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Thanks for the good info bowei006.
Here are some questions that still boggle my mind:
Do these high-end Digital-Audio-Players produce sound better or equal to an Audio CD?
Or do these units just try to come as close as possible to the un-compressed CD formats?
Will these units really sound better than a CD in a car or boat?
The radio on my friend’s boat has a headphone input for an MP3 player. Will these high-end digital players sound adequate going into a headphone input? Seems to me that an analog input will never achieve the quality of the built-in CD player, but perhaps I’m missing something. I need a Digital Audio 101 course.
I have a Chrysler Mini-van that has seems to have a mini-coaxial input on the standard equipment radio. My other car has Microsoft Synch input with a choice of USB input or what looks like an 1/8” headphone input. I’m guessing the Coaxial input only accepts digital audio and the car radio has its own DAC. USB is probably also a digital input. I am not sure which is the higher-quality connection USB vs. Coaxial IN.
I am guessing that a digital audio player like the X3 has a digital coaxial out for the purpose of sending the signal to an external DAC, then outputting an analog signal from the external DAC the signal can then only be inputted into an analog input on the car stereo. I would think that sending an analog signal from a DAC to a digital input on the car stereo would be incompatible, but I need more insight on this.
Does anyone have any experience placing a high-end DAC between the Digital Audio Player and the car stereo? I am thinking that the signal should be maintained as digital for as long as possible. Digital out, post process the digital signal with an external DAC, then convert it to analog for input to the stereo.
That's not an accurate comparison. An audio CD is a format. A more accurate comparison would be how MP3's compare to Audio CD's for example. The medium used to play the audio CD would be the correct comparison against the X3. And of course, that depends on the equipment you are using to play the CD.
These units play lossless, and lossy files. They will come as close to what formats you let it play.
if you use these units? Little to no difference if you use the lossless version(hell even the lossy version) playing with the X3 to your stereo instead of the CD. There will be close to no difference unless you are running a high end setup.
The quality of most MP3 inputs is actually of lower quality than the CD player itself. Just use the CD player.
You need to make sure if it is actually a mini plug with digital connections. Yes, if it is actually coaxial input, then the car has a DAC. DAC's are common in many devices and cheap DAC's without sonic problems cost less than a dollar.
Yes you are correct, the purpose of X3 digital coaxial output is for one to use another DAC whose input supports it and then outputs to another amp be it an external amp or one built into a speaker.
Unless your car stereo is of very high custom quality, don't bother, and just use the CD player with it. I'm not talking about choosing the thousand dollar Boston Acoustics or Bose pre set selection if you buy a new car. I'm talking full redoing the whole stereo of the car for the purpose of audio fidelity. Otherwise, droping an X3 in with an external high end DAC into the mp3 input of the car stereo will be like for the most part a waste of money
