If hooked up to an external DAC and all it does is transporting 1s and 0s digitally, how can that affect Soundstage, how punchy the bass is, etc?

  • Royal-Patient-2978@alien.topOPB
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    1 year ago

    /Thanks! It strikes me that , then at a relatively low to low-midish price point in 2023, diminishing return should kick in and there should be little audible difference? What would be the price point of such a digital transport and DAC, respectively?

    • audioen@alien.topB
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      1 year ago

      I think basic DAC+amplifier such as the Apple usb-c 3.5mm headset jack, which costs $10 is where it is already practically perfect. Seriously, this technology costs next to nothing.

    • modernmammel@alien.topB
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      1 year ago

      I honestly don’t know. Price point is hardly relevant. I’m more into pro audio and have noticed that on recent higher end devices clock source makes little difference anymore.

      It’s a design choice to trade of stability for jitter rejection, not necessarily a matter of cost. Digital audio products have used the same type of conversion chips for years and we have seen a lot of newer designs lately that include onboard digital PLLs or manage this problem by SRC. These ICs may be expensive but I don’t know how that is reflected in standalone DAC devices.

      Tbh, I think any digital source connected to a decent DAC will give you decent results. I’m just trying to explain that in digital audio, the entire system is to be considered. A digital source may not have a “sound”, that does not mean the next device in the chain will perform optimally which may unfairly contribute to the “sound” attributed to a certain digital source device.