zapco DSP-Z8 III, DSP-Z6 III Owner's Manual
DSP and OEM Integration
Owner’s Manual
Before operating the unit, please read this manual throughly and retain it for future reference.
Owner's Manual
Contents
1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mission Statement
2. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Introduction
4. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DSP-Z8
6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DPN Network
8. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DSP-Z8 III
10. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DSP-Z6 III
12. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DPN PC Program
16. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Z8-R Dash Remote
18. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Things You Should Know
21. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Specifications
Mission Statement
Zapco is Dedicated to the Pursuit of Audio Fidelity
Our passion, our “Driving Force” is to design and manufacture car audio products of
unsurpassed quality, to provide unparalleled support and service for these products and to
conduct business in a manner that will enhance the quality of life for all involved
Experience
There is absolutely no substitute for experience; that is a simple fact of life. Another simple fact is
that for over 30 years, Zapco has been the leader in defining quality standards for the car audio
industry. These years of experience have led to a thorough understanding of the challenges that are
unique to the world of car audio. Zapco's relentless quest for sonic purity consistently yields
imaginative designs that utilize the most innovative technologies. The resulting products set the
criteria by which all others in the industry are judged.
Feel the passion, hear the quality, know the performance and reliability by making
Zapco the “Driving Force” in your car audio system.
1
Sonic Purity
Our dedication to sonic purity requires that the highest quality internal components are used.
Resistors
All resistors (other than power resistors) are 1% precision low noise metal film. This is a key reason
why Zapco products have the industries' best low noise specifications, and why you won't see as
much fluctuation in our test certificates as you will with other brands. Precision resistors also reduce
distortion and improve channel matching.
Capacitors
Capacitors are similar to batteries. Like a battery, they store energy and have electrolyte (internal
fluid). Also like a battery, a capacitor can have a very limited life. “Computer grade” capacitors for
example, are reliable only in cool environments with very little current applied to them. Only the
best high current and high temperature capacitors should be used in an auto-sound application.
Although these capacitors typically cost five times as much as those commonly used in other
brands, Zapco insists that no audio degradation will occur over time
Zapco Signal Processing
Zapco virtually created the concept of high sound quality processing in the late 70's when we created
the PEQ. This was a high voltage preamp/EQ with an audiophile input stage and 9 bands of equalization
for each channel. It brought a whole new level of performance to car sound. In the 90's the name was
changed to SEQ and the unit is still sought after today after in the used audio market.
In the 80's we took processing to another new level with the PX. This was the first audiophile quality
preamp EQ with a multi-order crossover. In addition, all four EQ bands were parametric, so now you could
customize the EQ parameters to you car. The result: By the late 80's even non-Zapco dealers had to have a
source of PX's for all their competition.
The next leap was in the 90's, when Zapco introduced the SX, (later to become the SX-SL). This unit
expanded the Parametric EQ to 5 bands, added dual high pass and three way band pass crossovers,
added variable crossover slopes, ands bass-to-highs balance.
In 2004 Zapco Introduced the DSP-6, stand-alone, PC controlled Digital Signal Processor. We also
introduced the DC Reference line of Amplifiers. These were the first ever PC controlled amplifiers, with
on-board DSP's for each and every channel. The DC Reference amps were controlled by the revolutionary
Zapco DPN control network that allowed a single PC screen to control each amplifier in the system
separately and to apply memory settings globally to the network.
In 2012 Zapco introduced the DSP-Z8 Digital Processor. The DSP-Z8 added two more output channels,
increased the signal delay resolution, added muting by channel or channel pair and added a voltage
actuated EQ band to each channel. The DSP Z8 also added Speaker level input for OEM integration
accepting input level as high as 22 Volts to handle the most powerful of factory stereo amplifiers.
2
Zapco Digital 2015
The DSP-6 and then the DSP-Z8 were designed to complement the Zapco Digital Programming
Network which allows an entire system of Zapco DC series amps and stand alone DSPs to be controlled
by a single PC screen.
For 2015, Zapco presents the DSP-Z8 III and the DSP-Z6 III. These two new DSPs are designed for the
customer who is running non-DC amps like the Zapco Z-Series or Studio Series amps.
These new models have exactly the same features as the DSP-Z8 but do not network with the DC Series
amplifiers. The two new models use a smaller compact chassis that shares a look with the Z-series amps.
The difference between the two new models is simply the number of channels. The DSP-Z8 III has 6
channels of input and 8 channels of output while the DSP-Z6 III has 4 channels of input and 6 Channels
of input.
All three Zapco DSP models share the same feature set to provide all the tools you need for fast efficient
tuning of your sound system
In this manual we will take you through the programming and control functions of the Zapco Digital
Signal Processors and the on-board DSP in the Zapco DC Series of DSP controlled amplifiers as well
networking operations of Zapco's DPN system.
DSP-Z8
DSP-Z8 III
DSP-Z6 III
3
DSP-Z8
Digital Signal Processor Compatible with Network Opperation
The Zapco DSP-Z8 is a stand-alone, eight channel Digital Signal Processor. It has all the DSP functions of
the Reference Digital amps, and, like the DC Series amps, the DSP-Z8 is compatible with the Digital
Programing Network which allows a single PC screen to control all amps on the network. We will explain
more in the next section
The RCA inputs allow you to use the DSP-Z8 with any after market head unit, and two auxiliary inputs
allow an extra source by either RCA or SPDIF Digital. The DSP-Z8 and all Zapco DC Series amplifiers will
also accept balanced speaker level signals from a factory amplified system to add high-end sound to
factory stereos.
The Zapco Digital functions include Input Sensitivity (Gain), Output , Crossover, Parametric Equalization,
and Time Delay. Each Reference Digital piece also has an Input Commutator, which allows you to chose
which input channels will be used for which processed output channels. The Commutator also allows
input pairs to be summed for a 2-channel mono input to any output channel. In addition, you can
combine input channel pairs together to sum their signals into a single full range signal pair
, for integrating actively crossed over signals from a factory stereo system.
DSP Control Method
Zapco DSP units are controlled by PC. The Zapco DPN program provides the system for control of the
Zapco Digital functions. You load the program included with your digital product onto a PC and
program all functions directly from the single, easy to use, screen.
4
DSP-Z8 Front Pannel
All connections for the DSP-Z8 are on the front panel
1) Main RCA Inputs- Six channels of input are available through RCA connectors*.
2) RCA Outputs- 4 sets of RCA Connectors provide eight channels of output.
3) Networking DIP Switch-Six position DIP switch is used to address the unit and assign it a node on
the Zapco Digital Programming Network. (Only when used with DC-Series amplifiers)
4) USB Port- Like all Zapco DSP products, the DSP-Z8 has a USB port to interface with a PC for all DSP
programming functions. Always use the supplied USB Cable
5) Auxiliary Input- A pair of RCA connectors provide a preamp level auxiliary input
6) Data Connectors- Two RG connectors provide Data in/out for network cables and for a dash remote
7) Power Connector- 4-Pin Provides Power, Ground, +12V RemTurn On, and Aux +12 volt out **
8) Input Low / High- Choose Low level for preamp or digital input or Hi level for OEM speaker level
input
9) Optical input- Digital Input for SPDIF optical connector (TossLink cable)
10) Power-on Indicator LED
* Note: To use speaker level inputs from a factory stereo, simply attach RCA connectors to the factory speaker wires (up
to a 22v signal). Assure that the DSP or amplifier is in High Level input mode and attach the speaker wires at the RCA
receptacles.
** Note: The Zapco DC Series also has DC-offset sensing for automatic turn-on. If you use speaker level inputs from a
factory stereo the DC product will turn on automatically and also provide +12v trigger output to turn on other
components.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
5
All Zapco DC series amplifiers, and the Zapco DSP-Z8, stand-alone Digital Signal Processor incorporate
Zapco's exclusive Digital Programming Network (DPN).
This network allows the user to program all amp functions of all DC amps in the system, using a single
PC screen. Each Digital Control product has a USB interface. This allows you to plug a PC into any unit
on the network and control the entire network.
The amp's DIP Switch allows you to address each
amplifier to it's own location on the network.
Then when you call up the amp for
programming, it will even identify itself by its
location and its model number.
USB input allows a PC to be hooked directly to
the amp with a standard USB cable. The DRCSL also has a USB port so the PC can be
plugged in at the dash,without disturbing the
installation.
Both I/0 Data ports are bi-directional.
One connects to the control direction,
while the other connects to the next
amp in the network.
To Next Amplifier
To Control
The DSP-Z8 and the Digital Programming Network
6
Loading...