# Behringer DCX2496 review



## MarkZ (Dec 5, 2005)

Ok, I think it's about time I did a subjective review of this unit after talking about it so much. I know several of you run one of these, but I think I'm the only one on the board that runs two. Two is better than one, so nya nya.

Ok, I've been running mine for a little over a year I think. Chad originally suggested it to me on usenet, along with suggesting this forum. I made the switch, and thank him for both suggestions.

*Data Flow* "Carputer" gives its bits to an M-Audio Transit. I had initially tried using the onboard coax digital output, only to find that it gave me all kinds of noise and poor frequency response. I still don't understand how that's possible, because I thought spdif was supposed to be passthrough, but it seems others using the same board type had similar problems. Anyway, the data flow is as follows:

Carputer -> M-Audio Transit -> DEQ2496 -> DCX2496 (x2) -> amplifiers

The signal remains digital right up to the DCX units. An optical cable connects the Transit to the DEQ (which just replaced an SRC2000). The DEQ converts to AES/EBU output, goes to a custom made XLR Y-cable, and goes directly into each DCX. Yes, a Y-cable works.

*Speaker setup* Why 2 DCX's you ask? Because I need 9 channels of control. Each DCX provides 6 independent channels of control, so two units do the job with three open spaces left over. One of the units runs the tweeters, dome mids, and cone mids. There's six channels. The other unit, labeled "bass", runs the midbass 8's and subwoofer. Of course, in order to make use of these individual processing channels, you need as many individual amplifier channels. So I'm currently using 6 channels from an a/d/s/ amp for the mids/highs, and 4-channels of an Orion bridged down to 2 for the midbass, and a DEI class D amp for the sub. Directed all around, I guess.

*I/O* These units use XLR connectors for both the analog and digital portions. There's a good Rane note on how to convert XLR to RCA and, as posted recently, XLR to coax spdif. Basically, you need to make adaptor cables to be able to interface with most equipment. Or you can use another unit, like the DEQ2496 or SRC2496 or SRC2000 to do the conversion for you. There are also mods available that you may want to look into. But XLRs are great connectors and should be used for almost all audio interconnection, IMO.

There are six XLR outputs, and three XLR inputs. If you're using digital input instead of analog input, then you only use one of those input connectors. A third one is available for the mic for the auto-align feature (described below), or you could use it to plug in a mono analog source, for example. That way you could leave everything plugged in and switch sources on the front panel or in the software. No plugging and unplugging.

*Settings* Using the DCX, I was able to bandpass all of my speakers at precise frequency values, with the selection of slopes ranging from 6dB to 48dB per octave, and Linkwitz Riley or Butterworth (and Bessel too?) alignments. I made use of all the crossover options, with different slopes/types for different drivers.

In addition to crossover control, the other big feature of these units is the time alignment. You have fine control down to the sub-millisecond range, and phase inversion control as well. There's an auto-align feature, where you can plug in a mic (phantom power is provided through the DCX) and it will automatically set those values for you. I honestly didn't have much luck getting it to work correctly, but I'm still working on that.

Finally, they also offer control over other aspects of the signal. There's a parametric EQ, and there's a limiter. This stuff tends to be present both on the input and on each individual output channel -- so again, the theme with this unit is its FULLY customizable nature.

*Sound quality* I'm not going to really address this here. I made a post a few months back where I made some measurements on this sucker, so I urge you to look at that for the quantitative data. Qualitatively, I can tell you that there's no audible noise and it sounds great in action.

*12-volt* The problem, of course, is that this unit is designed for home use. So how do you get it to work in the car? There are mods available that allow you direct 12v connection. The problem with this is that it voids the warranty and doesn't allow you to use it in the house, if you decide to switch over. So I opted for the cheaper way out -- I use a simple power inverter. These units consume very little power (something like 15w), so you don't need a large one. You also don't need a pure sine inverter. However, it's important to note that my tests have always used ONLY the digital inputs. If you use an analog input, some problems have been reported with inverters on these units. If you're looking for a comparison between the inverter and household current conditions to be able to see how the unit performs SQ-wise with an inverter, I again direct you to the quantitative review I did a few months back.

*Interface* The interface is intuitive, but that doesn't mean it's easy. As you can tell, there are a LOT of options with these units and a lot of settings. So how do you cram all that into a relatively small screen? They use a page system. You hit a button on the unit and it'll take you to a page regarding that button's function. So, for example, if you hit "setup", it'll take you to global setup options. When you hit the page forward button, it will take you to the next page in the global setup. There may be 5 or so pages for each category.

Also, you can hit buttons for individual input or output channels, and it'll take you to that channel's options -- crossover on one page, delay on another, etc. I also find the mute button handy. You can hit mute and then follow it with any channel button and it'll instantly mute that channel. It's not buried in other screens. This is handy for troubleshooting or measurements.

Finally, there's a software interface. It allows you to hook up to a computer and control almost everything with the software. However, you have to buy the RIGHT USB to serial converter if your computer doesn't have a serial port. Some converters don't work. I had to look for one that used a certain chipset. Another problem is that you have to "connect" each time you load the software. This is usually a three button process. Not terribly difficult, but not as simple as just clicking the icon to load it up. Overall, the software interface is well organized and very intuitive, although some of the buttons and sliders are kinda small making adjustment difficult on a touchscreen.

*Pros* 
*Nothing in this price range offers as many options and features as this unit.
*Sound quality is great.
*Ease of use is better than average.
*Very good user's manual.
*Fits in a 1U rack space and isn't a very deep unit.
*Low power consumption.

*Cons* 
*They need to ditch the serial port and replace it with USB.
*Connecting to the computer interface can be tricky.
*Some stuff is buried in the menu structure, but mostly it's ok.
*Only offers AES/EBU for digital inputs. Coax and/or optical would be nice.
*Rack mount units may not work for some car installations.


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## Whiterabbit (May 26, 2006)

since you have so many drivers that must cover such a large range, I was hoping you could try something for me.

I have had varied results as well with auto TA. one thing I notice is while minor amounts seem to do well enough in the car, auto TA adds MASSIVE amounts of it for negligible changes in imaging and focus.

however, I assume that you, like me, have been using an "in-situ" test environment.

I am away from my car for awhile, and suggest the following test (I'll repeat when I get home, id love to compare notes).

what happens if you choose crossover frequency bands for each set of drivers totally identical (picking bands that each speaker is capable of playing, naturally), then running the test? after you have relative numbers for every driver comparatively, you can combine the data for all the absolute positions.

I'm curious if aligning the drivers based on frequency band will enhance focus any better than just trying to line up the drivers filtered for music.


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## MarkZ (Dec 5, 2005)

I would be surprised if the TA is frequency dependent. I'll try to test it out though. But I've also been writing my own TA program that uses a form of swept sine instead of noise.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Nice review and is very cohesive with my findings also. I used 2 also in a pro application but had them set up as left and right. They survived the road well which goes against many Behringer claims. Never a lick of issue other than the display being more sluggish than some of my other gear in the cold.

I recently switched over to the upper end DBX model. This allows me to stack slave units on to the control unit which is 4 in and 8 out. I need 7 in and 15 out total. (stereo 3 way, mono sub on an aux, and 4 biamped monitor mixes) it was very expensive to do, much more than stacking on more DCX's but I covered your Major complaint and then some..... ETHERNET CONTROL! Nya Nya WIRELESS!!!!! NYA! NYA! I can roam the venue with a tablet PC and set the rig  I can also set up monitors in front of the mic,listening to my voice with...... The tablet PC 

As for an increase in audio quality from upgrading to a more mainstream product, I can't really hear it. I did the move only to gain I/O and ease of system tuning, which incedentally gets re-tuned for every venue, it made my life easier.

Chad


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