Spider-80Hi Comparison – V8.9 vs. V8.5
The Spider-80Hi has undergone significant hardware upgrades, delivering substantial improvements in performance. Compared to versions V8.5 and priors, the dynamic range of V8.9, measured based on dBFS, has been increased by 15 dB, thanks to the improvement of reduced noise floor. Both input and output THD of V8.9 have decreased by 6 dB. The crosstalk of V8.9 has been lowered by 20 dB, and CMRR has seen a major improvement, increasing from -70 dB to -120 dB. Finally, amplitude linearity has been refined to 0.05 dB across the entire frequency range, a significant enhancement from the worst-case 1 dB in the version 8.5 hardware.
The isolation of digital and analog circuitry in addition to the enhancements on the input channel front-end have minimized ground loops resulting in higher signal integrity. Upgrades to the output DAC allow for higher sample rates and provide a greater dynamic range. Lastly, refinements in the IEPE constant current power supply have significantly reduced noise at low frequencies. Together, these enhancements improve the system’s precision and overall performance, making it well-suited for even the most demanding measurement applications.
Comparison of key parameters in the hardware specifications is provided below. For detailed comparison results please contact Crystal Instruments.
|
Specification |
Version 8.5 |
Version 8.9 |
||
|
Noise (at 1 kHz) |
80 nV/√Hz |
23.9 nV/√Hz |
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|
Dynamic Range in dBFS |
160 dBFs |
175 dBFs |
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|
Harmonic Distortion (2 V Input Signal) |
Frequency |
THD |
Frequency |
THD |
|
1 kHz |
-100 dB |
1 kHz |
-105 dB |
|
|
8 kHz |
-91 dB |
8 kHz |
-97 dB |
|
|
Crosstalk |
-100 dB |
-120 dB |
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|
CMRR (Common Mode Rejection Ratio) |
-70 dB |
-120 dB |
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|
Amplitude Linearity |
Amplitude Range (dBFS) |
Amplitude Error |
0.05 dB for entire amplitude range |
|
|
0 to -80 |
0.1 dB |
|||
|
-20 to -100 |
0.25 dB |
|||
|
-120 to -120 |
0.5 dB |
|||
|
-120 to -140 |
1 dB |
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Table 1. Input Channel Specifications
|
Specification |
Version 8.5 |
Version 8.9 |
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|
Dynamic Range |
120 dB |
127 dB |
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|
Harmonic Distortion (1 V output) |
Frequency |
THD |
Frequency |
THD |
|
1 kHz |
-91 dB |
1 kHz |
-97 dB |
|
|
8 kHz |
-78 dB |
8 kHz |
-94 dB |
|
|
Crosstalk |
120 dB |
132 dB |
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Table 2. Output Channel Specifications
Comparison of Noise Floor:
Figure 1. Noise floor with V8.5 and V8.9. V8.5 is in blue and V8.9 is in purple. dB reference is set to 20V (the full range of input )
Comparison of Total Harmonic Distortion:
Figure 2. THD with V8.5 and V8.9. V8.5 is purple and V8.9 is in blue.