Max FLAC Sample Frequency/Channels For Clip

[xnamkcor]

Some ground rules:
I don't care about file size, and while I respect your choice, the format I use is not up for discussion. I already know MP3 exists. I have used it on occasion.

What is the max Sample Frequency that the Clip can play via FLAC?
I saw another topic, but it was a year old and all they did was fall into a FLAC vs MP3 argument.

According to the PDF, I can record at 96KHz, but can it play it too? Can it play 192KHz? What's the max it can play losslessly?

I'm certain the Clip can only do 16-bit, so that's not an issue.

How many channels can a FLAC file have and still be played? Do the channels get mixed or are there certain channels that get discarded?

PS: If I encode a file with 4 channels to Pro Logic II, and then convert that to FLAC, and hook my Clip to a stereo that can decode Pro Logic II, will it work?

PPS: Are there any PMPs that support on the fly Pro Logic 2 conversion of multichannel files or have S/PDIF support? Besides ones that support it via HDMI.

PPPS: All of the above questions, but for W****.

PPPPS: Is Wavetable Extensible not allowed to discussed here?

PPPPP-Panda Cat

[CrowdAds]

[skip252]

Ground rules? Nah, it doesn't work like that. The format you use can be always be up for discussion. You're the one asking about formats. You opened that can of worms, if you don't like the results you shouldn't ask.

Carry on
EDIT:
Guess who you just reported my post to? Once again, I'm not going to limit a discussion like this. If you don't want your format choices discussed, don't bring them up.

I was in process of doing some testing to find the answers to your questions. I don't think I'll bother now that you've "reported" me.

Have a great day

[Marvin the Martian]

[sideways]

[Brett_val]

Can't we have a discussion about the capabilities of a player without resorting to the silliness, overkill, and unpractical underlying reasons of such a question?

I think it's just a technical question, the "why would you want to use it" is a whole other topic..

[saratoga]

Originally Posted by xnamkcor

Some ground rules:
According to the PDF, I can record at 96KHz, but can it play it too? Can it play 192KHz? What's the max it can play losslessly?

I think 96k/16/stereo channels work in the Sandisk firmware. I know rockbox will play 96k/24/5.1 channels, but it will downmix them to 44.1k/24/stereo for playback.

FWIW I do not recommend trying to play such files on a portable player. They'll do ugly things to your battery life, and using 96kHz sampling rate is pointless. Use good software like SOX or foobar2000 to downmix them 44.1/24/stereo and you'll have the best battery life and compatibility with zero loss of quality.

[keyb_gr]

The AS3543 datasheet says the DAC is a 96k affair. According to registers, ranges of 8..23, 24..48 and 49..96 kHz are supported, differing, I presume, in digital filter configuration.

Support for sample rates !=44.1 kHz is one of the few big issues that still need to be addressed in Rockbox. (Currently the DSP engine does not allow anything else. To make matters worse, resampling involves primitive linear interpolation.) The motivation would mainly be support for the common 48 kHz as well as typical audiobook sample rates of 24, 22.05 or 16 kHz without degraded audio quality or battery life. Obviously 88.2 and 96 kHz wouldn't hurt, if only for audiophile bragging rights.

[xnamkcor]

So, it supports many things, but outside of 16-bit 44.1KHz, it loses quality.

I'll use foobar to convert to such before I load it to my player. Or I can just keep alternate copies just for my player.

I've been thinking of getting a Clip+ or a Zip Clip. Or even a Fuze/Fuze+. Since all of those support SD cards. 2GB isn't much to work with. I don't think any of them support SDXC, but 32GB should be plenty.

[saratoga]

Originally Posted by keyb_gr

The AS3543 datasheet says the DAC is a 96k affair. According to registers, ranges of 8..23, 24..48 and 49..96 kHz are supported, differing, I presume, in digital filter configuration.

Yeah, I think you basically just clock the thing at whatever you want. The digital filters have no concept of time, so if you adjust the clock, they don't really mind.

Originally Posted by keyb_gr

Support for sample rates !=44.1 kHz is one of the few big issues that still need to be addressed in Rockbox. (Currently the DSP engine does not allow anything else. To make matters worse, resampling involves primitive linear interpolation.) The motivation would mainly be support for the common 48 kHz as well as typical audiobook sample rates of 24, 22.05 or 16 kHz without degraded audio quality or battery life. Obviously 88.2 and 96 kHz wouldn't hurt, if only for audiophile bragging rights.

We talked about this the other day, and the conclusion was that it wasn't worth having. I think in the long term I want to look into writing a high quality, power efficient resampling software, since there isn't really anything like that out there.

[saratoga]

Originally Posted by xnamkcor

I've been thinking of getting a Clip+ or a Zip Clip. Or even a Fuze/Fuze+. Since all of those support SD cards. 2GB isn't much to work with. I don't think any of them support SDXC, but 32GB should be plenty.

SDXC will work on anything SDHC works on if you format as fat32. They're not actually different hardware, just a different file system. You'll probably want to use rockbox though, the sandisk firmware doesn't scale so well to large amounts of storage.

[xnamkcor]

Originally Posted by saratoga

SDXC will work on anything SDHC works on if you format as fat32. They're not actually different hardware, just a different file system. You'll probably want to use rockbox though, the sandisk firmware doesn't scale so well to large amounts of storage.

Price is also a big factor. I can get a 32GB for 30-40 dollars, but a 64GB costs 90+ dollars. I can also get a 16GB for 16 dollars. Which would still be plenty. 50 USD is pretty much my limit for flash cards.