Up & Over Sampling... Continued

The audio stages do make a difference. The new MSB Platinum DAC has NO audio output stage in balanced mode and can drive my monoblocks directly. (It also rate converts and has selectable filters.)The lack of an audio stage is part of the reason that the Platinum sounds better than my old Theta Pro Gen Va upgraded to 24/96. However, the professional digital firms like dCs, Z-Systems and SigTech also pride themselves on the implementation of subtly different algorithms. That is also part of why the upgraded Theta sounded better than the non upgraded Theta. When I got a chance to borrow the dCs multi rate converter and the matching DAC, my Theta sounded better with the dCs converting to 24 bit 96. Even just the Z-systems set to output 24 bit dithered made the Theta sounded better. I've played around with a fiar number of combinations in the digital chain and have concluded that the additional processing power available now due to Moore's Law allows for significant improvement of the sound from a Red Book CD. However, I don't think that there is presently a simple specs driven explanation which means you have to listen to the specific piece of gear. Anyone who gets a chance should listen to the dCs, MSB Platinum, and other advanced digital domain devices to hear the very noticable improvements.

Bernstem, I had the same opinion about the HFNRR article. They basically compared two different CD players and concluded they liked one better than the other. Not much different than if we all compared two different CD players and found the one with the pink flamingo painted on top sounded better (more natural). Was it due to the pink flamingo? I say that not to inflame anyone, only to make the point that there are so many "levers" to adjust the sound of a player. In the hands of great designers like Kevin Halverson and Jeff Kalt, great sounding components can be made. Increase the budget (parts quality, R&D etc) and even better sounding components will follow.

Megasam, I think the only difference Kevin Halverson pointed out is that the term "upsampling" has typically been used when speaking about a separate box placed between the transport and processor. That "upsampling" box is simply an oversampling digital filter, basically the same device located internally between the input receiver and the digital-to-analog convertor in a digital processor.

I don't want to sound ignorant about this because I feel I have a fair idea, conceptually, of how the digital process works. Let me quickly say that Garfish and others who spent their time researching this should be commended. Thank you for your efforts and sharing of information. While reading Mr. Halverson's response, images of Audio Alchemy's DTI-PRO32, Genesis Digital Lens, Camelot, etc. flashed through my head. Don't these devices act as the upsampling device? "Neither has any inherent advantage over the other, assuming both are done in a synchronous and integer fashion. The basic differentiation is that upsampling is an external process, oversampling is an internal one." He goes on to say that his product's don't have a need for that (and shouldn't for the $$$!) But when used with "poorer performing converters" increase their performance (to AS good?). Now here's where my ignorance comes in; Would a good D/A converter (under $2K) mixed with an outboard that had a great clock for low jitter, and added dither to the word length (like afforementioned products) be equal to THE BEST D/A converters? Let's also assume that they are in "a synchronous and integer fashion" I assume this is between the "upsampling converter" and the "oversampling converter". Is this like an I2 bus, firewire, digital coax? Or does this mean they need to be on the same digital frequency (i.e. 96KHz,128KHz,etc.)? Now don't anyone jump on me for this, it's just what I came away with from this discussion and Halverson's e-mail. Thanks.

Hi Treyhoss; It seems to me that you may be trying to "unscrute the unscrutable". Each of the components you mention would probably sound different from the others, and you would just have to try it to see if it provided any improvement. And then of course it would be in the context of the rest of your system. I personally think where these outboard upsamplers would be really worth while would be when used with less expensive CD players (as KH noted), but as the quality of the DA conversion process increases, the value of the outboard upsamplers becomes less important-- just my guess. I'm sure much of the technology used to actually build these components is proprietary-- whether they cost a few hundred dollars or thousands like the dCS gear. Cheers. Craig.