Gigabit Ethernet, USB 3.0,
analog audio and RS-232 serial are standard; Wi-Fi / TV Tuner connections are optional.
For audio not carried on an HDMI input, there are four digital and one
analog audio inputs that are assignable to any of the video inputs.
The back panel has perfectly serviceable jacks for 5.1
analog audio output, mixed audio (2-channel), standard video, S-video, and component video, and finally both coaxial and optical digital output.
Analog audio purists have long argued that 16 bits just aren't enough to faithfully capture the low-level sounds that may be part of the background in a recording of a live performance or simply noise.
For such a low-priced model, the Evergreen machine has an impressive array of inputs round the back, including component, composite, S-Video, coax, VGA PC and
analog audio connections, and it'll also cope with CDR/RW, DVDRW (plus and minus varieties) and discs with MP3 toons on them.
In addition to digital information, a variety of non-digital information applications remain, including
analog audio, analog video, many types historical scientific data, books, maps, old music, photographs, and medical images.
DVRex R3 supports digital and
analog audio and video formats (DV, IEEE 1394/i.LINK, SPDIF, Composite and S-Video) and breaks new ground by overcoming the 2GB .AVI file size limitation with seamless capture and playback.
"Such digital formats as DAT tapes and compact discs get most of the attention in the press, but
analog audio continues to dominate the industry by far," says Marc Finer, a principal of Communication Research Inc., a Pittsburgh-based consumer electronics consulting company.
"Optical network systems are faced with significant bottlenecks when it comes to moving audio in and out, and must rely on separate fiber-optic transmitters and receivers to put
analog audio onto a digital fiber network," said Jachetta.