[Raiden01]

just a query does digital ever lose quality apart from being compressed more. can it ever lose quality like a tape can but at a slower rate. if so i cant see how it can becuase its eaither in an on or off state unlike anologue so if there is dust on a dvd or cd it may affect the tranfer and you player would have to work harder but the quality would be the same. also people say the coxial cable is better sounding than the optical how can this be they both transmit data not anologue wave so the only way it can be different is the decoder on the other end might have better sound not the cable ....

 

[Iam8up]

you can quality in compression...its all based on what codec your using and how much compression you want to use...

>>dust on a dvd or cd it may affect the tranfer and you player
lol no..dood..dust doesn't do anything, a scratch would though..

 

[Snake785]

you can quality in compression...its all based on what codec your using and how much compression you want to use...

>>dust on a dvd or cd it may affect the tranfer and you player
lol no..dood..dust doesn't do anything, a scratch would though..

err...dusk can affect the way a cd transfers data cause at the parts where there is a lot of dust, the cd/dvd drive will report errors since the laser wont be reflecting as it should since the dust absorbs the light, making it harder to distinguish the difference between a 0 and a 1.

I don't think digital can lose quality over time however since there are just two possible values, 0 and 1. Only thing I can think of tho is if you have a digital signal going through a very long cable where it'll be affected my attenuation (loss of signal). Once that happens the "digital wave" (not sure if it's called that, I can't remember atm) becomes kinda messed and it'll be harder to be sure whether that bit is a 0 or a 1. If I make no sense, I'm like half asleep while writing this

 

[Kazuya]

I supposse you are refering to an already encoded movie: it won't lose anything unless is scratched. Video tape is different since is analog and the use will wear it off. Have you ever heard of a Hd losing quality in his data because of the use? Is the same with movies as long as they are encoded in an analog form. Now, damage of the medium (Hd or dvd) is a completely different story...

Regarding the cables, i don't know where have you eard it but optical out is the best way and coaxial comes second, this being read in lot of sources on the internet, not opinions about "it seems to me that this sounds better than the other" but articles. If you were told by your friends then it may be due to the cable they are using. Gold connector and the lenght of the cable and it's quality play a decisive part on what you hear. Also, never, ever use the cables that come with what you bought, get one with a good quality.

 

[Raiden01]

yes but its just data so how can it lose quality etc down a cable it either on or off not inbetween. also when you scratch a dvd or cd is still plays depending on the player worst case you would get pixels come up but not like vhs yah scratch the tape and it gone..

edit:
also a digtal signal going through a long cable would be weaker but unlike anologue it would just not play or play chopely right but not lose quality..

 

[Kazuya]

yes but its just data so how can it lose quality etc down a cable it either on or off not inbetween.

It doesn't lose properly speaking but adds. Depending on the quality of the cable you will get distorsion added and that's what we call "lose quality". The quality is still there but it has distortion as well.

also when you scratch a dvd or cd is still plays depending on the player worst case you would get pixels come up but not like vhs yah scratch the tape and it gone..

That's why i said:

Now, damage of the medium (Hd or dvd) is a completely different story...

Damage of the medium will make you lose quality (as in pixels appearing) or lose the entire file (as in no acces to the HD or DVD).
When a scratched cd is still being read is because of the laser, they are not all the same, some are more powerful than others and some of the drives are able to reflect the laser even through the scratch, some don't.

also a digtal signal going through a long cable would be weaker but unlike anologue it would just not play or play chopely right but not lose quality..

As i said,the quality of the cable has a very important role in the quality of the audio because of the distortio it adds but the qulaity is still there. The cables with golden connectors are known to be te cables that add less distortion.

 

[Raiden01]

distortion ok? but this distortion what does it do compress it more and can it be herd?

 

[Coolsvilleman]

I think the distortion interupts the proper 0 and 1's making the digital decoder confused. That's probably why you would loose some quality.

 

[Snake785]

Distortion is bad. it's the crap that you hear in the signal that shouldn't be there (be it static or pops and clicks).