Digigram UAX220 User manual

D i g i g r a m
UAX220
Professional
USB Audio Interface
User’s manual

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For technical support,
please contact your supplier
www.digigram.com
Digigram S.A.
Parc de Pré Milliet, 38330 Montbonnot - FRANCE
Tel: [phone]• Fax: [phone]• E-mail: [e-mail]
Digigram Inc.
2101 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 1004, Arlington, VA 22201-USA
Tel: [phone] • Fax: [phone] • E-mail: [e-mail]
Digigram Asia Pte Ltd.
350 Orchard Road - #19-07 Shaw House Singapore 238868-SINGAPORE
Tel: [phone]• Fax: [phone]• Fax: info_asi[email protected]

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Table of Contents
INFORMATION FOR THE USER ...................................................................4
IMPORTANT NOTICE ..............................................................................................5
CONTENTS OF THIS PACKAGE ....................................................................5
FEATURES ............................................................................................................................5
Main hardware features ..................................................................................................5
Main software features ....................................................................................................6
HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS ........................................................................6
Software requirements .....................................................................................................6
Supported operating systems..........................................................................................6
HARDWARE INSTALLATION .........................................................................6
UAX220 installation..........................................................................................................6
SOFTWARE INSTALLATION .............................................................................6
HOW TO CHECK THE INSTALLATION .................................................7
Under Windows..................................................................................................................7
Under Mac OS X...............................................................................................................8
Under Linux.........................................................................................................................8
LEVEL CONTROLS ........................................................................................................9
Control Panel under Windows..................................................................................... 10
Sound panel under Mac OS X .................................................................................... 12
CONFIGURATION ..................................................................................................... 13
SPECIFICATIONS ....................................................................................................... 14
Configuration.................................................................................................................... 14
Inputs/Outputs................................................................................................................. 14
Audio specifications ........................................................................................................ 15
APPENDICES .................................................................................................................. 16
Schematic diagram......................................................................................................... 16
Connector allocation....................................................................................................... 16
XLR-3 ........................................................................................................................... 16
Headphone connector:............................................................................................. 16
Copyright 2005 Digigram. All rights reserved.
No portion of this manual may be reproduced without prior written consent from Digigram. The copyright protection
claimed here includes photocopying, translation and/or reformatting of the information contained in this manual.
While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy, Digigram is not responsible for errors and omissions, and
reserves the right to make improvements or changes in the products and programs described without notice.
Digigram and the Digigrazm logo, and UAX220 are registered trademarks or trademarks of Digigram S.A. All other
trademarks are property of their respective holders.

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INFORMATION FOR THE USER
This device complies with part 15 of FCC rules. Operation is subject to the following
two conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) This device
must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired
operation.
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a CLASS B
digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to
provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation.
This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not
installed and used in accordance with the instructions contained in this data sheet, may
cause harmful interference to radio and television communications. However, there is
no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation.
If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which
can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to
correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
* reorient or relocate the receiving antenna
* increase the separation between the equipment and the receiver
* connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that of the
receiver
* consult the dealer or an experienced audio television technician.
Note: Connecting this device to peripheral devices that do not comply with CLASS B
requirements or using an unshielded peripheral data cable could also result in
harmful interference to radio or television reception. The user is cautioned that any
changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible for
compliance could void the user’s authority to operate this equipment. To ensure
that the use of this product does not contribute to interference, it is necessary to use
shielded I/O cables.

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IMPORTANT NOTICE
This device has been tested and found to comply with the following
standards:
• International: CISPR22 Class B
• Europe : EMC 89/336/CEE (1992) specifications.
• United States: FCC Rules-Part 15-Class B (digital device).
CONTENTS OF THIS PACKAGE
Thank you for purchasing a Digigram UAX220 USB audio device.
The UAX220 package consists of the following components:
* the UAX220 audio device
* the user’s manual at hand
* a carrying case
Feel free to visit our web site www.digigram.com to get more technical
information, consult FAQs, and discover our complete and updated audio
product line.
FEATURES
UAX220 is a stereo audio interface for USB ports (compatible with USB ports
1.1 and 2.0). It is fed via USB, and does not require any driver installation of
(as it is compatible with the USB Audio specification 1.0).
Main hardware features
• 2 balanced∗analog mono line inputs
• 2 servo-balanced∗∗ analog mono line outputs
• 1 female ¼'' jack headphone stereo output
with potentiometer adjustable gain
• 24 bits/96 kHz A/D and D/A converters
• Direct monitoring enabled via switch on the box
Note: the input echo is mixed on the output with the sounds played by the
application.
∗can be used with unbalanced signals
∗∗ Electronically servo-balanced outputs provide automatic level adjustment to accommodate
either balanced or unbalanced lines

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Main software features
UAX220 complies with the USB Audio specification. Therefore, and
depending on the operating system used, it is compatible with WDM
DirectSound, ALSA, and CoreAudio.
Furthermore, it is possible to use a third-party ASIO driver.
HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS
• A USB port (standard 1.1 or higher)
• Minimum Apple Macintosh configuration:
PowerMac G3, G4 or G5 with 128 MB RAM
• Minimum PC configuration:
Pentium III (or equivalent), 256 MB RAM
Software requirements
Your UAX220 does not require any driver installation, because it meets the
USB Audio Standard 1.0.
Supported operating systems
Windows XP
Mac OS X
Linux
HARDWARE INSTALLATION
UAX220 installation
Connect the UAX220 to the USB port (USB 1.1 or 2.0) of your computer. It
will then automatically be detected by the operating system and its driver will
also be automatically installed.
SOFTWARE INSTALLATION
Your UAX220 does not require any driver installation, because it meets the
USB Audio 1.0 standard, which is supported by your operating system
(Windows XP, Mac OS X, Linux).

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HOW TO CHECK THE INSTALLATION
Once the UAX220 is connected to the USB port of your computer, you can
check the accessibility of its inputs/outputs as described hereafter.
Under Windows
Go to <Start> <Settings> <Control panel><Sound and Multimedia >.
The UAX will be displayed like this:

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Under Mac OS X
Go to the <System Preferences> <Sound>. The UAX will be displayed as
follows.
Under Linux
The UAX220 parameters are accessible from the sound editing application of
your choice.

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LEVEL CONTROLS
The UAX220 provides level adjustment and mute controls on the outputs of
the D/A converters. These controls are applied to both line and headphone
outputs. By default, the output level of the D/A converter is set to maximum: a
full scale digital signal of 0 dBfs is thus restored at +10 dBu. This operating
mode is recommended to obtain finest audio quality.On the inputs, there are
no controls available.
You will rarely access these controls, as the headphone level potentiometer
gives you direct access to its volume control.
However, in case you’d like to modify the D/A converter output, this is how to
proceed under Windows XP and Mac OS X:

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Control Panel under Windows
To control the output levels of your UAX220, use the Volume Control
application. To open this application, double-click onto the speaker icon in
the Windows task bar. In case this icon is not displayed in the task bar, go to
<Start>,<Settings>,<Control panel>, <Sound and Multimedia >.
On the ‘Volume’ tab, check the box “Show volume icon in the task bar”.
The UAX2200 offers Volume and Mute controls for the outputs. These
controls are not available for the inputs.

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‘Speaker’ volume control
The fader ‘Speaker’ modifies the output level of the D/A converter of
UAX220. This control applies to both line output and headphones.
The check box ‘Mute all’ in the speaker section allows muting/unmuting the
outputs of your UAX220.
‘Wave’ volume control
The volume and mute controls are applied to the audio stream read by the
application.

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Sound panel under Mac OS X
The fader ‘Output volume’ modifies the output level of the D/A converter of
UAX220. This control applies to both line output and headphones.
The check box ‘Mute’ allows muting/unmuting the outputs of your UAX220.

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CONFIGURATION
UAX220 operates by default at an internal sample rate of 48 kHz. In case the
files played back have a different sampling rate, the operating system performs
a real-time frequency conversion.
Under Windows XP (≥SP2) only, it is possible to modify the embedded
firmware version of the UAX220 so that it accepts other internal sample rates:
8 kHz, 11.025 kHz, 16 kHz, 22.05 kHz, 24 kHz, 32 kHz, 44.1 kHz, 48 kHz.
That makes it possible to work with files at e.g. 44.1 kHz without frequency
conversion.
To use this feature, please download the corresponding firmware update
application at www.digigram.com/drivers/index.htm. In the ‘Firmware’
section, select ‘UAX220’. Read the instructions on how to use this application
carefully.
Attention: When using this firmware, UAX220 notifies Windows that it is able
to manage sample rates from 8 through 48 kHz. Nevertheless,
UAX220 uses internally the same sampling rate for recording and
playback. This entails, that if an application plays a file at a given
sample rate, and then another application is launched in parallel to
record at another sampling rate, UAX220 will record at the
sampling rate defined by the playback application, whereas the
recording application assumes to work at another sampling rate.
On the other hand, if a recording is already in hand at a certain
frequency and a playback is launched at another frequency, the
output will have the right frequency. To sum up, the audio stream
being recorded or played back first imposes the sampling rate!
With the firmware delivered by default, Windows detects that
UAX220 supports only 48 kHz, and in consequence performs
frequency conversions automatically when it detects that the
frequency required by the application is different from 48 kHz.

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SPECIFICATIONS
Configuration
Bus/Format USB1.1 (compatible USB 2.0)
Size
Box: 90 x 81 x 22 mm
(3,55 x 3,19 x 0,87'')
USB cable: 2 m (~6.6 ft)
Audio cables: 0.5 m (~1.65 ft)
Power consumption 500 mA max, powered via USB
Operating: temperature/humidity
(non-condensing) 0°C / +50°C • 5% / 90%
Storage: temp / humidity
(non-condensing) -5°C / +70°C • 5% / 95%
Inputs/Outputs
Analog line inputs (mono) 2 balanced∗
Maximum input level/impedance +10 dBu/ >10kΩ
Analog outputs (mono) 12 servo-balanced∗∗
Maximum output level / impedance +10 dBu / 100 Ω
Programmable output gain by steps of 1 dB, from -60 dBr∗∗∗ to
+10 dBr
Headphone output
Dedicated headphone output stage with
volume control by potentiometer
Maximum power: 55 mW + 55 mW/32Ω
Connectors
• Standard USB type A
for connection with computer
• Neutrik™ XLR-3 female
for line inputs
• Neutrik™ XLR-3 female
for line outputs
• Locking ¼'' cable jack
Operating mode Full duplex
Direct monitoring
Enabled via switch on the box Mixed with
the output stream on line and headphone
outputs
∗
can be used with unbalanced signals
∗∗
electronically servo-balanced outputs provide automatic level adjustment to accommodate
either balanced or unbalanced lines
∗∗∗ D/A converter gain, reference value: 0dBfs equals 0 dBu

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Audio specifications
Sampling frequencies available 48∗kHz
A/D and D/A converter resolution 24 bits / 96 kHz
Frequency response 20 Hz -20 kHz: ±0.2 dB
Channel phase difference
20 Hz/20 kHz <0.2°/2°
Dynamic range Input: >104 dBA
Output: >103 dBA
Distortion + noise at 1 kHz
(record + play)
Input: <-98 dB
Output: <–97 dB
Loop: <-93 dB
Analog channel cross talk at 1 kHz 1 kHz at 10 dBu: <-110 dB
15 kHz at 10 dBu: <-95 dB
Note: All measurements are done at Fs=48 kHz. Unless explicitly specified,
results are unweighted.
∗
A frequency conversion is automatically applied by the host operating system if required.
Other frequencies are available by means of a firmware upgrade. Please refer to chapter
‘Configuration’

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APPENDICES
Schematic diagram
USB
DAC
USB
STREAMING
CONTROLLER
LINE OUT
1 – 2
Headphones OUT
ADC
LINE IN
1 - 2
Level adjustement
by potentiometer
Level adjustement
by software
Monitoring
CLOCK
GENERATION
2
1
3
XLR-3P Female
Connector allocation
XLR-3
Pin # Signal
1 Ground
2 Positive signal (‘hot pin’)
3 Negative signal (‘cold pin’)
1
2
3
XLR-3P Male
Headphone connector:
Contact Signal
Sleeve Ground
Tip Left channel
Ring Right channel