analog audio

Recording audio in an electronic or mechanical format of continuous vibrations that are analogous to the original sound waves. Before audio recording became digital, sounds were "carved" into vinyl records or written to tape as magnetic waveforms. See audio cable.

Is Analog Audio Better?
Audiophiles think so. They feel that no matter how many times an analog wave is sampled per second, the musical experience does not compare to an analog recording. In fact, there is a huge variety of vinyl turntables on the market today. However, many enthusiasts believe that the digital SACD format is equal to analog audio or is a very close second (see SACD). See audiophile.

"Carved" Sound

Sound is literally carved into a phonograph record because the groove undulations are analogous to the sound waves they represent.

Analog vs. Digital

The early 78 RPM record (left) contained about four minutes of analog audio per side. The digital compact disc (CD) holds about an hour's worth of music in the CD-DA format or 10 hours of MP3 songs.

Analog Is Widely Appreciated

This ad for the Metronome music player clearly states the goal of digital playback is to be as close to analog as possible. (Image courtesy of Technology Metronomy, www.metronome.audio)

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References in periodicals archive

(1) Sampling frequency: the number of times per second at which analog audio is sampled to digitize its waveform.

IIJ, KORG, Saidera Paradiso, Sony to Present the Live Streaming Events Featuring DSDTM 5.6MHz High-resolution Audio

To avoid these problems, Luis Artiz, director of product management, Business Division, Belkin International, said that the Belkin Secure Headset Adapter is the only solution available today that enables the use of analog audio devices in a secure environment.

Belkin Releases Secure Headset Adapter as the Ideal Security Solution for Classified Discussions Held Where Computers Are Present

Bundling with the companion chip ATC260x, this two chip combination has an integrated HDMI transmitter (TX), low-voltage differential signaling (LVDS) interface, Power Management Unit (PMU), Analog Audio Codec, Class-D amplifier and Ethernet MAC plus PHY.

Actions Semiconductor Launches ATM701x Product Family

It also accepts VGA input from a personal computer, as well as six pairs of analog audio inputs.

Zoran and Micrel Announce New Reference Design for Internet Connected DTVs

The Panasonic DMPES overhead system uses technology incorporating the System Controller with Analog Audio Output (SC-A).

Mexicana upgrades in-flight entertainment systems on 41 aircraft with new solutions from Panasonic Avionics Corp

It includes a player for CDs, DVDs and BluRay discs, an FM-RDS stereo tuner, an analog audio port, an iPod-/iPhone interface, two ports for USB data storage media and a LAN/WLAN port for rapid access to network-based mass storage device and to music and radio channels on the Internet.

Every era has its standard

Iron Mountain, which has operations in Southboro, said it preserves more than 6 million analog audio tapes, including priceless master copies.

Business briefs

Mac Pro also includes dual Gigabit Ethernet ports, optical digital input and output, analog audio input and output, and optional built-in support for AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR.

Apple unveils new Mac Pro featuring Xeon processors

Instead, the system uses digital encoders that translate analog audio into Internet protocol (IP) that runs throughout the house over Category-5 wire.

Colorado vNet's fresh sound: a new audio system cuts down on costs by using Internet protocol

A total of six analog audio, three video, and one enhanced SPDIF cables are required to get high-res audio and video passed through to the AV receiver and video monitor.

Pioneer DV-578A Universal CD player