Re: [microsound] digitalstress

[jl <jl@xxxxxxxx>]

digital graininess? are you saying the Nyquist theory is wrong?

the major source of "digital sound"  are digital mixers and editing  
systems. they very seldom implements the correct math (like dithering  
in all the right places). this is especially true of software that runs  
native on a personal computer. some systems (especially on personal  
computers) even use floating point math which intruduces more errors.  
all these errors may be ignored if looked at one-and-one. but with a  
typical mix (on top of which many use a lot of plugins) they really  
start to add upp quickly. this distortion is not harmonically related  
to the signal. but it is signal-dependent (i.e. distortion) and not  
noise.

the other source i know of is jitter from the cd-transport that wrecks  
the job of the DAC. you can alsways use a good low-jitter player like a  
Linn Genki. or the Pioneer DV-668 which is exceptional compared to the  
normal stuff from the usual japanese/american sources.

otherwise you have the normal stuff in commercial hardware that adds  
fatigue when listening. like cheap powersupplies shared with all too  
many stages. but these are all in the analog domain.

SACD/DSD records have their own problems as they will feed high levels  
of >20kHz noise and distortion artifacts into your system that may  
cause it to distort badly in the audible range.

but PCM as such? unless Nyquist is proven wrong it cannot be the cause  
of any "digital stress".

many engineers have now started to add noise to their mixes. this can  
be plain noise or recorded tape noise fron analogue tape recorders.  
this is to make digital mixes more listenable. there are even CD:s  
available with noise you can add to your mix. I havent heard these but  
I know many commercial mixers have always used noise actively in their  
mixes to get a brigher overall sound.





2004-04-11 kl. 22.16 skrev archontic@xxxxxxxxxxxx:

> I'm really sensitive to a something like a fatiguing effect of digital  
> graininess... i notice it particularly after the contrast of changing  
> from cd to record and vice-versa. if i've had anything like a couple  
> of days of listening to records (where sounds emerge from inky  
> blackness) then i almost can't bear to listen to cd's. My cd transport  
> and separate filter (dac) are both quite good quality. The efffect is  
> real for me and puts me on edge. I also notice a sluggishness in  
> rhythmic and percussive material which contributes to a grating  
> feeling and hence extra stress. It doesn't matter whether its  
> electronic or acoustic music only. Am I alone in this? For me the  
> effect is particularly noticeable during night-time listening.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> David
>
>
> On Sunday, Apr 11, 2004, at 20:36 Europe/London, Michael North wrote:
>
> > Just so no-one thinks I was endorsing the 'digital stress'  
> > thesis....it
> > was included in another list that I subscribe to topic
> > discussion...there was another article claiming that pcm causes
> > physiological changes to internal organs and some such....just for a
> > laugh...........
> >
> > mike_north
> >
> > //*-----Original Message-----
> > //*From: graham miller [mailto:grahammiller@xxxxxxxxxxxx]
> > //*Sent: Sunday, April 11, 2004 2:09 PM
> > //*To: microsound
> > //*Subject: Re: [microsound] digitalstress
> > //*
> > //*BS...
> > //*
> > //*Michael North wrote:
> > //*
> > //*> Sorry my mailer blocked this last time.....
> > //*> http://www.diamondcenter.net/digitalstress.html
> > //*> mike_north
> > //*>
> > //*>
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