Mentalab Hypersync
Mentalab Hypersync provides highly accurate wireless synchronization with a timing accuracy of approximately ±1 sample. It is the recommended method for precise event marking and multimodal synchronization.
What is MentalabHypersync?
Mentalab Hypersync is our implementation of a wireless synchronization protocol built on the Lab Streaming Layer (LSL) framework. It ensures that EEG/ExG recordings from Explore devices are aligned in time with a computer network. This ensures tight temporal alignment to an LSL network for improved timing accuracy when syncing with:
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Stimulus presentation software (e.g., PsychoPy, Presentation).
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Other biosignal devices (e.g., EMG, ECG, eye tracking).
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Motion capture systems or VR headsets.
Unlike manual triggers alone, MentalabHypersync guarantees that all participating Explore devices share a common clock, reducing temporal drift.
How it Works
Each Explore amplifier publishes its data to the LSL stream on the host computer. Mentalab Hypersync continuously aligns these streams to a global timeline, correcting for jitter and drift. Triggers sent via software or hardware are timestamped against the same synchronized clock, allowing precise alignment across modalities.
When to Use Hypersync
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Stimulus-locked protocols: experiments where reaction time or ERP analysis requires millisecond precision.
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Multi-amplifier setups: recording from more than one Explore unit simultaneously.
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Multimodal studies: combining EEG with motion capture, eye tracking, or physiological signals to reduce total jitter and delay.
Benefits
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High temporal precision compared to manual synchronization.
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Fully compatible with Mentalab software (Explore Desktop, Explore Mobile, explorepy, Flutter API) and third-party tools supporting LSL.
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Works wirelessly, no additional cabling required between devices.
What you need for Mentalab Hypersync
To ensure Mentalab Hypersync operates correctly, each Mentalab device must be equipped with a Mentalab Hypersync receiver dongle. A single Hypersync sender dongle is required at the host computer. Each device requires its own data collection system for streaming. We provide dedicated smartphones (“study phones”) and the required hardware for this purpose.