redalf 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2006 Anyone knows the quality CD, CR-R, DVD, DVD-RW ROM etc on PCs and notebooks generally? How does it compare with standalone CDP? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
redalf 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2006 or it doesnt matter at all?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jasonhanjk 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2006 CDP is speacialize to play CD so no doubt if you buy a branded one. Sound will be better. Why you want to ask about CD-R and others??? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
redalf 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2006 Why you want to ask about CD-R and others??? haha... i was listening to my CD via a DVD rom, and i don have a dedicated cdp. So i'm wondering how much difference will a cdp be. However i think the difference should not be on the ROM itself because its primarily a reader. It reads in binary, and its actually the soundcard's DAC and cct design that affects the SQ. So does it mean that the ROM makes no difference? I may be wrong.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jasonhanjk 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2006 You should compare soundcard to CDP. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zonalblitz_audio 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2006 I think there are some CD roms dedicated for Music CDs. I'm not sure if there's any compatible with HDCD. I used to own 1 piece of Yamaha CD-Rom. It's said to be better in quality for Music CDs for its buffering etc. (Sorry that i could not give further explanation as i wasn't knowledgeable into computers at that point). Quite expensive at that time. I gave it away to my cousin and i can't remember the model. I suppose the modern generation line of DVD-Rom will produce very decent quality. As mentioned by Jasonhanjk, you should compare the soundcard. You might also want to compare the software used for listening or ripping. You could also connect the CDP into the line-in of your soundcard. However, i'm not sure if this rig is better than the DVD-Rom. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jasonhanjk 0 Report post Posted September 5, 2006 I wonder. Would it sound better ripping the audio CD raw and playback on the PC harddisk? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
redalf 0 Report post Posted September 6, 2006 i know that the sound card does the dac, and will definitely determine the quality. But what i want to know is if the ROM matters. Is it just a reader, reading the binary from the CD and input to the soundcard for a DA conversion? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
redalf 0 Report post Posted September 6, 2006 I think you guys misinterpreted my question. To make a fair comparison, it should be a pc/notebook's soundcard and maybe ROM comparing to a dedicated cdp. However my question is only on the ROM, if the "reader" makes a difference compared to that of a dedicated cdp. Not considering the sound card, caps, ics and other components in the whole chain. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zonalblitz_audio 0 Report post Posted September 6, 2006 If i catch your question correctly, you mean a Digital (Rom) verus a Analog (Dedicated CDP)? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
scanfiend 0 Report post Posted September 7, 2006 Let me try to give it a shot here - and if I get my facts wrong, please don't flame me OK, music mastered onto a CD is digital data, and any CD-ROM (dedicated CDP or computer CD/DVD-ROM) should be able read that data without issues. All CD-ROM drives contain error-checking routines, and unless the drive is seriously out-of-whack, the digital data stream should be identical. Arguably, a computer CD-ROM probably has more stringent error-checking routines - an error that slips through, would at worst, cause an audio glitch in a CDP, but can cause data corruption or programs to "crash" in the case of a PC. Now, if you're talking about music playback, other components downstream will come into play. If you're using a laptop, the digital stream has to be routed through the internal sound card's DAC, and finally out through the output jacks. It is generally accepted that if you're using the built-in sound chip on the motherboard, the music output generally suffers in comparison to a dedicated CDP. You have issues with electronic and RF inteference from the PSU and the motherboard that can adversely affect the sound. A separate audio card like the ubiquitous Creative would certainly improve the sound, but some audio "purists" still have issues with the DAC circuitry in consumer oriented sound cards. Some audiophiles bypass the soundcard altogether by routing the digital stream out to a dedicated, external DAC via USB. When they do this, they are basically using their computers as transports. In fact, there's a whole section in headfi.org on using computers as a source. It can be a good solution. I'm using a Firestone Fubar II external USB DAC, and to my ears, at least, it offers superior music playback compared to my Audigy soundcard. Some of those external DAC's are also astonishly expensive, and IMHO, way too fiddly. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jasonhanjk 0 Report post Posted September 7, 2006 Via USB may also pose another problem. You got jitter, digital noise, EMI, voltage fluctuation and latency. The best is still CDP. Where it is built solely for music listening. Just like a camera will always takes good picture as compare to your camera phone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
