RME ADI-2 Pro FS R Black Edition

RME ADI-2 Pro FS R Black Edition

RME's reference AD/DA converter is a whole lot of gear rolled into one unit, with a simple and mostly automated way to use it right out of the box. A unit with the largest footprint per feature ratio in the industry, excellent tech specs, crystal clear and transparent sound signature, and two extremely powerful headphone outputs. The new ADI-2 Pro FS R Black Edition features the AK4493 chip, slightly improved specifications and comes with the new extended Multi-Remote Control (MRC).

Ultra-fidelity PCM/DSD 768 kHz AD/DA converter

As the most flexible converter on the market, the ADI-2 Pro offers balanced/unbalanced analog I/Os, dual Extreme Power headphone outputs, SteadyClock III, 4-stage hardware input and output level control, DSP-based signal processing, external power operation, Class Compliant USB compatibility, sample rates up to 768 kHz as well as DSD recording and Direct DSD playback (256/11.2 MHz).

Analog or digital – options galore

The ADI-2 Pro features dual servo balanced analog inputs on combo XLR/TRS jacks, dual separate balanced and unbalanced outputs on XLR and TS, dual stereo Extreme Power headphone outputs on the front panel, an optical SPDIF I/O that also understands ADAT, and coaxial SPDIF (RCA) and AES I/O (XLR) via an included breakout cable. This universal set of I/O options offers superior quality and flexible connectivity for those seeking an uncompromised audio approach.

The USB 2.0 port is fully class compliant (UAC 2) for connection to compatible iOS devices, and is also used for firmware updates. Including an external switching power supply with locking connector, the ADI-2 Pro can easily be powered from the battery, enabling mobile and galvanically isolated applications.

As a computer interface, the ADI-2 Pro offers a stereo mode (2 in / 2 out) and a multichannel mode (6 in / 8 out). Mac OS X compatibility is available out of the box. Under Windows, the ADI-2 Pro uses RME's MADIface series driver, for full WDM and ASIO compatibility and highest performance.

Perfect sound recording and reproduction

In pursuit of the absolute reference sound, every detail in the ADI-2 Pro is special and has its own story. The main circuit board is an extraordinary 10-layer design with custom copper thickness, which guarantees the finest undisturbed sound and ample but separate power for the phone outputs. Internal power stages and precision regulators use a super-low-noise design to not degrade performance via the power rails. Selected SoundPlus operational amplifiers maintain the highest SNR, lowest THD and high slew rate under all conditions. The entire analog circuit design is fully symmetrical and balanced - and DC-coupled. The only capacitors in the signal path provide DC protection at the analog input jacks, and have been carefully selected to avoid any sonic impact.

The 4-channel AD converter, which supports 768 kHz sampling rate and DSD recording, is used in a dual mono design, with a 3 dB improved signal-to-noise ratio. Two high-quality DACs are used for two separate stereo outputs. Internal audio processing such as EQs, Crossfeed and spectral analysis, is done by a powerful DSP with 2.17 Giga FLOPS (2882 MIPS), which provides sufficient processing power to work even at 768 kHz sampling rate.

For easy operation, a high-quality Sample Rate Converter is added, switchable to AES or SPDIF input, solving any clocking problem between them. And RME's latest SteadyClock FS technology ensures perfect jitter reduction and stable clocks, whether internal or external clocks are used.

High Resolution Display Operation

RME has incorporated many unique features not found on any comparable unit, such as 5-band parametric EQs for fully individual phone compensation, adjustable Bass/Treble controls with quick access, a binaural crossfeed function, adjustable loudness filter, selectable AD/DA filters, four discrete I/O reference levels, auto reference level setting, auto balanced phones mode, and much more. The display is not only used to operate the unit, but also shows warning and guidance messages.

Professional features such as M/S Processing, Stereo Width and Phase Reverse for full control and storage of all settings are included, as well as RME’s renowned Spectral Analyzer, a 30-band biquad filtered analysis tool offering unprecedented musical visualization, perfectly complementing the high-resolution IPS display.

Extreme power headphone outputs

There’s no point in bragging about -110 dB THD, when such values aren’t available in the real world – for example, when 32 ohm headphones are connected. RME’s engineers have therefore designed a new headphone output stage that brings the full performance of the premium DAC to the phone jack – even when using low-impedance headphones. The Extreme Power design boasts 0.1 ohm output impedance, a maximum output level of +22 dBu, and a maximum output power of 1.5 watts – per channel! The two, completely separate stereo headphone outputs deliver the same 120 dBA SNR performance as the line outputs, for a completely hum- and noise-free listening experience. THD is well below -100 dB (0.001%), even at full power, for the clearest and most detailed soundstage possible. The Extreme Power design also includes current limiting, current monitoring, overload detection and DC protection. Low and high power modes are provided for a perfect match from IEM to planar.

Dual stereo outputs enable balanced headphone operation. Not satisfied with existing technology, RME's engineers developed a new Advanced Balanced mode for the ADI-2 Pro, which eliminates most of the limitations of standard balanced operation, transforming it into a completely new experience. The exclusive Advanced Balanced mode provides a balanced signal path from the DAC directly to the phone, with 3 dB gain in signal-to-noise ratio, smoothed component deviations, optimized frequency response, super low output impedance (0.2 Ohms), and a maximum output level of +28 (twenty-eight) dBu.

The reference converter

The ADI-2 Pro is RME's reference AD/DA converter, USB DAC, USB interface and headphone amplifier. Its numerous application situations make it an ideal choice in many areas, from the home user who appreciates innovative solutions that offer the highest sound quality, the studio owner who asks for reference AD/DA conversion, the Hi-Fi enthusiast who demands a flexible yet high-end headphone amplifier, to the industry that uses the portable device as a front-end for measurement systems.

New extended Multi-Remote Support (MRC)

The ADI-2 Pro remote control offers buttons for standby on/off, volume, balance, bass and treble, input selection (optical, coaxial, USB), mute, loudness on/off, bass/treble and EQ. In addition, there are four programmable buttons that provide access to 52 different functions and commands for maximum flexibility. There is no other converter or similar device with such an advanced, easy to use and at the same time versatile remote control!