ProtoDAC TDA1387 X8 project

[hifinet]

I am working on getting up to speed on camilla to try this but in the meantime I wondered if using SoX todo the 16 bit conversion would also have the advantage of adding dither? The SoX documentation I looked at suggested that dither needed to be specified.  Does the implementation in moode incorporate dither in this conversion?
I seem to hear a difference if I use SoX vs just letting the DAC truncate but "better "?
Thanks again to hifinet!

I have yet to compare truncating 24 bit recordings to dithering using Moode software volume, SoX or Camilla.

The (presumably) dithered CD (16/44.1) Classic Records from the HDAD set sounds better than the 24/192 file truncated with ProtoDAC. To my ear, the CD sounds more realistic in terms of the sound of the instruments in the hall.

I also discovered this when editing and converting ввс AAC files of live radio broadcasts. It was the first time using Audacity. Initially, I imported the AAC file into Audacity, and edited the sections I wanted, and then exported to flac. Audacity converts from AAC to 32 FP for editing. I didn't realize that it wasn't dithering the file when it was exported to 16/48 flac. I went on for a few weeks this way. The edited files seemed to be a bit disappointing compared to a file of the entire program converted to flac using Foobar2000. 

I finally realized that the file wasn't properly dithered when exported to flac by Audacity. Using the Foobar2000 converted AAC to flac files imported into Audacity, 16/48 is maintained and apparently the dithering or whatever secret sauce ввс is using. The edited files then sound identical to the flac file of the entire program. It is amazing that the 16th bit can have such an effect. 

Trucation is loss of information, since the 8 LSBs are simply thrown away. Dithering uses the information in the 8 LSBs to correct the 16th bit. Subjectively, it is subtle, but most noticeable in terms of the realism of the sound of acoustic instruments in a hall.

I hear a similar effect with the electrolytic power supply decoupling caps. The small Panasonic FR caps sound best to my ear (looking forward to hearing the tiny Panasonic NHG). The image and soundstage is very sharp and well defined. But, they are less forgiving than the other larger caps, which seem to sound a bit softer. The Elna Silmic II sound really good, except that they distort the image and soundstage. Some instruments are just too big and out of proportion. This could be a good thing for some types of music.