Pale Blue Ego;204197 Wrote: > I agree that the best way to play these on a SB2 or SB3 is to decode to > wav, downsample to 24/48, then encode to FLAC with compression setting > 0. That generally solves all the CPU problems. I also think that the > jump from 16-bit to 24-bit is more sonically significant than the jump > from 44.1kHz to 96kHz. > > Side note: I believe it's possible to make a Video DVD containing those > 24/96 files in full resolution. It might be interesting to do a > listening test of the SB3 using 24/48 vs a DVD player serving the same > music at 24/96 to the same DAC.
I have wondered about the jump from 16-bit to 24-bit, and how sonically significant that is. I have done a few tests for myself using digital test files and have concluded that when I am situated in my normal listening position, with my system's volume control at it's normal listening position - I cannot hear anything below -90 dBFS to save my life. Nothing. We can reach -90 dBFS with 16 bits of course. I can hear -100dBFS if I crank the volume to something that is well above normal, and I can perceive -110 dBFS if the volume is further cranked to an insane point. If the SB3 glitched in that test, I think my speaker cones would have been accelerated right through the grills and killed me. -120 dBFS is detectable with even more insanity applied to the volume knob, but at that point the test tones are dropping down into my system's noise floor. I have a hard time justifying the need for 24 bit resolution. I don't feel a need for that unless I want to play my system at a level equivalent to a jet engine, and then have it drop to total silence between tracks:) At -120 dbFS, with my volume cranked all the way, the grinding of the plastic gears in a clock somewhere in my place is louder, the blood now beginning to roar in my ears is louder, etc. I have done comparisons between 48kHz-24bit versus 44.1kHz-16bit music and I think I could not pass an ABX test for anything, regardless of the quality of the recording. However - there is a caveat here: I have listened to both for extended periods of time, and I find that CDs, even well recorded ones, are often fatiguing to me and I eventually want to turn the volume down. With the same content at 48kHz-24bit (NOT upconverted from a CD of course:) - it is not fatiguing and I can enjoy the music indefinitely at the original volume setting. So - I am thinking that 48 kHz is definitely preferable over 44.1 kHz even though the difference is small. -Ron -- Ron F. *Squeezebox setup:* wireless SB3 -> CI Audio VDA.2 DAC + VAC.1 PSU *Main rig:* NAD 7600 + NAD 2600A -> Phase Tech PC-6.5 speakers *Headphone rig:* Headroom Max -> Sennheiser 650s *Other stuff:* NAD C542 CDP, NAD 6300 Tape, Monster 5100 Power conditioner, Outlaw Audio cables ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ron F.'s Profile: http://forums.slimdevices.com/member.php?userid=5616 View this thread: http://forums.slimdevices.com/showthread.php?t=34985 _______________________________________________ audiophiles mailing list audiophiles@lists.slimdevices.com http://lists.slimdevices.com/lists/listinfo/audiophiles
