|
Tualatin,
Oregon USA - July 20, 2010
We have received
a tremendous amount of interest and questions about the new analyzer system
currently under development, so we thought we would try to answer as many
of the commonly asked questions as possible here. Please understand that
producing literature and documentation requires time, and this then quickly
takes away from the R&D required to get the project done. We will
produce more detailed information as soon as possible as time permits.
Product
Name
The default name for this project began as LMS-5, merely because
it was initially thought of as the successor to the previous LMS™ product.
However, due to customer requests for new features and capabilities, it
quickly grew beyond those initial project goals. The result was a product
with many more capabilities and applications than what the original LMS™
product name could represent. While it contains many similarities to the
LMS™ analyzer objectives, it also goes much farther. This is now an entirely
different analyzer with many other general and specific audio and acoustic
applications. Looking forward we felt that the model name LX500™ would
be more appropriate for this product. There are many curious design aspects
which parallel the LX700™. The LX700™ is modular using an external chassis
architecture, while the LX500™ is modular using an internal PC board architecture.
Product
Pricing
The final pricing has not yet been determined. It will likely
be 20-40% higher than the LMS™ analyzer. There are 500% more parts in
the LX500™ than LMS™. While the LX500™ chassis is relatively small and
compact, it contains extremely dense circuitry - virtually 3D. To pack
this many features into a product this small, with low cost constraints
paramount, was a challenging design to say the least. We will be offering
a trade-in/discount special for existing LMS™ customers who wish to upgrade.
Details will be made available as soon as final LX500™ pricing is determined.
Product
Focus - Accurate Measurement of Signals with High Noise
There is a fundamental difference between obtaining accurate
measurements in either low noise or high noise systems. Instrumentation
designed for measurements where noise is assumed to be small, often perform
poorly in high noise situations. Electroacoustic measurements often involve
high background noise and/or distortion which can create specific problems
for many types of instrumentation.
For example,
common measurements on most electrical audio equipment easily achieve
100dB signal-to-noise ratios (SNR). However, acoustic measurements are
often performed where the signal level is perhaps 90dBspl and the background
noise level is 60dBspl. This is an SNR of only 30dB, and presents vastly
different problems for instrumentation than measuring a system with 100dB
SNR.
The architecture
of the LX500™ was specifically created for accurate signal measurement
in high noise systems where background noise is substantially large and
SNR is low. For example, the Phase detector in the LX500™ was designed
based on SNR values of merely 10dB, yet producing only 0.4 degrees phase
error. The background noise is effectively averaged out. Conversely, many
other phase meters produce wildly erratic and grossly inaccurate results
when signals contain even modest amounts of noise.
The LX500™
features narrow band highly selective filtering in order to measure harmonic
distortion, large amounts of background noise are therefore eliminated.
The programmable filters in the LX500™ utilize 8 pole 1/6 octave Bandpass
filters to isolate each harmonic, producing 90dB of attenuation in one
octave. Thus enabling individual harmonic distortion measurements down
to 0.003% residual.
LX500™
Product Highlights
•
Support and extension of all previous LMS™ capabilities and hardware/software
features
• Pure Analog, High Performance, Accurate, Frequency Domain Measurements,
10Hz-100kHz
• Full Custom Discrete Ultra High Performance Multiplying DAC architecture
• True RMS wideband level detector, both for accurate noise and signal
measurements
• True Phase detector with High Noise Immunity and 360 degree continuous
phase
• Low Distortion Programmable Sine Wave Oscillator, 10Hz-100kHz, 0.001%
• Precision Noise Generator, extremely flat (0.05dB) Pink filter, 10Hz-40kHz
• 8-Pole programmable filter array configurable for Lowpass, Highpass,
Bandpass
• Filter array can be inserted in output path for bandwidth limited noise
generation
• Extensive
4th Order Highpass Bandwidth Limiting Filters: 10Hz, 20Hz, 22.4Hz, 400Hz
• Extensive 4th Order Lowpass Bandwidth Limiting Filters: 20KHz, 22.4KHz,
30KHz, 80KHz
• Extensive Weighting Filters: ANSI-A, ANSI-B, ANSI-C, ANSI-D, ITU-R-ARM,
ITU-R-468
• Triple
Multi Function Inputs: Balanced, LVP Interface, +48V Phantom Power
•
Wide Dynamic Range of 140dB, input noise floor -120dBm, max signal input
+20dBm
•
Windows Application software with USB driver
• Multiplexed measurements for single pass multiple curves
•
OpenGL 3D graphics visualization of polar x/y/z spatial 3D data
• Additional software and macro QC features, including multiple LT360
Turntable support
• Digital Interface Control, 16 lines I/O on DB25M for control of relays,
servos, etc.
• Onboard Flash Memory storage of all calibration data with traceable
calibration
• Power Supply: 12VDC/1A, Universal 100-260VAC adapter IEC-320-C8, Car
+12V, Battery +12V
• Chassis: Height 1.75 Inches, Width 4.5 Inches, Length 9.0 Inches, 1.5
lbs.
Preliminary
product information and specifications subject to change without notice.
Complete product information will be provided on our web site for viewing/download
as soon as it becomes available at www.linearx.com. For sales contact
sales@linearx.com for more details. ###
|
