Today we will review Panasonic Lumix G Micro 4/3 LEICA DG SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 ASPH objective lens with 25 mm fixed focal length and aperture in f/1.4 – f/16 range, that is controlled by 7 diaphragm blades. It is very light and is well suited for photos taking in dark conditions : in the rooms, in a cloudy weather and at night time. It is attached to camera via Micro Four Thirds mounts and it can be used with Panasonic and Olympus devices. Field of view is 47 degrees on diagonal, minimal focusing distance is 0.3 m, lens does not support image stabilization, but it can be performed by camera by sensor shifting. Objective lens has 9 lens elements in 7 groups, 2 of them are aspherical for spherical and chromatic aberrations reduction, 1 lens element is made of UHR ( Ultra High Refractive Index ) glass. All of them are coated with protective and anti-reflective Nano Surface Coating. There is ability to attach 46 mm optical filters to it; its sizes are 63 mm ( diameter ) x 54.5 mm ( length ), its weight is 200 g. Its base is made of metal, which increases its durability. Package contains : Panasonic Lumix G Micro 4/3 LEICA DG SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 ASPH objective lens itself, frontal and rear caps and protective and carrying case. All in all it is very good light objective lens, which is superior in this respect to many other objective lenses with similar parameters. But there is need to note, that there is ability to find among M42x1 objective lenses similar or even better lenses for much smaller price and use them with modern camera with use of adapters and converters.
Lets review Audio-Technica ATH-R70x novelty, these are the professional studio monitor headphones with according characteristics. They have : 45 mm drivers, powerful magnets with fully metal housing ( which provides construction stability and provides clear high frequencies reproduction ), 5 – 40000 Hz sounds frequencies reproduction range, 1000 mW maximal power input, 99 dB sensitivity and 470 Ohms impedance ( such high impedance requires powerful signal, which makes all cable noise signals very week in comparison with it, and also it does not allow all noise signals to go to electric coil near magnet ). They had open back architecture with aluminum honeycomb mesh housing and composite resin and plastic materials for construction rigidity, which make sound reproduction more clear. They weight 210 g and have cozy pads and wing, which make their long use comfortable, which is important with their use in studio. Cable of headphones is pluggable, wherein, it does not matter how it is attached to pads, because right signal is automatically chosen for each pad. Package contains : Audio-Technica ATH-R70x headphones themselves, pluggable cable, protective carrying pouch and user’s guide. All in all : these are the very interesting headphones, but they are not suited for home use, because they cost very much and their high characteristics are not needed for home use. But, if there is choosing : buy too branded audiophile headphones, for which 2/3 of cost are costs for brand name and marketing expenses, and these ones, then it is better to buy these ones.
External studio sound card Focusrite Scarlett Solo
Among audio devices today we will look on external studio sound card Focusrite Scarlett Solo. It is designed for analogue audio recording on semi-professional studio level. Its front panel has : microphone XLR input with Focusrite preamplifier, +48 V phantom power switch and amplification level control; instrumental/linear 6.3 mm TRS jack ( 1/4″ ) input, instrumental/linear switch and signal amplification level control; 6.3 mm TRS jack ( 1/4″ ) output for monitor headphones, Direct Monitor mode switch and headphones volume level control. Its back panel has : 2 analogue linear RCA outputs; USB port, through which it communicates with computer and receives power from it; and Kensington Lock slot. Card works with 44.1, 48, 88.2 and 96 kHz sampling rates and 24 bits precision.
Microphone input has following characteristics : 106 dB dynamic range, -125 dB noise volume level; instrumental input : 106 dB dynamic range, -109 dB noise level; linear input : 106 dB dynamic range and -98 dB noise level; linear outputs : 106 dB dynamic range, -97 dB noise level; and monitor headphones output has 106 dB dynamic range. Body of card is produced from aluminum and has beautiful maroon color. Drivers are released for card for Windows XP and newer and Mac OS X and newer operating systems, which allow it to work with modern DAWs : Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER, Avid Pro Tools and others. Card is supplied with following software : DAW Ableton Live Lite, Focusrite Scarlett plugins package, Novation Bass Station plugin and 1 GB of Loopmasters sounds samples. Package contains : Focusrite Scarlett Solo sound card itself, USB cable, optical disks with drivers and software and user’s guide. In principle : it is a good middle-level sound card with more or less optimal price for its functionality; it has good dynamic range and noise level characteristics of analogue inputs and outputs. But, there is need to note, that for 125 USD ( card’s price at the middle of Autumn 2015 ) there is ability to buy more functional card or there is ability to buy card with similar functionality for smaller price. Also : it has no MIDI and digital inputs and outputs, but this can be solved with additional cheap internal or external audio card with such ports.
LZOA MC Rubinar 10/1000 Macro as objective of small telescope
Lets continue reviews of Soviet and Russian made objective lens for M42x1 mounts with LZOS MC Rubinar 10/1000 Macro device. It is very powerful telephoto objective lens with 1000 mm focal distance, 1.9 kg weight and 125 x 210 mm sizes. Its aperture equals to f/10, because of this it is not very light and more suited for shooting of objects on land and for shooting of bright astronomical objects. Its field of view is 2.5 degrees and focusing distances range is 4 m – infinity. LZOS MC Rubinar 10/1000 Macro has M116x1 mount on frontal side for optical filters and other accessories. It has 7 lens and mirrors elements in 5 groups ( which is very good ), all of them are coated with protective and anti-reflective multicoating. Also, LZOS MC Rubinar 10/1000 Macro can be used as small telescope, which is not surprisingly, because its optical scheme is very similar to Macsutov-Kassegrene telescope. For this purpose special converters and eye-pieces can be used ( previously LZOS even produced kits, which allowed to use lens as photo camera objective lens and as small telescope, such kit can be seen on photo ); also, this can be achieved with use of special converter with M42x1 mount on one side and 1.25 or 2-inch eye-piece focusing unit on the other side. 2-inch module and eye-pieces are preferably, because they allow to fully reveal capabilities of lens. Currently LZOS does not produce those lenses ( which is pity ) and they can be bought only in stores, which still have them in storage rooms, or through private ads. All in all it is a great objective telephoto lens and, if you have no telescope with similar characteristics, it is good candidate for this purpose, which can be used as multifunctional device. But if you have telescope, then it can be also used as camera lens with use of T-ring.
Today in audio section we will meet with Behringer U-PHORIA UM2 – external studio-grade audio-interface with beginner-level functions. It has professional XLR/TRS microphone/linear input and instrumental 1/4″ input; microphone input can be powered with +48 V phantom power and it is connected to XENYX Mic Preamp. Frontal panel of sound card also has 1/4″ output for monitor headphones and Direct Monitor switch. Back panel has : 2 analogue RCA-outputs, USB port, through which card communicates with computer and receives power from it, and phantom power switch. Top-side has : microphone/line input, instrumental input and analogue output volume controls. Card works with 48 kHz sampling rate ( which is enough for beginner-level professional work with sound ) and with 24 bits precision. For Behringer U-PHORIA UM2 drivers are released for Windows XP and newer and Mac OS X and newer operating systems, which allow it to work with modern DAWs : Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER and others. Card is equipped with simple DAW Tracktion, which allows to record audio, arrange tracks and perform other simple actions. It is covered with 3-years manufacturer warranty. Package contains : Behringer U-PHORIA UM2 sound card itself, USB cable, optical disks with drivers and software and user’s guide. Overall : this is very good studio-grade interface with beginner-level functions, which is very well suited for analogue audio recording, voice recording and instruments recording; especially taking into account its low price 49.9 USD at the middle of Autumn 2015. There is only wish to add MIDI input and output and digital connectors to card, but these functions belong to higher level audio cards, Also, there is ability to buy cheap internal or external audio card with these connectors and receive fully functional studio equipment ( those ports are digital, so level of such sound card does not affect signal quality ).
Tamron AF 18-200mm F/3.5-6.3 XR Di II LD Aspherical [IF] MACRO objective lens
Today we will look on Tamron AF 18-200mm А/3.5-6.3 XR Di II LD Aspherical [IF] MACRO. As it is seen from its name, it has varying 18 – 200 mm focus distance and varying maximal aperture f/3.5-6.3, depending on zoom settings; its minimal aperture is f/22; it is controlled with use of 7 diaphragm blades. Lens has macro function and its minimal focusing distance is 0.45 m; field of view is 75 – 8 degrees, depending on zoom settings. Objective lens has 15 lens elements in 13 groups, among them there are : 3 aspherical lens elements, 2 are produced from LD glass with low dispersion level. All lens elements, except LD, are produced from XR ( Extra Refractive Index ) glass; all lens are coated with protective and anti-reflective multicoating. There is ability to attach 62 mm optical filters to Tamron AF 18-200mm А/3.5-6.3 XR Di II LD Aspherical [IF] MACRO; its sizes are : 73.8 x 83.7 mm, and weight is : 405 g. It is produced only in black color variant. All in all : this is a good objective lens, which costs optimal amount of money ( in comparison with other similar lenses ) 149 USD at the middle of Autumn 2015. Wherein : there is ability to buy more affordable lenses for M42x1 mounts and use them with converters and adapters; or there is ability to buy macro lens, which can be attached to existing objective lens.
Telephoto objective lens Sigma 85mm F1.4 EX DG HSM
Today in our field of view will be Sigma 85mm F1.4 EX DG HSM telephoto objective lens. It has initial focus distance for lens of this type and big aperture, which allows to use it for land scenes shooting and for shooting of big astronomical objects. Its maximal and minimal appertures are : f/1.4 and f/16, accordingly, with 9 diaphragm blades; it is designed for full-frame sensors. Lens has 28.6 degrees field of view and 0.85 m minimal focusing distance with support of automatic focusing with use of Hyper Sonic Motor ( HSM ). Lens is produced in variants for Sigma, Nikon, Canon, Sony/Minolta and Pentax mounts. It supports internal focusing and has no image stabilization. 11 lens elements in 9 groups are built into it, all of them are coated with protective and anti-reflective Super Multi-Layer Coating. There is ability to attach to Sigma 85mm F1.4 EX DG HSM optical filters with 77 mm diameter; its sizes are : 86.4 x 87.6 mm, and weight is : 725 g. Package contains : Sigma 85mm F1.4 EX DG HSM objective lens itself, frontal and rear caps, case, user’s manual and 1 year warranty card. All in all : this is a good objective lens, which has interesting characteristics, but its price is quite big : 969 USD at the middle of Autumn of 2015 year ( for comparison : there is ability to buy new Nikon D3200 camera for 350 – 400 USD ). Because of this it is more appropriate for photographers, which need its particular characteristics; for photographers, which just need telephoto objective lens it is better to look at models, that are priced at lower level.
Among audio devices we will study today AUDIOTRAK MAYA U5 external sound card. It is oriented on high quality reproduction of 5.1 channel sound ( card supports also other modes : 4.1, 4.0, 2.1 and 2.0 ) and on transmitting of protected Blu-ray or HD-DVD signals to other devices. It has no professional line inputs and MIDI inputs and outputs, so it cannot be used in professional studio sound recording; it has microphone input, but it is more suited for voice chatting, than for studio-level sound recording. Audio card supports only 48 kHz sampling rate ( USB 2.0 bus does not allow higher sampling rates with such amount of channels, but for sound playback it is enough ) and 24 bits precision. It has optical digital S/PDIF input and output. AUDIOTRAK MAYA U5 has built-in high quality controller VIA Envy USB 2.0 FS and digital to analogue converter ( DAC ) with 110 dB signal to noise ration ( this is good characteristic, if all other hardware components of card support sound processing and transmittance of such high clearness ). Package contains : AUDIOTRAK MAYA U5 sound card itself, USB cable, user’s guide and CD-ROM disk with drivers and software for Windows XP, Vista, 7 and 8 and Mac OS X. All in all it is good card for optimal price for multichannel sound playback for films, games, virtual reality applications and multi-channel music. Its external placement also allows to reduce electromagnetic interference ( EMI ) on card’s components, which is always present in computer system case.
Today we will look on Olympus M.Zuiko 45mm f1.8 lens for Micro Four Thirds mounts. As it can be seen from its name, it has 45 mm fixed focus and maximal and minimal diaphragms f/1.8 and f/22, accordingly, with 7 diaphragm blades. It has 0.5 m minimal focusing distance with auto-focusing, which works via High-speed Imager AF ( MSC ) motor. It has 9 lens elements in 8 groups ( which is much for lens of such type ), among them 2 are E-HR lens elements; all of them are covered with protective and anti-reflective multicoating. Field of view is equal to 27 degrees, which is not much for prime lens; there is ability to attach 37 mm optical filters to it. Its sizes are : 56 x 46 mm, and weight is : 116 g. Package contains : Olympus M.Zuiko 45mm f1.8 lens itself, front and rear caps, decorative ring, user’s manual and warranty card. Overall it is not bad objective lens, but accounting its average characteristics and high price ( 399 USD at the middle of Autumn 2015 ), it is better to buy more functional prime lens with smaller price.
Lets review top-level external USB sound cardsSteinberg UR28M and UR824, which have already professional-level big studio features. They have the same : Yamaha D-PRE Class-A microphone preamplifiers, DSP Yamaha SSP2, 24 bits of precision for work with sound, separate monitor headphones outputs with independent volume level control, DAW Cubase AI in the package, fully metallic body and USB 2.0 connection, as previously reviewed sound cards of this family. UR28M is different in : support of 96 kHz sampling rate instead of 192 ( which are not always necessary, for example, human is not able to differentiate signals, which are recorded with 96 kHz and 192 kHz frequencies, but for professional use with subsequent processing high sampling rates are useful ); 2 analogue inputs and 6 analogue outputs; and 1 S/PDIF digital input and 1 the same output.
External sound card Steinberg UR824
The top most model UR824 supports : 192 kHz sampling rate; JetPLL synchronization for many devices to stay in sync; 2 digital optical S/PDIF ADAT outputs and 2 the same inputs; and 8 analogue inputs and 8 analogue outputs. Both cards have no MIDI inputs and outputs, so they are more suited for large studio use for analogue signals recording and playback, instead of use with digital instruments. Steinberg UR28M and UR824 have corresponding prices : 499 and 999 USD.
Technical characteristics of microphone/linear inputs of Steinberg UR28M : working sound frequencies range is 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( with +0.1/-0.2 dB deviance ), dynamic range is 101 dB ( A-Weighted ), THD+N 0.002%, channels crosstalk protection is 114 dB, maximal input signal level is +22 dB, impedance is 4 kOhms, gain up to 60 dB and pad down to -26 dB. Instrumental Hi-Z inputs : maximal input signal level is +9.8 dB, impedance is 500 kOhms. Linear inputs 3 and 4 : frequencies range 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( with +0.1/-0.1 dB deviance ), dynamic range is 102 dB ( A-Weighted ), THD+N 0.001%, channels crosstalk protection 110 dB, maximal input signal level 16 dB ( with balanced connection ) and 13.8 dB ( with unbalanced connection ), impedance is 20 kOhms ( balanced ) and 10 kOhms ( unbalanced ). 2TR IN : maximal input signal level is +3.5 dB and impedance is 10 kOhms; maximal power, supplied to headphones outputs, is 35 + 35 mW with 40 Ohms impedance. Linear balanced outputs properties are : working frequencies range is 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( with +0.1 dB/-0.2 dB deviance ), dynamic range is 106 dB ( A-Weighted ), THD+N 0.001%, channels crosstalk protection is 129 dB, maximal signal level is +16 dB with impedance 75 Ohms. In addition to 96 kHz audio interface also supports sampling frequencies 44.1, 48 and 88.2 kHz; it draws maximum 8.4 W of energy, its sizes are 59 ( height ) x 164 ( depth ) x 291 ( width ) mm and mass is 1.4 kg.
Steinberg UR824 has higher technical specifications : working frequencies of balanced microphone/linear inputs are in 20 Hz – 22 kHz range ( with +0.1 dB/-0.1 dB deviation ), dynamic range is 105 dB ( A-Weighted ), THD+N 0.0014%, channels cross-talk protection 125 dB, maximal level of input signal is +24 dB, impedance is 4 kOhms, maximal gain and pad are 60 dB and -26 dB, accordingly. Properties of instrumental Hi-Z inputs are : maximal input signal level is +10 dB and impedance is 1 MOhm. Linear outputs ( balanced ) : working frequencies range is 20 Hz – 22 kHz ( with +0.1 dB/-0.1 dB deviation ), dynamic range is 117 dB ( A-Weighted ), THD+N 0.0009%, channels cross-talk protection is 130 dB, maximal signal level is +18 dB and impedance is 75 Ohms. Maximal power, supplied to headphones equals to 75 + 75 mW with 40 Ohms impedance; besides 192 kHz device also supports 44.1, 48, 88.2 and 96 kHz sampling rates. Device draws 38.4 W of energy, its sizes are 480 ( width ) x 44 ( height ) x 275 ( depth ) mm and mass is 3.1 kg.
Devices work in Windows 7, 8, 8.1 and 10 and Mac OS X with support of ASIO 2.0, WDM and Core Audio interfaces, through which they interact with modern DAWs : Avid Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Steinberg Cubase, FL Studio, Cackewalk Sonar, REAPER and others. Also Steinberg UR28M and 824 are Class Compliant and can work with Apple iPad 2 and newer via Apple iPad Camera Connection Kit.
For installation of DAW Cubase AI there is need in connection to Internet for downloading of additional data with 500 MB size. Steinberg UR242 supports following DSP effects : Latency-free monitoring with FX ( dspMixFx ), True Integrated Monitoring with FX in Cubase, Guitar Amp Classics, REV-X Reverb, Sweet Spot Morphing Channel Strip, Phase switch per channel and High-Pass filter. Cubase AI – is a simplified version of professional DAW of Steinberg, it is based on the same audio engine with 32-bits float precision of calculations; can work simultaneously with 32 sound tracks, 48 MIDI tracks and 16 instrumental tracks with ability to record completed compositions to disk in WAV and AIFF formats, and in MP3 after purchsing of according module. For audio and MIDI editing in program following editors are built-in : Key, Score and Drum, pitch-shift instrument AudioWarp with support of ACID files format, which allows to use large amount of already created sounds samples, and Chord Track editor. 28 VST effects and processors are built into it for work with sounds, sampling synthesizer instrument HALion Sonic SE with 180 sound; mixing console with 4 Inserts and 4 Sends for each track and equalizer. DAW Cubase AI can work in 32 and 64 bits operating systems Windows and Mac OS X.
Package contains : Steinberg UR28M or 824 audio interfaces themselves, optical disks with drivers and programs, power supply unit, warranty card and user’s guide. On disks besides DAW Cubase AI there are : Yamaha Steinberg USB Driver, device control panel, UR28M/824 Extension ( for integration with DAW Cubase ), dspMixFx UR28M/824 ( for integration with other DAWs ), VST plugin Sweet Spot Morphing Channel Strip ( compressor and equalizer ) and VST plugin REV-X – reverberation. Interfaces are very functional and have great digital and analogue parts and large amount of connectors, they are oriented on professional work in large studios and on concerts, their prices are according. There is also ability to look on other audio interfaces of Steinberg, Behringer, Focusrite, Roland, ESI, M-Audio, Alesis and other companies production : among them there can be devices, that are more applicable to specific tasks and that have more acceptable prices for them.
Steinberg – is a German company – creator of DAWs, VST effects, processors and instruments and also of audio interfaces, being based in Hamburg. It was established in 1984 year and now is being owned by Yamaha Corporation from 2004 year. At current moment Steinberg is one of the leading audio equipment and programs manufacturers in the world, for example, its professional DAW, instruments and hardware are used by following musicians : Hans Zimmer, Junkie XL, Justice, Kraftwerk, New Order and others.
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