By default, Windows will resample whatever you play to whatever sample rate you have set as the default.
This is NOT what you want.
There is a mode called WASAPI mode that will override this behavior and cause Windows to output whatever you play in its native sample rate (the sample rate of the file itself).
This is something that you have to select or enable in your player program.
(You'll see it as an output option in jRiver; in Foobar2000 you need to install a free plugin called WASAPI; once you install that you'll see the WASAPI output options.)
In most players, these settings are independent of the Windows default settings, so those no longer matter.
Most players also allow you to select your output device SEPARATELY from the Windows default.
Note that, if you use programs like VLC, which
DO use the Windows default settings, then you'll need to set the defaults for them (otherwise no VLC, no Youtube, and no system sounds).
Set your Windows default output audio device to your new DAC, and pick any reasonable sample rate..... 44k is plenty good enough..... pick 96k if it makes you feel better
(In programs that have the preferred WASAPI output option, you'll often see the less-preferred option referred to as "DS" or "kernel streaming".)
(In programs like Spotify, or when playing lossy files like Mp3 files, the actual sound quality is less than CD quality - and the numbers are NOT comparable - so "320k bps" is lower quality than a 44k CD. For those, a default setting of 44k will get you whatever quality is actually there, although, again, feel free to pick 96k if it makes you feel better.)
What should I have my sample rate and bit depth set at on windows 10? have a Gumby and Jot.
