# What's the difference between quantization and coding?

From what I understand quantization takes an analog signal and assigns numerical values to it as convert it to a discrete signal. However coding converts a signal into binary. It seems like coding is a part of quantization--if you're assigning a value to an analog signal, and you're using a computer, you'd necessarily need to use binary. Nonetheless I see diagrams with coders as separate blocks compared to quantizers. What's the difference between them?

• Can you paste any such diagram, then we can address your specific query better Apr 16 '20 at 18:16
• quantization also happens whenever a longer word length is truncated (or rounded) to a shorter word length. that is a totally digital operation done to a digital signal. Apr 16 '20 at 19:48

Quantization is simply the rounding associated with going from a higher precision numbering system to a lower precision, for example analog to digital, or floating point to fixed point, or from a 16 bit system where our min to max values have $$2^{16}$$ levels to a 14 bit system where those same values now only have $$2^{14}$$ levels (so the true value will be further rounded or truncated).