A plea for help

[LCS Smudgewax]

Hey guys...

This is my first post on these boards, and should give you guys a brief introduction.

I'm an 18 year old male living in Sydney, Australia who has recently been employed (Well, about a month) by an electronics franchise as a salesman.

I'm ashamed to admit that I really do know very little about electronics despite a lifelong interest in them - I didn't realise how little I knew, until I was hit with a flurry of questions which left me utterly dumbfounded.

However, I should note I am very enthusiastic to learn about electronics (Computers, audio, soldering, etc) in general out of my own interest and for the sake of adequately filling my job description.

My managers have helped me to some extent, and I have improved on the whole, but there are still quite a few questions which I seek the answer to - That is why I have come to these boards, with the hope that someone may be able to help me out.

Already I have read up on the digital photography section and have been helped immensley, and thought why not crack the whip again and see how much these guys really know

Anyway, onto the questions...

1) What is the difference between Alkaline, NiMH and NiCd rechargeables when it comes to performance, duration, etc?

2) This one is killing me - Headphones have DRIVER UNITS - 15mm, or 30mm, or whatever. What precisely does this mean, in relation to the performance of the headphone??

3) What does the "Multi-disc resume play" function do on a DVD player??

4) What is the advantage of having an optical digital output on a DVD player?

5) Does an in-built Dolby Digital surround decoder basically ensure better sound quality??

6) To connect regular speakers to a PC - What cable/adaptor would I need?
PartB: And what about PC speakers to a PC?
PartC: And what about the DVD Rom drive in a LAPTOP to a Television??

7) Regarding computer speakers, what is RMS power? What are magentically shielded speakers?

8) What exactly is the advantage of an "omnidirectional" microphone..?

9) With notetakers, is the sound quality better picked up via a microphone in the mic jack, or the in-built speaker microphone..?

10) What could you tell me about WIRELESS NETWORKING - And hypothetically, how would someone get started...?

Any help offered would be greatly appreciated. There are 101 questions which I could ask, but I'll see what the response is like for these before busting out with it all8)

Cheers all,

 

[Quadophile]

First of all, welcome to the board!

You are really a very inquisitive 18 year old lad and I am very happy to come across one.

All of us on this board have one thing in common; we try our best to help everyone who needs any assistance, that’s what these boards are for.

I am glad that you like what you read in the photography section, if you have any suggestions please let us know, we will try to improve.

I will try to answer as many questions as I possibly can, so here goes......

1) What is the difference between Alkaline, NiMH and NiCd rechargeable when it comes to performance, duration, etc?

Alkaline batteries last longer compared to normal dry battery cells. The price is higher but in the long run it pays, besides, has better leak proofing. NiMH batteries are superior to NiCd ones as they tend to be free of memory effect which plagued the NiCD ones. Memory effect has to do with the charging, NiMH can be charged even if it is not fully discharged but NiCD needs to be discharged fully before you can recharge them again. Nowadays Lithium Ion has taken over since it is lighter as well as lasts longer than both NiCD and NiMH.

2) This one is killing me - Headphones have DRIVER UNITS - 15mm, or 30mm, or whatever. What precisely does this mean, in relation to the performance of the headphone??

It is the size of the units inside the housing the quality of the smaller can be better if it is designed well with good components and it can also be vise versa. The sound quality of headphones is always a subjective thing, no one hears exactly in the same manner, one headphone may be perfectly suitable for me but not for you. It also has to do with our hearing. The ear has 48 auditory canals and each person’s ear is unique.

3) What does the "Multi-disc resume play" function do on a DVD player??

Remembers the last 5 (or more) discs inserted, plays from the same position where you left off.

4) What is the advantage of having an optical digital output on a DVD player?

Optical links other name is Toslink which was patented by Toshiba. The other link is called Coaxial (single RCA). In the audiophile circles it is generally accepted that coaxial is a better choice. Either of them can be used to get the digital stream out and fed into a receiver (which accepts digital input like AC-3) which in turn decodes the signal (digital to analog conversion) and
passes it on to the analog amplifier to drive the speakers. The digital stream also has the video signal which is passed on the video decoder for display on the screen.

5) Does an in-built Dolby Digital surround decoder basically ensure better sound quality??

There are good and bad quality decoders, so it would be generalizing if we say it is. A decoder is a processor which converts the digital signal into 2 or more channels, there are many stages before the sound can be heard.
It depends on the entire chain right from the source to amplification and all the way to the speakers. The same system in one room can sound good and in another horrible, but that is another subject which needs time to discuss and this is not a very good place to go into minutest details.

6) To connect regular speakers to a PC - What cable/adaptor would I need?
PartB: And what about PC speakers to a PC?
PartC: And what about the DVD Rom drive in a LAPTOP to a Television??

You cannot connect regular speakers to a PC unless you use an amp to drive them. so it is the amp which you need to connect to the PC and which in turn will drive the speakers.

Part B PC speakers usually come with a 1/4 inch stereo plug which you connect to the line out of your sound card on the PC.

Part C DVD Rom Drive can only be connected to a Television if you have the composite or S-Video out connector on your Laptop.

7) Regarding computer speakers, what is RMS power? What are magnetically shielded speakers?

RMS stand for "Root Mean Square" RMS power is generally calculated or referred to output of the amplifier per channel. Magnetically shielded speakers are the ones you can keep next to a television or a monitor without discoloring the screen (patches of a particular color) magnetically shielded speakers cost more than the ones which are not.

9) With notetakers, is the sound quality better picked up via a microphone in the mic jack, or the in-built speaker microphone..?

It is entirely dependant on the quality of the mic and also if noise cancellation and hum are catered for. The stand alone mic is generally superior.

10) What could you tell me about WIRELESS NETWORKING - And hypothetically, how would someone get started...?

I am not an expert on wireless networking so I suggest you wait for some feedback from another staff member who may be able to guide you better.

I have tried to briefly explain to you regarding most of the stuff you were curious about, but, I urge you to check on them more and in detail so that all the concepts are clear to you. After all you being a salesman, others will depend on you, so do not let them down.


If you need any further assistance from me please do not hesitate to post here again.

 

[Quadophile]

The question which I did not answer was about Wireless Networking. You may check the link provided for the details.

Wireless Networking

 

[LCS Smudgewax]

Thanks a million!

Quadophile,
You have been extremely helpful, and I greatly appreciate the time and effort you have put aside to help me out.
You can't imagine how relieved I am to have found assistance of such quality

Just some clarifications though...
Regarding question two:
That is very very interesting regarding the ear, I had always assumed sound quality was objective - With your enlightenment I see that its almost as if our ears have their own tastebuds
(So to speak of course...)
To be honest I'm still a little bit shady on what a driver unit actually is though - Is there an online resource you may be able to refer me to?? I'm after something to say if a customer says "So what is a driver unit?" Or "What does a driver unit do?"

And just a follow-up question on number four...
Regarding the Optical cables, there are two-types I've noticed - The 3.5mm and the TOSLINK... My question is what is the difference..? As in what could a 3.5mm to TOSLINK be used for as opposed to say, a, TOSLINK to TOSLINK cable?

Just to clarify Question 6 Part-3
Does this mean there is absolutely no way to play a Laptop/Notebook DVD-ROm drive through a firewire or USB port using any sort of tech adapator..??
And a question in the same vein, how would someone go about transferring pictures (Or any file I guess) from one laptop to another - Could it be done via a firewire or USB cable??

Once again mate, TOP NOTCH HELP AND THANKS A MILLION!

I will undoubtedly seek out help from this board whenever I need it... If that's okay ofcourse

You make a good point about knowing what I sell though - Hopefully in time, I'll get a bit better

 

[Quadophile]

You have been extremely helpful, and I greatly appreciate the time and effort you have put aside to help me out.

You are very kind, thank you for the nice words! By the way, pleasure is all mine!

ears have their own tastebuds

Exactly, but there are very few who really understand this. Food in a particular restaurant may be to your liking but not mine, how do you deal with that? This applies to speakers and headphones also. One thing I must say here, you must respect other peoples opinion when it comes to subjective things, there is no need to argue about such things. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. You may have a matched pair of ears but they do not match mine!

As for the driver unit, just think of the woofer and tweeter in a speaker, what do they do? They produce sound when the signal is fed into them; similarly the driver units are actually the diaphragms which produce the waves so that you can listen to them. In a nutshell they are the speakers inside the housing.

Regarding the optical cables, you cannot mix and match the two; you must have both ends connected with the particular type. TOSLINK is actually the fiber optic cable and Coaxial is with copper wire in the center and generally aluminum on the outer side for shielding or grounding. Again the differences are best-described as- minute. Some die hard audiophiles are actually psycho acoustic freaks and can be long winded when describing the differences. Lets leave it at that shall we?

To play a DVD from a laptop you need the video card to send the signal out to TV, so if you have no output of any sort there is no way you can play the DVD onto the TV.

Two laptops can be connected in different ways, if it is USB it has to be both ends having A type connector and a small unit with electronics in between the cable which can route the signal both ways. The ordinary USB cable that you use with the printer or other devices will not work, so do not waste your time.

I think I have covered all and you are more than welcome to continue asking as many questions as you feel like. As I said earlier, I will try to help as much as possible but you must understand I am not an expert at everything.

If you are very keen to understand the audio equipment I would like you to read up my review on the Paradigm Reference Studio 40 speakers. The review does not only cover the information about speakers but I have tried to convey to the reader what subjective analysis is and how I perceive it. I am not sure how successful I have been in doing that, but, I am open for any criticism from you.

Here is the link

 

[LCS Smudgewax]

Quadophile,
I think you were very very good in explaining the subjective analysis of audio equipment.
I picked up some useful bits and pieces from that review, but must admit that on a technical level, it was simply out of my league. A few concepts/features made minimal sense to me unfortunately, but as a review itself I could not complain - Structured well, written well, and all bases covered.

Also, thanks a million for clearing up my "wireless networking" query - I went through, read it all, and then read up on the related products we sell (wireless router etc) and it all made sense to me, at least on a fundamental level.

You'll be happy to know that things have picked up a lot in the workplace I feel I can hold my own, at least with less knowledgable customers, but am still extremely eager to build on my current knowledge bank.

Therefore, I hit you with some more questions

1/ What precisely is "digital" (As in answering machines, notetakers etc) sound, is it invariably better than "analogue" sound...?
I just get a bit confused when I see "digital sound" written on a product, and wonder how it actually varies.

2/ What is the DIN jack on notetakers and such useful for?? I've seen the DIN socket, and the DIN cables, but have not yet worked out what it actually does lol.

I must say, although you claim to not know "everything", you seem to know no less up to this point at least