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Amarra Product User Manual

1. eese 33 9 2 Using Sonic Studio iRC to use the Filter Files created rrrannnannvnnnnnnnennnnnnnennnnnnnnennrnnavennnennne 33 Chapter 10 Meters Display rr rrnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnvnnnnnnunnnnennsnnnr 35 Chapter 11 Full SOBIG vvs 36 Chapter 12 Pine VOW aeiessed et FERRE Era r vRR ERE IHT XR E EERRR A VIEN CHER EICREIE DIU TEEKIMENR 37 Chapter 13 Licensing 2 machines with your Amarra Symphony License 38 Chapter 14 Registering Your Amarra Symphony with iRC Software 39 Chapter 15 Contacting Sonic Studio eeeeeeeeeeeeree nne 40 APPENDIX A Amarra Symphony Pulldown Mleenus 41 AT Amarra Symphony Pulldown Menu i cuusscxxeuaxaxsasnuns2Aku uv FE I EYS IER dace I EFI ER ERR Rua Yuan ER Y eS Kt Rs aS 41 A2 Pe FuUNGOWA Meni DN 42 AES SANN 43 A 4 Playlist Pulldown MEN rd 44 AS DOSK NNN 44 AISNE 45 APPENDIX B The Amarra Symphony Preferences Window 46 BAILAUNCH SELTINCIS ac rears cinta sett nd eH terest unt IER UE VUEEO MUI MUNI MEIN p IU ME NEM IM ADM OE 46 B2 PLAYBACK OETTINGER NEE E en ee ee ee E RV DENIUES TIT UD ME 47 BAPHOGESSINOG SETTINGS npn HORT tdt tdem eee ee ee eee 48 B5 HARDWARE SETTINGS orrori ea E RUE RED CBE Staa due H MIHI DEUM nU M SN 48 B 6 ADDITIONAL SONIC HARDWARE SETTINGS esee nnnm nnns 49 APPENDIX C Your Amarra Symphony Folde
2. Panner Window Amarra Symphony has a stereo panner that can be used to route the output with variable gain To open the panner select Amarra Symphony gt File gt Panner which brings up the Panner window AO Panner Amarra The Panner in Stereo mode By default the panner opens in off mode In the upper left corner the channel to which the panner currently applies is indicated As this Track indicator is also a drop down menu it operates as a Strip selector for the panner as well Chapter 13 Licensing 2 machines with your Amarra Symphony License Amarra Symphony allows for 2 machines to be activated with the same license To activate Amarra Symphony on two machines please do the following Machine 1 Download and launch the Amarra Symphony Installer on Machine 1 Choose Easy Setup Select Yes when asked to launch Amarra Symphony Click Activate to access the Activation Window Enter Your Activation Code email address and create your own password up to 16 characters long and enter in the spaces provided Click ACTIVATE to activate your copy of Amarra Symphony on Machine 1 Machine 2 Download and launch the Amarra Symphony Installer on Machine 2 Choose Easy Setup Select Yes when asked to launch Amarra Click Activate to access the Activation Window Enter Your Activation Code email address and the password created for machine 1 in the spaces provided Click AC
3. www sonicstudio com Amarra Symphony with IRC User Manual Table of Con tents Chapter 1 0 Welcome to Amarra Symphony with iRC 6 Chapter 2 0 Getting Started ions bsan reb IRR EN ERIS R EE ex ArEURRP VI Dun LPHUUKAA FERHRENTA 7 2 1 Connecting ANNEN 7 2 2 Launching Amarra Symphony the FirstTime esses nnne nnne nns 7 2 9 La nching Symphony NeXt TIME Leed 8 2 4 Changing your Output Device EE EE nnen nern nene 8 Chapter 3 0 Amarra Symphony User Interface eene 9 VS TB 9 SON EN en 9 TSN NNN ANNO 9 4 Playback POSITION Slider sicciusisisincaennnenentaovnuucntsinnciamentienimawnewsnamaidmiensaniubwadanummibenitesdtoraneusraaenonnbaauenesios 10 5 Clear Button and Playlist Commands 522r nne idi eam oer ar i chin rra aa 10 HAKK VVITICIOUM ke 10 7 M Button Turning on Meters arnnnnnnnnnrnnnrnnnnnnnnnrnnennnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnusnunnnnnnnenunnnr 10 8 T Button Open ADP WIDCOW se 10 ME B tt on Turning NENNE 11 10 Amarra iTunes Button to toggle between Amarra and ITUNES eee 11 11 PLAYLIST Button to enter Playlist mode re 11 UZ TRACKS PT ee E 11 BEL NONNE 11 14 iRC Button to display IRC Filter Bank rannrnnnnnannnnrrnnnnnnnnnrrnnevnnnnnrnnnnnnnennnennrnnnnnnvennrnnnnnnvennnener 12 15 Preload Tracks Button for Gapless Playback Lusasmsassmmmnesenamsseameumasnannn 12 16 LINK But
4. Symphony rem es nd Fi Re abe GEAR 44 OG pbl co PE ONCE UTGA AFF sa 00000003 EUN CY GCE rea ETC DIRCDMCCIE NNECNE INE CILCT ULL Y ET M m nn En Cee ea EE ABOITUNES ACORINDER Amama Playlist Ca Corn er i Thank U Alanis Morssoio Supptsad Former infatuation Junk Oe 824 176 2 Holy Water Bad Company Holy Water 00 04 06 09 d gt QConowto for Violin Colo and Orchestra Mo Tom Chiu Dave Egger Sting Theory 00 06 09 02 43 Urbane Movement 1 David Chosky Lrbanict Urbanty Concerto for Electric Gu 00 06 42 00 48 amp 08 Beethoven Piano Sonata 811 In B Flat Op John O Conor Besthoven Immortal Adaglos Oreo IM amp 09 Boothoven_ Plano Sonata E In C Op 2 3 John O Conor Baetheven kiita Adagios Oc 06 57 08 Hd 7 10 Beathoven_ Piano Sonate 17 In D Minor Op John O Conor Beethoven immortal Adaglos DO0 08 01201 J po Bethoven Piano Sonata 14 In Sharp Minor John O Conor Boethoven Immortal Adagios O0 O5 5 1 27 84 G 04 Beethoven Piano Sonata 65 in C Minor Op John O Conor EN Hi 10 05 Beethoven Piano Sonata 87 In D Op 10 3 John O Conor 0 224 1i Beethoven Plano Sonata 411 In B Flat Op John O Conor B JH 12 Besthoven Piano Sonata 1 In F Minor Op 2 John O Conor 4 13 Beethoven Piano Sonata 14 In C Sharp Miner John O Conor j H John O Conor sei 1 double click to set i 08 Boathoven Plano Sonata 65 in C Minor Op 79 double click to set o oo he
5. Stop at end of Playlist uty Repeat Playlist h All other buttons on the Amarra Playlist Ul have the same function as on the Amarra Ul Page 18 5 2 3 ENTERING PLAYLIST MODE Entering Playlist mode is easy Simply press the Playlist button on the Amarra Ul The button will display a green dot and typically the Playlist window is displayed If you do not see the Playlist window click on the Amarra gt Windows gt Playlist pull down menu item at the top of the screen The PLAYLIST BUTTON 5 2 4 LOADING TRACKS INTO A PLAYLIST There are 2 ways to load new tracks into an Amarra Playlist selecting tracks from your iTunes library or selecting tracks via Finder The ADD Button ADD To select tracks via your iTunes library please do the following Bring your iTunes window to the front and select the desired tracks in iTunes You can use the command key and shift key to select individual tracks or a range of tracks Click on the Amarra Ul to bring Amarra to the front Click on the ADD button The selected tracks in iTunes will load into your Amarra Playlist The FINDER Button To select tracks using the Finder please do the following Click on the Finder button on the Amarra Ul e Navigate to the tracks you d like to load in the resulting Finder window Highlight the desired tracks and click Open to add the tracks to your Amarra Playlist NOTE Native FLAC File Playback Use the Finder butto
6. Please refer to the Amarra sO User Manual for detailed instructions for launching licensing and using Amarra sO in both trial mode and after permanent activation The Amarra sO User Manual can be found at the link below Amarra sO User Manual Page 31 Chapter 9 0 Sonic Studio IRC Impulse Response Correction NOTE New purchases of Amarra Symphony with iRC v2 6 and all newer versions include the Sonic Studio iRC feature Amarra Symphony 2 5 1 and previous version upgrades to Amarra Symphony 2 6 do not include the Sonic Studio iRC feature An upgrade to add this feature to your copy of Amarra Symphony is available on our online store NOTE You will need an omnidirectional full bandwidth measurement microphone We recommend that the frequency response is within 1 dB in the area of the speaker s frequency response range Failure to use a recommended microphone may result in false measurement information The XTZ Microphone Pro from XTZ Audio is a cost efficient microphone kit that we recommend Other recommended mics can be found in our FAQ The listening room is usually the weakest link of any sound system Loudspeakers have been designed for a certain placement in a room but in an imperfect environment performance suffers and it s impossible get the full benefit from your DAC amp and speaker investment Imaging clarity and bass tightness are all affected by the limitations imposed by your listening room and
7. 9 MicCalFiles gt scripts Amara sQ Page webloc Delete Amarra Preferences command Amarra Symphony 3 0 Read Me pdf Amarra Symphony 3 0 Activation Guide pdf Amarra Symphony 3 0 User Manual pdf iRC iRC b Measure User Manual pdf Er E Er E Amarra Symphony app The Amarra Symphony application iRC Measure app Impulse Response Correction measurement and calibration tool Support Folder these links take you to various important webpages for support e Download Amarra sQ webloc directs you to the Sonic Studio downloads page to access the Amarra sQ Installer and Manuals e Sonic Studio QuickSupport v9 app Amarra support app allowing Sonic Studio to log into customer system and assume control of environment Lost Activation Code webloc directs you to the Sonic Studio Activation Code Control Panel to find a lost license e Amarra Videos webloc check out how to videos for Amarra and IRC e Amarra Support Portal webloc access the Amarra support portal and FAO a greatsource of technical information and assistance e Amarra Learning Center webloc go directly to the Amarra FAQ e Amarra Support Page webloc direct access to the Amarra support page with downloads videos tips and tricks and other information Extras Folder these items run only when launched manually e Amarra 30 License Manager app use this app to manually manage backing up and removing your Amarra license e Ama
8. review the additional features and what they do to improve sound Av 1 NOTE There are many suggestions on our FAQ for configuring your Mac for best performance Please visit our website for access to the FAQ 5 1 Setting up your Mac for optimum performance One of the addtions to Amarra Symphony is a MacOSX Optimization script designed to allow you to choose some Operating System and System Application settings that may improve the overall performance of your Mac during Playback The script is located in your Amarra Symphony gt Extras folder in Finder and when launched displays the following window Pw NOTE Although we recommend Disable All for best performance please ensure uU you are familiar with Mac OS and System Application operation prior to using the MacOSX Optimization Script Choose Disable All for best performance This script is located in Extras folder Disable All Disable Termination Daemon Disable Sleep Mode Disable Hibernate Disable Mission Control Disable Spotlight Disable Launch Control Disable Dashboard Disable Notification Center Disable NapApp Enable All Enable Spotlight Enable Launch Control Enable Notification Center Enable NapApp Enable Show Home Library Add Finder Menu Quit Command Show Hide Hide Spotlight Icon Show Spotlight Icon Cancel OK MacOSX Optimization Script Page 16 In addition to using the MacOS Optimization Script we also recommend the followi
9. Equalizer XE Sonic iRC Amarra opt a Toggles the Amarra Window on and off iTunes opt i Toggles the main iTunes Window on and off Playlist opt p Toggles the Amarra Playlist Window on and off Equalizer opt E Toggles the Equalizer on and off Sonic iRC opt R Turns on Sonic Studio iRC window Page 45 APPENDIX B The Amarra Symphony Preferences Window This section describes all of the functions available via the Amarra Symphony Preferences window l NOTE Deleting Amarra Symphony Preferences if Amarra quits unexpectedly or if you are seeing any unusual behavior try deleting your Amarra Preferences to see if this clears the issue e Quit Amarra Symphony and iTunes Navigate to your Applications gt Amarra Symphony gt Extras folder in Finder e Double click on Delete Amarra Symphony Preferences command e Re launch Amarra Symphony when the process completes Amarra Symphony will launch iTunes Ew NOTE By de selecting the Amarra Symphony Preference item Launch Quit Amarra with iTunes you will stop iTunes from automatically launching when you launch Symphony This is helpful if you wish to operate independent of iTunes using Amarra Playlists to play your music B 1 LAUNCH SETTINGS Amarra Preferences LAUNCH QUIT Amarra with iTunes Forces iTunes to launch or quit when you launch or quit Amarra HIDE ON LAUNCH Amarra windows will not display when Amarra is launched LIN
10. TRACKS CACHE MEMORY AMOUNT Used to minimize disk access reflects the amount of RAM allocated to load tracks prior to playback Settings are 512Mb 1Gb 2Gb and 3Gb We recommend between setting this to between 1 3 and 1 2 of your available memory Playback will start when CACHE is loaded with selected tracks The last piece of information updated is the amount of CACHE used in the Amarra Ul Please wait for this to complete before beginning playback I Note Amarra will load a max of 2 2 8 Gb and typically between 2 6 2 8Gb depending on the track being loaded Amarra will only load complete tracks into CACHE B 3 DITHER SETTINGS AUTO DITHER Auto dither is only used if you are using the Amarra volume slider to adjust gain When auto dither is selected dithering will be automatically enabled when Amarra s volume is set to something other than full volume TYPE TPDF Enables Sonic Studio s Shaped TPDF Dither Shaped Enables Sonic Noise Shaped Dither Wordlength Sets number of bits for output This setting should match your DAC s word length For best quality enable Auto dither if a track less than 24 bits is being played Using dither can bring a better sound when gain or EO Is being used When dither is enabled the Page 47 output of Amarra will be dithered to the setting of the Output Wordlength specified This can be useful for providing a better sound when Gain is used or if your DAC only
11. Ul available The horizontal user interface is the only Ul and is shown below CACHE AMARRA PLAYLIST TRACKS 78 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 Amarra Symphony User Interface 1 Transport Buttons iTunes and Amarra Symphony Volume are 44 Ld d kept in sync NOTE You may notice a small delay or echo while the iTunes Volume is being moved VI lt lt Goto head of current track double click to go to previous track l Pause Play button 3 Symphony Ul VVindovv gt gt Goto next track eDisplays Track Artist and Album Name 2 Symphony Volume Slider Displays Gain level in dB 0 0dB to 144dB elf Cache selected Displays amount of RAM used to load selected tracks Displays file type Displays sample rate of current track Use to adjust volume for Symphony playback If you are using external device we Displays position of Playhead via counter recommend leaving the Symphony volume at full volume all the way to the right and use If EO is on Displays current EO setting your volume control on your external device to adjust playback volume vir NOTE If Gain is less than 0 0 dB Y dithering is enabled if auto dither The speaker icons are hot spots for 0 and P selected in Amarra Symphony 144 dB references Page 9 4 Playback Position Slider Blue Slider corresponds to current playback position and can be moved either direction to reposition the playhead for playback 5 Clear
12. bite rate MP3 files You can verify that Amarra Symphony is playing back your music by seeing the Amarra button with the green dot lit on the Amarra Symphony Ul If the button has turned grey and displays iTunes it means that Amarra Symphony has passed control to iTunes for playback of the current track Amarra Symphony will automatically take over playback on the next track that it can play back T OD gt gt I LIBRARY Name STORE GENIUS 88888888887 PLAYLISTS Classical Music 00 KHz 00 kHz O0 kHz 00 kHz 00 KHz 00 kHz 00 kHz 00 kHz 00 KHz Amarra Symphony with iTunes Page 13 4 1 Navigating within a Track There are many ways to navigate within a track Once you ve started playback you can Use the Transport buttons to Play Pause and move to the next track beginning of current track or previous track e he blue Playhead slider in the Amarra Ul is a song position slider that corresponds to the current location of playback within a track Drag the slider left or right to change the playback position within a track Use the iTunes Playhead slider to move to a different location in the current track Modify the Time Display in the Amarra Ul DO ESTTLLIM To Change Time Click On Seconds Drag Mouse left or right Pause playback Double click on the Time element you want to modify e ype in a new value and hit Return Or Click on a time element and drag your mo
13. chapter 6 for details Abort FLAC Conversions Aborts any active and pending FLAC file or folder conversions Activation Opens the Activation Window refer to the Amarra Activation Guide for more information about Activating Amarra Symphony Audio Device Preferences Opens the Audio Device Preferences for managing your DAC Open Audio Midi Setup Open the Audio Midi Setup window for setting up your DAC Panner Amarra Playlist Opens the Amarra Panner Window Open Sonic Studio Process Opens Sonic Studio Process for Sample Rate Conversion Check for Updates Manually checks for availability of new versions of Amarra Symphony Setting the Amarra Symphony Preferences Check for Updates on Launch will automate this Sonic Studio Website Links back to the Sonic Studio Website Eject Disk Ejects CD from tray Extras Accesses additional features of Amarra Page 42 A 3 Extras submenu Close Window NA Cut NA Copy NA Paste NA Open Console Log Opens the Console Application to view the Amarra console log in Utilities Folder Purge OSX Memory Purges Inactivate OSX Memory to improve overall performance This is checked each time Amarra Is launched When purging inactive memory Amarra is temporarily unavailable Quit Launch Finder Quits and launches the Finder Application Enable Debugging Allows Amarra to log information on its operation to the Console Log Print Track Info Prints track informatio
14. sense of the filter s subjective sound since the same value of Q will produce different bandwidths at different frequencies The higher the frequency the wider the bandwidth will be for a given O value which roughly corresponds to our auditory mechanism s ability to perceive a filter s action As an example a parametric filter with a Q of 1 has a bandwidth of 100 Hz when its center frequency is set to 100 Hz but it has a bandwidth of 1000 Hz when the center frequency is set to 1000 Hz Using the EO takes 2 steps first display the EO window and then turn the Equalizer itself on Qe one PARAMETRIC FREQ n i BOOST i k PARAMETRIC FREQ BOOST a PARAMETRIC FREQ BOOST o a Amarra EO Window 5 4 1 Displaying the EQ Window Click on the EO button on the Amarra Ul below the center window Use Option Click on the EO button to bypass the EQ 5 4 2 Turning the EQ On Either click on the EQ button in the Amarra EQ window or choose one of the many presets available from the pulldown menu Page 23 5 4 3 Adjusting EQ Choose one of the presets available or manually adjust the values in any of the 3 parametric filters by either moving the appropriate slider or typing the value in for Frequency Gain and Q factor 5 4 4 Setting Amarra EQ via iTunes e Select the Link Amarra EO to iTunes EQ in Amarra Symphony Preferences e Either set the iTunes global EO or Select a Track in iTunes and using
15. the Save button e Set the desired name for the Playlist Click the Where pulldown item to navigate to the desired location for your Playlist e Saving a Playlist with the same name and location will overwrite the existing Playlist 5 2 7 OPENING AN EXISTING PLAYLIST You can recall an existing Amarra Playlist in one of 2 ways You can either use the Open Button on the Amarra UI or drag drop an existing Playlist into the Amarra Playlist Window OPEN The Open Button r3 e Click on this button to access a Finder window Navigate to your saved Playlist and click Open to load into Amarra Playlists OR e Drag Drop an existing Playlist from the Finder window into the Amarra Playlist Window E NOTE Loading a new Playlist will clear any tracks currently in your Amarra Playlist 5 2 8 CLEARING YOUR PLAYLIST To clear the contents of your current Playlist simply click on the Clear Button CLEAR Click on either button to clear the current contents of your Amarra Playlist The Clear button also clears any Preloaded Tracks in Amarra mode Page 21 5 3 CACHE Mode The CACHE Button LAL al Cache mode pre loads songs into RAM to minimize disk access resulting in better sound quality Cache can be used in Amarra iTunes or Amarra Playlist Mode Simply click on the C button on the Amarra Ul prior to loading your tracks The button will display a green dot to signify that CACHE mode is engaged Amarra will first
16. the result is that your listening experience can be significantly diminished Amarra Symphony now includes Sonic Studio iRC Impulse Response Correction capability This leading edge room correction technology is designed to optimize the sound of your system in your environment and to your taste Sonic Studio iRC measures the acoustic characteristics of your loudspeakers within your listening environment and then optimizes for timing phase and frequency anomalies imposed by your room The result is massively improved imaging and sound staging because now your room will be working with your sound system not against it Using Sonic Studio iRC is a2 step process First measure and calibrate your listening environment using the iRC Measure calibration tool and create filter files filter suffix for your specific needs The second is to load the filter files into the Sonic Studio iRC filter bank in Amarra Symphony for use during play back Page 32 9 1 Using IRC Measure to Measure your Listening Environment The iRC Measure application IRC Measure app is installed as part of the Amarra Symphony standard installation and can be found in your Applications gt Amarra Symphony folder in Finder Please refer to the Sonic Studio iRC User Manual for details on installing and using the iRC Measure application The manual can be found in your Amarra Symphony folder 9 2 Using Sonic Studio iRC to use the Filter Files created Filter sets created by t
17. window is used to set your output device when using Streaming Playback mode and when setting output devices independent of Audio Midi Setup Page 10 Open ADP 9 CACHE Button Turning on CACHE CACHE CACHE mode is used to minimize disk access and improve performance by loading tracks into a specified amount of memory prior to beginning playback All of the disk access is done at once before playback begins instead of loading tracks from disk during playback Available in both Amarra and Playlist modes Toggle button to turn Cache On and Off when turned on the next track loaded or many tracks if Preload Tracks is active will be loaded into Cache prior to beginning playback 10 Amarra iTunes Button to toggle between Amarra and iTunes AMARRA Indicates the engine being used to playback music from your iTunes library When the green dot is lit and Amarra is displayed Amarra Is the playback engine playing back your music When the button displays iTunes in grey iTunes Is playing back your music Use this button to exit Playlist mode and go back to Amarra iTunes mode NOTE A great way to do an A B comparison between Amarra and iTunes Is to simply toggle the Amarra iTunes button 11 PLAYLIST Button to enter Playlist mode PLAYLIST Clicking on the Playlist button will illuminate a green dot and enters Amarra Playlist mode When tn Amarra Playlist mode your Amarra Playlist is the source for y
18. Button and Playlist Commands CLEAR The Clear Button is visible in Amarra mode and clears any Preloaded Tracks and Cache When in Amarra Playlist mode the following buttons will be displayed Note these are the same functions found on the Amarra Playlist window and the Amarra gt Playlist pulldown menu ADD FINDER CLEAR OPEN SAVE Add Adds selected tracks from iTunes into your Amarra Playlist Finder Opens a Finder window to navigate to and select files to add to an Amarra Playlist Clear Clears Playlist Also clears preloaded tracks when in Amarra mode Open Opens a saved Amarra Playlist clears current playlist Save Opens a Finder window to save current Playlist for future recall See Section 5 for more details on using Amarra Playlists 6 Artwork window eDisplays available artwork eDouble click on the Artwork window to open a larger independent Artwork window NOTE Not all tracks contain artwork Use the Get Album Artwork command in iTunes to get additional artwork NOTE Amarra Symphony stores artwork in your Macintosh HD Library Applications Support Sonic Studio Artwork folder in Finder If you are missing artwork ensure you have proper permissions for this folder 7 M Button Turning on Meters Click to display Sonic Meters in the Symphony Ul 8 Il Button window Click to display the Audio Device Preferences Window The Audio Device Preferences
19. EMG E 25 6 1 Playing FLAC Files Natively via Amarra PlaylistS rrrarannrnnnnvnnnnnrnnnnnnnnnnvennrnnnnnnnnnnvennnnnnnnnsenn 25 6 2 Playing FLAC Files from iTunes rranrrnnrrnnnnnnnnnnnnrnnnrnnvennrrnnnrnnnnnnnrrnnnennvsnnvennnnnnnnnuvrnnvsnnvennuennn 26 6 2 1 Converting a FLAC Folder to AIFF Format rennnnennnnennnnennnnennnnnnnnnnnnnnnennnnennnnnnnnnennnnennnnnnnnnrnnnnrnnnnsnnnnrennnsennn 26 6 2 2 Converting FLAC Files to AIFF FOIE nderit neues sees entree asics banded cag ateatecint oeteenerinemedeneeaneceeeceeeneeaceece 27 6 2 3 AOR MIG FLAC CONVETSIONS sero EE a EE ue ecesemateia 27 Chapter 7 0 GapleSs PIayDaCcK scisccvisccccceceescssnscoeescesesssesnennedewecesesecusssntectsetenanteces 28 7 1 Gapless Playback in Amarra iTunes Mode ccccecceeeeseeceeeeeeseeeeeeceeseuesaeeeeeseueseeeeeeeegesaeesass 28 7 2 Gapless Playback in Amarra Playlist mode rarennrrnnnnnnnnnvnnnennnnnnvnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnennnnnnnnnvennnener 30 Chapter 8 0 Audio Playback from Streaming Sources 31 5 1 Installing Amara SO TNT Tm 31 Run Uninstall AmarraSQ app This will remove all components installed 31 8 2 Launching Licensing and Using Amarra SQ rrrrnnnnennnnrennnnennnnnennnnrennnnnnnnnnennnnnennnnennnnnennnneennn 31 Chapter 9 0 Sonic Studio iRC Impulse Response Correction 32 9 1 Using iRC Measure to Measure your Listening Environment
20. Get Info select the Options Tab and set the EO Preset Amarra EQ will follow the iTunes EO presets V NOTE You can use the Amarra Symphony Preference EQ Bypass to bypass any EQ uU processing by Amarra during playback Note The iTunes EQ is typically On by default which may effect playback even if the Link Amarra EQ to iTunes EQ preference is not selected We recommend turning the iTunes EQ Off unless specifically using the iTunes EQ The iTunes EQ can be accessed from the iTunes gt Windows menu 5 4 5 Saving and Recalling EQ Settings The Amarra gt Desk menu items allows you to save and recall your EO settings Set your EO Settings Go to the Desk menu and select Save Sonic EO Setup to save your settings Use Open Sonic EQ Setup to open an existing EQ saved setting To save a new DEFAULT setting Set the EQ Preset menu to Default Make your desired adjustments to the Freg dB and O parameters From the Amarra gt Desk pulldown menu click on Save as Default elf you quit with the Default EO setting set next time you launch those values will be automatically recalled NOTE You will need to make the EQ the Active Window for the Amarra Desk menu items to be accessible Click on the top bar of the Amarra EQ Window to make the Amarra EQ Window active Page 24 Chapter 6 0 Playing FLAG Files Amarra Symphony provides 2 means of playing b
21. K AMARRA TO ITUNES WINDOW Forces Amarra to remain attached to the iTunes main window Also activated via the link button on the Amarra Ul LINK AMARRA EQ TO ITUNES EO Forces Amarra EO to follow the EO settings in iTunes when set at the file level in iTunes CHECK FOR UPDATES ON LAUNCH Amarra will check for updates on launch P v P v 512M n PY v wf v Page 46 OPEN PLAYLIST ON LAUNCH lf Amarra quits with an Amarra playlist loaded the playlist will be reloaded when you re launch Amarra B 2 PLAYBACK SETTINGS PRELOAD TRACKS Enables loading of multiple tracks in Amarra iTunes Mode for gapless playback In Amarra iTunes mode Preload Tracks must be enabled for gapless playback vi NOTE Preload Tracks is specifically designed for gapless playback in Amarra iTunes mode Using Preload Tracks to load a specified number of tracks not part of a gapless performance into an Amarra Playlist may lead to unexpected results See 7 1 Gapless Playback in Amarra iTunes Mode on page 28 on Gapless Playback COUNT Number of tracks to preload when the Preload Tracks preference is set By setting count and Preload Tracks preferences Amarra will attempt to load the selected number of tracks Only tracks with the same sample rate of the first track will be loaded 4 NOTE Disable SHUFFLE MODE and REPEAT MODE in iTunes when using PRELOAD
22. Sonic Studio LLC All rights reserved No part of this document may be reproduced stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher Sonic Studio Amarra Amarra Hifi Amarra Symphony Sonic Mastering EQ Model 302 Model 303 Model Four Model 305 and the Sonic Studio and Amarra logos are trademarks of Sonic Studio LLC All other company or product names are either trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners Page 5 Chapter 1 0 Welcome to Amarra Symphony with iRC Congratulations and welcome to the Amarra family By now you should have successfully downloaded installed and activated Amarra Symphony with iRC Symphony and are ready to listen to your music We have a few short notes to pass along to make your listening experience better e f you haven t Installed and Activated Symphony yet please do the following Double click on the Amarra Symphony Installer Package to launch the installer Follow on screen instructions for installation Enter system admin password when prompted Symphony will auto launch as part of installation e f you have any issues Activating Symphony please refer to the Amarra Symphony Activation Guide located in your Amarra Symphony folder in Finder If problems persist please contact us at support sonicstudio com Google Translate now provides for translating full documents into local languag
23. TIVATE to continue the process on Machine 2 You will be asked to enter a new password for Machine 2 Enter in a new unused password up to 16 characters in length You should get a message that your software has been activated and should not have any issues moving forward Note Your password Is attached to your license not your computer The password created on machine 2 will become the active password for your license should you need to activate any machine in the future Page 38 Chapter 14 Registering Your Amarra Symphony with iRC Software In order to receive warranty service you must register your product with Sonic Studio This may be done at any time with proof of purchase We strongly recommend that you register with Sonic Studio as soon as you purchase your unit Why 1 Your product will be registered with us Registration is used as proof of ownership if your product is ever lost or stolen 2 Sonic Studio updates Amarra Symphony software on a regular basis This allows us to keep you informed of updates as they become available We strongly encourage you to create a License Control Panel Account Please read the Amarra Symphony Activation Guide for information on this important feature Please register your Amarra Symphony software using our automated registration Web page at http www sonicstudio com and click on Support gt Register Alternatively our mail address is Sonic Studio LLC Amarra Software Re
24. ack FLAC files natively from an Amarra Playlist and a converted file in your iTunes library In addition Amarra has built in FLAC to AIFF file conversion to allow easy integration with your iTunes Library Why convert FLAC to AIFF Easy integration with iTunes Integration with iTunes Metadata e Integration with Apple Remote e Simplified ease of us convert and forget Less overhead on system resources 6 1 Playing FLAC Files Natively via Amarra Playlists Amarra provides for FLAC file playback natively via the PLAYLIST function without using iTunes To playback FLAC Files via Amarra Playlists do the following Obtain your music in FLAC format from one or more of a variety of providers such as HD Tracks among others As part of the download process please note where your music is being downloaded to Once the download completes this may take some time depending on the number and size of the tracks being downloaded move on to the next step e Go into Playlist Mode see chapter 5 1 about using Playlists You can either Drag Drop your FLAC Files into the Playlist window use the Finder button in either the Amarra UI or the Playlist Ul or select Open Tracks via Finder from the Amarra Symphony gt Playlist pulldown menu If using the Finder window Navigate to your FLAC files highlight the desired tracks Note The Finder window supports both the shift and command keys for making multiple selections Once you are do
25. another new capability the ability to playbck audio from streaming sources such as Pandora Internet Radio Spotify and YouTube among others NOTE We strongly recommend that you run either Amarra Symphony or Amarra sQ but not both at the same time to avoid any playback issues between the two applications NOTE If you purchase Amarra sQ during a trial you will need to wait until either the trial is over to install your permanent license or wait until prompted to install your permanent license when launching Amarra sQ 8 1 Installing Amarra sQ To install Amarra sO please click on the Amarra sQ Installer pkg You can download the Installer from Follow the on screen instructions to install your software You may uninstall the Amarra sQ as follows Run Uninstall AmarraSQ app This will remove all components installed 8 2 Launching Licensing and Using Amarra sQ There are two methods for licensing Amarra sQ 1 Trial Mode Free 15 day full function trial 2 Permanent Activation You are delivered an Activation Code after purchase VI Learn For your security and convenience an iLok Account Is required to use or try Amarra sQ Your personal account is free secure and takes just a few minutes to set up Amarra sO software is protected with PACE Anti Piracy s InterLok copy protection Learn more at iLok com Your Amarra sO license is authorized on your Mac via Machine License or iLok2 USB Smart Key
26. ayback in Amarra iTunes Mode To enable Gapless Playback in Amarra iTunes Mode e Select the Amarra Symphony Preference setting for PRELOAD TRACKS and set the COUNT parameter to the desired number of tracks or a full album in the gapless performance V NOTE We highly recommend only using Preload Tracks when loading an entire W gapless album e Ensure your iTunes library is sorted in the correct order for the gapless performance when viewing your library from the SONG tab y How to setup iTunes for use with Preload Songs Albums Artists Genres Videos Playlists Internet atc ma c CS ZC a Select Songs tab b Select Album column Click Until Album by Artist appears Arrow should point up c Select Albums to view select album to play LOK Setting up iTunes for Preloading a Gapless Album Page 28 Choose a track in iTunes and the number of tracks in the COUNT field will be loaded together based on current sort order and played back Those tracks that are part of a true gapless performance will be played back without a gap NOTE The sort order of your iTunes library is critical for gapless playback especially gt loading a full album Please ensure your iTunes library is sorted in the correct order when on the Songs tab prior to attempting to Preload Tracks For best performance when Preloading an Album sort your iTunes library by Artist by Album We recommend only using Preload Tracks with the Cou
27. ction as part of the process File Playlist Desk Windows Help Toggle Amarra ITunes for Playback 361 Set Playlist for Playback 382 Open Recent gt Clear Tracks NEC Mute V amp M Convert FLAC File to AIFF Convert FLAC Folder to AIFF Abort FLAC Conversions Activation Audio Device Preferences Open Audio MIDI Setup Check For Updates Sonic Studio Website Eject Disc Extras Abort current and pending FLAC Conversions There are 1 conversions in progress Do you want to abort the conversions No ives Confirm Selection Page 27 Chapter 7 0 Gapless Playback Gapless playback is perfect for contiguous performances such as symphonic recordings or live continuous performances Gapless playback is now available in both Amarra iTunes mode and in Amarra Playlist mode however there are some minor differences between how gapless playback is provided in each mode NOTE Uncompressed files are required for Gapless Playback Use AIFF WAV or BWF files mode Using Preload Tracks to load tracks not part of a gapless performance into an Amarra Playlist may lead to unexpected results We recommend disabling Preload Tracks select the desired tracks in ITunes and click the ADD button on the Amarra Ul in Playlist mode VI EX NOTE Preload Tracks is specifically designed for gapless playback in Amarra iTunes 7 1 Gapless Pl
28. er the authors Sonic Studio LLC nor its dealers or distributors will be held liable for any damages to be caused either directly or indirectly by the instructions contained in this book or by the software or hardware products described herein SONIC STUDIO LLC MAKES NOWARRANTIES EXPRESS ORIMPLIED INCLUDINGWITHOUT LIMITATION THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE REGARDING THE APPLE SOFTWARE SONIC STUDIO LLC DOES NOT WARRANT GUARANTEE OR MAKE ANY REPRESENTATIONS REGARDING THE USE OR THE RESULTS OF THE USE OF THE SONIC STUDIO LLC SOFTWARE IN TERMS OF ITS CORRECTNESS ACCURACY RELIABILITY CURRENTNESS OR OTHERWISE THE ENTIRE RISK ASTOTHE RESULTS AND PERFORMANCE OFTHE SONIC STUDIO SOFTWARE IS ASSUMED BY YOU THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES IS NOT PERMITTED BY SOME STATES THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLYTOYOU IN NO EVENTWILL SONIC STUDIO LLC ITS DIRECTORS OFFICERS EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY CONSEQUENTIAL INCIDENTAL OR INDIRECT DAMAGES INCLUDING DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS BUSINESS INTERRUPTION LOSS OF BUSINESS INFORMATION ANDTHE LIKE ARISING OUT OFTHE USE OR INABILITYTO USETHE SONIC STUDIO SOFTWARE EVEN IF SONIC STUDIO HAS BEEN ADVISED OFTHE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES BECAUSE SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU Notice of Rights 2007 2014
29. es Please visit http translate google com select the desired language to translate to and click on translate a document It s not a perfect tool but it may help those who prefer languages other than English e Always launch Symphony first and let it launch iTunes to ensure proper operation e If Symphony quits unexpectedly for any reason please delete your Amarra Symphony Preferences prior to re launching Symphony See Appendix B for information on Amarra Symphony Preferences eA significant amount of additional information can be found at our support portal and on our FAQ Please visit our support page at http www sonicstudio com amarra amarrasupport html to access these resources e Holding the Mouse over any button will display a Help Tip displaying what the button does It s time to Enjoy the Music Page 6 Chapter 2 0 Getting Started This section reviews the initial steps needed to ensure proper operation of Amarra Symphony 2 1 Connecting to your output device If you are using and external DAC Digital to Analog Converter ensure your device is connected to your Mac powered on and recognized by the Mac OS by verifying itis listed in Audio Midi Setup or in the Sound item on the System Preferences window prior to launching Amarra Symphony You can access Audio Midi Setup in the Applications gt Utilities folder in Finder As an alternative you can set the outp
30. gistration 1340 Mission Street San Francisco CA USA 94103 If you encounter issues using Amarra Symphony please refer to our Amarra Support Portal at http www sonicstudio com amarra amarrasupportportal html If none of these steps address your problem please contact your dealer or Sonic Studio support for more help Page 39 Chapter 15 eren Contacting Sonic Studio Thanks for using Amarra Symphony We really appreciate your patronage and are always interested in your experiences with Amarra Symphony For information on problems resources please visit our FAQ page http www sonicstudio com amarra amarrafaq html For bug reports and support issues visit http Www sonicstudio com amarra amarrasupport html or email us support sonicstudio com To suggest new features for our products e mail us at mailto support Osonicstudio com Page 40 APPENDIX A Amarra Symphony Pulldown Menus The following section describes the Amarra Symphony Pulldown Menu Items Amarra Symphony File Playlist Desk Windows Help Amarra Symphony Menu Bar A 1 Amarra Symphony Pulldown Menu PUAU me aula File Playli About Amarra Preferences 3 Services b Hide Amarra Symphony amp Hide Others X 88H Show All Quit Amarra Symphony 0 About Amarra Opens the modal About window This is useful for verifying the version number of Amarra Symphony that you are running Click anywhere in the window to close it Prefe
31. he Individual Device Section Each device will have it s own section in the Audio Device Preferences window Ensure output channels are set correctly via the Out1 and Out2 pulldown menus 2007 2014 Sonic Studio LLC All rights reserved No part of this document may be reproduced stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in an form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher Sonic Studio Amarra and the Sonic Studio and Amarra logos are trademarks of Sonic Studio LLC All other company or product names are either trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners Amarra Symphony with IRC User Manual Index A AMSU 50 Artwork 2 10 12 Audio Device Preferences 50 Audio Midi Setup 7 44 50 CACHE 46 conversion 17 25 DAC 18 34 44 EQ 5 9 15 23 37 38 46 FLAC 17 25 26 27 44 Gapless Playback 28 30 Installer 6 31 40 52 IRC 6 34 35 36 41 47 52 launch 6 7 8 24 35 40 46 48 51 Launch 45 License 40 41 ivi menu 10 14 17 18 19 21 23 24 25 26 39 43 O output device 7 Playlist 2 3 4 7 10 11 15 17 18 19 20 21 22 25 26 28 30 44 46 47 Preload 28 29 45 49 sample rate 9 18 30 Sample Rate Conversion 44 Ul 9 10 14 18 25 User Interface 9 35 Volume 9 14
32. he iRC Measure application must be loaded into Sonic Studio iRC filter bank The Sonic Studio iRC filter bank window is accessed by pressing the iRC button on the Amarra Symphony User Interface IRC Pressing the button will launch the Sonic Studio iRC application check for a valid license and display the Sonic Studio iRC filter bank see image below Remember to click the On Off button on the filter bank to turn processing on and off ua NOTE Filter names in the Sonic Studio iRC window will be set automatically according to the yournamehere filter filename in Finder RoomcalO1 filter e MyRoomcCalO2 filter double click to set double click to set Sonic Studio IRC filter bank The SSIRC filter bank has four 4 pre selection slots where filter files can be loaded for quick selection To load a filter file into an empty slot Page 33 e Double Click on an empty filter slot This opens a Finder dialog where you can navigate to the folder where you stored your filter files using the IRC Measure application Select the filter file that you want to load from the popup Finder window e Adjust Gain to an appropriate level for the filter you are using by typing a value in the box provided NOTE A value of 0 0 dB is full volume positive numbers increase gain negative numbers decrease gain Putting a value above 0 0 in the gain field will increase your output signal be careful when setting gain to avoid po
33. his m Password Cancel 0 amp 3 2 3 Launching Symphony Next Time After initial launch to launch Symphony in the future click on the Amarra Symphony icon in your dock or navigate to your Applications gt Amarra Symphony 3 0 folder in Finder and double click on Amarra Symphony app As long as your device is set as the device for sound output in Audio Midi Setup prior to launching Symphony Symphony should automatically find the device 2 4 Changing your Output Device V NOTE We strongly recommend pausing playback when changing output devices uU to avoid any unwanted consequences To change outputto a different device you can use Amarra Symphony s Audio Device Preferences Window Click the Il button on the Amarra Symphony User Interface Ul to display the Audio Device Preferences window Drag the clock icon in the left hand column to your desired device to direct playback to that device You may have to press the Rescan button at the top of the window for the change to take effect In addition if you plug in a device after Amarra has launched press the Rescan button to update the list of devices in the ADP window You can then set the new device as your output device More details on using the Audio Device Preferences window can be found in APPENDIX D Audio Device Preferences Window on page 52 Chapter 3 0 Amarra Symphony User Interface Amarra Symphony no longer has the vertical
34. load your tracks into RAM and then begin playback The amount of RAM used for loading your tracks is displayed in the Amarra Ul Window Choose the amount of RAM to use for CACHE Playback via the Amarra Preferences window Memory Amount item Note Currently Amarra will load a max of 2 8 Gb into Cache typically between 2 6 2 8Gb depending on the track being loaded Amarra will only load complete tracks into CACHE We recommend setting Memory Amount to 1 3 to 1 2 of the available RAM on your machine for best performance VI M Page 22 5 4 Amarra Symphony EQ Note Amarra Symphony Users also have access to the Sonic Mastering EQ via the Amarra Preferences window Please see Appendix C for details on the Sonic Mastering EQ This section presents an overview of the Amarra EQ Use the Amarra EO to alter the sonic characteristics of the sound Amarra provides three parametric filters to tailor your sound All processing is done using 64bit floating point arithmetic The parametric filters are classic three parameter versions with Resonant Frequency gain and Q Q or Quality Factor is defined as the resonant frequency or center frequency in the case of a symmetrical filter divided by the bandwidth The bandwidth is in turn defined as the one or two frequencies at which the filter response is 3 dB up or down from unity gain Expressing the width of a filter as a Quality Factor rather than bandwidth provides a more intuitive
35. n to load your FLAC files natively into an Amarra Playlist Navigate to your desired FLAC files select and click Open to add to your Playlist VI 5 2 5 USING YOUR AMARRA PLAYLIST Choosing Tracks in your Playlist You can select tracks in your Playlist by doing the following e Select the track with your cursor and hit Play Page 19 Use the up or down arrow to move up and down in the Playlist Use the gt gt and lt lt Transport buttons on the Amarra Ul to move to the next track to the head of current track or to the previous track You can also use the Tracks Button to see the list of tracks loaded and to select a desired Track The TRACKS BUTTON POSLE Deleting Tracks You can delete a track in the current Playlist by highlighting the track and hitting the Delete Key on your keyboard Moving Tracks You can move tracks up and down in the current playlist by highlighting the track and holding the mouse key down You will see a white line that you can move around in the Playlist and it indicates where the file will be placed when dropped Release the mouse to drop the file in place It will take Amarra a moment to rebuild the Playlist so please be patient Page 20 5 2 6 SAVING A PLAYLIST FOR FUTURE RECALL You can Save your Amarra Playlist for recall at a future time by using the Save button on the Amarra Ul on the Amarra Playlist Ul or from the Amarra gt Playlist pulldown menu The SAVE Button Press
36. n to the Console log When using Preload Tracks prints Close Window EW Cut de X Copy AL da V Purge OSX Memory Quit Launch Finder Enable Debugging Print Track Info track information for all preloaded tracks Page 43 A 4 Playlist Pulldown Menu gele Desk Windows Help Add Tracks From iTunes 3 Add Tracks From Finder 0 Clear Tracks XC Open Playlist Save Playlist Playlist Window Add Tracks From iTunes shft cmd i Adds tracks selected in iTunes into Playlist Add Tracks from Finder cmd ol Select and add audio tracks from the Mac Finder Clear Tracks Clears the current Playlist or when used in Amarra iTunes mode clears any Preloaded racks Open Playlist Open an existing Amarra Playlist Save Playlist Saves a Playlist to disk for later recall Playlist Window Opens the Amarra Playlist window A 5 Desk Window Windows Help Open Sonic EQ Setup Save Sonic EQ Setup Save As Default Mute TM Cache NEC Open Sonic EO Setup Allows you open a previously saved Sonic EO Setup Save Sonic EO Setup Allows you to save the current open Sonic EO Setup Save As Default Save the current open Sonic EO Setup as the Default EO The Sonic EO Setup will be recalled on launch Mute opt cmd MI Turns Mute on and off Cache 0pt cmd M Turns CACHE Mode on and off Page 44 A 6 Windows Menu Windows Amarra YA iTunes X Playlist XP
37. ne making your selection s click on the Open button to add the files to your playlist Continue adding songs until you are satisfied with your playlist Select File gt Save Playlist to save your playlist giving it a meaningful name and saving it in a memorable location Page 25 To play your playlist just click on Amarra s Play button You can skip forward and back in the playlist by using the forward and back buttons using the Tracks list or by clicking on the desired track in the Playlist window 6 2 Playing FLAC Files from iTunes iTunes does not natively support Flac Files Your files will need to be converted to a format supported by iTunes in order to be loaded into your iTunes library Under the Amarra Symphony gt FILE Menu there are two commands available for this function You can convert a FLAC File to AIFF or convert an entire FLAC Folder of Music to AIFF such as an album from a high resolution music download site 6 2 1 Converting a FLAC Folder to AIFF Format Converting a FLAC Folder to AIFF is an easy process Click on the Amarra Symphony gt File pulldown menu at the top of the screen and select Convert FLAC Folder to AIFF e In the resulting Finder window navigate to and select the folder containing FLAC files you want to convert and click Open e In the next window specify the destination folder for the new AIFF files You can create a temporary folder for this or choose an existing folder for your new AIFF file
38. ng for best sound quality Use CACHE Mode and select Memory Amount to about 1 3 to 1 2 of available memory up to 3Gb e Load your Tracks into an Amarra Playlist and Quit iTunes n Amarra Preferences select Gain Bypass and use your external device for volume control In Amarra Preferences select EO Bypass if not using any EO settings e From the Amarra gt File gt Extras pulldown menu select Quit Launch Finder to quit Finder e f you are presented with a dialog box to Purge Inactive Memory always click Yes The process takes a moment before play back is available again 5 2 Amarra Playlists eoo WE C ee ALC H ME H3 E 4 Give Me Your Kisses Album Version Legis Armstrong What A Wonderful World 00 01 59 19 z i m g m Amarra Symphony and Playlist windows Using Amarra Playlists provides several benefits including Processing your music more efficiently than in Amarra iTunes mode resulting in better sound quality Ability to run independently of iTunes Ability to play FLAC files natively no conversion needed 5 2 1 General Information about Amarra Playlists e You can load tracks of different sample rates and different file types into the same Playlist without issue racks can reside in more than one Playlist Page 17 e Amarra Symphony only stores a pointer and some other information ab
39. nt field set to Album V NOTE Please ensure that you have disabled SHUFFLE mode in iTunes when using uU PRELOAD TRACKS in Amarra Page 29 7 2 Gapless Playback in Amarra Playlist mode Using Amarra Playlists makes it very easy to have gapless playback Amarra Symphomy will attempt to play all tracks in an Amarra Playlist gaplessly as long as the sample rate Is the same DO NOT select Preload Tracks when using Amarra Playlist mode using Preload Tracks in Amarra Playlist mode may produce unexpected results To load several tracks or an album that is not gapless use the Add Finder buttons in the Amarra Symphony Ul or Playlist window or drag drop your selected tracks Into an Amarra Playlist Note Gapless Playback is designed to work with true gapless performances such as symphonic recordings live performances and recordings that were mastered as gapless Gapless playback is not a substitute for mixing independent tracks together V Note To load an Album into an Amarra Playlist do the following Disable Preload Tracks From the songs tab in iTunes sort your library by Album by Artist In iTunes move to the Album tab Select the album you d like to load into your Amarra Playlist Click the Playlist button to go into Amarra Playlist mode Click the Add button the entire album will be loaded into your Playlist Page 30 Chapter 8 0 Audio Playback from Streaming Sources Amarra Symphony introduces
40. our music Use this button to bring the Amarra Playlist window to the front if hidden behind other windows NOTE When in Playlist Mode Amarra is ALWAYS playing your music back 12 TRACKS Button TRACKS Active in both Amarra Playlist mode and when using Preload Tracks in Amarra iTunes mode Displays a list of tracks in your Playlist or Preloaded Tracks are selectable from the TRACKS pulldown list 13 EQ Button to display EQ vvindovv EQ Turns the Equalizer window on and off Use Option click to Bypass EO NOTE This button only effects the display of the EQ window Use the EQ button on the Equalizer to turn the EQ on and off Page 11 14 iRC Button to display iRC Filter Bank IRC Turns on and off the Amarra iRC Filter Bank When green dot is lit signifies that an iRC filter is engaged for playback 15 Preload Tracks Button for Gapless Playback Toggles the Preload Tracks function on and off 16 LINK Button to link Amarra window to iTunes Links the Amarra Ul to the iTunes window Move your iTunes window and Amarra will follow NOTE If you move your Amarra window iTunes does not follow This is useful if you need to temporarily separate the windows 17 Up Down Arrow Button to display Artwork window Toggles the Artwork Window display on and off Page 12 Chapter 4 0 Music Playback from your iTunes library Playing music from an iTunes library on a recogni
41. out the file it does not make an additional copy of the file when adding to a Playlist e f you move your tracks to another location on your disk you will need to re do your Amarra Playlists e Commands for Amarra Playlists can be accessed from the Amarra UI the Amarra Playlist Ul or from the Amarra Symphony gt Playlist pulldown menu You will only be able to load tracks into an Amarra Playlist that Symphony can play back in the current configuration If you get a sample rate not supported message please check to make sure your Mac interface and DAC all support the sample rate of the track being loaded You can also use a drag drop method of loading tracks including saved Amarra Playlists into your Amarra Playlist from either your iTunes library or a Finder window 5 2 2 Amarra Playlist Window Amarra Playlist mode provides an additional independent Playlist window optional to manage your Amarra Playlists Here are some new buttons on the Amarra Playlist window to be aware of The Playlist Display window M The name of your currently loaded playlist is listed in the center window of your Amarra Playlist The default name is Amarra Playlist The Link Button ean This button links the Amarra window to the Amarra Playlist window As you move the Amarra window the Playlist window will follow The Repeat Playlist Button HS This button has 2 states and determines what Amarra should do at the end of a Playlist
42. r eene 50 APPENDIX D Audio Device Preferences Window eere 52 NOTE Translation to local language is available via google translate now Please visit translate google com trzf amp hlzen and set the appropriate Translate to language Browse to your Amarra product folder in your Applications folder in Finder and select the appropriate file to translate This file is called Amarra Symphony with IRC User Manual About This Manual This manual as well as the software described in it is furnished under license and may only be used or copied in accordance with the terms of such license The information in this manual is furnished for informational use only is subject to change without notice and should not be construed as a commitment by Sonic Studio LLC Sonic Studio LLC assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may appear in this book Except as permitted by such license no part of this publication may be reproduced stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic mechanical recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of Sonic Studio LLC Notice of Liability The author and publisher have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of the information herein However the information contained in this document is provided without warranty either express or implied Neith
43. r Menu Quit Command Show Hide Hide Spotlight Icon Show Spotlight Icon Cancel OK Mac OS Optimatization Script B 6 ADDITIONAL SONIC HARDWARE SETTINGS Amarra provides additional preferences when used with a Sonic Audio Interface These controls allow integration of Analog Gain Control and more Additional Sonic Hardware Preferences T Launch Quit Console Forces Sonic Console to launch or quit in sync with Amarra NOTE Requires Sonic Studio Hardware and the Amarra Console Software Dim Front Panel Dims the front panel display Control Volume Interlocks Amarra s gain control with the hardware gain control so either can be used Gain Adjustment Set the system gain to match professional 0 dB or consumer electronic 10 or 14 dB standard Page 49 APPENDIX C Your Amarra Symphony Folder This section describes the files installed in your Applications gt Amarra Symphony folder in Finder as part of the Amarra Symphony installation process Name v L3 Amarra Symphony 3 0 v Support ve Sonic Studio QuickSupport v9 app Amarra sQ Download webloc Lost Actvation Code webloc Amarra Videos webloc Amarra Support Portal webloc Amarra Learning Center webloc Amarra Support Page webloc Amarra Symphony app IRC Measure app v Extras Amarra 30 License Manager app amp Amarra Symphony Setup app MacOSX Optimization Setup app i Installers
44. rences Opens the Preference window for Amarra Symphony Services This menu proves access to any Services that are available to Amarra Symphony Hide Amarra Hides all Amarra Symphony windows To reveal the windows click on the Dock icon or tap the tab key to cycle through running applications to select Amarra Symphony Hide Others Hides all windows other than Symphony Show All Reveals all windows Quit Amarra Quits Amarra Symphony Page 41 A 2 File Pulldown Menu Si Playlist Desk Windows Help Toggle Amarra ITunes for Playback 1 Set Playlist for Playback 862 Open Recent Clear Tracks XC Mute X 48M Convert FLAC File to AIFF Convert FLAC Folder to AIFF Abort FLAC Conversions Activation Audio Device Preferences Open Audio MIDI Setup Panner Amarra Playlist Check For Updates Sonic Studio Website Eject Disc aE Toggle Amarra iTunes Playback cmd 1 Toggles between Amarra Symphony and ITunes engine for playback in Amarra iTunes mode N A in Amarra Playlist mode Set Playlist for Playback cmd 2 Sets Amarra Symphony s Playlist as the source for playback Open Recent List of Recent Amarra Playlists for easy access Clear Tracks Clears Tracks from either Amarra Playlist or Preloaded Tracks Mute Mutes Amarra Symphony Convert FLAC File to AIFF Convert FLAC Files to AIFF Format see chapter 6 for details Convert FLAC Folder to AIFE Convert FLAC Folder to AIFF Format see
45. rra Symphony Setup app runs the Amarra setup application allowing for personalized setup MacOSX_Optimization_Setup app launches the Mac OSX Optimize script Ensure you have sufficient knowledge of Mac OS and System Applications prior to using the Mac OSX Optimization script e Delete Amarra Preferences command use this utility to reset Amarra Symphony to a factory default setting e Amarra sQ Page webloc directs you to the Amarra sO product page on the Sonic Studio Website Scripts Folder contains scripts used during the installation of Amarra Symphony Page 50 Installers Folder contains uninstallers for Amarra Symphony IRC and the License Manager MicCalFiles Folder contains calibration file for the XTZ mic to be used with IRC Manuals Amarra Symphony Activation Guide pdf refer to this manual for Installation and Activation instructions Amarra Symphony Read Me pdf important notes about Amarra Symphony version 3 0 Amarra Symphony User Manual refer to this manual for detailed information about operating Amarra Symphony IRC iRC b Measure User Manual pdf refer to this manual for detailed information on using the Impulse Response Correction capability within Amarra Symphony Page 51 APPENDIX D Audio Device Preferences Window Amarra Symphony s Audio Device Preferences Window is a powerful tool for you to manipulate the output of Amarra independent of the Mac s Core A
46. rra to follow Audio Midi Setup when changed to set output device Amarra will use the same output device as specified in AMSU A re scan in Audio Device Preferences may be required To select a different Audio Device independent of Audio Midi Setup de select this Preference and use Audio Device Preferences to set your Output Audio Device o a different Audio Device De selecting Follow Audio Midi Setup is required for playback of streaming audio Audio Device Button Opens the Audio Device Preferences Window Use this window to set your output device when Follow Audio Midi Setup is de selected and when playing streaming audio Audio Midi Button Opens the Audio Midi Setup window Optimize Button Runs the Mac OS Optimization script allowing you to configure your Mac environment for best performance Page 48 NOTE Although we recommend Disable All for best performance please ensure you are familiar with Mac OS and System Application operation prior to using the MacOSX Optimization Script Choose Disable All for best performance This script is located in Extras folder Disable All Disable Termination Daemon Disable Sleep Mode Disable Hibernate Disable Mission Control Disable Spotlight Disable Launch Control Disable Dashboard Disable Notification Center Disable NapApp Enable All Enable Spotlight Enable Launch Control Enable Notification Center Enable NapApp Enable Show Home Library Add Finde
47. s Click Open when done Lastly you will have the opportunity to automatically add these files to iTunes and create a playlist using the dialog below Add to iTunes This will copy and organize if your iTunes Preferences are set with your iTunes library Page 26 6 2 2 Converting FLAC Files to AIFF Format Converting a FLAC FILE to AIFF is an easy process Click on the Amarra Symphony gt File gt Convert FLAC FILE to AIFF e In the resulting Finder window navigate to and select one or more FLAC files to convert and click Open In the next window specify the destination folder for the new AIFF files Lastly you will have the opportunity to again automatically add these files to iTunes and create a playlist NOTE Converting FLAC Folders and Files to AIFF using Amarra Is a non destructive process Your original FLAC files will remain intact and you will also have new AIFF files We recommend copying your FLAC files off to your backup drive for retrieval in case of emergency Use your AIFF files for day to day playback This setup will provide better sound quality during playback and minimize the amount of space needed for backups 6 2 3 Aborting FLAC Conversions If you have any reason to terminate a current or pending FLAC File or Folder conversion prior to completion you can abort all current and pending conversions by clicking on Amarra gt File gt Abort FLAC Conversions You will be asked to confirm your sele
48. supports a limited word length 16 or 20 bits V NOTE When the Output MN gt Wordlength is set to 24 bits the dither will be disabled if the Gain has not been modified at full volume Once the Gain is adjusted then dither is re enabled V NOTE Amarra provides two gt dither options Sonic TPDF and Sonic s advanced psycho acoustic noise shaped dither Your personal experience may decide which one you prefer B 4PROCESSINGSETTINGS FULL SONIC EQ Access to the Global Sonic EO restart required after selecting Preference EQ BYPASS Bypasses all EO processing in effect in Amarra Must be disabled to use DSD Filter for DSD file playback Use EQ Bypass to improve performance if no EQ is being used GAIN BYPASS Bypasses all gain processing in Amarra Amarra will play back tracks at full volume 0 0 dB Use Gain Bypass to improve performance if using external device for Gain control BRICKWALL LIMITER Used to protect equipment from damage from some overloads present in streaming audio and downloadable files Attenuates any playback over OdB to 0 5dB Playback levels below 0dB are not effected DSD FILTER Used only for DSD dsf and dff files file playback emulating the low pass filter option present on SACD players Requires EO Bypass to be de selected DSD GAIN Applies the selected gain to playback of dsf and dff files B 5 HARDWARE SETTINGS Follow Audio Midi Setup Enables Ama
49. tential damage to your equipment Listen to the result of applying the loaded filters by doing the following Play a track through Amarra Symphony e Turn on the Sonic Studio iRC filter bank by pressing the on off button until it reads On in blue e Switch between loaded filters by clicking the corresponding filter slot The active filter slot has a blue indicator Note Deleting Amarra Preferences will delete your pre selected filters from Sonic Studio IRC they will need to be reloaded Page 34 Chapter 10 Meters Display Amarra Symphony employs a high precision metering section to visibly display the audio signal Select the M button to show the Meters Amarra Symphony Track Area with Meters displayed Note Meters will not be displayed when the Bypass EQ Preference is selected Page 35 Chapter 11 esses FULL Sonic EQ Select the Amarra Symphony Preference Full Sonic EQ to enable the advanced full 4 band Equalizer The Full Sonic EQ Preference changes the Equalizer from the Amarra EO Window to the Full Sonic EQ window A restart is required for this option to engage Full Sonic EQ has Full 4 Band EQ Types supported include Notch Low Pass High Pass and many more Amarra EQ EG ON Room Node OPEN parametric Global Sonic EQ Window Page 36 Chapter 12
50. ton to link Amarra window to iTunes rueraunvanrrnnrennvnnnnnnnnnrnnnrnnrennnnnnannnerrnnnsnnvennnnnner 12 17 Up Down Arrow Button to display Artwork window ccsccseceecseceeseecaeceeceeseeseesueseesesseeees 12 Chapter 4 0 Music Playback from your iTunes library 13 2 1 NVA 14 Chapter 5 0 Additional Features to Further Improve your Sound 16 5 1 Setting up your Mac for optimum performance arvnnrnnnnnnvrnnrrnnnnnnnnnnnnnnvnnennnennnnnnnnnvennnnnnnnnsenn 16 5 2 PP 17 5 2 1 General Information about Amarra Playlists seeseeesseesseeeseeseee eene nnne nnne nnn nnne nnn nnne rana nana 17 5 2 2 Amarra Hu ch TA EEE 18 5 2 3 ENTERING PLAYLIST MODE Havre 19 5 2 4 LOADING TRACKS INTO A PLAY LIS Lasse aadekdedee 19 52 US NET RNA 19 5 2 0 SAVING A PLAYLIST FOR UTEN MN 21 5 2 7 OPENING AN EXISTING PLAYLIST annnannannnnnnnnnunnnnnnnnnnnnnrrnnnnnnnrrnnrrnnrnnrnnrnnrnnrrnnrnnrnnrrnerunrnnnnnrnnernnrnnrnnrnnernenne 21 BLENESS 21 BENN E nes esasviawateaduesneret care sianeesicuns 22 HANEN EN 23 5 4 1 Displaying ga ge OT Reel TET ENE 23 BENENE 23 SASAE 0 RE A EEE EE EE 24 b44 SNE NENNE 24 5 4 5 Saving and Recalling EQ Settings rrnnnrnnnnnrnnnnrnnnnrnnnnrnnnnrnnnnrnnnnnennnnennnnrnnnnrennnrnnnnrennnrnnnnnennnnennnnennnnrnnnennnusen 24 Chapter 6 0 Playing FLAC Files asuiendiiaivs amu udi Erg CH HERR dU DEE OPE DUM
51. udio Settings eoo Audio Device Preferences Audio MIDI Setup FOR BEST RESULTS Uncheck FOLLOW AUDIO MIDI SETUP Drag Clock Icon to OUTPUT DEVICE Save Audio Device Preferences Window The ADP window has several capabilitites explained below The clock icon e Drag the clock icon to your desired device to change your output device You may need to hit the Rescan button for the change to take effect The Rescan Button e Use this button to force Amarra to rescan the Mac for Audio Output Devices The Save Button e Use this button to save the current Audio Device Preferences Settings The Follow Audio Midi Setup Checkbox e Check this box to have Amarra follow the settings in Audio Midi Setup for determining Output device The Audio Midi Setup Button e Use this button to open the Audio Midi Setup Window Page 52 The Audio Device Preference Display window FOR BEST RESULTS Uncheck FOLLOW AUDIO MIDI SETUP Drag Clock Icon to OUTPUT DEVICE Save Displays the following information e Inout Device SonicStream is the input device used for streaming audio e Output Device lists the Output Device Amarra is sending output to e Clock Source typically listed as Internal for Auto sample rate switching to occur e Sample Rate adjusts to the sample rate of the file being played back If down sampled will show down sampled sample rate T
52. use left right or up down to modify Click Return to save the new setting Hit the Space bar or Play button to continue playback from the new location gx NOTE KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS Use the following key commands in place of menu commands Cmd 5 6 Previous Track Next Track Cmd 8 9 Down Up Volume Cmd Opens Preferences Window Cmd H Hide Amarra Cmd Option H Hide Others Cmd Q Quit Amarra Page 14 File Menu Cmd 1 Cmd 2 Option C Cmd Option M Cmd E Playlist Menu Cmd Shift I Cmd O Cmd Option C Option P Desk Menu Cmd Option M Cmd Option C Windows Menu Option A Option I Option P Option E Option R Toggle Amarra iTunes for Playback Toggles Playlist for Playback Clears Tracks Mute Eject Disk Add Tracks from iTunes Add Tracks from Finder Clear Tracks Opens Playlist Window Mute Toggles Cache On Off Opens Amarra Window Opens iTunes Window Opens Playlist Window Open EQ Window Opens Sonic IRC window Page 15 Chapter 5 0 Additional Features to Further Improve your Sound Efficiency is key to getting great sound from a computer music player and Amarra Symphony is purpose built to deliver as good a signal as possible to your output device This results in the great sound you hear with Amarra Symphony right from the start That said Amarra Symphony also has many features that can be used to further improve your sound The following sections
53. ut device using the Sound item on the System Preferences window Once you ve correctly connected the device for sound output you are ready to launch Amarra Symphony 2 2 Launching Amarra Symphony the First Time As part of the installation process you will be asked to launch Amarra Symphony Select Yes when prompted and Amarra Symphony will launch as the installation process completes You will be asked if you would like to launch iTunes as well d Thank You for launching Amarra Use iTunes with Amarra If you d like to run in Amarra iTunes mode or use iTunes to select your tracks select Yes and iTunes will launch If you d like to run in Amarra Playlist mode select No and Amarra Symphony will launch without iTunes In addition Amarra Symphony checks to see if there is an excessive amount of Inactive OS Memory and asks if you d like to purge the inactive memory Doing so can improve overall performance the process takes a short time during which Amarra is unavailable Click Yes to run this script There is 2234 Mb of Inactive Memory which may effect performance Would you like to free the inactive memory This may take several seconds Ne Page 7 You ll need to enter your system administration password to run the script Enter User Name and Password in the spaces provided and click OK to purge inactive memory ER purgeMemory wants to make changes Type 7 your password to allow t
54. zed disk drive using Amarra is a very simple process Launch Amarra the first time and you ll be asked if you want to launch iTunes Select Yes and you will see both the Amarra and iTunes windows appear Amarra can run with or without Apple s iTunes program however for new users we recommend initially using Amarra iTunes mode until you become familiar with the other features avaiable in Amarra This allows you to manage and access all your music through the main iTunes Music Library and get the great sound of Amarra for play back You can use iTunes like you always have select the songs Playlists and hit the play button on either the iTunes or Amarra Symphony Ul Amarra Symphony will automatically playback any track it can and seamlessly switches to iTunes for playing back of protected files or other files that Amarra may not be able to play back NOTE If you don t see the Amarra window it is likely behind your iTunes window Make your iTunes window smaller or exit Full Screen Mode and you should find the Amarra window on screen Use the link button on the Amarra Symphony UI or choose Link Amarra window to iTunes in Amarra Preferences to link the Amarra Symphony and iTunes windows together NOTE Amarra plays most audio file formats including FLAC MP3 AAC m4a Apple Lossless ALAC AIFF and WAV files In addition Amarra Symphony now supports playback of DSD files of type dsf and dff Amarra does not play some variable bit rate or low

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