the difference I hear between the cables are a result of phase changes - someone did say audio signals can reflect back into the cable when they hit different materials and connectors etc

There's a good reason those cables are testing the same. We nulled those cable tests down to noise floor. The only thing that could be escaping that would be microphony which wasn't present if you had your speakers low while recording those. I'm not sure how realistic that is though as I've never tested cables for microphony.

You should download foobar's A/B/X tester and see if you can consistently tell between those 3 I nulled. It won't be possible.

[CoolColJ]

Originally Posted by nms

There's a good reason those cables are testing the same. We nulled those cable tests down to noise floor. The only thing that could be escaping that would be microphony which wasn't present if you had your speakers low while recording those. I'm not sure how realistic that is though as I've never tested cables for microphony.

You should download foobar's A/B/X tester and see if you can consistently tell between those 3 I nulled. It won't be possible.

I'm speaking of the difference in sound when the various cables are used with the Hilo driving my Opals, which is not subtle at all.
There is probably an whole different impedance thing going in this situation which a loopback will not have - I think.

But right now I have the Focal SM9 running from the Hilo, using the Gotham GA2-AES and Neutrik TRS to XLR cable so that's whole new ball game
After spending some $900+ on a bunch of custom audio cables, short converter cables and wordclock cables, I'm done testing cables - I have to use the ones I got made or else all that money is wasted

edit - I will try that tester with my cable loopbacks in any case

[CanDude]

I've compared a burnt-in Hilo (silver-faced) with a fresh Hilo (black-faced), given 1 hour warm-up. The burnt-in Hilo was a tiny bit more lush with a more articulated bass, sounds "rounder", while the fresh Hilo was a tiny bit more restrained, a little bit harder or more "strict" sounding. I don't think it's placebo, but I'm not 100% sure I would pass a blind test either...

However, I'm very dissapointed with Lynx QC! It's very nice that they check every unit for finger prints, but it would be even nicer if they'd discovered that the headphone jack is recessed into the front panel! A Nuforce 6.3mm to 3.5mm adapter doesn't work at all due to no ground connection and a Cardas plug barely works. Brought it back to the store, they claimed they'd fixed it but still same problem. Bringing it back to the store again tomorrow, now I want a new unit. Fortunately I can use the silver-faced Hilo until I'll get a working black-faced one.
Lynx, please add a new test to your QC: plug in a HP with a Nuforce adapter or similar and check if there is a sound! Don't use a Neutrik plug since it fits into the front panel hole and hence always works. You can call it the "CanDude test"...

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by CoolColJ

I'm speaking of the difference in sound when the various cables are used with the Hilo driving my Opals, which is not subtle at all.
There is probably an whole different impedance thing going in this situation which a loopback will not have - I think.

But right now I have the Focal SM9 running from the Hilo, using the Gotham GA2-AES and Neutrik TRS to XLR cable so that's whole new ball game
After spending some $900+ on a bunch of custom audio cables, short converter cables and wordclock cables, I'm done testing cables - I have to use the ones I got made or else all that money is wasted

edit - I will try that tester with my cable loopbacks in any case

900$ for cables? I thought mine was the most expensive, i bought this one For 3ft cable
Hosatech Microphone Cable, XLR3F to XLR3M, 3 ft - Microphone Cables

It is so iteresting but i watched some videos and to improve sound quality u just need a very good clock like this Isochrone Trinity | Antelope Audio ? Anybody had any expiriense with Hilo or any other audio interface?

[chilly7]

Originally Posted by CanDude

You can call it the "CanDude test"...

cool

[CanDude]

Originally Posted by chilly7

900$ for cables? I thought mine was the most expensive, i bought this one For 3ft cable
Hosatech Microphone Cable, XLR3F to XLR3M, 3 ft - Microphone Cables

Just got my new Vovox sonorus direct S200 TRS/XLR 2 M cables for my Event Opals. €88 x 2. Just to get rid of the TRS to XLR adapters I used with my excellent S200 XLR/XLR 2 M cables... Had a quick listen, sounds good... I'll test to add TRS to XLR + XLR to TRS adapters or something to check if I can perceive any difference. Otherwise this forum just cost me €176...

[nms]

Originally Posted by chilly7

900$ for cables?

It is so iteresting but i watched some videos and to improve sound quality u just need a very good clock like this Isochrone Trinity | Antelope Audio ? Anybody had any expiriense with Hilo or any other audio interface?

Chilly, you're watching a video made by the guys who are trying to sell you expensive clocks. Would you expect any less?

You do not need to be wasting your time entertaining those thoughts. The Hilo is not a substandard device which lends itself to improvement by external clocking.

Also, I don't think CoolColJ ordered any frivolously priced cables. He just ordered a lot of great quality cables I believe. That's a hell of a cable order though still.