Acoustic research Ua1 User manual

user manual

Acoustic Research UA1

It is important to read this user manual prior to using your nre product for the rst time

Getting Started

Dear Acoustic Research customer

Thank you for purchasing the Acoustic Research UA1 High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier. This product will enable genuine high denition music

playback with high delity on your Windows or Mac computer system. You can also manage your music contents on your computer with the JRiver Media Center

included with this product.

To start using your High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier, please follow the setup instructions in the following pages.

1. Content of the box

• UA1 High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier

• USB cable

• Software CD (Acoustic Research UA1 Installation CD)

• Quick Start Guide

2. System requirements

Windows Operating Requirements

• Intel Core i3 or better

• Windows 7 or Windows 8 (32-bit or 64-bit)

• An available USB 2.0 port

• Internet Connection

Mac Operating Requirements

• Mac with Intel processor

• Mac OS X 10.6.8 (Snow Leopard) or above (10.9 or above required for integer mode playback)

• An available USB 2.0 port

• Internet Connection

3. General controls

6.3mm Headphone

Output

LED Status Display

Headphone

Volume Control

RCA (Right) Output

RCA (Left) Output USB to Computer

Optical Output*

LED Status Display

White 44.1kHz Blue 88.2 kHz Red 176.4 kHz

Cyan 48 kHz Purple 96 kHz Yellow 192 kHz

* Optical output supports up to 96 kHz

4. Driver installation for Windows 7 or Windows 8 (32-bit or 64-bit)

1. Connect the High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier to an available USB 2.0/3.0 port with supplied USB cable

The following installation message and error message will appear on screen. These is the normal behavior during the installation process.

2A. Installation through CD

• Insert Acoustic Research UA1 Installation CD into CD/DVD/BD Drive

• Browse CD content with Windows Explorer

• Double-click the folder Windows to browse the content

• Run XMOS-Stereo-USB-Audio-Class2-Driver-300C(v2.19.0).exe

2B. Installation through Internet Download

• Visit Acoustic Research web site http://www.acoustic-research.com

• Enter UA1 in the search bar to nd the UA1 product information

• Under the product information, click Downloads

• Click Driver for Windows 7/Windows 8 (32-bit or 64-bit) to download the driver

• Run the downloaded driver

3. After running the installation program, you will see the User Account Control

Click Yes to continue the installation process

4. Click Next

5. The installation program will detect the existence of the USB sound module. Click Next. If the program fails to detect the hardware

6. The license agreement will appear. Please read through the content carefully. To continue, please check “I accept...” and click Next

7. Choose the installation path if you would like to change it. Click Install to continue

8. Click Finish to complete the installation

5. Driver Installation for Mac OS X 10.6.8 or above

1. Connect the High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier to an available USB 2.0/3.0 port with supplied USB cable

2. Driver software for High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier has been built into the Mac OS X Operating System (10.6.8 or above). The Installation has

completed.

6. Default audio device for Windows and Mac

By default, UA1 High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier is an auxiliary audio device in Windows. While music applications are typically set to output

sound through the primary audio device, you will not hear any sound from the High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier. Please expect it as the normal

behavior.

We recommend keeping UA1 as the auxiliary device the following reasons:

• Audiophile music software requires exclusive access to the audio device

• Sound notications will still be available through system audio device when UA1 is occupied by audiophile music software

7 Software Installation and Congurations for Windows

• Installation through CD (CD/BD/DVD drive required)

1.Insert Acoustic Research UA1 Installation CD into CD/DVD/BD Drive

2.Browse CD content with Windows Explorer

3.Double-click the folder Windows to browse the content

4.Run MediaCenter190117.exe

5.Follow instructions on screen to complete the installation

• Installation through internet download (Internet connection required)

1.Visit JRiver web site http://www.jriver.com/download.html

2.Download the latest Windows version of JRiver Media Center

3.Run the downloaded le

4.Follow instructions on screen to complete the installation

• Activating the software (Internet connection required)

The required license key can be found on the envelope of the CD

• Conguring JRiver Media Center to utilize the USB audio module in Windows

1.Make sure UA1 is connected and driver has been installed. Run JRiver Media Center

2.Click Tools and select Options...

3.Under Audio Device, select XMOS USB Audio [WASAPI] or XMOS USB Audio ST 300C [ASIO]

4.Under Settings..., click DSP & output format...

5.In Output Format, select 192,000 Hz Output for Input Greater than 192,000 Hz

6.Close the DSP Studio window and click OK to save the congurations

8 Software Installation and Congurations for Mac OS X

• Installation through CD (CD/BD/DVD drive required)

1.Insert Acoustic Research UA1 Installation CD into CD/DVD/BD Drive

2.Browse CD content with Finder

3.Double-click the folder Mac to browse the content

4.Double-click the le MediaCenter190118.dmg

5.In Media Center 19 window, drag the Media Center 19 icon to Applications folder to install the software

• Installation through internet download (Internet connection required)

1.Visit JRiver web site http://www.jriver.com/download.html

2.Download the latest Mac version of JRiver Media Center

3.Run the downloaded le

4.In Media Center 19 window, drag the Media Center 19 icon to Applications folder to install the software

• Activating the software (Internet connection required)

The required license key can be found on the envelope of the CD

• Conguring JRiver Media Center to utilize the USB audio module in Mac OS X

1.Make sure UA1 is connected and driver has been installed. Run JRiver Media Center

2.Click Tools and select Options...

3.Under Audio Device, select Acoustic Research AR-UA1 [Core Audio]

4.Under Settings..., click DSP & output format...

5.In Output Format, select 192,000 Hz Output for Input Greater than 192,000 Hz

6.Close the DSP Studio window and click OK to save the congurations

9. Technical Specications

Product

• Acoustic Research UA1 High Fidelity HD USB DAC with headphone amplier

Digital-to-Analogue Converter

• Burr-Brown PCM1794a

Current-Voltage Converter

• Dual Burr-Brown OPA2134

Headphone Amplier

• Texas Instrument TPA6120A2

Input

• USB 2.0 (host powered)

USB Audio Specications

• USB Audio Class 2.0 (Asynchronous mode)

Output

• Headphone Output (6.3 mm type)

• Gold Plated Brass Made RCA (Right)

• Gold Plated Brass Made RCA (Left)

• Optical (TOSLINK)

Supported Formats

• 44.1 kHz

• 48 kHz

• 88.2 kHz

• 96 kHz

• 176.4 kHz

• 192 kHz (Analogue output only)

• Higher than 192 kHz (Supported through high precision conversion in JRiver Media Center)

• DSD64/DSD128 (Supported through high precision conversion in JRiver Media Center)

For warranty information, please contact the local distributor. The contact information of the local distributors is available on http://www.acoustic-research.com.

Warranty information