Specifications

EAW Smaart 6 Operation Manual Applications

4.1 Real-Time Spectrum Analyzer (RTA)

Two-channel real-time spectrum analysis is Smaart 6’s most basic function. Spectrum

measurements are similar to a hardware RTA: incoming signals are divided into frequency

regions and displayed dynamically as magnitude vs. frequency. The default display shows

each channel as a real-time bar graph of energy vs. frequency, each bar representing a

1/12-octave wide band of energy, although many other displays are possible.

4.1.1 Connecting the Measurement System

Connect an audio signal to at least one input of your sound card. Since two channels

can be monitored simultaneously, a measurement microphone could be connected to

one channel and the output of a mixing console or CD player to the other.

Figure 4-1 RTA measurement setup

Although any line-level signal may be used as an input source, it is instructive to perform

this introductory measurement with a live mic connected through a preamp. Launch

Smaart 6, select the RTA display type, and click the Start button to begin measurement.

Figure 4-2 shows the RTA display responding to whistling into a live mic. Note the

peak near the fundamental frequency.

Measurement

Microphone

Preamp

Computer

Player