[metal_monger]

Please define the following terms as I am not sure what they are:
dac
transport
diy
sacd

Thanks =)

*whos trying to outgrow his newbie cacoon*

 

[CrawlingEye]

DAC: Digital to Analog Converter.
Digital sources like wav's and mp3's require conversion to be played out of analog devices like speakers and headphones, thus there is a need for a DAC. DAC's can be varying in quality, which is why many put some very good time into reviewing source options.

Transport: Depends on the context, but usually people consider a 'transportable' amp just being one that's small enough to throw in your bag and take with you, where you can plug it in at work and use it or whever else. Don't confuse it with 'portable' which usually implies that you can use it while on-the-go.

DIY: Do It Yourself, pretty self-explainatory.

SACD is a new surround sound and high-quality format, which competes with DVD-A (DVD Audio) for the new industry standard.
I'm uncertain of what the abbreviation stands for, though, sorry.

I hope this helps.

 

[Iron_Dreamer]

Quote:

Originally posted by metal_monger transport

A source that simply reads digtial data then passes it out, to a seperate, out-board DAC.

 

[etys rule]

Super Audio Compact Disc...and are they really really worth it?

 

[metal_monger]

it does, thats great thanks.

one question tho, if you where to buy a "sacd" does that only play audio cd's? or is it a dvd player that can also play high quality cd's?

 

[CrawlingEye]

Quote:

Originally posted by metal_monger it does, thats great thanks. one question tho, if you where to buy a "sacd" does that only play audio cd's? or is it a dvd player that can also play high quality cd's?

Do you mean buying something recorded on SACD or buying an SACD player? There are sources made that will play SACD, DVD and CD's.

 

[Textual Intercou]

Quote:

Originally posted by metal_monger it does, thats great thanks. one question tho, if you where to buy a "sacd" does that only play audio cd's? or is it a dvd player that can also play high quality cd's?

DVDs and SACDs are two different beasts, although some players can play both of them. Sony has some good ones, as I recall

 

[Jasper994]

Quote:

Originally posted by metal_monger Please define the following terms as I am not sure what they are: dac transport diy sacd Thanks =) *whos trying to outgrow his newbie cacoon*

DAC: Digital to Analog Converter (also ADC: Analog to Digital Converter).
Transport: The portion of a CD player that spins the disc as well as the part that reads it. This is often talked about separate of CD players since some people use old CD ROM external units. This is separate of a DAC. (I could be slightly off on this one)
DIY: Do-It-Yourself many items that are used by people of this community are DIY such as amps and cables.
SACD: Super Audio Compact Disc Sony/Phillips new baby. This is a higher resolution format that uses DSD (Direct Stream Digital). DSD uses a single bit at an extreamly high sampling rate (over 2M per second) each bit tells the decoder to go up or down in frequency from the last bit. Basically it trys to simulate a sine wave.

 

[DanT]

Quote:

Originally posted by metal_monger it does, thats great thanks. one question tho, if you where to buy a "sacd" does that only play audio cd's? or is it a dvd player that can also play high quality cd's?

SACD is a high quality format you need a SACD player and a SACD disc to be able to enjoy SACD. There are some DVD-Video/SACD combo player and there are some Universal DVD-Audio/Video/SACD player and there are some Standalone SACD player.

 

[Music Fanatic]

Quote:

Originally posted by Textual Intercou DVDs and SACDs are two different beasts, although some players can play both of them. Sony has some good ones, as I recall

I don't know of any Sony player that can play both DVD-Audio disks and SACDs, but a number of other vendors, including Pioneer, Denon, Philips, and TEAC make universal players that can play both DVD-Audio and SACDs. You can find out more on the Sources forum.

 

[Music Fanatic]

Quote:

Originally posted by etys rule Super Audio Compact Disc...and are they really really worth it?

Yes.

 

[Edwood]

I've heard differing definitions of "Transport" when referring to Compact Discs (a.k.a. Redbook Audio Format).

Transport.

-A CD player, where the disc is moved, but the laser mechanism is stationary.

-A CD player, where digital output is used to send digital information to an external Digital to Analog converter (DAC). (This definition is the most common here at Head-fi and most audiophile circles)

-Ed