Help w/ DigOut(santacruz) to SPDIF in (echoMia)

P

Paco

pH meter
Hi,

Can anyone help me figure out what I'm doing wrong?

I'm trying to get 2 more inputs on my Echo Mia using the SPDIF.

I have two soundcards in my machine - an Echo Mia and a Santa Cruz Turtle Beach. I set the Versajack to Digital Out on the Santa Cruz and used a 1/8"toRCA Y-adapter to connect the versajack on the SC to the SPDIF in on the Mia. I have a minidisc into the line in of the SC, and I know it gets the signal b/c I can hear it through the SC headphone out.

The echo mia console doesn't show anything tripping the digital in. (It's not muted)

Do I need a special cable? This is a generic radio shack y adapter for stereo 1/8" to rca.

Thanks!
 
I don't know if this can work at all. I'm under the impression that the SC s/pdif out is electrically non-standard - intended for surround speaker sets that suit it. Also, I think it's set up to transmit AC3 digital - that is surround format from DVD.

I might be wrong - have not tried it myself but have considered it since I have a similar setup.

If it could work, your cable adapter will have to be very short. A normal length of audio cable will seriously degrade the digital signal but a short adapter shouldn't harm.

An audio Y adapter may not be the best thing - s/pdif isn't stereo in the sense that it has left and right wires - all channels are "interwoven" on the one + conductor. I have no idea how the SC versa jack assigns the s/pdif connection.
Could be tip to +, ring to - ,screen to screen
or tip +, ring not connected, screen to -.
 
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OK Brendan...
What the doc says makes some sense. But you always get 48k out of the Santa Cruz so your recording project will have to be that rate.
I have an Audiophile rather than the Mia - to use the s/pdif inout I have to check "External clock" in it's control panel. Does the Mia have something similar?

I have a Roland VS-840 that I can use to input another 2 channels to the s/pdif that can work at 44.1k or my J-station has a digital s/pdif out too.

Preamps with s/pdif out are remarkably expensive for some reason, most cost more than the 2 items I mention are worth. Although Behringer have brought out something suitable - I can't remember what they call it!

I think your idea is worth persevering with if you don't mind having to record at 48k and then convert later to 44.1 for CD.

Oh yeah, PCM is normal digital audio. The Doc says you must select this output as the default in Windows sound. It may be that it only outputs s/pdif from a music player - and doesn't automatically route from the SC mixer. That is, you may not get a loopback from lanalog ine-in to digital out on the card itself. I'm just guessing that.
 
Amid the chaos before the Christmas meal, I managed to try this on my setup. I can get the SC digital to feed my Audiophile correctly, but try as I might, I cannot get the SC line in to feed the digital out directly although I can hear it over the SC analog output.
Only when I play something out with a media player using the SC does the Digital out carry anything.
 
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