Explaining digital audio to a vintage guy

[@farrd14]

Amazing how the confidence in one's own product lets you help others even recommending alternatives, knowing your premium products might be out of one's pocket reach. Well done Sir.

[@hmsworcester]

Very motivational and well tuned response to lower the barriers. So many people can‘t do it and start throwing jargon around immediately.

[@aceofspades6667]

I do digital, cds, turntable.. each had their own strengths. I’d love to get into reel to reel tapes but dang quality source material is way way way too expensive.

[@PigVirusNBC]

The same here, I’m also a reel to reel guy as well. I went the simple route with streaming being I’m an Apple user and have Apple Music. I used my Apple 4k TV over HDMI to a DAC for streaming.

[@karlhartwig3981]

I dipped my vintage toe into streaming with the Bluesound Nano $300 and the streaming service Quobuz. It's been really wonderful.

[@davidclarke6658]

Some of the less expensive DACs are getting pretty good now in sound quality. I mainly stream myself now.

[@matthewberry3155]

I prefer vinyl when I can, but it does feel good to stream at 24 bit / 192 kHz flac I think AJA by Steely Dan is recorded very well.

[@user-od9iz9cv1w]

I think this was handled really well. Some will complain that it promotes a book and a product line. Yes and both apply to the gent's question. I too am a vintage guy who migrated from CDP to streamer. I went DIY initially literally taking the DAC out of an old CDP and replacing the transport with a computer. I think it helped understand the basic nature of the streamer. It evolved into basically an Airlens like solution which would be my recommendation for our Jersey Shore gent.

[@mongo2044]

For a new streamer, the easiest way to start is just use your mobile phone. If it has a 3.5 AUX then that to a RCA Y splitter you have laying around, to your amp. If no 3.5, you will need a small DAC like a Hidisz (keeping it cheap but high quality) then splitter to amp. In the case of most lossless songs for high resolution, this is how it would work from your phone too. - The other option is if your amp or receiver or AVR has Airplay built in. Again, this is NEW to streaming to see how it all works. From iPhone, for example, to an Airplay (1) receiver, it is 16/44 lossless. So same as CD. Last I checked, audiophiles like CDs. If the receiver is Airplay 2, then it may be AAC 256 (indistinguishable from 16/44). Again, this is for a NEW to streaming person just to check it out easily. - The final option is via a streaming video device like an Apple TV, etc. with the app directly on the device, like Tidal or Apple Music to an AVR via HDMI. Many TVs also have this ability, if not a very good built in UI or UX for this (I'm looking at you LG!) But, if you have a smart TV (most are) and it lets you install a streaming app, this is viable. Airplay is also common in smart TVs and external boxes too. As for the service, you can get free trials of most of them. So do Tidal for a month. Then Apple, then Amazon, and if they have a trial and you can afford it, Qobuz. I did em all and in the end, I settled on Apple as I have an all Apple home and the lossless and Atmos are great (once you figure it all out). Note: for the trial, focus on the UI and UX NOT the sound quality. The sound quality is the same for all of them, when you set them up right and know how to use the app and settings. Not too that there is the streaming app and then there is the app for the service on the AVR or device like Paul sells (I assume) or stuff like Roon. But it is generally agreed that the app by the streaming service is preferable over secondary apps for speed, control, UI, and UX. But many are quite good now. If you are very cheap, use the free lossy music services offered by your local library like Freegal and Hoopla as well as free Spotify and Pandora to see how those work. I like Pandora as it gets me. But other than that, the advantages to Apple Music like Airplay 1 (lossless) and 2 (whole house), Atmos, lossless, the UI and UX, videos, the Classical app, and my all Apple home won for me. If, oddly, Apple Music vanished, I would be (mostly) happy with all the others except Amazon. Which as the absolute worst UI and UX by far and it has never improved. It is fundamentally a garbage UI and UX. But the lossless it streams is the same as all the others.

[@glenncurry3041]

Simple, you slice and dice a continuously changing voltage signal into bits and pieces and then hope to reassemble them into something close to the original analog signal later on. Think of pushing a window screen over a stick of butter.

[@TheDanEdwards]

Thanks for all you do. As for the digital lifestyle, the big tech companies are really starting to push the digital-home lifestyle (see Apple's likely products next year and in 2026) and for a great many people the way they will get music will be through an app integrated into their entire house (and vehicle and phone and....) This will be yet another topic with which the audiophile may wrestle.

[@darrellross8609]

P, I have an ifi Zen blue. Perfect for newbies. Yes it sounds amazing. Best, D.

[@kc9scott]

Basic definitions needed: the guy said he already has a CD player. So for all intents and purposes he’s already doing digital audio. Streaming just means a different storage medium, and opens up the possibility of different sample rates and bit depths. If you do streaming, is it from your own server or someone else’s? To me it’s only of interest if it’s from my own server. That being the case, how do you manage its content and obtain content? I certainly wouldn’t want to use a mobile device for that task. I’m currently very happy running iTunes as my music library on my 32-bit Mac Mini, along with a cheap USB A/D D/A to record from and play to my home stereo.

[@boblinscott6052]

Me too & I also em vantage…. Dac, steamer’s , computers… ?? All I needed in the early 70’s was a turntable, receiver with 100+ watts & a couple of “good” kick butt speakers ! Now I’ve been waiting for 40 years & technically to make things easier…..like using my phone ☎️ 🤳 I’m not a computer guy -but understand the it can store a boat load of music on a SSD . Very handy ! Now enter to noise world of computers analog & digital conversions ! Well it gets more & more confusing & complex ! I’ll try the book /pamphlet BUT if that doesn’t help ? Next time I’m out your way I’ll look you up for a refund 😉🎉

[@JohnAranita]

When I really started listening to CDs, the audio sounded bouncy.

[@digggerrjones7345]

Rex would serve himself well by just forgetting about streaming as CDs simply sound better!!!

[@writenamehere0000]

Maybe PS audio is getting better at audio, but master recrdings are not getting any better it is actually worse.

[@matthewberry3155]

Try this trick. Use the digital output from a cd player on one 😢amp and speaker set up, then plug the analog output to another amplifier and speaker set up. Why? Just because I can!

[@mitchtaylor6512]

You can't actually use the digital output directly into an amplifier, there has to be a digital to analog converter.

[@Error2username]

Give it up, they dont understand it anyway😂

[@spacemissing]

Streaming is Not My future.

[@nirodha35]

Unless there is nothing else left… But as I am vintage I don’t worry about that. P.S. Pushing your books is really!!! getting annoying P!

[@hmsworcester]

@@spacemissing To me the beauty is in the mix. I have vinyl days, streaming moments, e.g. while driving, and recently find increased joy in CDs and SACDs.

[@Milo_Molnar]

My definitely yes. Millions of albums for a few euros.

[@oliverbeard7912]

Hi.I heard recently that CD sales are now up,aswell as vinyl,so it appears there's still an appetite for hardware mediums.That's good news for some of us who prefer our music that way. Hopefully the prices won't shoot up!

[@larrylacostjr.2075]

Streaming every day? Audio, yes. Video, no!!! Emphatically. 4k discs are a much higher bit rate compared to steaming… that is, unless you’re ok with lower bit rates to your new Sony Bravia 9 TV. I know I don’t. Do you? Good luck with that, Paul.

[@davidstevens7809]

I use my bluray player to plays all my discs and also to use my phone as hotspot for youtube..

[@1sostatic]

I'd like to see a book that includes the responses of the human ear... to explain that these audiofools (typically in their 60's) cannot hear molecular resonance in copper cables and their bandwidth is NOT 0 to 5Mhz + their hearing is off by a wide margin compared to when they were in their 20's

[@jameskanuth4274]

You're right. At 71, I'm putting a stereo system together for the first time in 30 years. I'm going for clarity as folks I trust have told me that clear tones will sound better even if I can't hear anything over 10 KHz.

[@Jonhobbs64]

Lots of audio snobs here! Enjoy your ear buds !

[@RoderikvanReekum]

Digital audio is lame and bad!

[@user-od9iz9cv1w]

and those gas powered cars will never replace steam. :)