Frequency dithering meaning

1. What is frequency dither?
2. What is the purpose of dithering?
3. What happens if you don't dither?
4. Should I use dithering when mastering?

What is frequency dither?

The frequency dithering technique reduces the narrowband EMI by spreading out the noise spectrum of the power supply. There are limitations on how much the oscillator frequency (fS) can be dithered. Some of the limiting factors are switching losses and magnetic design.

What is the purpose of dithering?

Dithering is an important yet often overlooked technique used in digital audio production. Dithering is the process of adding a small amount of random noise to a digital audio signal in order to reduce the distortion caused by quantization error.

What happens if you don't dither?

The bottom line is that it's a form of distortion and you don't want it to be present in your music. Some engineers say that even if you don't actually hear quantization distortion, it makes the music sound harsher overall. The solution is to add dither when you save the file to a lower sampling rate.

Should I use dithering when mastering?

When to Dither in Audio Mastering. Essentially, you need to use dithering when you're mastering the file at a lower bitrate than you worked at during the production stage. Say you recorded in 24-bit and you're mastering the audio file in 16-bit; you need to use dithering.