VanityPRO FAQ

[AP]

Hello,
This post will hopefully help to answer most frequently asked questions. I am sure there will be more, so we will keep adding the Qs and As in here.

Q: Does Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] decode Dolby Atmos?
A: The Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] does not have multichannel Dolby decoders. The primary purpose of the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] is bit-transparent LPCM and DSD audio data extraction from the HDMI domain with significant suppression of HDMI audio clock jitter and high quality DSD to PCM conversion. The device has been designed as an audiophile digital audio transport, not to replace an AVR.

Q: Why is the HDMI interface version 2.0 and not 2.1?
A: For HDMI audio transfer the HDMI version is not crucial. Apart from eARC, the extra features in HDMI 2.1 are related to video only. The Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] works best with devices featuring dual HDMI output, standard AV and audio-only. For audio-only output HDMI 2.0 is more than sufficient.

Q: Can I connect the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] to my AppleTV?
A: Yes. Any streaming device with a HDMI port can be connected to the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup]. The only thing to take care of is correct configuration of the HDMI audio output. It should be set to PCM, not bitstream. For sources capable of SACD/DSD playback, the DSD playback method also needs to be configured correctly.

Q: Are there any multichannel DACs with SPDIF or AES/EBU interface?
A: There certainly are, audiophile as well as professional/studio. Two examples below.

• • OKTO DAC8PRO [url=https://www.oktoresearch.com/dac8pro.htm]https://www.oktoresearch.com/dac8pro.htm[/url]
  • RME ADI 8 DS [url=https://www.oktoresearch.com/dac8pro.htm]https://www.rme-audio.de/adi-8-ds-mk-iii.html[/url]

Multiple units of high quality stereo DACs can be linked together for multichannel operation with common volume control.

Q: What are the word-clock and super-clock outputs for?
A: Some DACs (usually professional/studio ones) can be externally synchronized via word/super clock inputs to overcome clock recovery from SPDIF or AES/EBU streams. This direct clocking usually provides better immunity to data-induced jitter in D-A conversion.

Q: How does the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] handle DSD? Does it convert to PCM or does it output native DSD?
A: Provided the HDMI source is capable of sending raw DSD over HDMI, the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] can handle both scenarios.

• • Pack raw DSD into DoP (DSD over PCM) format at 176.4kHz for lossless DSD transfer into any DoP compatible DAC
  • Convert DSD to PCM up to 24/176.4 with a set of selectable filters to manage the amount of residual ultrasonic noise.

Q: I am not getting any audio with the “Repeater” HDMI mode of the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup]
A: The Repeater mode, as the name suggests, does not extract audio signal and it just repeats the HDMI stream from the input port to the output one. This mode is not intended for standard operation, it is there for EDID debugging purposes when the device’s internal EDID is bypassed.

Q: There are audio dropouts and playback interruptions when I change the input on my screen connected to the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] TX port.
A: Every time the configuration of the HDMI chain changes – a cable is plugged/unplugged or input is selected/deselected the HDMI chain re-initializes with the new configuration – EDID. This takes a second or two during which the HDMI stream in interrupted. This is standard HDMI behaviour.

[fabry660]

Could there be audio / video synchronization problems? Is there a delay adjustment on the vanitypro?

[AP]

Hi fabry660,
Good question! Allow me to elaborate on the latency added by the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup].

The total added latency of the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] has two parts. The first is the HDMI interface latency, which would be similar to any other HDMI splitter/repeater and is expected to be in the range of 1-3ms. The second part is the audio subsystem latency. For PCM signals this would be around 65 samples which is circa 0.3-1.5ms depending on the sampling rate (48kHz-192kHz). For DSD signals there is an additional 0.2ms delay required for DSD to PCM conversion. The total delay should be below 5ms. This added delay is due to the technologies and algorithms used and it cannot be changed (lowered). On the other hand, it is definitely low enough not to cause any audio/video synchronization (lip sync) issues. Please keep in mind that additional (an much larger) delay can be caused by DA conversion of the digital audio signal.

At the moment, there is no audio delay adjustment in the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup]. But, we are optimizing the FPGA code at the moment to free up some resources and add more functionality in the future via firmware updates. It seems to be possible to implement per-channel delay line to adjust delay of all the channels individually and independently for speaker placement compensation. We will provide more details when the new firmware is ready to be released.

Best Regards,
Pavel

[yuryzorin2]

Hi, can the Vanity Pro. Out put Raw DSD (DSF, DFF) stereo or multi Ch. from (Oppo 203) out of the Vanity Pro's HDMI outputs??
no conversions and no dop no down sampling. (Only native out)

thanks a bunch

[AP]

Hi yuryzorin2,
Thank you for your question. To be honest, I am not sure if I understand correctly. The HDMI output of the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] is just a video pass-through, the audio has been stripped down to be processed in the DSP section of the unit. If you are asking about raw and native DSD output, but no DoP, the only alternative that comes to my mind is SDIF-2 or SDIF-3 interface which then has nothing to do with HDMI. Can you please clarify your question?
Best regards,
Pavel

[fabry660]

What are the differences between the vanity for oppo and this hdmi product?

[AP]

Hi fabry660,
apart from the obvious things such as the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] being a stand alone product with HDMI input and different output options, there are a few less obvious differences. First, being an external product, it is not restricted by the quality of OPPO's internal power supply. There is also the dielectric barrier to isolate the noisy environment of the OPPO player. The signal processing flow of the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] is similar to the VanityHD cards for the OPPO players, but it has been optimized to make room for new functionality coming soon via software updates. So, all and all the [sup]VanityPRO[/sup] is much more universal product with eventually more features for multichannel audio, but if you still have an OPPO player with the VanityHD card there are a few less reasons to upgrade.
Regards,
Pavel

[Karl W.]

I am currently using a Lynx AES16e PC card for multi-channel digital out into 3 external dacs. This approach is limited to XLR connections, and I'd like to use BNC. Switching to your product would allow me to use BNC connections. I use Dirac live in my HTPC. I would like to output multi-channel LPCM after it has been processed with Dirac over HDMI into your device. Does hte device have any issues interacing with a PC?

I am currently using a Berkeley Alpha USB as well. The Lynx AES16e does not provide the sound quality of the Berkeley convertor. I would hope your device would be better than the Lynx for jitter.

[AP]

Hi Karl,
Thank you for your question. I think you can easily see the Vanity[sup]PRO[/sup] as a high quality multichannel PC Audio interface. We have tested it with multiple PCs, desktops as well as laptops with mostly good results. But, to be completely honest, sometimes we experienced issues with the Windows HDMI Audio drivers. For instance, the sampling rate was limited to 48kHz only, in some other cases multiples of 48kHz (up to 192kHz), channel count limited to stereo only and similar things. There was no general rule that AMD was good and NVidia bad or the other way around. In general, branded computers such as Dell were usually OK out of the box, some other computers needed experimenting with different driver versions, etc. We would be certainly grateful for more feedback from the field with different HDMI devices and configurations.
I would suggest to contact the distributor to arrange a demo so you can try it with your system and make sure it will work to your complete satisfaction. Should you have more questions, don't hesitate to ask here or contact us via the web contact form.
Best Regards,
Pavel

[Karl W.]

I will be using Jriver and it's driver to output audio. Also, I found that if you use an ASUS GPU as your HDMI output, all sample rates your device outputs can be transmitted. I have encountered these issues before and using the ASUS GPU solved the issue. Thanks.