Hi all,
Some exciting news on the USB Output Module option! The board is up and running and one can get up to 8 channels from the HDMI interface via USB into a PC with the internal processing of the Vanity
PRO still engaged. Another useful feature is the asynchronous resampling to a fixed sampling rate. This module basically turns the Vanity
PRO into a multichannel HDMI Audio to USB Audio converter with:
[*] Option to fix the sampling rate - from the PC.
[*] Option to bypass ASRC for compressed multichannel formats or bit-accurate audio.
[*] External master-clock synchronisation.
[*] Monitoring stereo S/PDIF output from either HDMI or USB side.
[*] S/PDIF Input for added flexibility.
Who is this module for? Anyone who runs any kind of live (room) processing on a PC, uses a PC as the primary audio source/input switching device or needs to get 8-channel audio from HDMI to a PC for editing, etc.
The architecture of the module and functionality detail can be seen in the block diagram below.
Here is a photo of the Vanity
PRO internals with the USB Output Module running.
And finally, here are two screenshots of an audio analyser software running on a PC with 8 channel metering. The first one is playback of 8-channel DVD-A at 96kHz through the Vanity
PRO and resampled to 192kHz by the USB Output Module. The audio meters screen from the Vanity
PRO pasted into the screenshot for reference.
The second screenshot is SACD playback with 1kHz tone in all 6 channels, originally converted to 176.4kHz by the Vanity
PRO and then resampled to 192kHz by the USB Output Module. The audio meters screen from the Vanity
PRO pasted into the screenshot for reference.
We plan to finalize the USB Audio side of the firmware over the Christmas break and make the board available for sale in January/February 2023 together with the Vanity
PRO firmware V5, which will support the extra features of the USB Output Module.
Please feel free to comment or ask any questions below.
Best Regards,
Pavel