[sdiy] Re: Inexpensive 16 bit DAC?

[Jaroslaw Ziembicki]

> 20-bit DAC in D-50, I dont know that. What is that for
> ? Do you think it is really needed or just for
> marketing purpose ?

I never read that D-50 was called a "20 bit synthesizer" or
similar in any catalogue. So I don't think this was done for
marketing purposes.
The improvement of the sound quality between 16 and 20
bits is hard to notice, but... as far as I can recall, the
additional circuit consisted of 4 or 5 resistors only.

> As I know D-50 is an hybrid (analog filters) with
> 16-bit samples, does it use its DAC immediately after
> the pcm wave generation ? If so, why is there a need
> for 20-bit DAC for 16-bit samples ? Does its internal
> processing is greater than 16-bit ?

What I can read from the D-50 schematic is:
(a) The sound synthesis and processing is purely digital in
     D-50. The only analog operation is master volume
     control just before sending the signal to the output jacks.
     D-50 was surely one of the first digital synthesizers (the
     very first was DX7).
(b) There is a 16 bit sample ROM in D-50, but the word
      length for further processing is 24 bit.

Regards, Jarek