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ncc74656

dsp inputs digital?

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just thinking, why do we still use head units? we are taking digital signals from streaming/flac/wave files on a phone or usb stick and converting that to analog just to convert it back to digital at the dsp... are there any head units out there that just go digital to a dsp rather than the extra conversion step?

 

i was considering a carputer to just do source and dsp all in one via software and a soundcard up front

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I haven't had a headunit in my boat for a long time.  My car, I just went from a carpc to a headunit.  Something about dropping something a few inches and stiffening it up makes usb connections a nightmare.

Don't do it to be rid of analog , do it for something that will really make a difference.

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i like the idea of a carputer but i dont want to deal with a UI mess. ive been looking at available software but idk. i dont really care for any of the current double dinn name brand setups and the android chinesiums have some kool features but their hardware sucks and UI is a mess.

 

if i could put a 12" touch screen with a UI that defaults to "car stuff" and maybe has secondary apps but every radio setup i have seen so far is the windows or linux or android os with their corresponding apps you need to load and move through. its just not as seamless as a kenwood or pioneer. 

 

i wish it could be as functional as my laptop when i need it to be and have the UX of a kenwood when i want it to be. 

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we sell many dsp's that are quite expensive and listed to go from 10hz-67Khz, 96khz 24bit or even as high as 192khz... im questioning what is actually needed to get good quality audio.

 

as far as i know you need double hte sampling rate of the frequency you are reproducing to get the same output as input. now my understanding is the output is EXACTLY what is put in at double the sampling rate. (i suppose minus a bit of dithering?)  so if a file was 20hz-16khz a sampling rate of 32khz would be able to accurately produce every sine wave in that file.... right?

 

then we have the amplitude, my understanding is 16bit is enough to give +/- 100db of dynamic range which seems WAY more than is needed to me? i mean if im blasting my stereo i doubt i could hear subtle audio at even 50db less than im playing it as my EARS cant adjust fast enough for that kind of gradient.

 

some of the processors in these dsp's are 64 bit now, isnt a 24bit or even a 16bit processor enough to handle the standard 44.1/16 cd audio?

 

wich brings me to the next question...i can tell the difference from an mp3 to a flac or a 96kbps mp3 vs a 320mp3 but i cant hear any difference in a wav vs a flac, i have taken flac files from HD tracks and down converted them to wav and i just cant tell... i "think" a wav file is 22.5 khz for each channel right? so a 48khz sampling on a dsp should be more than enough to not induce any distortion?

 

i have also read that super-sampling a wav file will lead to artifacts, such as if you sample a 44.1 wav file to 192 it will have more audible distortion than that same file sampled at 48.  does a dsp function differently than the raw audio playback file does? does it need more data points to do its job or is all this higher sampling/higher bit rate/fancy cpu's all marketing? 

 

finally IF all this higher sampling/bit/cpu all does generate higher fidelity audio... is that increased clarity going to ever be discernible in a car environment? 

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All that shit is a HUGE rip off sold to lemmings that don't know better.  

Playing beyond 16khz is lost on most people older than 25 since they already jacked their hearing.  The nyquist of 16k isn't so hard to get  Dynamic range you defined already beyond what is necessary in car.

Equipment is nearly nonsense across the board.  In my boat I have a volume control, a phone for headunit and a processor.  nothing else is needed.  The volume control is 4 pots, but that is because it is a wakedboard boat.  Overall volume, sub level, in boats, and tower. 

In a car, install will trump equipment 100% of the time.

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yea the more i read man.... so im pretty much on point with what i said up there? im not way off base or anything with my assertions? 

 

there is just so much confusion around "car" audio

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Im using a CarPC myself, but the Clarion NX807 headunit has optical output.

http://www.clarion.com/us/en/products-personal/multimedia/NX807/hilight/index.html#Fm-1Anchor

 

I honestly don't notice a big advantage of optical vs rca sound quality wise, but an optical connection does reduce chance of ground loop hiss between headunit and amps (But thats a problem should be corrected anyway with proper grounds).

As mentioned the car environment makes it a challenge to discern high resolution audio/processing. With that said, I definitely prefer the use of a DSP for tuning vs not having one. 

 

Newer DSP's are starting to accept USB audio, so potentially could straight usb from the phone?

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