2. digital
  3. 154452-3549

Why you want upsampling and upconversion in a server and why it sounds way better!

One of Roon's and Jrivers best advantages is the ability to digitally reprocess your data. 

With an appropriate server you can take for example a 16 bit 44k Tidal stream and reprocess that data stream to DSD or to reprocess to 24bit 192k, 384k, even up to 768k.

In our tests almost accross the board most listeners perfer DSD or high res PCM data streams.

The counter arguement is that if you start with 16 bit 44k sample you can't do any better as that  is the source.

Going through Facebook we got a post that showed the Lumiere brothers first film shot in 1894 with a steam locomotive. 

The second video showed the same Lumiere video reprocessed using AI to create a 4k video stream out of the same video footage. 

The first video is the native source the second shows the reprocessed video the differences aren't subtitle even if you reprocess the native video you are able to extract a signifigantly higher quality image. 

We have been saying this for years even if you don't start out with a true high res source through the magic of computer reprocessing you can create a pseudo high res data packet that still sound far better than ifs original form.

https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/02/someone-used-neural-networks-to-upscale-a-famous-1896-video-to-4k-quality/

Watch the video and see what you think. Sure it is always best to start with a true high resolution image but in the case of not having a true high resolution music fille the ability to use digital reprocessing can create a signal that will sound far better providing that your dac and server are up to the task.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ



 
128x128audiotroy

Showing 1 response by emailists

emailists
923 posts
 
While I enjoy Dave and Troy’s posts and listening opinions, on this one I’m also going to have to disagree.

As a video pro I can say that analog video cannot compare in any way to digital video. However we all know that analog audio still can be be very high quality. And for instruments like drums, analog is the preferred way of recording on most high end rock albums - the analog is then brought into Protools. No one is using analog video anymore.

As far as upsampling - I’ve found that the native sample rate sounds best, when done in the computer.

Oversampling in the DAC ( or like PS audio DS that uprez to DSD) seems to be more successful. 

However I do remember on the old PS Audio PerfectWave, when they rolled out the nativeX mode option, it  sounded better than oversampling, which many of us were using before the NativeX proved superior.



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