Behringer ADA8000 modifications..

[mike_relay]

i used the 33079s that Jakob suggested. With all this renewed interest, I keep on meaning to to take another look at mine and do some more listening tests.. and maybe fix the channels that are distorting.... :?

<snip>

 

[redwood]

I thought I saw a post in this thread about someone modifying an ADA8000 to bypass the AD/DA sections and using it as an analog mic pre, but now I can't seem to find it.

Looking at the schematic it doesn't look like it would be difficult, but I'm not sure what would be best. Any suggestions?

thanks

 

[HappyTom]

I got one running analog with some AD/DA convertions on the way..
Just connect the optic out to optic in and there you got it. :grin:

HT

 

[redwood]

yeah that's what we're doing now, i just wanted to do away with the conversion

 

[clintrubber]

[quote author="redwood"]yeah that's what we're doing now, i just wanted to do away with the conversion[/quote]
About time to make that mod myself.

Get the schematic from the gmail-account and read on:
I figure it'd be the easiest to
(1) remove the 220 resistors (R3,4 etc),
(2) remove C91,92, R 100,
(3) replace R99,101 by ~ 220 Ohm or more
(4) connect the XLR to the point where originally the minus of C91,92 was.
(5) optional: replace C108 by a short and R283 with a lower value
(6) check for polarity-preservation
(7) repeat for all channels

This just by looking at the schematic; haven't checked if this is also the most convenient approach when taking the actual component locations on the PCBs into account.

Use a DPDT if you want to make it switchable.

Regards,

Peter

 

[karloff70]

Waking up an oldie......

Did anyone ever mod the analog output stage with a definite improvement occuring? Op-amps?

 

[thehazardharke]

Did anyone ever come up with an Idea for the ada800??

 

[Siegfried Meier]

Having messed around with the unit for some time, I've found it to be quite good-sounding as it is, stock.

I'm not sure that modifying will bring any significant improvement other than the obvious - it not being a Beh* anymore.

But this legitimizing may be important in some setups..

Jakob E.

So, can anyone confirm similar comments?  I need to put together a simple remote rig for tracking some bands in obscure locations.  The only other option for keeping a light load and simplicity is a Digimax LT.  Are the Digimax converters and pres really that much more worth it?  The ADA sells for $188 USD now, and you can get a B-Stock Digimax for $550 USD.

Thanks!
Sig

 

[Whoops]

To be honest,
there's nothing in the market that beats the ADA for it's price.

The difference in quality between the ADa and the Digimax is really small compared to the difference in price.

 

[valvehead]

So, can anyone confirm similar comments?  I need to put together a simple remote rig for tracking some bands in obscure locations.  The only other option for keeping a light load and simplicity is a Digimax LT.  Are the Digimax converters and pres really that much more worth it?  The ADA sells for $188 USD now, and you can get a B-Stock Digimax for $550 USD.

Thanks!
Sig

I have (begrudgingly) used ADA's before. They don't sound bad, but they don't handle complex sounds very well. Channel crosstalk is pretty bad, but it isn't too much trouble if you keep similar signals on adjacent channels. They are also quite sensitive to EMI. For the price they are absolutely impossible to beat though.

I recently picked up a couple of used Digimax LT's for about $400 each. So far I have only done a little testing with a stereo pair of Oktava MK012 hypers at band practice. I'm pretty impressed. They are quite clear and smooth. I've got a couple of recording sessions coming up in mid April. I'll see how well they hold up with a full load of mics then, but I'm pretty confident that the sonic improvement over the ADA's is more than just subtle. The biggest difference is of course the build quality.

Other things I like about the Digimax LT? Jacks are on the back! Inserts, phantom and pad switches on each channel. Oh, and there's something very subjectively appealing about a unit that gives off a lot of heat ;D

Could the ADA be improved through DIY upgrades? Sure, but my biggest beefs (crosstalk and EMI problems) would require major layout redesign.

 

[lofi]

I record punk/metal/extreme metal mainly and never noticed a problem with the ada8000's. I bypassed the pres to just use the ones on my console but didnt have a prob with the stock units.

then again, not the most sonically demanding source material to compare it to

Iain

 

[Whoops]

I record punk/metal/extreme metal mainly and never noticed a problem with the ada8000's. I bypassed the pres to just use the ones on my console but didnt have a prob with the stock units.

then again, not the most sonically demanding source material to compare it to

Iain

Hi,
How did you bypassed the Pres on the ADA8000?

 

[clintrubber]

Hi,
How did you bypassed the Pres on the ADA8000?

Hi,

That info must be in one of the previous (by you bypassed  ) pages of this thread.

Bye,

  Peter

 

[Whoops]

I haven't bypassed any page.

There's different ways of doing this,
I'm just interested on how did Lofi choose to do this.

thanks

 

[lofi]

the wrong way no doubt : but it works for my set up

take the front panel off
disconnect the molex from the main pcb
each xlr now has three pins clearly viable on the back of the F/P pcb
theres 5 wires to the molex, single red and 4 black
red is Hot, black next to it is Cold and middle black is shield (Think thats it, but best to check continuity to be sure)
theres an smd thingy in line with each of the pin tracks, unsolder them and check that the pins are now isolated
get a soldering iron nice and hot and heat each of the pins till it flows and insert a wire into each (there hollow )
now clip the red wire and the first two black wires (immediately next to the red)
solder a resistor in to each of the lines*
reconnect the molex and reassemble

voila, plug your outboard in and go for it, the signal and clip meters still work as well.

*cant remember the size of resistor I used here, the totally unscientific method I used was to connect the front and rear xlr's together via a mic lead, played a tone through my daw and recorded it back in, set the resistor to a level where the recorded tone came in at the same level as the played tone.

I use the daw's metering for my levels and not had a prob yet, when I get more time I might experiment again to see how a lower resistor works, but my DIY skills arn't at smd levels so further mods are unlikely here

Iain

 

[clintrubber]

I haven't bypassed any page.

There's different ways of doing this,
I'm just interested on how did Lofi choose to do this.

thanks

Oops, sorry, I misread your message for a request for cut & clear info
instead of jumping into the thread-pile yourself.
It wasn't.

All the best,

  Peter

 

[Whoops]

No worries Peter, thanks.

Nice one Iain, if it works it works, that's the most important part of it.
Do you notice a sound improvement by not using the pres?

About the resistor, you also have to check if the DA converter is playing the same level as the DAW. With some DA converter you send a tone at -5dbs and the DA converter is playing -7 or -3 .... , some other ones need to be calibrated also.
If that's the case you were calculating a resistor value based on the deviation of the DA converter and not on the AD.
Thanks a lot Iain

 

[lofi]

wasnt really bothered about a sound improvement as such (think there is a bit though) it was more about removing cludge from the set up

I control all levels from the Quartz, so didnt want to pass them through another attenuator section. as for the AD DA bit, I wanted it so that when mixing on the desk, or bouncing through it, when the daw sends it out at 0dB (K14 scale) it gets recorded back in at the same level, never crossed my mind that there might be differing levels :-[

maybe thats why i record punk/metal etc, most of this is about 25' over my head

Iain

 

[smallbutfine]

I guess the most limiting factor for the AD section is the Alesis converter chip, not the pre really, but one can make good for the pre bypassing at line level. And yes, I know there really was a fully detailed description around here on how to do it. The thread already contained a personal ear listening comparison against a crane song unit DA while mixing, but I really don't remember the name, sorry. The guy not only bypassed part of the pre, but also changed output opamps to MC33078 which makes not so much to the sound, which I would say is fairly good stock already and I suspect also the Alesis converter chip beeing the most limiting part. (Again, for DA, the changes in quality resp. pricing are subjectively much smaller than at the AD section). I also would say that the ADA already does a very good DA job and is worth the price just for that.
If you live up in a 110V country, please do your own PSU, this makes the biggest flaw of the whole unit in my opinion.
SSLTech already made a thread about this with detailed instructions..

Kind regards
Martin

 

[phishman13]

I have been following this post for a while now.  My experience with Behringer gear is as follows:  I try to keep it in my PA rack and out of my recording racks.  Whenever I go to Guitar Center ( ), I ask for something that does its job and is cheap.  I have had some graphic eq's and some compressors and they do exactly that... their job.  It doesn't make me shit my pants from excitement, but it doesn't make me do it out of disgust either.  They have been surprisingly impressive considering the price however.

SO. having said that, I have been contemplating grabbing one of these for my recording rack and doing some of the mods to kick up the quality a bit.  My question is a comparison.  Has anyone out there had experience with the converters both A/D and D/A on a Presonus Firestudio or a Digimax FS?  That is what I am working with now, and was really just wanting to see if it would be worth it to spend the money and trouble on these things, or are they the same or worse?