Is computer audio a bust?

09-03-14: Phusis
Joecasey --

If I completely misread you reply, I'm sorry. Just forget my first one to you if I did..

This more recent dialogue is an half empty affair thanks to Joe-audio-jihadist-Casey. I am now thoroughly annoyed....

So there...posted twice for emphasis.

In all seriousness, it still intrigues me that plastic remains in the game due to perceptions of SQ superiority. I have been reading about the Devaliet stuff recently (thanks Erik), and even a reviewer type admitted to preferring the slightly more analog presentation of a Wadia spinner.

Again, for the record, I respect and believe my fellow philes who still cling to plastic (JesusaO/Danaiel, I was not trying to out you as a rube) in the name of SQ. I am not a true computer devotee but rather a lazy streamer type (Auralic Aries). Streaming technology can put you in the same ballpark as a computer and/or plastic spinner minus the hassles of either platform. Just my two cents. Arguably, it can still require modding or tweaking to to this, but I like to leave that up to people who feed their kids designing audio equipment rather than thumb my way through things as Joe DIY.

09-02-14: Raymonda
Charles....I find both done right to sound fantastic and I'm not trying to convince anyone one is better but rather that the premise that computer audio is bad....wrong or dead is way off base. Again..computer audio is the way most recording are created and sound fantastic.

Let me put it this way; a recent recording project did for a client, consisting of the group Spyro Gyra was a 26 track recording. If you were afforded the hardware....software....and tracks....would you like to have total control of your mix and afterwards would you burn it to a disc for playback in a cd player or would you save a 2 track file and use this as your playback reference? My guess is the later.....which is how most engineers keep and listen to their 2 track master mixes. Not that it doesn't get burned to a disc but that the file is saved, archived and referenced on a computer and a hard drive. A dedicated computer based system for sure but today, for most people, it is not hard to put together a dedicated computer based system.....and can cost a whole lot less than a sota cd player.

My point about Spyro Gyra was made because...In the not too distant future this might be possible.....at first I can see it starting with the ambient mix....then surround....then limited track mix....and then total mix. The variables that would need to be reconciled is distribution. ..royalies...and artist creative control. The latter is the biggest...but doable.

You might think that it could never happen but it could....copy protection of some sort could be applied...everything could be save in a cloud and payment could be fee for access. Your home hardware could be the restriction point for protection through software loaded on your computer.

Sound crazy...but so was the light
bulb....telephone....radio...and lp. All this can happen..and nd someday will. Sorry to take off an a tangent....but this is along way of saying computer audio ain't dead but rather just beginning.

Ray, I appreciate your input. You highlight the harsh reality of the situation and that is that plastic is going away. This thread is really an academic exercise. If anyone is paying attention, CD sales are lagging significantly due to the phenomenon of streamed content and downloads. Its a good thing as Ray insinuates since you have control over your own content choices in terms of resolution, etc.

Ray, for personal listening, what gets you closest to the master? RB, 24/96, what? Thoughts on DSD?

Network-based audio playback is definitely the future as it is for multimedia in general. Just as there has been an explosion of manufacturers jumping into the DAC business, more network players are right around the corner.

If you're using your PC or MAC as a DAC or digital source hardwired to a DAC then sure you can argue all day and night about the pros/cons of USB, firewire or any other physical interface, quality of PSU's, fan noise or whatever. But if you're streaming your music over wifi (not bluetooth in its current state) then it won't take long for those variables to be made irrelevant by the very nature of how networked computers work - hardware and software layer abstraction.

So long as your network is up to par, a $200 chromebook will feed your networked DAC the same file as a $2,000 gaming rig. And home based networks have been more than capable of doing this for a long time with minimal router tweaking by users.

Additionally, you can't talk about computer based audio in terms of quality without admitting that in terms for, DISCOVERY, computer-based audio is already unparalleled and getting even better.

For the record, I've been building gaming PC's from scratch for years. All the music I buy nowadays is vinyl (new or used) and I use Rdio extensively.

Tortilladc, I agree with you that a $200 chromebook would sound as good as a $2000 game rig. Both would be little better than MP3.

I am not interested in such noise.