garym wrote: > edit: and no one in the current discussion has said that different DACs > (analog chain) can't sound different (and certainly speakers can sound > very different). The discussion is more around whether the bits that > arrive at the front end of the DAC (before the analog conversion) are > different because of cables, etc. Certainly powerline noise and other > sorts of EMI can wreak havoc on audio playback as well. But again, no > one is arguing against that notion.
To expect that the bits upon arriving at the analog stage are somehow 'different' than the bits that left the digital transport is, erm, how shall I put it, stupid. It is just not possible for that to happen, no matter what. What might happen, though, is that those bits get INTERPRETED more or less erroneously. The way the bits, upon arrival, get interpreted, dictates the way the analog electrical current gets rendered. The renderer needs to make a decision whether the bit it's looking at is indeed "1" or "0" (on, or off). If there's any, even slightest uncertainly, the rendered will toss a coin and render something; chances are that 50% of the time, it will be correct. If we're phenomenally lucky, we may get close to the original rendition, but most likely it will end up being a bit erratic and spotty. That's why moving to a higher quality digital transport coupled with a good DAC will definitely sound better. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ heisenberg's Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=59622 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=98249 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list [email protected] http://lists.slimdevices.com/mailman/listinfo/audiophiles
