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[syndromeofadown]

https://www.minidsp.com/products/ht-series/flex-htx

MiniDSP has two new home theater sound cards. The single ended one is called Flex HT, the balanced is called Flex HTx. I plan on ordering the HTx as soon as Chinese new year is finished, for use with a 5.1 system that currently has 4 amps and an active sub.

With this I can connect both single ended and balanced amps / mono blocks / subs. It does seem a bit overkill, but there really aren't many other options. I do not want an Audio Interface, I do not want any Topping brand devices, I do not want any Creative brand devices, I do not use receivers. I Like to go from PC to sound card to amp. So the MiniDSP seems perfect, aside from the steep price.

Does anyone have experience with MiniDSP? Does anyone with expertise in these devices have any wisdom to share about this?

One source of complication i envision having is that the MiniDSP / Dirac software does a lot of what MC does too. I suspect I will have to choose one or the other to adjust many of the audio settings. Also, I think the max quality is 24 / 96 which is fine for me, but with Dirac (which i have no experience with) the max quality is 24 / 48.

Thanks

[mattkhan]

Minidsp products generally work fine and yes it does more than you appear to need hence costs more.

Why don't you want an audio interface?

[syndromeofadown]

Why don't you want an audio interface?

I do not have a great answer for this one, my opinion could be wrong about them. I have limited experience, but what I have I did not enjoy. It was over complicated on the software and hardware side. Too Many buttons, knobs, and options. Coincidentally I will be using one next week. I think it is a Tascam US-2x2HR Audio Interface. If you have a recommendation for an audio interface I will happily research it.

I like things to be dead simple. My audio setups typically are. Once set up, they just work. I feel like the MiniDSP is simple to use, but with the option to dive into the complicated features. My favorite DACs are the ones with USB in and line out. No software, one or no buttons, no knobs. And I need Linux compatibility.

[mattkhan]

So a simple class compliant 6 channel interface? Any particular output requirements? ie voltage, XLR?

[syndromeofadown]

The current preliminary plan for the MiniDSP is as follows:

MC Zone 1 (using 2 of the 8 channels) for music, 2.0:
2x XLR out to stereo amp that powers 2 towers. I do now want sub here.

MC Zone 2 (using 6 of the 8 channels) for movies, 5.1:
3x XLR out to 3x monoblocks to power center, left (bookshelf), and right (bookshelf).
1x rca out to active sub.
2x rca out to rear left and rear right.

The steep price of the MiniDSP has an advantage because it accommodates all equipment. Are there any audio interfaces that will do the same?

I think if I had to choose between a single ended interface or balanced, I would choose balanced. Most of my stuff has XLR and there are now many options for amps with XLR, even if they are not truly balanced. Even Emotiva subs seem to have replaced high level inputs with XLR.

So ideally an interface would be 8 channels, and XLR.

[craigmcg]

I saw that you don't want anything from Topping but I know that a few JRiver users  have the Topping DM7 (I'm one of them) and love it.

https://www.topping.audio/productinfo/862560.html

It has USB audio, 8 channels, and balanced TRS outs that could easily be adapted to XLR. It can also be adapted to unbalanced RCAs (I don't have balanced amps). The forum thread related to this is https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,134316.0.html

Another option could be the Okto Dac8pro if available

https://www.oktoresearch.com/dac8pro.htm

and a high end option I've seen recommended is the Exasound S88 Mark II

https://www.exasound.com/Products/s88StreamingDAC.aspx

[mattkhan]

There are certainly cheap Linux friendly options

https://www.tascam.eu/en/us-16x08

https://www.behringer.com/product.html?modelCode=P0B2J

No experience of either, they certainly have knobs and buttons though

[mwillems]

So I have both a MiniDSP Flex 8 (a balanced eight channel device that's very similar to the Flex HT) and a MiniDSP 2x4HD.  I've been very very happy with the MiniDSP Flex 8.  It really is set and forget and is a nice low noise device that's easy to interact with.  If you only need USB inputs and don't need HDMI or analog inputs, you might want to consider the Flex 8 instead of the HTx (it's cheaper, and the main difference is that the Flex 8 only has USB and bluetooth inputs).

The 2x4HD worked well for more than a year, but eventually developed an intermittent power fault (where the power supply connects to the box) that would put the box into a failed state and require a restart every so often.  I had to replace the unit and the replacement worked fine, but it was out of warranty, which was irritating.  The replacement has worked fine since then.  That was an older MiniDSP design though, the Flex's are all newer and seem to have a much nicer build quality.

The only downside from my perspective is that the device programming/control software is Windows only.  To be clear, you can use them as audio interfaces just fine on Linux, but programming them officially requires a Windows PC (although there is some open source unofficial software for programming them on Linux, but I haven't tested it and it's a little rudimentary at this point).  If you run only on Windows this won't affect you.

I saw that you don't want anything from Topping but I know that a few JRiver users  have the Topping DM7 (I'm one of them) and love it.

https://www.topping.audio/productinfo/862560.html

It has USB audio, 8 channels, and balanced TRS outs that could easily be adapted to XLR. It can also be adapted to unbalanced RCAs (I don't have balanced amps). The forum thread related to this is https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,134316.0.html

I also have a Topping DM-7 and am very happy with it.  I actually use it on the same system that I use the MiniDSP Flex 8 with as both have 8 channels that I need for my active bi-amped speakers and subs (JRiver connects to the Topping so it can control it fully and take advantage of JRiver's superior DSP, and system/web audio goes to the Flex 8, which has good enough DSP for video games and youtube).

Another option could be the Okto Dac8pro if available

https://www.oktoresearch.com/dac8pro.htm

These seem very hard to come by.  I've never seen them for sale directly from the manufacturer whenever I've been in the market.  Maybe I'm just unlucky   

[eve]

I saw that you don't want anything from Topping but I know that a few JRiver users  have the Topping DM7 (I'm one of them) and love it.

https://www.topping.audio/productinfo/862560.html

It has USB audio, 8 channels, and balanced TRS outs that could easily be adapted to XLR. It can also be adapted to unbalanced RCAs (I don't have balanced amps). The forum thread related to this is https://yabb.jriver.com/interact/index.php/topic,134316.0.html

Another option could be the Okto Dac8pro if available

https://www.oktoresearch.com/dac8pro.htm

and a high end option I've seen recommended is the Exasound S88 Mark II

https://www.exasound.com/Products/s88StreamingDAC.aspx

These were going to be my 3 suggestions in order. Thanks for reading my mind.

Or rather, maybe it's a commentary on the state of multichannel D/A 


To clarify, I'm the OP of the linked thread, I'm still using the DM7 and really have no complaints other than I wish they had a 16 or 24ch version lmao. Oh and proper non IR control for the internal volume attenuation would be nice. My next interface is *probably* just a used HAPI but we'll see.

[syndromeofadown]

Thanks eve, mwillems, mattkhan, and craigmcg.

I researched all suggested options. In the end I did order the MiniDSP Flex HTx. I got it and the TRS to XLR adapters. I did not get Dirac software as it seems like a nightmare.

There were a couple of cheap option for external cards:

Asus XONAR U7 MKII
https://www.amazon.ca/Asus-Headphone-Amplifier-Studio-Software/dp/B06ZZNR4HQ/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3W3YF92X0254F&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.2YHzxwQvvFbTThuySq59O2ReZHRemztZlMib3m7k-JeTssqaowqiVJacMRFsE-6IFOUh5DmGylPeFLYNjmuBaEAGoAqZiR7uSbovUZH3qzg.qCXE9wjIGU7bX4Z0ctf3tqvZVBbNajbPPzEarhAjSZ4&dib_tag=se&keywords=xonar+u7&qid=1708394156&sprefix=xonar+u7%2Caps%2C214&sr=8-3
I believe this is discontinued, but still available. I have the MKI, and it is fine.

Creative Sound Blaster X4
https://www.amazon.ca/Creative-External-Multi-Channel-Discrete-Optical-out/dp/B0953LL5R6/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3DEV41C717QVC&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.JwXqOCi9zqhY5eQTjeT1DMO1Qy-SdQJ1gmPtxpQTf1dNIkVvZIcIj1WdpwwreTlBfkrbm6TeM5JrhmoLNyvKQsecGzKVFp5BfsYHnp7t9TMPQnNRA-Gzhm4x1lWQS1QbwCHxLEMYr0fplZzZrWqavitJnO-QqEukrK9dPBdPKh6TTCOpgHXN3p9el-QZUNErCWztBKH5JjSS9ySiMfUEfHQTScN9SpPsV4huP2yphpU3TJJtKMmQDHDOmDWQipU-Q1oYOpUGozMJzZJaQym7HyzbSvrF4RFTRqSmmBhf4JM.hO4zEL_w-lKqWogidERfmagFG--_k7dLVjWvCBf7b8I&dib_tag=se&keywords=x4%2Bcreative&qid=1708394259&sprefix=x4%2Bcreativ%2Caps%2C224&sr=8-1&th=1
This one looks a bit junk, but I have always had good experiences with creative, just do not install their software.

I didn't look into internal cards, but I have no major issue with these. All of my pci slots are in use so this is not an option for me.

I do not have faith in the longevity of devices from Topping , or Fosi, so I try to avoid these brands. But I do buy SMSL, and now MiniDSP, which come from the same place as the before mentioned brands, so i hope they all last. The soundcard I am replacing is from 2008. There are no drivers for windows 11, but otherwise it still works fine.