Well I tend to agree with Ian's thinking - if only because despite what's been apparently "Proven", Digital is sonically a pale comparison to a High quality analogue source - such as turntable or Master Tape.
On every possible occasion I like to spend time in recording studios basically to "set a reference" for myself. What I mean too say is to hear Music "direct" though studio monitors / Mixing desk before is recorded onto a medium, learn about recording techniques, understand the artists etc etc - I'm grateful for these times as it helps me as a "HiFi" designer to have a target!
One thing I can say is that most studio equipment thesedays is total crap - so much worst then HiFi, its truly horrid! then not to mention the oxidised patched boards and miles of "unknown" signal cables... Studios like to run cables back and forth just to maintain "flexibility".
A good friend has a 24track tape machine 1 floor down from the main studio - the cable for all 24 replay and record channels runs across hallways and up/down a staircase, and yet he produces better audio quality recordings then most. Yet when recording onto decent Virgin tape on 2 track 1inch machine (with correct Bias settings) the quality is STUNNING - yet the second its digitized even at 192/24 gone is the realism I'm hearing in the studio monitors.
So you can tell me all day how "perfect" digital is, yet I can hear for myself clear as day that it is anything but perfect!
MDAC2 L3 with its ADC input is really a personal experiment to understand what's at play - I plan to plug the MDAC2 into the stereo mix channel in the studio and experiment with filters, modulators, sampling rates to try and close the sonic gap with analogue tape machines which even on 1inch / 2 track measure relativity poor!
I've mentioned in the past that I believe possible root cause is the Digital filters required in PCM systems as DSD gets very close.
A manufacturer asked me to design a digital delay line to replace the old hard to source "Analogue" CCD delaylines - the manufacturer required it to be based on DSD as they felt PCM was unable accurately capture the transient nature of music.
During the development of the delayline I could listen to a direct Mic feed and it was SO apparent that PCM system (that could sample upto 250KHz odd) was unable to capture the musical transients - and emphasised the sibilance in female vocals. The DSD / PCM path was selectable on the PCB using the same front and backend ADC / DAC just the internal data path between devices was selectable on the "fly" with a toggle switch on a long lead (DSD / Direct / PCM).
Without checking the orientation of the switch (which would change depending how you held the switch on its lead) one would not know what mode the Delay-line was in, and being able to switch between direct and DSD or PCM path was a perfect "Blind test".
I say "Blind test", but it soon became all too apparent that when anyone was demonstrated the system they you could ALWAYS pickout the PCM mode - where as the DSD path was impossibly close to the direct path.
It just so happens that an accountant was working on the books in the Studio / Lab and she randomly join in one of test - its was fascinating and reassuring to see she had exactly the same observation we "engineers" had - this lead to a so often repeated conversation about how poor PCM is apparently unable to capture what I refer to as "the leading edge transients" - and destroy the innate beauty of female vocals adding a hardness / sibilance...
So you can tell me all day how mathematically perfect digital is - but until I hear it with my own ears its only words and opinions - I'm not some stupid lemming who blindly believes everything that's "scientifically" proven to me despite my own experiences.
I don't design turntables or Tape machines - I tend to design digital products so its REALLY not in my interest to say "My" designs are poor but sadly that's the reality, PCM digital appears imperfect and (I) we would like to understand why.
The reason I've spent 3 years developing the MDAC2 (thats 3 years of my life I'll never get back) and yet we plan to build only say 200 units is to serve as the very highest Digital "Development" platform with ADC and DAC path which can be configured in every conceivable (and yet to be conceived
) data format / Mode enabling us to experiment with "Digital" with simple software (Firmware) updates.
The great thing is there will also be 200 or so "blind testers" who can forward there own listening observation and discuss it here openly on the forum
This is where it well get exciting, and hopefully people will be able to judge for themselves at home what I experience in the studio / lab - then that's a worthwhile result for three years work (not to mention all the work still to come with the FPGA / DSP firmware / software)
