[music-dsp] 32 bit floats >>> 24 bit integer

[robert]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: music-dsp-bounces at ceait.calarts.edu 
> [mailto:music-dsp-bounces at ceait.calarts.edu] On Behalf Of Nigel Redmon
> Sent: Sunday, January 22, 2006 3:02 PM
> To: music-dsp
> Subject: Re: [music-dsp] 32 bit floats >>> 24 bit integer
> 
> Despite these quirks (truncation in floating point versus 
> integer and various types of rounding possibilities) that 
> make it more difficult to directly compare truncation versus 
> rounding, your assertion that rounding isn't a significant 
> improvement over truncation is correct-- they are simply 
> different methods of spreading the conversion error.  

I disagree.  Clearly the type of truncation that goes from something like
5.9 to 5.0 is going to produce a statistically larger magnitude of error
over time then rounding from 5.9 to 6.0.  Anytime the truncation exceeds
0.5, it is worse.  Plus it's always biased in one direction.  

( Or at least this is how I see it ).

> You'll find that in practice, people use whichever gets them 
> the conversion the fastest. (If dither first, you still have 

I pretty much always use rounding.  Yes, truncation will be a small amount
quicker than rounding.  But if the small amount of extra time spent rounding
dooms you, you're in sorry shape anyhow ( in terms of CPU utilitzation ).

Regards,

Robert 


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