What is dithering?
Error display
To understand what the above means, let’s take a look at what kind of error is occurring in the audio image.
The image on the left is the original image. Similar to a file recorded in a DAW in full resolution.
True Centered Image takes those naive files and drastically reduces bit depth. Recognizing the image is quite difficult.
The image on the right has the same percentage of reduced bit depth, but with dithering applied.
Looks good! But how can you make a low resolution image look good with dithering?
When you reduce the resolution, you have to discard a lot of information in the file that expresses the details as closely as possible.
How that information is truncated is why dithering is important. Minimizing mistakes has a great impact.
Let’s take a closer look at the effect on the file if the information in the audio file is erased by reducing the bit depth.
Rounding up and down and rounding down numbers
Suppose you need to change a 24-bit file to a 16-bit file. All information in the original 24-bit file must be moved to the 16-bit space to fit.
That is, something must remain. But how can the damage be minimized?
The first option is to easily cut and adjust the numbers. This is called truncation and it is the most inaccurate way to solve the problem.
Instead of truncating the numbers, you can round them up or down to get closer to rendering 24-bit audio at 16-bit.
But what if the middle number should be rounded up or down? Try the golden rule. I will round every time a number appears on the road.
This way, you will at least have the right time. But you also know that you are wrong!
The noise (or random variation) that the dithering adds basically randomizes the rounding up and down decisions.
After dithering, the distortion produced by truncation or rounding down has a much less detectable effect.
After dithering, the distortion produced by truncation or rounding down has a much less detectable effect.
Diffuse heights
All this round-down hatching and mistakes may seem completely academic, but the correct hatching can make all the difference in the final work.
At the very least, adding dithering at the right point in your project is the closest thing to improving your mix with a single click, even with the slightest improvement.
As an engineer, you have to work hard to get the best possible sound. Do not miss the opportunity to improve it.
Now that you know the dither, go back to your DAW and bounce some tracks.
