Hifi
USB-C headphone dongles: still sucking after all these years (Oct 2025)Ten years after cellphone manufacturers stopped putting headphone jacks on their devices, you still can't buy a USB-C headphone adapter that you can be sure will work.
Categories: hifi
They don't make 'em like that any more: Sony DTC-700 audio DAT player/recorder (Jun 2025)What offers the convenience of a cassette tape, and the sound quality of a CD? Digital Audio Tape (DAT) does. So why wasn't it more successful?
They don't make 'em like that any more: the 3.5mm headphone jack socket (Sep 2024)What's the real reason that cellphone manufacturers stopped fitting this simple, robust connector?
They don't make them like that any more: the Quad 306 amplifier (Jul 2024)The elegant simplicity and serviceability of this compact power ampliifer has given it an enthusiastic following for nearly forty years.
Going back to ALSA in 2024 (Jun 2024)Not everybody likes Pulse audio or PipeWire. But is it practicable to abandon them in favour of traditional ALSA at this point?
Can you use ALSA to get 'bit-perfect' audio playback on Linux? (Jun 2024)Regardless of the subjective merits of 'bit-perfect' audio, is it technically possible on Linux?
Yet another desktop Raspberry Pi media player (Jan 2024)Using a Raspberry Pi as a media player is by no means a new idea. However, using one as a self-contained hifi component is not common, and requires a bit of work.
Categories: Raspberry Pi, hifi
Is dithering necessary when reducing the number of bits per sample in an audio waveform? (Sep 2022)The use of dithering when mastering a CD is well-established, and its effectiveness is rarely challenged. But is it beneficial in other circumstances when we need to reduce the bit depth of an audio stream?
Categories: hifi, electronics
Why RMS watts is a useless measure of power (Sep 2022)It's common for hifi amplifiers and speakers to have a power rating expressed in terms of RMS watts. Although RMS amplitude is an important concept in electronic engineering, it's meaningless here, and should be avoided.
Categories: hifi, electronics
Sorting files and directories on a FAT-formatted USB memory stick (Sep 2022)Many portable and automotive media players accept USB memory sticks or SD cards containing audio files. Very often, these players have no sorting logic, and display files and directories in the arbitrary order they appear in the filesystem. This article describes how to sort a FAT filesystem using Linux utilities, to make playback more convenient.
A review of the Leak Stereo 130 and CDT (Aug 2022)A number of reviews of the Leak Stereo 130 and CDT can be found online, but they are short on practical details. I've been using mine eight hours a day for several months; this is what I think of them.
Categories: hifi
Why is there a vinyl revival? (Aug 2022)Why are sales of vinyl records increasing, when digital streaming services provide access to almost any recording ever made, in superior technical quality?
Does it matter how we rip audio CDs? (Aug 2022)Copying an audio CD -- perhaps to a portable music player -- is a common enough operation. There are strong opinions on how to do this, and what software to use. But does it really make any difference? Or is one bit the same as any other?
Is high resolution audio really worth the effort? (Aug 2022)The availability of better than CD audio recordings is driving, and being driven by, more expensive and elaborate audio hardware, even in the consumer market. Is this a good thing?
Why you can't improve your hi-fi system by upgrading the mains cable (Aug 2022)You really can't improve your hi-fi system with a fancy mains cable. But why? And why do people think you can?
Do different CD transports sound different? (Aug 2022)Bits are bits, right? If a CD transport just sends digital data to a DAC, is it even possible that different transports sound different?
Snake oil: balanced headphones (Aug 2022)Do balanced headphones provide an improvement in sound quality over conventional, single-ended designs? Unlikely. In fact, the increased complexity of these designs may actually reduce the accuracy of sound reproduction.
Why your vintage turntable could kill you (Aug 2022)Vintage vinyl records ought, perhaps, to be played on a vintage turntable. Although such appliances are still widely available, and can work well, they fall short of contemporary electrical safety standards.
Categories: electronics, hifi
A skeptic's guide to headphones (Aug 2022)Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of the various types of headphone that are currently available, without all the audiophile silliness.
Categories: hifi
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