Comment by labcomputer
11 days ago
Actually, it does. You can decimate the higher sample rate to increase dynamic range and S/N ratio.
Also, for direct down conversion, you can get better mirror frequency rejection by oversampling and filtering in software.
None of this changes the actual real amount of data you have at the end of the day though after all is said and done, that's what I mean, so long as you don't botch it and capture too little. In computing terms, the amount of real data in a compressed archive and the uncompressed original is the same, even if the file size is larger for the latter.