Owner`s manual
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The P-3A, when using the digital output of the Apex, shows DAC linearity easily to the
-96 dB limit of 16 bits, and actually remains linear below that limit, although the graph
eventually rises due to the content added by the noise floor caused by the desirable
presence of dither, which allows encoding greater than 16 bit resolution onto a 16 bit
system at the expense of a higher theoretical noise level than, say, a 20 or 24 bit
system.
Apex DAC Linearity on Analog outputs (no P-1A or P-3A)
To be fair, the plot here is offset by roughly -0.7 dB, but you can still see that even after
adjusting the plot to match 0 dB with where the chart starts recording (at about -62 dB),
the DACs on the Apex only remain linear to about -75 dB, falling far short of the
resolution capable with even standard CD sources, akin to the medium of the vinyl LP.
The plot falls absolutely off the chart between -100 dB and - 105 dB, and only rises
back due to the noise floor.
I could continue to show you the before and after graphs all day long as to just how good the P-3A is. Colin Miller will actually cover a lot more
about the P-3A as the DVD player data are published. We looked a the P-3A on several DVD players, and in 99% of the cases, it made a
substantial improvement.
As of this writing we have not had an opportunity to try the speaker or room correction software. Colin Miller and myself did get to listen to the
speaker correction at CES 2000. While I can’t fully comment on its quality, I do remember the effects were not subtle! When they first turned
on speaker correction, I really did not notice any change. But, once they then turned off speaker correction, it was like a slap in the face. I
was left wondering what happened. At some point in the future I am sure one of us will get a chance to fully experience the speaker correction
software.
Monolithic Power Plant










