MSB Technology Platinum Studio ADC User Manual page 2

ADC Users Manual
Unique Product - a Long History
The Platinum ADC has grown out of over 20 years of DAC development. Analog-to-Digital-Converters, ADCs, like DACs are generally
designed with a chip from someone like Analog Devices or Burr Brown and simply put in a box. As a result, all which use the same
chip sound about the same. Years ago we at MSB broke away from this mode by designing our own entirely discrete DAC. In years
past we have produced several ADCs, but by the conventional method. Finally, we have now addressed the analog-to-digital conversion
problem with the same care we have invested in the digital-to-analog conversion problem.
During the development of our Diamond DAC technology we were faced with the challenge of making a DAC more accurate than any
audio DAC ever produced. The first quandary we faced was finding an accurate and automated way to measure the output. Our first task
was to acquire the most accurate ADC we could. Well, as you can guess, nothing we could find came close to the precision we needed.
So once again, necessity drove us to develop the best ADC we could imagine. As the design was not restricted by a product requirement,
we simply did the best we could.
Setup and Quick Start
Presets - A group of presets make the ADC very simple to use. Very powerful features allow complete control, including
channel mixing, but the presets allow the user to select the type of recording being done and the MSB recommended
settings will all be loaded.
Power - The Platinum comes with a range of outboard power supplies. The supply automatically detects and switches
between 240V and 120V. This is not a switching supply that works at any voltage, but a linear supply with automatic
switching of the transformer leads. Always allow three to five hours for the Platinum to warm up and reach thermal
equilibrium.
Inputs - Connect the balanced analog inputs to your analog source. You have a high and low level gain setting. Any
gain setting can be locked in with a plug-in module. Generally gain should be set at the source.
Outputs
Connect the balanced or single-ended digital outputs to any recorder.
Burn-In
The concept of burn-in is little understood. Does it take your ears some time to get used to the incredibly detailed and life-like sound of
an MSB product or is something actually changing? The feedback we receive leads us to recommend at least 100 hours of burn-in on
this ADC. Customers generally recommend one month.
Expansion Options
The PRO I2S output on this ADC is very powerful. We envision several upgrade options that could
be plugged into this output including:
Extended Interface - We can plug in an extended interface that can be used remotely to setup and control
the ADC. It would have large level meters, sliders and buttons for setup. It could be customized to
interface to an existing studio system.
Computer Outputs - This interface contains up to 8 channels and the clock at full resolution. The
first computer interface under development is a USB2 output. Other outputs could be developed as
needed.
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