Bit depth determines the number of possible digital values ​​that can be used to represent a sample. The number of bits determines how fine the gradations between the possible values ​​are. The possible values ​​are calculated by 2 to the power of n, whereby n is the number of bits. Example:
With a bit depth of 16 bits, there are 2 to the power of 16 = 65.536 possible values.
With a bit depth of 24 bits, there are 2 to the power of 24 = 16.777.216 possible values.
These values ​​represent the possible ones Amplitudes that a single sample can accept. The higher the bit depth, the finer the gradations between individual amplitudes, resulting in more precise and detailed audio reproduction.