analog

How digital sound works

Speaking of Zeroes and Ones...

Among audiophiles, the analog vs. digital debate rages without end. I, like a lot of other musicians and music fans, have my own preferences--I own many more LPs than CDs, and have paid dearly to record some of my bands' music onto 2-inch tape instead of direct to hard drive. But included in those preferences are some preconceptions. You've heard it before: digital music sounds "colder" or "cleaner" or "more sterile" because it's delivering a stream of 0s and 1s, instead of a pure sound wave. Or something like that.

Audio professionals don't use terms like these, largely because they're subjective and imprecise, and sometimes inaccurate. Recently, one of these professionals presented the best explanation of analog vs. digital sound that I've ever heard. Here's a super-condensed version of an already simplified explanation.… Read more

Intelligent Design vs Science, analog vs digital, CD vs LP--and the winner is?

Natural sound as we hear it in "real life" is pure analog, but recorded sound is, with few exceptions, chopped up into digital bits. So other than live music concerts pretty much every note you hear is digital. Whether you're listening to an iPod, the internet, TV, CDs, DVDs, or the radio, they're all digital in one way or another. We have as a species evolved over the eons to hear analog sound, and it's only over the past 25 years that digital has taken over. And it hasn't been very pretty. The only … Read more

In the digital world, the money is in analog

Glyn Moody is talking about something completely different (people in the digital age still happily paying for vinyl records), but his point is actually directly appropriate for open-source software business models. One way to make money in the recording business is through vinyl records. Analog, in other words, not digital.

This is actually the way Red Hat, MySQL, JBoss, Alfresco, and other open-source companies make money. Analog. People. Real services performed by real people.

The digital bits are easy. Hard to create, yes, but easy to copy, so why bother locking them down? The people behind the bits? Not so … Read more

Best Buy TVs now all digital

It's a lot harder to find an analog television at Best Buy these days. That's because as of the beginning of October, Best Buy stopped selling them, according to an Associated Press report. The largest consumer electronics chain in the U.S. will now only sell televisions with digital tuners.

It's not a huge surprise. The government-imposed digital television mandate is fast approaching. By Feb. 18, 2009, TV broadcasters will be required to broadcast only digital signals, and TVs with only analog tuners will be unable to pick up the new broadcasts. As part of the gradual … Read more

TV rabbit ears to go digital for the elderly

The digital age is about to invade your elderly parents' or grandparents' living room. But do they know it?

The pending changes to free over-the-air TV for analog TV owners has gotten the attention on the Hill. The Senate Special Committee on Aging held a hearing Wednesday morning to discuss the topic.

Come February 2009, seniors who have analog TV sets and rely on rabbit ears to capture free TV programming off the airwaves face a huge problem--no picture.

That's when TV broadcasters will be required to halt analog broadcasting and, instead, transmit their content in digital form. For … Read more

Saitek's Cyborg Rumble game pad lets you flip the stick

Which layout do you prefer on your game pad? Do you like Sony-style, with the left analog stick low and symmetrical with the right analog stick? Or perhaps you prefer Microsoft-style, with the left analog stick high and level with the face buttons. Regardless of your preference, usually that choice is limited to the system you're on or which PC game pad you use.

Saitek has released the Cyborg P3600 Rumble Pad, the first PC game pad we've yet seen that lets you choose between the two layouts on a whim. Instead of a fixed layout, the Cyborg … Read more

Back in the groove: 10,000+ LP titles in stock at Circuit City!

Are you under the mistaken impression they don't make records anymore? Or maybe you think only nerdy audiophiles are into vinyl, or just a handful of baby boomers are reliving their youth spinning dusty old platters? Groove on over to Circuit City and sample their tasty vinyl selection. The Beastie Boys new one, "The Mix Up" is there, Interpol's "Our Love To Admire," Ryan Adams' "Easy Tiger," Boxer's "The National," and the Shins "Wincing The Night Away" are all available. Circuit City also stocks oodles of golden … Read more

Daptone Records: MTV visits Brooklyn's analog oasis

If you think all new records sound sterile and cold, check out this amazing MTV video tour of Brooklyn's Daptone Records. Hunkered down in a funky townhouse in Bushwick, Brooklyn, Daptone's revivalist sound is rough, raw and supremely soulful. It doesn't hurt that the records are cut direct-to-analog tape with real, hard working musicians. Unlike poser labels that record analog as an effect and immediately transfer to digital to edit, mix and master their music, Daptone's LPs and singles are 100% analog (only converting to zeros and ones to make CDs). The MTV video takes you … Read more

Nokia goes back in time for latest design

When in doubt, go retro. It's a common refrain we've seen applied to other types of gadgets, so it's no surprise to see it in mobile phones as well. But an analog clock?

That's what Nokia is touting in its new 6555 line of 3G handsets, "echoing the timeless elegance of high-end luxury." Translation: Roman numerals. Like Toshiba and Samsung, Nokia seems to think that Roman numerals convey class; for all we know, maybe they do. As far as the digital side goes, this clamshell handset has a 6x zoom camera and a 16 … Read more