The AudioConnect 8×8 is also Listen's first 8-in, 8-out audio measurement interface. Designed specifically for precision audio measurements, it is uniquely scalable to 32 in/32 out synchronized channels over a single USB-C cable for even higher channel count applications. This makes it ideal for audio test environments such as microphone arrays, loudspeaker directivity measurements, and automotive acoustic testing. It supports sample rates up to 192kHz and offers built-in constant voltage and constant current power for a wide range of transducers, including SCM and IEPE microphones, accelerometers, and couplers. This eliminates the need for external power supplies and simplifies the measurement setup.
With simple setup and calibration, and fast configuration across multiple stations, AudioConnect 8x8 offers selectable input gain with overload indicators, TEDS support for faster calibration, input monitoring, and seamless integration with Listen's SoundCheck software.
According to Les Quindipan, Sales Manager for North America at Listen, this new interface was specifically designed for audio measurements based on customer feedback and the growing requirements of large channel applications. "The AudioConnect 8x8 makes operations even simpler with its eight analog input and output channels using BNC connectors for secure cable connections, and no knobs or buttons on the front panel. All the inputs provide both constant voltage for SCM microphones and constant current for IEPE microphones and accelerometers. This means we can directly connect a wide range of transducers, microphones, head and torso simulators, couplers, test heads, etc.
"And because we don't need an additional power supply, this saves money, especially if using a lot of channels for microphone arrays. TED support is also included, which speeds the transducer calibration setup. One other thing that's pretty nice about the inputs is that we can monitor any of them. If we want to listen to the response signal in SoundCheck, we can assign an output to any input. Then we can connect a headphone or loudspeaker on that output to monitor it," he adds.
Essentially, the AudioConnect 8x8 is a USB Audio Interface, recognized as a USB 2.0 and USB Audio Class 2 device on Windows and macOS computers. It works directly with Apple Mac computers and with an ASIO low-latency audio driver for Windows machines.
On the rear of the AudioConnect 8x8, there are two power options. Either a regular 100 to 240 volt supply or a 12-volt DC supply so users can power the unit in a car or from a power bank. Also in the rear panel, we find two digital S/PDIF channels and the 4 expansion ports, plus the USB-C port that connects to the computer. The device is supplied fully calibrated, and when it's connected to SoundCheck (version 23 and higher), the software automatically reads the calibration data from the firmware. This ensures a fully calibrated signal path with no manual input of sensitivity VP values. It can also read and apply TED's data of connected microphones or accelerometers.
AudioConnect 8×8 is the first dedicated audio measurement interface, expandable to 32 synchronized input and output channels. Up to 3 additional units can be connected via HDMI cables to a master unit. This increases the channel count while ensuring accurate time synchronization via the master unit. Used with a 32 or 64-channel version of SoundCheck, this makes an extremely powerful multichannel audio analysis system suitable for applications such as automotive audio or where large microphone arrays are used to capture data.
Unlike other 8-channel audio interfaces, AudioConnect 8×8 has no knobs or switches – it is entirely controlled by SoundCheck. This means all settings are defined in the test sequence or through the software interface, and it is impossible to accidentally change controls such as gain. Autoranging – an exclusive SoundCheck feature – automatically configures the gain based on the signal to ensure optimum signal-to-noise ratio for your measurements.
The Listen AudioConnect 8×8 audio measurement interface can be ordered with an optional rackmount kit.
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