Recording - March 2015 - 35

other functions; stereo pairs 5-8 are not only summed but
passed through to other equipment. This lets you, for example,
patch the Satori in between your analog mixer and your audio
interface to capture an analog summed signal in addition to
what you send to your DAW as stems or individual tracks.
This is a nice feature set as it is, but when you open the Satori
remote control software, everything gets taken up a notch. The
control panel not only gives an easy-to-read graphic display of
the unit's status, but there are a host of added and extended features as well.
The central control shows the output level in dB, between
selector buttons for input and output. In addition, you'll see two
knobs marked Trim; these are ±6 dB offset adjustments so you
can quickly dial in small adjustments to each input or output to

Pressing Mono and M/S gives you a mono summed signal
(labeled R+L in the software); deselecting M/S so the light's off
gives you the difference signal between the sides (labeled L-R).
However, these defaults can all be changed in the remote software. For stereo use, you can select normal stereo behavior,
invert the polarity of L, R, or both, flip L to R and vice versa, or
do flip plus polarity invert. In mono mode, you can monitor L, R,
R+L, L-R, or R-L.
As a final note, up to five sets of control settings can be saved
as Presets in the software, and the software can be reduced to
an undocumented "hover mode" where you're given the main
output level control, Mute, and Talkback, in a tiny window that
floats above your DAW software and is always handy no matter what you're doing.

line up levels. It's not documented anywhere, but you can also
do this from the front panel; just hold down the appropriate Input
or Monitor button while turning the encoder, and the LED ring
displays the offset in dB as you work.
The remote software also offers a high-resolution stereo meter,
visual indicators/buttons for Mute and Dim, and a HPF (highpass filter) button for use with a subwoofer, rolling off at 120 Hz. (The HPF
control was a late addition, so it wasn't fully documented in the manual.) The remote control software
is also where the two rear-panel headphone output
levels are set. The software lets you direct the currently selected Monitor output to each pair of headphones, or hardwire each to a specific Input pair for
monitor use; you can also select which headphones
receive the Talkback signal when toggled.
Speaking of talkback, the remote control
expands on the simple pushbutton and onboard
mic found in the hardware by offering mic level
control and a choice of onboard mic, rear panel
mic input, or a separate USB mic plugged into
your computer. Note that this USB talkback mic
function is the only time that any audio is passed
over the USB connection. It's locked to 16bit/48 kHz operation and there's considerable
latency when using it, but if you don't have a
spare dynamic mic to hook up to the rear panel
and don't feel like leaning over the Satori to yell at the front
panel, it's at least an option.

In use
It took me very little time to get the Satori set up in my studio and
put it through its paces. The remote software installed instantly and
flawlessly, as did the latest firmware update; in under an hour I had
three sets of monitors, multiple input sources, and four sets of headphones hooked up, calibrated, and happily playing away.
The digital control in Satori doesn't mean there's any A/D or
D/A conversion; the signal path is all analog
(aside from the USB talkback function, if enabled)
and you can hear relays click inside the box
whenever you change routings or levels. Doing
things like changing the stereo or mono channel
assignment menu settings can produce audible
clicks, and rapidly changing levels using the
encoder or mouse can produce a "zippering"
noise, but conventional input, output, and
mono/mute/dim switching are noiseless.
And the sound quality? The only quoted specs
for the Satori are 127 dB THD+N and 132 dB
dynamic range, which are both scary-good numbers but presented without reference levels or test
parameters. Specs aside, though, the Satori
sounds wonderfully clear and transparent, delivering signals from point A to point B without any significant coloration. If you're worried that a cheaply made monitor controller might be compromising
your audio, the Satori will banish those worries for good.
In fact, "banishing audio control worries for good" is not a
bad way to describe the Satori in general. There are costlier
monitor controllers out there, but they tend to offer functions like
surround control, bass management, or high-end A/D and D/A
conversion with digital I/O and word clocking. If what you want
is pure analog monitor control with impeccable sound quality
and easy-to-use features from front panel or DAW screen, the
Satori is hard to beat.

Stereo analysis
One particularly deep area where the remote software
expands on the hardware's direct control capability is in processing stereo information. One of the most important functions
of any monitor controller is to check for mono compatibility and
phase mismatch issues, and with its added software control functions the Satori goes over the top.
As mentioned above, when used from the front panel, the
default behavior for the Mono and M/S buttons is as follows.
When both are off, you hear an ordinary L/R stereo signal.

Price: $1475
More from: Antelope Audio, www.antelopeaudio.com
RECORDING March 2015

http://www.antelopeaudio.com

Recording - March 2015

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