Trying to Understand how a DAC works within a system

[Focus SE]

This is my first post on this forum. I will start by saying i have always loved a great sounding stereo to listen to great music. I am new to the hobby of building a system for consuming audio for entertainment. For ten years I have dreamed of the day when I could get a system that wowed me. My path is much different from most. I started with my End game speakers and have been working back to supply them with quality electronics to feed them. I am rapidly becoming aware of complexities of what happens on the inside of our equipment. I have zero professional experience in audio equipment. My only real life qualification is to be fortunate enough to by nice equipment to do what I love, and that is listen.
My question is about understanding DAC’s and their place in a system. I understand what they do and my question is not about how they do it but rather how do all the DAC’s within a system work together? Here is my limited understanding of the process. A DAC takes in an electrical signal and outputs it as an analog signal I can hear. Great here is my problem conceptually, it you take a bad photograph and take a great digital picture of it you will see the flaws very easily. So when you have a system that includes maybe a streamer, avr, cd player, or any other processor along the way you are effectively chaining all the internal DAC’s together. (The weak link problem in my mind) my understanding is that every component that electrical signal passes through gets run through another DAC. It seems to me that the “choke point” of quality would be in your weakest equipment. That being said would a DAC be the last piece of equipment you should buy because no matter how good a DAC you have if your source supplying or receiving the signal form the DAC will be limited by its own quality. Thus the output can only be as good as that last DAC pass through. Is this where the argument for getting all separates has validity? Again I’m not an audiophile and not even sure I want to get to that level. I just want expand my knowledge and to maximize my spending and enjoyment. Thanks

 

[boxerfan88]

In general, the DACs are not chained, but configured in parallel.

Usually only 1 DAC is active to convert the digital bits to analog signal output and then goes through the analog amplification and then onward to the speakers.

For example, either AVR DAC, or Streamer DAC, or CD player DAC, or outboard DAC, etc...

Now for the confusing part, the exception to this would be if DSP active speakers are used with analog input, whereby the analog signal is converted back to digital inside the speaker, goes through another round of digital processing, and then converted back from digital to analog, and then onward into the speakers internal built in amplifier and then to the speaker drivers.

 

[JustJones]

First off an electrical signals go in and come out of a DAC. Most times you only use one DAC unless you're doing some DSP which case the signal might go through an ADC. For example if you connect a streamer with a coax cable to a DAC you're using the DAC for conversion, if you also connect a CD player to the same DAC with RCA interconnects, if it has analog inputs, you're using the CD players dac for conversion. Might be easier if you mention what all you're wanting to connect? I connect everything to my DAC with digital cables and use it for conversion.

If you have a streamer, CD player and AVR you're using the AVR for processing and amplification . If you connect the streamer with digital cable the AVR dac is used if you connect the CD player with RCA interconnects then the CD players dac is used. There are exceptions if for instance everything is being sent through DSP like DIRAC.

 

[Doodski]

As a experiment audio was passed through a DAC and a ADC and this was done several+ times for the purpose of seeing if a change could be noticed and from memory the difference was not noticeable. So being concerned about a audio signal passing through multiple DACs and ADCs is a valid concern but it is not generally noticeable to the ear. I think it was @Blumlein 88 that performed the test?

 

[danadam]

As a experiment audio was passed through a DAC and a ADC and this was done several+ times for the purpose of seeing if a change could be noticed and from memory the difference was not noticeable. So being concerned about a audio signal passing through multiple DACs and ADCs is a valid concern but it is not generally noticeable to the ear. I think it was @Blumlein 88 that performed the test?

8th generation ADC/DAC loop vs the original.....can you hear it?

Download this zip file. It will unzip into a folder with three 30 second snippets of a Fiona Apple song. Two are the original digital file. One is an 8th generation loop thru DAC/ADC. Pick the odd file out on the poll...

www.audiosciencereview.com

Listen and choose the 8th generation digital copy.

Each of these zip files will open into three wav files. One is labeled Reference, one is A and one is B. These are 30 second snippets of full songs. The originals were from CD so all 44.1 khz and 16 bit. Either A or B has been thru 8 generations of DA to AD copying. The other is identical...

www.audiosciencereview.com

 

[Focus SE]

Well thank you to all four of you. Between all the reply’s it answered the original and new questions as I read. And all in an understandable way. Currently I am only streaming Bluetooth to an avr then right to the amp and then speakers. Good to know how they are connected matters. Streaming will be 99% of what I do so as long as I’m set with speakers amp and AVR streamer will be my next concentration. The Marantz cinema 40 can accommodate streaming as far as I know but first I need to expand my router capability’s for more connections.
Thanks again for helping my limited brain to look in the right direction

 

[ClaudeJ1]

In general, the DACs are not chained, but configured in parallel.

Usually only 1 DAC is active to convert the digital bits to analog signal output and then goes through the analog amplification and then onward to the speakers.

For example, either AVR DAC, or Streamer DAC, or CD player DAC, or outboard DAC, etc...

Now for the confusing part, the exception to this would be if DSP active speakers are used with analog input, whereby the analog signal is converted back to digital inside the speaker, goes through another round of digital processing, and then converted back from digital to analog, and then onward into the speakers internal built in amplifier and then to the speaker drivers.

Unless you use a Yamaha Pro 2060 Digital Xover with one AES/EBU input. Everything stays digital at 96 Khz. sampling until the 2 output DACs do their final conversion to the power amps.

 

[ClaudeJ1]

Unless you use a Yamaha Pro 2060 Digital Xover with one AES/EBU input. Everything stays digital at 96 Khz. sampling until the 2 output DACs do their final conversion to the power amps.

Sorry I meant 6 output channel DACs, not 2.