Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site


In the Forum: Didital Things
In the Thread: Recording/Playback software
Post Subject: Recording/Playback softwarePosted by Romy the Cat on: 8/24/2008

What greatly surprises me is that fact that all playback software sound very different. I wonder if the playback software just read the WAV file and rout the stream to sound card devise then why there is such a huge difference between the playback software?

My configuration is very simple – XP, a playback software feed Lynx 16 I/O interface (bypassing window mixer). The Lynx interface allegedly does not do any processing and sends the signal to external D/A. So, I was trying a few playback software that can do 24bit players in different configuration, including a number of DJ players and memory players. It is very sad that they all sound different, particularly when they differently configured.

I discover that ‘expensive’ pro editing software do best sound: WaveLab, SoundForge, Samplitude. Unfortunately it is virtually imposable to hear from anybody about the sound of these software. Everyone talk about the great array of wonderful features in these software, the features that I do not use during my playback. No one I head talks actually about the sound of the playback engine. I do not know what in editing/playback software is responsible for quietly of sound. Still even the WaveLab, SoundForge and Samplitude – all sound very different.

The SoundForge sound all sound with some kind of strange noise and efforts – it is similar to many other lightweight players. WaveLab sounds very clean with very high level of brilliance. It has horrible rate/bits conversion engine though. The Samplitude has much better conversion engine and has good sound. However, the Samplitude sounds like a lightly equalized vision of WaveLab (or vice versa). I wonder: if the WaveLab and Samplitude are so accurate players then why they sound so different?

I have to add that none of the PC-based software that I trued do good rate conversion (88/24 to 44/16). The conversion engine in Pacific Microsonics in my view kills anything in trim of conversion sound quality. Unfortunately to use Pacific for ad-hoc processing is not too convenient.

So, I wonder what makes a WAV player to sound good. I would write up my own WAV player if I have any idea what makes a player to sound good…

The Cat

Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site