[qusp]

Hi there Fellow crazy people, I just thought I would take the time to let those who dont know... know..that as has been murmured for some time, there is officially nolonger an NDA needed for working with the ESS sabre 9018/12 series dac chips. you can simply politely ask for the datasheet from Shaw electronics and they will supply it to you without signing your life away. they now simply take note of who has the datasheet. now this isnt cart blanche (sp.) for those under NDA such as myself to start giving out info willy nilly, but it sure is a start and schematics for designs based on the sabre are able to be published without issues with men in suits.
 
I think its a wise decision on their part, as although the DIY component probably wont be a massive percentage of their market, DIYERs are a vocal bunch and this will raise the awareness of the fantastic sound of this chip even further.
 
Further, much of the info in the DS has been in the public arena for some time now, but some things like the very comprehensive register info are not and still wont be allowed to be posted in a public site, but can easily be accessed by anyone who is keen to get it.
 
this has been in the rumour mill for a while now, but I asked Shaw to confirm it officially the other day in an email because I was getting a bit tired of being asked privately for the info and having to say no as I had not heard this info directly. not only that, the designer of the chips, Dustin has confirmed this info publicly in a sabre related thread on DIYAUDIO.
 
so guys, have some fun with it, its a great, if somewhat picky chip that is IMO unequalled for sound and functionality. the 9018 for example is leagues ahead of any other multichannel dac that I have heard, the crystal semi conductor chips are getting there, but still a ways behind IMO.
 
I have no affiliation with ESS other than as a consumer, I have 3 sabre dacs and i'm lining up another with the 9018 to drive a digital crossover for some Class A multiway speakers based on Mac based DSP, expanded RME9652 with external clock (one and the same clock as the dac) and OEM hiface modules feeding a pair of Pass inspired F5XJ amps
 
perhaps a third party driver unit for the JH3A?? hehe

 

[Avro_Arrow]

I can confirm that I got my data sheets from Shaw with no NDA.
Ask politely and ye shall receive...
 
Quote:

Hi there Fellow crazy people, I just thought I would take the time to let those who dont know... know..that as has been murmured for some time, there is officially nolonger an NDA needed for working with the ESS sabre 9018/12 series dac chips. you can simply politely ask for the datasheet from Shaw electronics and they will supply it to you without signing your life away. they now simply take note of who has the datasheet. now this isnt cart blanche (sp.) for those under NDA such as myself to start giving out info willy nilly, but it sure is a start and schematics for designs based on the sabre are able to be published without issues with men in suits.
 
I think its a wise decision on their part, as although the DIY component probably wont be a massive percentage of their market, DIYERs are a vocal bunch and this will raise the awareness of the fantastic sound of this chip even further.
 
Further, much of the info in the DS has been in the public arena for some time now, but some things like the very comprehensive register info are not and still wont be allowed to be posted in a public site, but can easily be accessed by anyone who is keen to get it.
 
this has been in the rumour mill for a while now, but I asked Shaw to confirm it officially the other day in an email because I was getting a bit tired of being asked privately for the info and having to say no as I had not heard this info directly. not only that, the designer of the chips, Dustin has confirmed this info publicly in a sabre related thread on DIYAUDIO.
 
so guys, have some fun with it, its a great, if somewhat picky chip that is IMO unequalled for sound and functionality. the 9018 for example is leagues ahead of any other multichannel dac that I have heard, the crystal semi conductor chips are getting there, but still a ways behind IMO.
 
I have no affiliation with ESS other than as a consumer, I have 3 sabre dacs and i'm lining up another with the 9018 to drive a digital crossover for some Class A multiway speakers based on Mac based DSP, expanded RME9652 with external clock (one and the same clock as the dac) and OEM hiface modules feeding a pair of Pass inspired F5XJ amps
 
perhaps a third party driver unit for the JH3A?? hehe

 

[Lil' Knight]

Hopefully Ti would change his mind after this...

 

[amb]

Quote:

Hopefully Ti would change his mind after this...

No NDA is good, but it seems that ESS is still holding back availability of the information by requiring you to "ask".  Why not just make it freely downloadable like everyone else?  The datasheet is important, but isn't the only thing that needs to be public in the way I do my projects.  For example, would ESS allow me to publish the schematic diagram and circuit description of a DAC design on my website?  Will they allow open discussions (in a forum setting or otherwise) about the design?  If the answers to these are "yes", then it would sway me to look into this chip.
 
There are other practical considerations too, such as: Can individuals order the chip from the distributor in single quantities without going through hoops?  If not, are the chips available in small batches for purchase (for me to stock without breaking the bank) or as a group buy?

 

[Avro_Arrow]

The minimum order is 10 pieces from what they told me.
No "Free Sample" program there...
 
Price drop starts at 100 pieces.
 
Quote:

Quote:

Hopefully Ti would change his mind after this...

No NDA is good, but it seems that ESS is still holding back availability of the information by requiring you to "ask".  Why not just make it freely downloadable like everyone else?  The datasheet is important, but isn't the only thing that needs to be public in the way I do my projects.  For example, would ESS allow me to publish the schematic diagram and circuit description of a DAC design on my website?  Will they allow open discussions (in a forum setting or otherwise) about the design?  If the answers to these are "yes", then it would sway me to look into this chip.
 
There are other practical considerations too, such as: Can individuals order the chip from the distributor in single quantities without going through hoops?  If not, are the chips available in small batches for purchase (for me to stock without breaking the bank) or as a group buy?

 

[qusp]

Quote:

Quote:

Hopefully Ti would change his mind after this...

No NDA is good, but it seems that ESS is still holding back availability of the information by requiring you to "ask".  Why not just make it freely downloadable like everyone else?  The datasheet is important, but isn't the only thing that needs to be public in the way I do my projects.  For example, would ESS allow me to publish the schematic diagram and circuit description of a DAC design on my website?  Will they allow open discussions (in a forum setting or otherwise) about the design?  If the answers to these are "yes", then it would sway me to look into this chip.
 
There are other practical considerations too, such as: Can individuals order the chip from the distributor in single quantities without going through hoops?  If not, are the chips available in small batches for purchase (for me to stock without breaking the bank) or as a group buy?

yes you can buy small quantities, I have actually bought less than 10 before and yes you can publish schematics and discuss them; I asked this question speifically and it was also made clear on DIYA by Dustin. but I assume some details of the datasheet they would prefer to know who has them, I dont know their motives, but thats how it is. I think you will find that it will be published soon enough, but not at the moment. sure most dacs have the DS freely available, but its also not that unusual in areas of high tech to require an NDA, that requirement has been loosened and I personally dont see anything in the way anymore, anyone involved in a project that needs more information than is able to be freely published can request it if they want.

 

[madwolf]

I manage to get a hold of the Data Sheet thanks to qusp. 
 
What surprise me was the Programmable FIR filter within the chip. It is like a DSP within the DAC except that you could only play around with 
a standard FIR filter. 
 
Unlike a DSP You could not design your own butterfly filter using Matlab with the specific coefficient.
But with a standard FIR filter available you could have almost infinite combination of the output filter to play around with.
Which mean we could play around with this to tune the sound to a personal taste.   
 
From the answer I get from them today 21 Dec 2010 the MOQ is 2 piece 
 
Edited to add that I did not sign any NDA