In Bob's paper, there are a couple of points that (I think) have been overlooked.

1) You want to make sure that the channel is completely transparent for even the individuals with the highest acuity ever recorded. This means the actualized bit depth, ie the clean portion of the signal has to be between 20 and 21 bits to do just that.

2) You have to allow for processing, which eats up 1-2 bits, so your capture has to be 20-21 +2. For storage convenience, a 24-bit channel is specified.

It isn't just about dynamic range; it's about insuring that the channel remains transparent through all processing steps from capture to output at the consumer end.

Hope this helps smile

Best,

Surround Music Fan/Computer Geek/Curmudgeon in training.
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