Focusrite VRM Box

Details

Overview

• We’ve all burned CDs of our mixes so that we can listen to our latest creation on as many different systems as we can: the living room HiFi, the television, our friends’ studio monitors and so on. Then the process of improving the mix based on what we’ve heard begins. We might burn another CD to check the updated mix on the same systems in the hope that it sounds better second time around. We may not realise it but we are now ‘reference mixing’. This is why most studios have multiple pairs of speakers; so the engineer can reference the mix on more than one monitor. For most of us this is tough, due to space or budget constraints. That is until now…

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• The Solution? 
  Introducing VRM Box. The high-quality USB headphone interface with a difference. VRM stands for Virtual Reference Monitoring. It gives you the option of listening to your mix on multiple sets of speakers, in different rooms, just using headphones. This helps to overcome the problems associated with creating a mix that translates well on many speakers. Burning CDs to listen to your mix in different environments will become a thing of the past.

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• Mix anywhere, any time
  There’s no substitute for mixing on high-quality monitors in a well treated room, however sometimes this ideal scenario is not possible; we might be on a train, in a plane, in a hotel room, on the tour bus or simply at home late at night not wishing to disturb anyone. VRM allows you to make critical decisions on your mix, knowing for certain that it will translate well in many environments.

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• Small but perfectly formed
  Compact enough to fit in the palm of your hand, and USB bus-powered, VRM Box is the ideal high-fidelity portable headphone interface. With a measured dynamic range of 108dBA, VRM Box provides a huge improvement for headphone listening when compared with the on-board sound of all laptops, as well as many far more expensive audio interfaces. Added with the Virtual Reference Monitoring technology, VRM Box represents incredible value for money.

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• Choose from 15 industry-standard studio monitors and speakers, in three different rooms

Key Features

• Three virtual rooms and 15 virtual speakers 
  Monitor in a virtual professional studio, living room or bedroom. With 15 different speaker models, you get multiple perspectives on your mix. From the Genelec 1031A, to the KRK VXT8 and the BBC-designed LS3-5a, we have meticulously measured each of the speakers to bring their characteristics to your headphones. There’s even an LCD television to use for reference!

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• Use alongside any interface 
  VRM Box can be used in conjunction with any interface that has an S/PDIF output, including Pro Tools HD and Pro Tools HD Native. This makes switching between VRM headphone monitoring and speaker monitoring painless. VRM Box can receive S/PDIF signals at any standard sampling frequency (44.1 to 192 KHz) meaning you don't need to change your session setup – just route your mix to the S/PDIF out.

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• High-quality monitoring anywhere
  Sometimes it’s not possible to take your interface with you, as it’s too large or because it’s wired into your studio. The portable format of VRM Box allows you to take it anywhere – just sling it in your laptop bag and be safe in the knowledge that its robust case will stand up to the rigors of the road. It’s even bus powered so all you need is the USB cable.

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• A great upgrade for headphone listening
  If you like to listen to music on your computer with headphones, VRM Box provides a great improvement when compared with on-board sound and indeed many other audio interfaces. With a dynamic range of 108 dBA and very low noise and distortion figures, VRM Box delivers pristine sound with or without the optional room and speaker modelling.

The Science of VRM

The Problem

 Accurate mixing has until now, required expensive monitors and a carefully designed and treated control room. Currently, both professional music producers facing budgetary limitations and project music makers without access to such, frequently encounter mixing and "auditioning" difficulties.

The Solution

VRM allows you to choose from 10 pairs of industry standard nearfield and main monitors in an acoustically treated control room. Engineers routinely A/B their mixes by burning CDs and taking them into untreated rooms to reference on consumer stereos. VRM eliminates this process by simulating two extra rooms; a large living room and a smaller bedroom. You can choose between a range of speakers including quality hi-fi, computer, cheap stereo and television speakers. 

The Method

VRM Box uses standard headphones to reproduce the direct sound, together with software running on your computer that is used to simulate specific monitoring scenarios. VRM's room models are mathematical models which provide greater flexibility in the possible combinations of loudspeakers. The loudspeaker simulations are created using convolutions of impulse responses measured using the original loudspeakers. The accuracy of these simulations in different environments is taken care of by the impulse responses themselves and the way they are calculated and manipulated.

Specifications

Headphone Outputs (Outputs 1-2)

·      Output impedance: < 10 Ω

·      Power output into 150Ω: 15mW

·      Power output into 50Ω: 30mW

·      THD+N: -100dB (0.001%) (-1dBFS input, 20Hz/22kHz bandpass filter, 150Ω load)

·      Signal to Noise Ratio: > 105dB

 

S/PDIF Digital Input

·      Automatic Sample Rate conversion

·      Supported sample rates: continuous from 32kHz to 192kHz

·      THD+N: < -110dB any sample rate

 

Crosstalk (Channel Isolation)

·      Any output to output: > 100dB

 

DIGITAL PERFORMANCE

·      D/A Dynamic Range: 120dB (A-weighted)

·      Measured D/A Dynamic Range: 108dB (A-weighted)

·      Clock Source: Internal Clock only Clock jitter < 250 picoseconds

·      Supported Sample Rates: 44.1kHz & 48kHz

·      Input channels to computer: S/PDIF (stereo)

·      Output channels from computer: Headphones (stereo)

 

Connectors and Controls

·      Stereo S/PDIF input on RCA

·      Stereo Headphone Output on 1⁄4” TRS

·      Headphone Output Level control (analogue)

·      4-pin USB2.0 compatible socket

 

Indicators

·      1 Green LED Indicator:

   -   Flashing: Unit not installed correctly on host

   -   Off: VRM effects turned off

   -   On: VRM effects turned on

 

Power

·      Bus power from USB bus

 

Operating System Requirements

 

Windows

XP (service pack 3), Vista, 7 (32 and 64-bit)

Mac

OS X 10.5 Leopard (Intel only), OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

Weight and Dimensions

 

Dimensions

Unboxed: 68mm x 25mm x 68mm (W x H x D)

Boxed: 155mm x 210mm x 75mm (W x H x D)

 

Weights

NetWeight: 123g

Gross Weight: 380g

 

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