What does Jitter sound like?

The question was WHAT DOES JITTER SOUND LIKE, and the conversation degraded into a brain battle of engineers

Sorry Dusty...the propellerheads do run on don't they...I'll take your advice and put some more scotch on the bridge of my glasses and go sharpen some pencils.

In the meantime - I believe there is a Stereophile Cd with an example of jitter.

In fact - it would be great if Steve or someone equally knowledgeable would put up a website with downloadable jitter examples...

Dusty,

I suspect jitter as experienced on most decent CD/SACD players sounds just like angels dancing on the head of a pin.

db

Like some deleterious affects in audio, it may be easier to appreciate & to describe in its absence. Sometimes you don't know what you got till its gone. But dancing angels it most definitely is not.

if anecdotal observations are not taken seriously, what is the purpose of asking for advice to assist in the purchase of components ?

there are many threads on this and other discusssion forums asking for opinions on a variety of topics. the elicited opinions would be based upon the perceptions of audiogon members. if such perceptions are too be discounted as to their worth, what is to be gained from initiating threads whose basis is listening experience ?

Amen Mrtennis.

My listening tests relating to the perception of jitter were gathered through four generations of clock upgrades within one CDP-- eliminating all other variables (except for cognitive dissonance), and disposing of all controversies regarding the quantitative measurement of jitter. A separate set of observations was formed through successive upgrades of DC power to clock, and to the digital sections of the player including motor/servo, PLLs, and LSI DSPs. This exercise led from simple stock 3-pin regulators, to sophisticated discrete regulator circuits, to batteries, to larger low-impedance batteries, to batteries with capacitance, to batteries with massive capacitance. To those entrenched in the "data is data" camp, I suggest disposing of theory & gambling a few hundred dollars on a simple clock upgrade and report back to the forum.

In the course of five years of developing the CDP, I've corresponded with perhaps a dozen amateur and professional modders who were all impressed(some to amazement) by the improvements associated with clock upgrades in otherwise respectable CDPs. There has been no criticism of the results of a clock upgrade.

Anyone seeking a more professional approach should visit Steve N's site, take a look at his Pace-Car product, note which clocks he uses, how he uses them, and how they are powered.

If you think that RBCD sounds synthetic or fatiguing or that the resolution of RBCD can't approach the musicality of vinyl, then you're probably hearing jitter.