How to use VST Dither instead of Normal Dither

Audacity Help Forum GNU/Linux
1

I have a question how do I use VST Dither instead of Normal Dither
I’m using Linux Mint 20 Ulyana
Version 2.3.3
I installed Distribution Release
I would like an answer

2

I’m a Windows user so I can’t help with the details.

But not all VSTs are compatible with Audacity. Most commercial VST developers publish a list of supported hosts. With free VSTs it’s usually hit-or-miss.

And it probably doesn’t matter because you normally can’t hear dither (or the effects of dither) anyway. :stuck_out_tongue: (At 8-bits you can probably hear the difference.)

And if it was an analog recording, the analog noise probably already exceeds the dither noise so it’s “self dithered”.

3
  1. Do you have a VST dither plug-in that works on Linux?
  2. Is it superior to Audacity’s built-in dither? (what algorithm does it use?)
  3. What sample rate are you using?
  4. Is your VST dither optimized for that sample rate?
4

Sorry I couldn’t use the Linux binary to install VST so I had to run Audacity in Wine
I also managed to get Airwindows’s TPDF Dither Redux working as well But it’s like 2 sliders one for the bits and the other for DeRez

5

Audacity’s built-in “shaped” dither is pretty good, and much more convenient than using a separate VST, so what’s the point?

If it’s just for experimentation, then you can disable Audacity’s built-in dither:
“Edit menu > Preferences > Quality > High Quality conversion: Dither = None”

6

VST Dithers can be higher quality than the ones that Audacity has built in and be free as well For Example: Airwindows’s NJAD Redux and Dark Redux are considered by him to be 2 best dithers that he’s ever made And they’re basically shaped as well Also they’re free

7

For even better quality than the best dither, use 24-bit or higher. The quantization noise is so low that dither is irrelevant for practical purposes (though Audacity does still use it by default as it is “theoretically” better to do so).

8

Here’s another question if I disable dithering and instead use VST Dithering should I truncate to 16 bit then use VST Dither or use VST Dither then Truncate

9

Try both and see if there is any difference.

10

My equipment and ears aren’t good enough to tell the difference Sorry looks like someone else will have to find which strategy of the 2 is better