Toslink or digital coaxial volume control

[urmuz]

I have the following configuration: PC (Windows 10)->Topping D10s ->Toslink or digital coaxial->Yamaha A-S301. How is it possible to have volume control from windows? I understood that only the digital signal (0 and 1) is transmitted via toslink/coaxial. Thank you!

 

[staticV3]

Digital signals can be digitally attenuated.

This can be done by Windows, or by the DDC.

 

[DVDdoug]

I understood that only the digital signal (0 and 1) is transmitted via toslink/coaxial. Thank you!

It's a binary number system with only ones & zeros but with more bits you can hold bigger numbers.

Here's what 0 - 15 decimal looks like in binary:
0000 binary = 0 decimal
0001 binary = 1 decimal
0010 binary = 2 decimal
0011 binary = 3 decimal
0100 binary = 4 decimal
0101 binary = 5 decimal
0110 binary = 6 decimal
0111 binary = 7 decimal
1000 binary = 8 decimal
1001 binary = 9 decimal
1010 binary = 10 decimal
1011 binary = 11 decimal
1100 binary = 12 decimal
1101 binary = 13 decimal
1110 binary = 14 decimal
1111 binary = 15 decimal

Each sample (i.e. 44,100 samples per second) represents the positive or negative amplitude at one instant in time, or at one point along the wave.

With 16-bits you can "count" from decimal -32,768 to +32,767. With signed integers the most significant bit (the leftmost bit) is the +/-sign bit, and it's a little weird because negative values use "two's compliment" and there is no negative zero.

If the peaks in a 16-bit file hit -32,768 or +32,767, your peaks are hitting 0dBFS (zero decibels full-scale) which is the digital maximum for integer formats,

If you divide all of the samples in half, you cut the volume in half (-6dB). Amplification is done by multiplication and attenuation is done by multiplying by a factor of less than one.

The Audacity website has a nice little introduction to how digital audio works.

 

[Vincent Kars]

Depends.
If it is PCM audio (almost all digital audio) you have samples being either 16 or 24 bit. As DVDdoug pointed out, multiplying the samples changes their value hence the volume.
If it is PWM (DSD so single bit) you can't do anything DSP including volume control.

 

[ViperDom]

I have the following configuration: PC (Windows 10)->Topping D10s ->Toslink or digital coaxial->Yamaha A-S301. How is it possible to have volume control from windows? I understood that only the digital signal (0 and 1) is transmitted via toslink/coaxial. Thank you!

I run Windows ---->USB--->MiniDSP(dac)---->AMP
Windows Master Volume is what i use for volume control.
(Gain is also set as desired within the minidsp & amp)

Are you saying that windows volume is not working?
Have you tried right clicking on it and opening the "Volume Mixer" then clicking on the Device dropdown to make sure the desired devise(Topping) is selected?

 

[urmuz]

Windows volume control works. I'm curious how this is done via USB (windows) -> D10s -> toslink out -> toslink input Yamaha.

 

[Scytales]

The most simple way of the world : as already said above by staticV3, the digital signal is attenuated by software computation in the PC before it being outputted via USB. That's it.

 

[urmuz]

OK. Thanks!