Hi, I'm new here.

[bzawa]

Good Day
This is my first post. Wow, this site has so much information and knowledge!. After 40 some odd years of collecting (records, 8 Tracks, cassettes, CDs) and upgrading components, I have finally arrived at addressing the room! I've been researching acoustic treatments and came across avnirvana and REW. I have zero experience with electronics but I do like music and gear. No home theater, just 2 channel listening (CDs, LPs). I haven't downloaded the program yet, but I am intrigued and somewhat (maybe a lot) bewildered. Two questions please. First, is there a less expensive alternative to the miniDSP UMIK- 1A, that has a calibration file (whatever that means)? Second, do you just connect a splitter cord from the mac's headphone jack to the RCAs on an aux input of the amp? Thank you and thanks for having me.

 

[ddude003]

Welcome...

Its a toss up between the miniDSP UMIK- 1A and the Dayton Audio UMM-6... Easiest way to make measurements with USB...
You could use macs headphone jack out or you could create sweep files with REW's Generator function, transfer the sweep file to your music server and play thru your own signal chain to take the measurements...

 

[JStewart]

Welcome!

that has a calibration file (whatever that means)?

Think of it as a correction file because the mic does not hear in a perfectly linear fashion. Usually an inexpensive mic will be off a couple of dB in the low and high ends. Not a huge deal, but better to have a cal file and know the measurements are more accurate.

 

[bzawa]

Welcome...

Its a toss up between the miniDSP UMIK- 1A and the Dayton Audio UMM-6... Easiest way to make measurements with USB...
You could use macs headphone jack out or you could create sweep files with REW's Generator function, transfer the sweep file to your music server and play thru your own signal chain to take the measurements...

Thanks for your help. I'm behind the times, I don't have a music server, not quite sure what to do with one or what I may be missing not by having one. I just listen to Records and CDs. Not sure what you mean by creating a sweep file, but could that mean recording the sweep to a CD on my mac and playing it back through my system? Thanks so much.

 

[ddude003]

Very sorry that I did not read your "more" section more closely... I thought you had a streamer... My bad...

REW can create a sweep file (.wav) that can be transferred to a jump drive or even blown onto a CD to be played thru ones kit...
In your case it may be best to go with the headphone jack and into a preamp or even into your amp...
Here is the REW help file to get you going... https://www.roomeqwizard.com/help.html

 

[bzawa]

Welcome!

Think of it as a correction file because the mic does not hear in a perfectly linear fashion. Usually an inexpensive mic will be off a couple of dB in the low and high ends. Not a huge deal, but better to have a cal file and know the measurements are more accurate.

Thank you