converters.. what are the differences?

[theBaldfather]

I've heard alot of talk about mics, preamps, etc, and i feel I understand the differences there pretty well. Now I need to understand the differences between converters. I hear people talking about improved stereo field with a good time clock, and I know some converters have a limiting system (ie. radar, maybe some apogee) but is there anything else I need to know. If someone could give me a primer on this, it would be great. Sorry if I'm stepping on the other converter thread. This seems like it might be a bit different, but if not, you can make fun of me...nicely.

[joel hamilton]

Better converters convert better.

Think of the difference between a cell phone camera and a professional digital camera. both take the picture. One does it better. Thats about it.

when you get to the higher end, the differences become more subjective, just like with the camera analogy. One person may like [cool pro camera A] and another pro may say [cool pro camera A] is crappy.

Get the best ones you can afford, make good noises. record them . Record a lot.

[hammertime]

I think most of the converters (the little chips) themselves today are pretty decent -- they're made by a few super-huge mass megalo corporations in a cookie cutter way in gargantuan assembly factories. The smaller companies that assemble them into some unit (an audio interface, standalone converters, etc) have a choice of using this and that power supply, and this or that clock. From what I've read, it's the clock (every interconnected digital device in your studio uses a clock to synchronize with other pieces of gear, and they'll either be master or slave), that gives "bad" digital it's edgy sound. Cheap consumer clocks just keep "bad time," and introduce "quantization error" or "jitter." There's a good article at www.digido.com, that's become kind of a classic explanation of the problem -- but you don't really have to know any of this shit. Today, even some relatively low-end interfaces, like the 1820m, have great converters, and relatively low-jitter clocks. The only problem when you look at some unit, is that very few post how much quantization error or jitter you'll get -- instead they produce how much dynamic range and THD blah blah -- and from what I've read, these aren't really related to jitter, which might be the prime determinant of how your unit sounds. Personally, I think that good converters were an enormous difference in an ADAT studio, a pretty big difference in a studio a few years ago, and maybe a noticeable improvement today. You might be better off just buying some word-clock device, since the converters themselves on today's "prosumer' devices arent that much different from the ones in more expensive units.

[r0ck1r0ck2]

the analog stage too is a source of discontent...
like the lens on the digital camera...

good chip after shit analog stage = :(
you go :(
one more
:(

[centurymantra]

Yeah...I think the analog output stage is a pretty big deal. There are a number of companies that make a point of the extensive engineering that has gone into this particular aspect of their gear. This, of course, is more relevant with D/A conversion and might not be an issue if everything is kept digital after it's left the pre-amp and gone onto hard drive.

[hammertime]

Probably about the difference between certain cables that everybody swears by. My own suspicion would be that the difference is fairly minimal unless you had a particularly poorly designed unit.

[theBaldfather]

Glad to hear your views. This has always been the topic that gets me the most blank stares or rabid adherance to one product, but rarely any real information. Thanks for the input.