Can I capture the sound of different XX settings... digitally?

[manisandher]

Following on from the 'Testing a few digital cables' thread (http://www.phasure.com/index.php?topic=3723.105), I've been thinking about something...

If I set up my Tascam recorder to capture the output of my USB-to-spdif converter digitally, will different SFS and Q settings in XX sound different on the digital captures?

For example, let's assume I set vol = 0, and no upsampling/filtering, ensuring a bit-perfect output from XX. Now, let's say I take two different captures:
1. with SFS=1
2. with SFS=120 (all other settings remaining identical)

Through a DAC, even though the output from XX will be bit-perfect in both cases, these two SFS settings will definitely sound different - we all know that, right?. However, captured digitally these outputs should be identical - the SFS and Q settings have no bearing whatsoever.

Why? Well because the only mechanism that could possibly cause them to sound different (implying playback through a DAC) is noise-induced jitter. There can simply be no other mechanism at play. And this mechanism is only at play at the point of conversion to analogue. When the output of the USB-to-spdif converter is fed to the Tascam's digital input, there is no conversion to analogue, so both captures should be identical, irrespective of XX's SFS and Q settings.

This then implies that XX is just like any other bit-perfect player in the digital domain. Perhaps this is why some people believe that 'bits are bits'. But what they totally fail to understand is that the different noise signatures from different players will cause different noise-induced jitter in the DAC, which in turn will affect the sound that the DAC produces.

Any thoughts?

Mani.

[PeterSt]

Hi Mani,

I had a "two hour typing" story which was hardly related, except it layed out what to do to determine differences - which can not be done practically anyway. Maybe I will post it later in a somewhat different context.

So ...

Any thoughts?

Nah, you won't be able to capture the differences.

But what they totally fail to understand is that the different noise signatures from different players will cause different noise-induced jitter in the DAC, which in turn will affect the sound that the DAC produces.

Don't worry, because the same people don't hear differences in anything to begin with. And what they hear they wanted to hear. Same as that they are closed to differences which emerge from stuff beyond (their) comprehension. That thus can not exist.

Luckily we have a "better" audience (Phasure forum), right ?

Peter