Audiophile 101: Essential Gear Overview
Image credit @zhugunic https://drop.com/talk/67372/gl-2-k Do I need an amp? What are these acronyms like DAC, DSP, or DSD? What even are all the components that make up an audio chain? Let’s take a beginner’s look at the core, essential building blocks of a digital audio chain, and lay it plain what each piece does. We can cover the major pieces separately, but I’ll still include a few tips to optimize playback here. Please hit the little bookmark button and feel free to check and share this guide whenever you need a reference! For people who need a visual and audible explanation, or are worried it would take too long to get a working knowledge of the audio chain, here is my YouTube video on this subject that is just 7 minutes long! I like writing though, so let’s get started with an overview, then break it down into what each piece does and how an upgrade would benefit the final sound quality. Signal Path Image credit @SpeleoFool https://drop...
Mar 22, 2023
What’s this about a giveaway? More details can be found at the end! The short version: we will be giving away $100 Drop Rewards credit to one lucky winner (randomly selected) from all participating users who contribute and tag their Audiophile photos using the "Rigs" flair! In order to be eligible for giveaway prizes, your photo must include at least two tagged items (not required to be Drop products—see Tagging Non-Drop Products below). Post must be made in the first two weeks (by 2023-05-10 11:59PM PT) in order to be entered. What is Product Tagging in Photos? Product tagging allows you to tag any products in a Photo post—both those found on Drop currently, as well as write-ins that will be manually approved and allow you or others to request new products that we don’t yet carry. Detailed instructions can be found below:
Posting a Tagged Photo The process is designed to be intuitive and easy to understand without prior instruction. However, if you run into any questions or snags, the detailed instructions below should help. Also feel free to ask any questions in the comments and I will do my best to assist. Start to make a Photo post as you normally would.
Tagging Products When you get to the screen shown below, after uploading the photo and clicking ‘Next’, you will be prompted to tag products in the photo. In order to tag a product, simply click or tap on the product in the photo. This will bring up the product identification interface, which allows you to search for products listed on Drop (active or not). You have the option to be as specific as you would like to.
Note: A product tag cannot be moved around the photo once created; if you realize you want to move a tag to another location within the photo, you will need to delete the tag and re-tag the item. Tagging Non-Drop Products If the product you want to tag is not yet available in the system, you will have the option to create an entry for that brand/product in the system. After the entered item is approved by the moderation team, that brand/product name will be available for yourself or others to select from the autocomplete dropdown at any point going forward. Manually entering a product in this way will also create a minimal product page for the item that will compile any photos which tag the item together.
Tagging Additional Products After tagging the first item, you can then tag as many additional products as you’d like in the photo.
Adding Flair After tagging the photo, you will be taken to a screen where you can add Flair (select “Battlestations” to be eligible for the giveaway), as well as a Title and Description.
Finalizing Photo Post Tagged items will now be automatically added to a table below the photo for easy reference/linking when viewed.
Browsing Photo Feed With Tags Item tags will show up collapsed in the corner of the photo when viewed (both on the post and in the Photos feed); hovering anywhere over the image will expand the tag names for everyone to see.
Why would I want to do this? It’s very common for people to come across a photo on the site and want to know more information about what products are in the photo—anything from headphones and amplifiers to accessories in view. Rather than needing to create a list below the image or in a comment (and find the links and mess around with formatting if you would be so inclined) this is a simple and straightforward way to share what’s in the photo with those who would be interested. After posting your own tagged photo, be sure to check out the other Rigs posts! Reminder—Giveaway! This was a long read, so in case you forgot...we’d like to give away a prize to a lucky individual who participated and tagged a Rigs photo during this launch event! All you have to do to enter is post a photo to the Audiophile community (with Rigs flair) and tag at least two products shown in the photo (not required to be Drop products—see Tagging Non-Drop Products above). The initial giveaway period for submissions will be two weeks (closing on 2023-05-10 at 11:59PM PT), after which time a winner will be randomly selected from the pool of entrants. THE PRIZE: The winner described above will receive $100 of Drop Rewards issued to their account after the giveaway event concludes!