Quote Originally Posted by Dawnrazor
Yikes Bill.

I wish you hadn't posted this. I know I am crazy, but the bits is bits mentality (which it seems like you are espousing- correct me if I am wrong) just doesnt hold water in computer audio IME.

In theory you are right, but I think things are way too over simplified and jitter or some other factor takes over...jitter can come from all kind of computer things. Cics talks about some of the sources and different types on his site: http://www.cicsmemoryplayer.com/inde...n=CMP.03Jitter

Anyhow one of the async dacs you cite is made by Charles Hansen of Ayre. One would think that an Async usb dac would be immune to anything going on in the computer....but check out this post that he wrote about the subject in stark contradiction to your comment. One would think that if you were remotely correct that the manufacturer of such a device that SHOULD be immune to the computer hardware would be singing in the streets about how the computer makes no difference because bits is bits and the dac is async....but he doesnt!!!!!

http://db.audioasylum.com/mhtml/m.ht...Djesse%2Bjames
Thanks for the link, DR. Peaple should know that Hansen is a respected designer of audio components, (especially amps), so his opinions are worthy of attention. In any case, I'm not saying the that Ayre DAC eliminates all possibility of jitter, only that it an example of the best approach to miniumize it; (I'm sure Charles Hansen would agree with that).

I'm one of those guys, though, who doesn't hear most of the sound differences that changing, say, a USB cable insinuate. Unlike some people, I'm not saying there aren't differences, only that I don't hear them.

If differences exist they are probably due to minute differences jitter. A perfect bit stream is demonsterably a perfect bit stream, but jitter, even in tiny amounts, will differ with equipment.