Re: Sound card with S/PDIF input (and output) wanted

[Kristian Soerensen <elof@image.dk>]

> > It puzzles me that no more people are interested in using Linux for MP3
> > encoding and recording purposes. Maybe the market just haven't caught up
> > with the demand yet. I'm going to use that card to replace CD's, LP's etc.
> > with MP3's at home so that I can mix and match the music I want to listen
> > to without having to stop whatever I'm doing to switch records all the
> > time.
> 
> I think the availability of good free software makes it easy without special
> hardware. I use grip, and encoder for ripping and encoding and xmms with mpg123
> for playing. Works great. grip even does automated enquiries from cddb for cd
> titles and tracks. Slower than dedicated hardware, but works great.

It won't work with LP's, cassette tapes, radio broadcasts etc. unless the
sound equipment is sitting right next to the computer. For longer
distances such as is found in most homes etc. you will need the A->D
conversion to happen as close as possible to the analog equipment and
transport the sound in digital form from there to the computer where it's
to be mp3 encoded and stored.

Neither will your proposal work for the many digital audio sources such as
DAT, minidisc, digital musical instruments etc.


Not all people lives in tiny dorm rooms or have both their computers and
their HiFi mounted in the same 19" rack. I surely don't want my home to
look like an average server room/sound studio just to get decent quality
A->D conversion and mp3 encoding of various sound sources.

Actually I want to get all the benefits of modern technology including
getting rid of the tons of boxes and kilometers of wires that was
neccesary with pre. mp3 audio.


-------------------  http://www.image.dk/~elof  ----------------------
Kristian Elof Soerensen      elof@image.dk           (+45) 45 93 92 02