Dangerous Music Convert AD+

The Dangerous Music Convert AD+ has no fewer than five— five! —features previously never seen on an analog-to-digital converter. Smart, useful, well-executed innovations put Dangerous Music on the map, and we continue that tradition into the 21st century with the Dangerous Music Convert AD+.

Features

• Adjustable Sample Rate lets you cycle through 6 sample rates or use “auto sensing” for universal compatibility with other devices
• Selectable Calibration Level allows you to choose between three calibration levels
• Toggle between two discrete, selectable stereo inputs with two switchable stereo input paths
• Clip Guard will turn off the red LED over light at your destination (i.e. DAW)
• Premium custom crafted digital meter with Normal and Peak Hold modes provides precise visual feedback
• Zoom view lets you view only the top 10dB of your signal level, for a finer, magnified resolution
• Word Clock with three Modes: Internal, External and Master
• X-FORMER insert button engages Chris Muth’s sonic wizardry via a pair of customized HAMMOND™ transformers
• EMPHASIS adds a shelving EQ/Compressor for 2nd order harmonic distortion to blend in a bit of mid warmth and sparkle
• USB connection for Mac/PC
• Comprehensive I/O
• Two switchable analog stereo input paths
• Dual AES Outputs
• ADAT Optical Output
• SPDIF Optical Output
• SPDIF COAX output

Simple, elegant, intelligent. With the push of a button, you can switch between any two balanced line input sources. With zero fuss, you can instantly compare different mastering chains, test your mix against a reference, switch between tracking and mixing, A/B between different mic/preamp scenarios—or craft your own application. From the largest mix rooms to elite mastering suites, to your home studio, the switchable inputs on the Dangerous Music Convert AD+ is about to make everyone’s life a lot easier.

Do you dig pushing the A/D beyond 0 dBFS, into clipping, for specific sonics, but don’t want your tracks rejected? Clip Guard will turn off the red-light LED at your destination (i.e. DAW). Red indicates clipping on most meters, in actuality, the over indicator in the AD+ turns from green to yellow. Now “Mastered for iTunes” or the CD pressing plant will not refuse your opus, since these red-light overs will not register. This is not a limiter. If you can hear clipping and engage clip guard, it will sound identical. It simply disables the clip LED in your DAW or destination device, but you will still be audibly clipping.

In most circumstances, the dynamics of a mix or master reside in the crest factor, the zone between the average and the peak levels. With our meter magnification technology, you can zoom in on just the top 10dB of dynamic activity, providing a finer-resolution peek at what that matters most when mixing and mastering. Warning: this nuanced dynamics crafting tool is addictive.

It’s no secret that a pair of transformers at the end of a mixing or mastering chain can imbue your final prints with heft, character and articulation. With the Dangerous Music Convert AD+, just push a button and you’ve got a pair of Hammond transformers wired in series, ready to impart the magic that transformers wield. Hammond is a Canadian company with over 100 years of transformer design and our circuit brings out all the bold colors.

Our analog designer Chris Muth did it again, taking his deep and esoteric knowledge of what engineers love and turning it into a simple and effective tool. When the transformers are switched in, the Emphasis kicks in a proprietary EQ/compression combo that brings a whole pallet of different colors to your mixing, mastering, and tracking work. Simply dial in the right amount, or none at all, until the smiles in the room get wider. In most cases, you’ll notice a stronger low-end footprint and a gentle saturation on the mids and highs. The more you play with it, the more you’ll learn how Emphasis can improve your music.

Previously an oxymoron, musical transparency makes perfect sense now that Dangerous Music has pushed its products to the bleeding edge of today’s technology. We deliver an open, full-bodied sound free of unwanted artifacts (transparency) with a bold and big three-dimensional sound (musicality). The result is sound that you can trust and love.

Among those who truly understand this hotly debated area of audio technology, the mantra with digital is implementation, implementation, implementation. How components are selected, tweaked and assembled according to a specific design, and then tuned for superior performance within that plan, is what sets a converter apart. The Dangerous Music Convert AD+ has been developed by a team of experts with deep, up-to-the-minute knowledge of the best digital and analog converter technology available today. Our implementation has even managed to get the clock working better than it’s stated specs.

JetPLL® is a patented clocking technology that Dangerous Music employs in order to reduce jitter to the point where it simply isn’t a factor impacting the sound of our converters. Whenever zeros and ones are flying by at incredible speeds, a solid clock and balanced data stream management system is of the utmost importance to articulate, musical, 3D impact. Do not shy away from using the CONVERT-AD+ as your studio’s master clock, a choice more and more engineers are making as they retire their dedicated clocks and become “converts.”

This product incorporates JetPLL® clocking technologies, used under license from Sonopsis. JetPLL® designs are covered by Sonopsis copyright and/or multiple patents. The JetPLL® word and logo are trademarks of Sonopsis. Further information can be found at JetPLL.info.

Our analog designer, Chris Muth, has designed the gear used on an endless list of hit records and classic reissues. Chris’s powerful, articulate, hi-fi designs dominated the big studios in New York City since the 80s, and via Dangerous his designs have become essential components in the best modern DAW-based mixing and mastering studios. When we set out to develop the Dangerous Music Convert AD+, Chris brought his relentless design philosophy and world-renowned sound to a whole new level. The entire CONVERT series has the jaws of top pros hitting the floor when they hear the big natural sound, the powerful, ultra-clear low-end, and the wide open high-end.