SOUND ON SOUND

[thomasfogg]

Hello everyone.

I’m looking for some advice regarding a 2-in/1-out digital optical switcher to connect a CD player to my UAD Apollo Twin (Mk II).

I have a Focusrite Clarett OctoPre connected to the Twin via ADAT. I would like to add a racked CD player to my setup, possibly something like the TASCAM CD-500B.

Ideally, I’d like to connect the CD player digitally (optically; over S/PDIF) to the Twin so that it appears in UA Console, and so that I only have one D/A conversion as the signal makes its way to my main monitors via the analog outs of the Twin.

The Twin has a single optical digital input that is switchable from ADAT to S/PDIF, so I think that what I’m looking for is a “switcher” that allows me to connect both the OctoPre and the CD player to its (the switcher’s) digital optical inputs and run a single optical cable from its output to the Twin.

So far, I’ve found a few items that might fall into the “consumer audio” category (aimed at home theater systems, primarily), but it looks doubtful that they could deal with the 8-channel ADAT signal. For example, the Inday DA4X-R SPDIF 4x1 Digital Audio Switcher, has the following description on B&H: “The inputs can be any standard consumer digital audio type such as SPDIF (IEC 958) format Audio, TOSLINK/Coax, DTS/Dolby Digital/AC3/PCM.” Should I assume that no mention of ADAT there means that the ADAT signal wouldn’t pass through such a device? Is there a more suitable solution you could recommend for my purpose?

Thanks very much!

All best,

Tom

[Hugh Robjohns]

I'd be tempted to by from an online retailer, try it, and return if it doesn't work as you require.

It really all comes down to how the switcher is designed and implemented, and specifically whether there is any attempt inside the unit to decide the incoming data stream and regenerate to drive the output.

If that is the case, then there's a good chance it won't recognise the ADAT data format, and won't be able to regenerate it at the output.

However, I suspect most of these units are much more simple that that and simply detect the incoming optical data and pass it without further ado to an opto-generator at the output... in which case it probably won't matter whether the incoming data is S/PDIF or ADAT format...

So it would be worthwhile trying and seeing...

[thomasfogg]

Thank you, Hugh! Before I splurge on the CD player, I'll get the switcher and check if it'll pass ADAT. I'll report back once I find out.

[seychell1964]

The Inday website says that the unit is ADAT-compatible.

http://www.inday.com/da4x.html

[thomasfogg]

Thanks! I missed that.