• Registered: 2020-12-28
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Topic: Old Fireface as Analog Pass-Through in Hifi-Setting?

Dear Fireface-Experts,

for the longest time, I've been using my old Fireface as a stealthy Receiver/Preamp in a Hifi-Setup with Active Speakers. I have connected a Streamer and a CD-drive via the digital inputs — should be ideal. But now I'm wondering about my Turntable going Pre > Fireface > Active Speakers. Would routing the analog signal through the Fireface result in any kind of degradation? I assume it's not AD-DA inside the machine but straight through, right? Thanks for your help!

2 Reply by vinark (edited by vinark 2022-01-26 18:25:09)

  • vinark
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Re: Old Fireface as Analog Pass-Through in Hifi-Setting?

No it will be AD DA. But going through the excellent AD DA will not cause audible degradation at all, It is beyond the specs of any phono preamp and vinyl. But you can of course judge that yourself.
Thinking it will destroy the analog goodness is a backward thought. In digital there is very very little added distortion, smear, phase rotation and noise. That is what some miss. But it is very capable of reproducing these things, when already there.

Vincent, Amsterdam
https://soundcloud.com/thesecretworld
BFpro fs, 2X HDSP9652 ADI-8AE, 2X HDSP9632

3 Reply by ramses (edited by ramses 2022-01-26 19:20:55)

  • ramses
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Re: Old Fireface as Analog Pass-Through in Hifi-Setting?

drehmoment wrote:

Dear Fireface-Experts,

for the longest time, I've been using my old Fireface as a stealthy Receiver/Preamp in a Hifi-Setup with Active Speakers. I have connected a Streamer and a CD-drive via the digital inputs — should be ideal. But now I'm wondering about my Turntable going Pre > Fireface > Active Speakers. Would routing the analog signal through the Fireface result in any kind of degradation? I assume it's not AD-DA inside the machine but straight through, right? Thanks for your help!

AFAIK you need a preamp doing RIAA decodation and bringing the signal to line level.
Alternatively being done later in sw, vinyl studio should be able to perform this (pls check).
Search this forum for RIAA.

BR Ramses - UFX III, 12Mic, XTC, ADI-2 Pro FS R BE, RayDAT, X10SRi-F, E5-1680v4, Win10Pro22H2, Cub13
  • Registered: 2020-12-28
  • Posts: 3

Re: Old Fireface as Analog Pass-Through in Hifi-Setting?

Thanks for your input. So it is AD/DA, after all. I am definitely enjoying my setup this way but I'm also prone to "magical thinking". Are there any RME products that would allow for analog pass-through? Love RME.

AFAIK you need a preamp doing RIAA decodation and bringing the signal to line level.

Sure, the phono signal goes into a phono-preamp first thing.

5 Reply by drehmoment (edited by drehmoment 2022-01-27 12:00:27)

  • Registered: 2020-12-28
  • Posts: 3

Re: Old Fireface as Analog Pass-Through in Hifi-Setting?

So, to answer my own question above: The ADI-2 FS has both a DAC and true analog pass-through. Any other options from RME? I get the impressions that "ANA" might not always be mentioned in more condensed feature lists.

  • vinark
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Re: Old Fireface as Analog Pass-Through in Hifi-Setting?

Afaik that is the only one.
Still my point stands. I am already 40 years a music creator ,creating magic I hope, so I come from analog, tape, vinyl. And yes they add something, sometimes magical sometimes destructive. The wanted magic is difficult to create digitally, although we are getting very close with some plugins in the music industry. Thing is that this magic, which consists of, frequency response, compression, non linearities, distortion, noise etc are not easy to create digitally, but are 100% yes fully recordable digitally. It is the perfection of digital which made people mis something, but it can also perfectly record and playback this magic.
Better put your effort where it matters, room, speakers, the music and your mood...

Vincent, Amsterdam
https://soundcloud.com/thesecretworld
BFpro fs, 2X HDSP9652 ADI-8AE, 2X HDSP9632