The signal path:
START: 24-bit DAT
–>16-bit master (n.b., we’re leaving out a lot of earlier steps here, all of which, obviously, play a large role but are well beyond my control)
–>pressed CD
–>128kB AAC-compression in an MP4 container (with 3-level complexity threshold filter)
–>AAC decompression
–>”Sound Check” dynamic preamplification
–>”Sound Enhancer” (no idea; no reference on this at all; I leave it off)
–>10-band equalizer
–>system mixer/preamplifier
–>D2A converter (soon to be replaced with an outboard unit to reduce electrical interference; outboard unit will introduce another compression-decompression cycle; presumably lossy codec is a trade secret; outboard unit also introduces various DSP controls)
–>preamplifier
–>preamp bass+treble controls (usually defeated)
–>dynamic “active equalizer”
–>”active equalizer” bass and treble controls
–>”active equalizer” bass equalization algorithm
–>preamp (again)
–>amplifiers
–>speaker crossovers (these are more complicated than they ought to be; I really don’t trust the circuitry)
–>speakers (which need to be refoamed, probably, or, better yet, replaced with a simpler set that requires no equalization)
: FINISH
That’s even scarier than I thought it would be; worse still, I see no good way to knock off steps at the moment (short of spending way too much money on new speakers).
One idea might be to replace the compression step with something non-lossy; that’s probably the most fruitful step to take. But that would require, given current usage, about 400 GB (or more) of hard drive space, meaning a dedicated desktop, which would be loud and would have to be stored in another room.
Which, of course, inevitably leads to another co-dec step…
In other words, a decent, mid-Fi digital jukebox is still a few years away. Go ahead and buy that CD servo+d/a combo you’ve had your eye on!