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Topic: PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output (Read 12121 times) previous topic - next topic
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PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

I am about to buy a new hifi unit  with a stereo amplifier the next time. All my sources connected to the amplifier are not digital, that means that also the audio output from PC is analog. After reading some stuff (as someone who is not deep into technical stuff)  that claim that a S/PDIF output gives better quality i wonder myself if i should buy a soundcard and a dac for connecting the PC. I tried searching in the forum here but didn't find a simple answer. I just need a simple answer from people who know if there indeed is a difference in quality, better said: a hearable difference. Or if it is another example for voodoo-hifi.

Thanks!

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #1 –
If, and only if, the output on the computer is poor, will using an external DAC give you any audible improvement. There are a great many soundcards, both internal and external, that are very good, so the analogue output from these is all you need for stereo. Multichannel audio might be a different issue, not necessarily for audio quality but because there might not be an analogue path between computer and receiver that you can use. This depends on both pieces of equipment.

If it is done properly, and quite a few companies know how to do it properly, the USB output for an audio interface will be as good as S/PDIF, so there is nothing audible to be gained by not using it if you have a USB soundcard.

MB audio is sometimes poor, but not always. It can be tested so you can know if there might be anything to be gained over what you already have.

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #2 –
Quote
S/PDIF output gives better quality i wonder myself if i should buy a soundcard and a dac for connecting the PC.


S/PDIF is lossless.

Soundcards do have a DAC so additional DAC is not necessarily needed (just pick a card with good DAC).

Nowadays decent digital compatible Hi-Fi gear are eguipped with excellent DACs (look from product documentation) so, get one and go with S/PDIF path.

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #3 –
Quote from: AndyH-ha on
There are a great many soundcards, both internal and external, that are very good, so the analogue output from these is all you need for stereo. Multichannel audio might be a different issue,....

Multichannel audio is not important for me - if it gets interesting then i will think about connecting my graphic card by hdmi to a soundbar. Indeed i am only interested in stereo and a stereo amplifier. My PC supports only a anolog output and has a soundchip on mainboard. Can i assume that nowadays the most soundchips offer best quality in regard to what is audible?

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #5 –
Quote from: Apesbrain on
Quote from: q-stankovic on
Can i assume that nowadays the most soundchips offer best quality in regard to what is audible?

Thoughtful, recent article on this subject:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/high-e...audio,3733.html


I'm glad reviewers are starting to realize that output impedance is a huge issue with a lot of modern headphones.

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #6 –
@apesbrain

Thanks for the link! As far as i transfer correctly the results of the linked test on my own situation i can decide to stay with my current pc setup (on-board-soundchip and analog output).

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #7 –
What's your hardware? Motherboard, soundcard (if any), video card, and CPU? What amp are you looking into buying?

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #8 –
I use S/PDIF but it's not really for any sound quality gain. I can't tell the difference between the S/PDIF and analog outputs through my amp. I use S/PDIF because it's optical. That means the computer and the amp are electrically isolated from each other. I can run my amp off the mains and not worry about a power surge or something killing my UPS protected computer. Before S/PDIF I had to run the amp off the UPS to be safe, which negatively impacted run time. Any quality gains, perceivable or not, are just icing.

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #9 –
Quote from: yourlord on
I use S/PDIF because it's optical.


That's exactly why I use S/PDIF over TOSLINK as well. In my case, I was getting interference and noise on the analog outputs, even with a decent sound card. My apartment is old, and none of my outlets are grounded, which probably explains why I have this problem in the first place.

Going to an optical connection and a reasonably-priced external DAC broke the ground loop and got rid of the noise.

It's completely unnecessary if the analog outputs from your PC aren't noisy, but if they are, it can be a decent solution.

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #10 –
I've never experienced so far any interferences or noisy output.

(the new one will be a yamaha a-s500 stereo amplifier)
 

PC: quality of digital audio-output vs analog-output

Reply #11 –
Quote from: q-stankovic on
I've never experienced so far any interferences or noisy output.

(the new one will be a yamaha a-s500 stereo amplifier)


In that case, using the onboard sound in your computer will be fine.