Motu mod

[heathen]

Hi everyone.I was just wondering if anyone has had thier motu 828 mk2 modified with the "Black Lion audio" mod,was mentioned here briefly a while ago by Chris P,(i mean if you own one that is). Or if any of you know how to perform this mod and do it locally,Howard offered to do this I think. Is anyone familiar with this? If you are please get back to me as I'm keen to try. I can't do it myself so am happy to pay someone with the skills.

If you are'nt familiar with the mod but can do it please get back to me as well as I'll contact Black Lion and see if I can buy a parts list and manual,as shipping the unit there and back will be too expensive.

Thanks.
Heath

[Kris]

I have an 828mk2..... what is the black lion mod?

[heathen]

They replace the crappy op amps with fets,as they say the converters are actually the same as the older apogee ones.
Heres the info.

"Quote".
MOTU's family of firewire interfaces are all built upon essentially the same platform. They utilize Texas Instruments TMS320 series of DSP processors to handle bussing and routing, and TI's TSB43AB as a firewire driver. The newer generation of MOTU units, such as the Traveler,

the 896,

and the 828MKII,

all use Asahi Kasei's converters, which are the same converters used by Apogee, RME, and others.

THE PROBLEM

The biggest liability of the MOTU interfaces in my opinion is the use of NJM4580 and NJM2115 opamps in all of the analog input and output stages. To my ears, these opamps are tonally flat and grossly unmusical. They seem to exhibit alot of haze due to their extremely slow response.

THE SOLUTION

Building upon the 828 modification, I've added modifications for the Traveler, the 896HD, and the audiowire units as well. The goal of the mod is to lower THD and noisefloor, increase headroom, raise circuit bandwidth, and increase overall tonal and transient response. It involves replacing several surface-mount devices with high-speed FET components. The end result is a night-and-day difference that allows the AK converters to perform as they were designed to--it brings the MOTU to life, and improves overall soundstage and imaging. Vocal tracks are smoother, transients are more focused and less smeared. Guitars are more detailed and lifelike. If you're looking for an inexpensive converter upgrade, this is well worth your money.

[heathen]

Ah bugger it I think I may as well just sell it and get some mytecs instead,saw some on special.
cheers anyway
Heath

[chris p]

I'm in the same boat - my 828 is the original one, not a Mk II, and I suspect its time to give it some less onerous duties.

As I mentioned to Heath in a PM, I'm getting shy of converters that insist on tracking even line inputs through their own preamps. I'm thinking the money might be better spent on other things.