Soundcard performance

Rega Amplifiers
prashant_dv said:
I second Spiro in his opinion with regards to VLC. It decodes audio much better than most other players. I use VLC to watch movies and get much better output.

Cheers
Click to expand...

And you have compared that with KMPlayer and still find that VLC is doing better in terms of audio decoding?
 
thevortex said:
And you have compared that with KMPlayer and still find that VLC is doing better in terms of audio decoding?
Click to expand...

Hi Vortex,

Nope, i havent used KMPlayer. I did a comparison only with what softwares i have used so far. I would definitely try it, now that i hear so much about KMPlayer.... :)

will try out this weekend..!! (weekend homework :D)

cheers.
 
I have tried KM player old version,it has so many options,but when coming to performance,decoding to 5.1 comes,vlc is real joy.
 
thevortex said:
Could you expand on what you found as the difference in terms of audio decoding between these two?
Click to expand...

It decodes all the known audio formats one encounters including ac3 and dts. If you need it allows pass thru as well. Any winamp audio filter can be used in it. Allows the use of ASIO if your soundcard supports it. Supports high quality resampling and preamplification of AC3/DTS streams in software which can then be passed thru SPDIF if needed. When you add all this to the video processing features it supports, its kind of a home run.
 
reignofchaos said:
It decodes all the known audio formats one encounters including ac3 and dts. If you need it allows pass thru as well. Any winamp audio filter can be used in it. Allows the use of ASIO if your soundcard supports it. Supports high quality resampling and preamplification of AC3/DTS streams in software which can then be passed thru SPDIF if needed. When you add all this to the video processing features it supports, its kind of a home run.
Click to expand...

Can we not say the same thing about both the softwares except perhaps ASIO?
 
spirovious said:
advantage of PCI-E cards is that they can be fitted in ant slot,
ie PCIE 1X to 16X.
Click to expand...

spiro sir, are u sure about this? I have one PCI-E and one PCIE16 slot in my mobo. The PCI-E is already taken up by the Graphics card. So will a PCI-E card like the STX fit into my 16X slot?
 
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prashant_dv said:
Hi Vortex,

Nope, i havent used KMPlayer. I did a comparison only with what softwares i have used so far. I would definitely try it, now that i hear so much about KMPlayer.... :)

will try out this weekend..!! (weekend homework :D)

cheers.
Click to expand...

Played with KMPlayer for a while, not a very thorough test and certainly did not concentrate on video as much as audio, but posted my impressions here http://www.hifivision.com/mp3-mp4-wma-players-accessories/3760-upmix-2ch-mp3-5-1ch-3.html#post37790.
 
I need some confirmation-

1.When vlc/KM player decodes DD/Dts,how does it send signal 5.1 digitally or in analoge form to soundcard?

2.As stated with soundcard speci,can soundcard itself decode surr format?In that case what will be settings on VLC/KM?

this is very imp as when we invest in costly SC,we shld be able to use its true potential(DAC performance).
 
spirovious said:
I need some confirmation-

1.When vlc/KM player decodes DD/Dts,how does it send signal 5.1 digitally or in analoge form to soundcard?

2.As stated with soundcard speci,can soundcard itself decode surr format?In that case what will be settings on VLC/KM?

this is very imp as when we invest in costly SC,we shld be able to use its true potential(DAC performance).
Click to expand...

Spiro,

There is an option in both pieces of software to use the SPDIF out from the computer. In that case the software would make full use of the decoding options on your AVR.

In the D2X particularly, there are two other ways to pass sound through. If you have non-encoded content such as a Divx file or some AVI file you can still ask the soundcard to broadcast it as a Dolby Digital or DTS through two modes called Dolby Digital Live and DTS Interactive respectively. Both these modes work like a treat and are almost indistinguishable from the real thing.

The other way (this is the way where you let the card do all the work) is to give Analogue input to your AVR and ask your computer/soundcard to do all the digital to analog conversion. Here, regardless of whether the content on your CD/file is encoded or not, it will be passed through as PCM (at the sampling frequency you have setup in the soundcard control panel). For example you can pass content through at 48khz (DVD quality) for all 8 channels (7+1).

The last option mentioned is what people would use if they have invested in a card which has a much superior DAC to the one used on the receiver. But it is critical to check if the receiver has 5.1 or 7.1 channel analogue inputs.
 
One thing still like to know-
when we select vlc option like stereo or 5.1 ,then what vlc does?
It passes decoded audio in digital format(PCM)(so that SC can convert to ana) or in ana way?
 
spirovious said:
One thing still like to know-
when we select vlc option like stereo or 5.1 ,then what vlc does?
It passes decoded audio in digital format(PCM)(so that SC can convert to ana) or in ana way?
Click to expand...

Spiro - VLC or KMPlayer dont have a choice to send information in digital or analog! These are simple software players. All they can do is send digital information. It is the equipment that is connected to the PC (which is the source) which does the conversion. Either the computer itself via a soundcard or an external amplifier/receiver.

By selecting the 'Use SPDIF out' option or something similar in both these players you are simply saying that the DAC of the Receiver is what you want to use. Also that will be a quick way to get your HTPC understand and pass audio to all the channels that you have got connected to your AVR.
 
I understood the SPDF of vlc,but I have 2 thoughts abt DVD playback.
Which one is correct?

1.VLC 5.1 decoder(?works as DAC too) >soundcard(pass through) >5.1 ana output

2.vlc 5.1 decoder(sill in digital form) > soundcard DAC >5.1 anal out

In 2nd thought ,we are using soundcard DAC to get best.
I need SC to do the ana conversion & connect to AVR ext in.
 
spirovious said:
I understood the SPDF of vlc,but I have 2 thoughts abt DVD playback.
Which one is correct?

1.VLC 5.1 decoder(?works as DAC too) >soundcard(pass through) >5.1 ana output

2.vlc 5.1 decoder(sill in digital form) > soundcard DAC >5.1 anal out

In 2nd thought ,we are using soundcard DAC to get best.
I need SC to do the ana conversion & connect to AVR ext in.
Click to expand...

Spiro - let me try to put this across in as clear a way as my existing knowledge (however little that is:)) would allow.

VLC or KMPlayer or any other software does not convert sound to analog form as far as I know. That job is left to the hardware. Commercial players such as PowerDVD, WinDVD etc come with renderers. Sound and Video renderers which are mostly codecs to allow the software to read and play the files without the user having to manually download and install necessary codecs.

If you specifically want for the soundcard to do the D to A conversion then you have got to take the analog outs from your computer and feed it to the Analog input section of your receiver. You dont need the SPDIF or Optical connectivity at all in this case. However you can connect both and switch between them for convenience. Hope this helps.
 
 
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