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Post by redogfizbal on Dec 2, 2020 18:35:24 GMT -5
If I turn the volume all the way up on the A-100 does that essentially bypass the potentiometer? I am curious to know if I controlled the volume via a dac, with a digital volume control, if it would lower the overall distortion introduced by the analog volume pot.
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DYohn
Emo VIPs 
Posts: 18,348
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Post by DYohn on Dec 2, 2020 18:54:06 GMT -5
Digital volume controls are far worse than analog potentiometers. Analog volume pots seldom introduce distortion. Digital volume controls change the bit rate and suppress dynamic range. Best to leave digital signal at 100% and control volume using analog.
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Post by redogfizbal on Dec 2, 2020 19:13:17 GMT -5
Digital volume controls are far worse than analog potentiometers. Analog volume pots seldom introduce distortion. Digital volume controls change the bit rate and suppress dynamic range. Best to leave digital signal at 100% and control volume using analog. Thanks, for some reason I thought I read the opposite somewhere. |
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Post by garbulky on Dec 2, 2020 20:38:22 GMT -5
If I turn the volume all the way up on the A-100 does that essentially bypass the potentiometer? I am curious to know if I controlled the volume via a dac, with a digital volume control, if it would lower the overall distortion introduced by the analog volume pot. Your answer is more or less - yes. Also there are a lot of digital volume controls that use analog resistor ladders with much better channel matching than the potentiometer. For instance, my Emotiva DC-1 uses a digitally controlled analog resistor ladder. |
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bass11
Seeker Of Truth
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Post by bass11 on Dec 14, 2020 21:45:07 GMT -5
If I turn the volume all the way up on the A-100 does that essentially bypass the potentiometer? I am curious to know if I controlled the volume via a dac, with a digital volume control, if it would lower the overall distortion introduced by the analog volume pot. ''If I turn the volume all the way up on the A-100 does that essentially bypass the potentiometer?'' What about this part of the question??? |
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Post by garbulky on Dec 14, 2020 22:21:54 GMT -5
If I turn the volume all the way up on the A-100 does that essentially bypass the potentiometer? I am curious to know if I controlled the volume via a dac, with a digital volume control, if it would lower the overall distortion introduced by the analog volume pot. ''If I turn the volume all the way up on the A-100 does that essentially bypass the potentiometer?'' What about this part of the question??? It's still technically going through the potentiometer. But it bypasses the major detrimental effects of the potentiometer. So basically, the answer is for practical purposes yes (but technically, if you want to get nitpicky no). |
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Dec 14, 2020 23:39:01 GMT -5
I'm guessing that a volume potentiometer could easily be bypassed w/ a hardwire? If a set volume was desired different after the bypass was in place then one could just adjust the volume potentiometer to the right setting and then add a fixed quality resistor into the bypass to match? Dunno, only curious as to whether higher quality parts might achieve what the OP desired....
I see that DYohn mentioned digital and I don't know whether the Bas-X has digital volume etc. I'd guess that if one doesn't mind working on the device under a magnifying glass and that whatever chip is searchable to provide a datasheet for whatever pin(s) that again a fixed value bypass could be made.
Just lost interest. Seems too much like work.
Sure the DIY guys know more and could help.
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Post by garbulky on Dec 15, 2020 1:04:52 GMT -5
It’s not digital
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Post by Boomzilla on Dec 15, 2020 3:36:54 GMT -5
Digital volume controls are far worse than analog potentiometers. Analog volume pots seldom introduce distortion. Digital volume controls change the bit rate and suppress dynamic range. Best to leave digital signal at 100% and control volume using analog. In theory, Mr. Yohn is absolutely correct. In fact, a decade ago, his comment would have been indisputable. However, the vast majority of devices today that use digital volume control: Oversample extensively prior to volume reduction to avoid audible degradation at lower volumes Modify filtering at lower volumes to avoid loss of dynamic range Have more accurate channel balance throughout the entire volume range than do analog volume volume controls So try it both ways - Leave the analog pot nearly all the way up & attenuate in the digital realm - then leave the digital volume almost all the way up and attenuate in the analog domain - Which sounds better? That's the route to take. My experience is that with current model components it's usually a toss-up. Cordially - Boomzilla Postscriptum: Many analog volume controls these days use close-tolerance resistor pairs instead of a continuous rheostat and wiper to improve their channel-to-channel balance specs (especially at low volumes). But to economize, sometimes these manufacturers will limit the number of "steps" available, meaning that fewer expensive resistors are used. But this can also sometimes cause the gain between one "click" and the next to be excessive. In other words, one volume setting is slightly too soft, but the next is slightly too loud. By using this "stepped" analog volume control at nearly full volume and instead relying on the digital control in my DAC, I get finer gradation in the volume, and without audible issues. So in this circumstance, digital volume wins. But when using a digital control in lieu of the analog one, turn the analog volume almost all the way up - not all the way, to avoid accidentally overdriving the amplification sections into clipping. Boom |
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