Emax

Emax II keyboard version any day
The Emax II for all its imperfections sounds more analog than the EIIIX
I prefer the Emax II to both the EIIIX and EIV

Dave


On 14/11/2008, at 8:51 PM, tu@... wrote:

> The Emax II and Emulator IIIX use similar hardware but there are  
> significant differences between
> the two machines.
>
> The Emax II operating system and features are largely inherited from  
> the Emax I, which in turn
> inherits its design from the Emulator II.
>
> The EIIIX inherits its operating system and features from the  
> Emulator III and is much more
> sophisticated than the Emax II. The later ESI series follows on from  
> the EIIIX and includes even
> more new features, such as extra filter modes.
>
> The sonic differences between the Emax II and EIIIX are mainly due  
> to two things, the sampling
> rates used internally and the lowpass filter order.
>
> The Emax II uses an internal sampling rate of 39kHz for the  
> transposition chip, the digital filters
> and DACs. This limits the maximum playback frequency response to  
> around 19kHz.
>
> The EIIIX uses an internal sampling rate of 44.1kHz for the  
> transposition chip, the digital filters,
> DACs and AES/EBU digital output. This means the EIIIX playback  
> frequency response goes up to
> 21kHz. So the sound of the EIIIX will tend to have a bit more  
> sparkle and air in the top end
> compared to the Emax II.
>
> The Emax II uses 2 pole lowpass filters in the dynamic processing  
> whereas the EIIIX uses 4 pole
> lowpass filters. When the filters are swept down the 2 pole filters  
> give a brighter sound than 4 pole
> filters. I also feel 2 pole filters are more "electronic/synthetic"  
> sounding, so I often prefer them to 4
> pole filters. I find 4 pole filters tend to be a bit more mellow,  
> but it does depend on the sounds
> being filtered.
>
> If you are trying to decide between getting one or the other then I  
> suggest downloading the
> manuals from the Emulator Archive and having a read. Both machines  
> are good but I think you
> will find the Emulator IIIX is easier to use. But if you are looking  
> at the Emulator IIIX then also
> check out the ESI series as they continue on from where the EIIIX  
> leaves off.
>
> /Tristan
>
> >anyone know the differences (mainly sonic) between the Emulator  
> IIIx and the
> >Emax II?
> >
> >as far as i know they have the same digital filter, they're both 16  
> bit,
> >etc....
> >
> >thanks,
> >
> >Brooks
>
> 



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