In Reply to: Asynchronous Sample Rate Conversion..... posted by Todd Krieger on May 12, 2006 at 21:31:34:
There are two issues to deal with, bit depth and sample rate. Since the A/D converter probably runs at its native (highest) bit depth even when recording at the 16-bit level, there really should be no difference whether downconversion is done in real time or is performed after the recording is complete. In either case, the unit would perform the same operation on the data.Sampling rate is different. I agree, recording at 44.1kHz is different than recording at 96kHz and then downsampling. If my understanding is correct, the A/D converter runs exactly at the sampling rate you select. The difference in quality depends on how good the dithering algorithm is. I usually record at 48kHz and then downsample to 44.1Khz in the computer using Cool Edit Pro at its highest quality setting. Initially I was concerned the sound might suffer, but my worries proved groundless as the software does an excellent job indeed. The only "lossiness" I hear is from the difference in sampling rate. I don't know how the Alesis performs in that regard, but I should hope it's also very good. So, it could be an issue... or not.
Richard... it's probably a good idea to perform a simple test and compare the results between "native" 16/44.1 and downconverted/downsampled 16/44.1 for your own peace of mind. You could simply use the analog output from your CD player and record the same track using both methods.
-Anthony
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Follow Ups
- Yes, that's certainly true, but it may not be a significant issue... - Bersani 20:51:10 05/13/06 (0)