M-AUDIO Flying Cow User Manual

Table of Contents

FCC Class B and CE Compliance .................................................... 2

Overview ............................................................................................. 3

Features................................................................................................ 4

Panels - Fig. 1....................................................................................... 4

Panel Description................................................................................ 5

Front Panel ................................................................................... 5

Rear Panel ..................................................................................... 5

Installation and Typical Setup ......................................................... 6

Typical Setup - Fig. 2 ......................................................................... 7

Operation ............................................................................................ 8

Internal Jumper Settings - Fig. 3 ...................................................... 9

Troubleshooting ............................................................................... 10

Specifications .................................................................................... 11

Lifetime Limited Warranty.............................................................. 12

Flying Calf D/A

™

MANUAL

1

Version DA 041100

2

FCC Class B and CE Compliance

WARNING: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the lim­its for a CLASS B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These lim­its are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in
a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio
frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruc­tions contained in this manual, may cause harmful interference to radio and tele­vision communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not
occur in a particular installation.

If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television recep­tion, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is
encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following
measures: 1) reorient or relocate the receiving antenna; 2) increase the separation
between the equipment and the receiver; 3) connect the equipment into an outlet
on a circuit different from that of the receiver; 4) consult the dealer or an experi­enced audio television technician.

NOTE: Connecting this device to peripheral devices that do not com­ply with CLASS B requirements or using an unshielded peripheral
data cable could also result in harmful interference to radio or televi­sion reception.

The user is cautioned that any changes or modifications not expressly approved
by the party responsible for compliance could void the user’s authority to oper­ate this equipment.

To ensure that the use of this product does not contribute to interference, it is
necessary to use shielded I/O cables.

This product also complies with European CE requirements.

3

Overview

Thank you for choosing the Flying Calf Professional External
Digital Audio Converter Box. This unit provides high-quality
Digital-to-Analog (D/A) conversion and supports the popular
S/PDIF digital audio format.

The Flying Calf is a perfect companion for computer digital I/O
cards (such as the Midiman DiO), DAT machines, or any other
digital audio device that requires high-quality D/A conversion.

This manual assumes you have a basic understanding of D/A
conversion and digital audio. If after reading this manual you
need additional tech support or if you have comments or sugges­tions, we invite you to contact us directly by any one of the fol­lowing methods:

MIDIMAN

45 E. Saint Joseph Street
Arcadia CA 91006-2861

Technical Assistance: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Internet Tech Support: [e-mail]

Internet:

Home Page: http://www.midiman.net
Tech Support: [e-mail]
Sales Info: [e-mail]

Refer to the back cover of this manual for addresses and tele­phone numbers of our overseas office.

4

Features

• High-quality stereo D/A converter.

• Compact desk-top size: 5.2” x 3.2” x 1.2”.

• S/PDIF digital input on an RCA connector.

• Unbalanced analog outputs on independent left and right
1/4” jacks.

D/A Converter

• 20-bit, stereo D/A, delta-sigma with 128x oversampling.

• Dynamic range of 102 dB (A-weighted).

• Sample rate automatically locks to digital audio signal
received at S/PDIF input.

Front Panel

• “Data Valid” LED indicates valid incoming digital data.

Panels - Fig. 1

FLYING CALF D/A

S/PDIF D/A CONVERTER BOX

▲

9VDC

ANALOG OUT RL

5.4. 6.

™

DATA VALID POWER

1. 2. 3.

S/PDIF IN

5

Panel Description

Front Panel

1. Data Valid: This LED indicates valid incoming digital data at
the S/PDIF Input. This LED lights whenever the Flying Calf
has acquired and locked to that data.

2.

Power LED: The Power LED lights whenever the power is
properly applied to the Flying Calf. For the Power LED to
light the power adapter must be properly plugged in and

the

Power button must be depressed.

3.

Power switch: When this button is in (and the power adapter
is properly plugged in), power is applied to the unit.

Rear Panel

4. Power connector: For connection to the Calf’s external “wall-
wart” power supply. The Flying Calf uses a 9 Volt DC, 300
milliamp (or larger), center-pin positive supply.

5.

Analog Out (Right and Left): These are the analog audio out­puts from the Flying Calf’s D/A converter. These 1/4" jacks
provide unbalanced line-level signals. Each jack provides a
"tip/sleeve" type of connection.

6.

S/PDIF In: This female RCA jack accepts a standard S/PDIF
digital audio input. The S/PDIF signal is "stereo," containing
both left channel and right channel audio data. The S/PDIF
data rate also determines the audio sample rate. The Flying
Calf will lock to S/PDIF sample rates of 50 kHz and below.

6

Installation and Typical Setup

Your Flying Calf should contain this user manual, a "wall-wart"
power adapter and the Flying Calf unit itself. Please save all
packing materials in case you should ever need to ship the unit.

Plug one end of the provided power adapter into the Flying Calf's
power jack, and the other end into a wall socket or power strip.
Verify that the Flying Calf and any other devices you plan to con­nect to the Flying Calf are powered off. Now connect your
S/PDIF and analog audio cables to the Flying Calf.

NOTE: For best results, use a good-quality S/PDIF cable. The
cable should be coaxial with 75 ohm impedance. For example, a
good quality video cable has these same characteristics.

After all connections are made, power up the Flying Calf by
pressing the Power button on its front panel.

IMPORTANT: Before powering up the Flying Calf, turn off or
turn down any amplifiers (or mixers) connected to the Flying
Calf's audio outputs. Since it may take several milliseconds to
acquire and lock onto an S/PDIF signal, the Flying Calf may
emit a slight "pop" sound while powering up.

A typical configuration in which a Flying Calf would be used
includes a “Calf”, a PC-based digital I/O card, a mixer and an
amplifier/sound system. Such a configuration could be setup as
follows: 1.) the S/PDIF Out of the digital audio card connects to
the S/PDIF In of the Calf, 2.) the Analog Out of the Calf connects
to the line-level audio inputs of the mixer or amplifier/sound sys­tem.

7

Typical Setup - Fig. 2

S/PDIF

Out

DIGITAL AUDIO

CARD

(Inside PC)

SPEAKERS

POWER

AMP

S/PDIF

In

Audio Out

Right

FLYING

Calf D/A

Audio Out

Left

8

Operation

The Flying Calf is compatible with 20-bit, 18-bit and even 16-bit
S/PDIF data. The more bits per data word, the better the dynam­ic range of the output signal and better dynamic range equates to
better audio quality.

When a valid signal is present at the Flying Calf's S/PDIF In jack,
the Calf automatically detects the S/PDIF sample rate and syn­chronizes to it. Once locked to the sample rate, the front panel
"Data Valid" LED will light.

REMEMBER: The Flying Calf accepts any sample rate that is 50
kHz or less.

The Flying Calf then decodes the S/PDIF data to a format recog­nized by the Calf's D/A converter. The D/A converter then out­puts stereo analog audio to the internal output amplifiers. The
left channel output amplifier drives unbalanced audio to Left
Analog Out jack, and the right channel output amplifier drives
unbalanced audio to Right Analog Out jack.

The analog outputs of the Flying Calf provide line-level audio sig­nals typical of most consumer audio components. The output
level is adjustable, however, and may be set for less gain (6 dB
less) by moving two internal jumpers within the Flying Calf. To
do this, 1.) remove power from the Flying Calf and disconnect all
external cables, 2.) carefully remove the Flying Calf chassis cover
by removing the 4 screws from the sides of the chassis, 3.) locate
jumpers JP1 and JP2 on the Flying Calf's circuit board, 4.) posi­tion JP1 and JP2 as shown in the diagram below, 5.) replace the
Flying Calf chassis cover and screws.

9

Internal Jumper Settings - Fig. 3

▲▲

JP1 JP2

Jumpers JP1 & JP2

for 2 V rms (standard)

▲▲

JP1 JP2

for 1 V rms (-6 dB option)

▲▲

JP1 JP2

10

Troubleshooting

Symptom: When power is applied, there are no LED's lit on the

Flying Calf's front panel.

Solution: Make sure the power supply is properly plugged

into the unit and into a live wall source or power
strip. Also, make sure the Calf's Power button is
pushed in and latched.

Symptom: When first turning the unit on, small bursts of noise

or a "pop" sound are sometimes heard.

Symptom: When the S/PDIF source sample rates change, small

bursts of noise or a "pop" sound are sometimes
heard.

Solution: This is normal as it takes a small amount of time for

an S/PDIF receiver to lock onto a digital audio
source. Be sure to turn down your mixer or amplifi­er before powering up the Flying Calf or changing
sample rates.

Symptom: When applying a digital signal to the Flying Calf, the

Calf's "Data Valid" LED light is erratic or doesn’t
light at all.

Solution: The S/PDIF digital signal may be invalid or the

S/PDIF cable may be faulty.

Symptom: Valid digital data is coming into the S/PDIF input

(the Data Valid LED is lit), but there is no audible
D/A output.

Solution 1: Check your analog output connections from the

Flying Calf.

Solution 2: The digital data source may be sending valid data,

but the data could be static (non-changing or DC).
Verify that digital source material is actually valid.

S

olution 3: The digital data source may be sending valid data,

but the data could represent an audio signal that is
so quiet that you are unable to hear it. In this case,
nothing is wrong.

11

Specifications

Physical Specifications:

Size: Approximately 5.2” x 3.2” x 1.2”.
Power Supply: 9 volt DC, center-pin positive, 300 mil-

liamps or larger.

D/A Converter:

Full-Scale Output Level: 2 volts RMS, unbalanced, jumper-

switchable to 1 volt RMS unbalanced.
Frequency Response: 20 Hz to 22 kHz, +/-0.5 dB.
Dynamic Range: 102 dB (A-weighted).

12

Lifetime Limited Warranty

MIDIMAN warrants that this product is free of defects in materials and work­manship under normal use so long as the product is owned by the original pur­chaser and that purchaser has registered his/her ownership of the product by
sending in the completed warranty card.
In the event that MIDIMAN receives written notice of defects in materials or
workmanship from such an original purchaser, MIDIMAN will either replace the
product, repair the product, or refund the purchase price at its option. In the
event any repair is required, shipment to and from MIDIMAN and a nominal
handling charge shall be born by the purchaser. In the event that repair is
required, a Return Authorization number must be obtained from MIDIMAN.
After this number is obtained, the unit should be shipped back to MIDIMAN in
a protective package with a description of the problem and the Return
Authorization clearly written on the package.
In the event that MIDIMAN determines that the product requires repair because
of user misuse or regular wear, it will assess a fair repair or replacement fee. The
customer will have the option to pay this fee and have the unit repaired and
returned, or not pay this fee and have the unit returned unrepaired.
The remedy for breach of this limited warranty shall not include any other dam­ages. MIDIMAN will not be liable for consequential, special, indirect, or similar
damages or claims including loss of profit or any other commercial, damage,
even if its agents have been advised of the possibility of such damages, and in no
event will MIDIMAN’s liability for any damages to the purchaser or any other
person exceed the price paid for the product, regardless of any form of the claim.
MIDIMAN specifically disclaims all other warranties, expressed or implied.
Specifically, MIDIMAN makes no warranty that the product is fit for any partic­ular purpose.
This warranty shall be construed, interpreted, and governed by the laws of the
state of California. If any provision of this warranty is found void, invalid or
unenforceable, it will not affect the validity of the balance of the warranty, which
shall remain valid and enforceable according to its terms. In the event any reme­dy hereunder is determined to have failed of its essential purpose, all limitations
of liability and exclusion of damages set forth herein shall remain in full force
and effect.