"Stephen McElroy" wrote in message
...
In article , bob
wrote:
On Oct 25, 10:35 am, Rich Teer wrote:
2. Connect your iPod to an external DAC using a digital connection.
The iPod's internal DAC is a piece of crap, so bypassing it is a must
for decent sound quality.
I think I'd prefer to trust an editor who's actually measured said
piece of crap:
http://www.stereophile.com/content/a...yer-measuremen
ts
Money quote:
"The iPod's measured behavior is better than many CD players"
There may be other issues related to using an iPod as a source
component, but the DAC is not one of them.
That's assuming the current iPod uses the same DAC as the 2003
It isn't but the sequel parts have not shown any signs of degradation. Of
course there are claims that every new generation uses either a totally
inferior part or a vastly superior one.
Occasionally someone measures the current product and finds that it is still
just fine.
and that it's possible to get that clean DAC output without it being
degraded by,
say, headphone amps chips.
Betting that headphone amp chips hurt sound quality without reliable
evidence is just as risky as betting that the DACs are problematical or
getting worse.
In fact the worst audible problem with digital player headphone amps come
when their maximum output has been limited due to legal restrictions in some
localities.
Relevant quote from the SP article cited above:
"The thin bottom edge contains the jack for the 32-pin dock connector
(interestingly, FireWire uses only six pins-this may represent some sort of
future-proofing on Apple's part). In addition to carrying data at 400Mbps,
this cable also recharges the iPod's internal lithium-ion battery. "
IOW, the iPod has a digital audio output.