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Implications of Esoteric G-0Rb atomic clock

The latest TAS (March 2008) has an excellent piece by Robert Harley: a review of the Esoteric G-0Rb Master Clock Generator, with sidebars on the history and significance of jitter. This Esoteric unit employs an atomic clock (using rubidium) to take timing precision to a new level, at least for consumer gear. It's a good read, I recommend it.

If I am reading all of this correctly, I reach the following conclusions:

(1) Jitter is more important sonically than we might have thought

(2) Better jitter reduction at the A-D side of things will yield significant benefits, which means we can look forward to another of round remasters (of analog tapes) once atomic clock solutions make it into mastering labs

(3) All of the Superclocks, claims of vanishingly low jitter, reclocking DACs -- all of this stuff that's out there now, while probably heading in the right direction, still falls fall short of what's possible and needed if we are to get the best out of digital and fully realize its promise.

(4) We can expect to see atomic clocks in our future DACs and CDPs. Really?

Am I drawing the right conclusions?
drubin

Showing 1 response by jeffkad

jeffkad
211 posts
 
Perhaps a naive question from someone technically challenged, but will any of this have an impact on, or improve upon, the performance of pc-based music delivered not by USB but wirelessly, as with a Sonos or Squeezebox? (Oh please, oh please, tell me it will!!!)

I think THIS is the real future of music delivery, whereby you DON'T have to plug a pc into your system via USB or anything else. Whereby you can sit anywhere in your house and pull up music and play it, via your laptop or your sonos, squeezebox, etc. This is truly the future. Hardwiring is NOT the answer in my book. Convenience equal with reference quality playback is the answer. I wish more effort was being put into this aspect of delivery.
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