Square waves or 1's and 0's?

Paul McGowan ran a huge post on these issues with DACs. Go to www.psaudio.com and read "Paul's Posts". It is a ton of reading...

Thanks, everybody. I've been reading on the net. Someone says the signal is 1's and 0's and the next person (critic) says square waves. You open the door so that I can understand the concepts. What started it is that I have an entry level (RCA)MIT digital coax and a signalcable digital coax. I knew that the MIT didn't cut it so I tried the signalcable and the sound opened up. Now I'm reading overwhelming positive reviews of Oyaide DR-510 and wondering if it would be a worthwhile upgrade from the signalcable at $140 or around there. Don't know if I will try it but I feel smarter already.

It's 1's and 0's. A cd is basically a file of 1's and 0's. DAC is a computer that converts digital (1's and 0's) to an analog signal ... D to A converter. Data must be loaded into memory before the CPU can process it whether streamed from a computer or transport.

Ideally it should work like any program. When it starts, loads into memory before running. This eliminates jitter, complex synchronization between DAC and tranport ... Can you imagine running your browser or MS Office off a CD drive?

Even HD video is streaming with more data demand than audio. Netflicks almost bankrupted before streaming to compete with the cable companies.

04-03-13: Knghifi
It's 1's and 0's.

Kng, while 1's and 0's are certainly being COMMUNICATED between the two components, the references to the signal, and to the possibility that it might be a square wave, would appear to indicate that what is being asked about is what is being "sent" in a physical/electrical sense.

As you will realize, numbers cannot be sent through wires, in that sense. So when "someone says the signal is 1's and 0's and the next person (critic) says square waves" (quoting from Lynne's second post), they are both wrong.

Regards,
-- Al

Square wave is a generic term for a non-continuously changing voltage signal. It changes in discrete steps. It does not necessarily mean a repetitive signal or actually square. IF it were repetitive, then it is a digital oscillation, also known as a clock. Because even clocks have non-50% duty cycles, even clocks are not actually "square".

1's and 0's are defined as: the high state of the signal is "1" and the low state of the signal is "0". the high and low can be defined as any voltage depending on the logic family and physical interface.

All digital voltage signals actually contain analog components since they do not switch in zero time from 0-1 or 1-0, and because drivers and transmission-lines are not perfect, there is also resulting overshoot, ringing etc..

Steve N.
Empirical Audio