Sensors and Processors

So I'd like to start a hopefully civil conversation about the effect that image processors have on camera sensors.

As many know, people are always complaining about Canon's sensor and their 'lack' of dynamic range. In recent years we've seen Canon switch to On Sensor ADC design which has improved the dynamic range of bodies like the 5DIV/EOS R but not quite to the level of the competition.

We know that a process interprets commands or information and the sensor is like the eye of the camera that sees the light. Call me crazy here, but I believe that Canon have a processor problem and not a sensor problem. I've seen some Youtubers speculate this before and I'm included to believe it.

Sony are known for their dynamic range and one interesting issue is the star eater problem which removes stars that it mistakes for noise. Now this shows that even in a RAW image, there is some processing done to the image.

Both Sony and Nikon are also capable of recording full frame video which the EOS R/RP are not capable of. I wish I kept the source but in one interview I watched, a Canon tech cited the processing being the reason this wasn't possible in Canon cameras.

Nikon are also able to get that slight better performance out of the same Sony sensors which shows the image processor plays a bigger part than we realize. Functions like Eye AF would also heavily rely on the processor to run these functions.

I have no technician knowledge in the area of camera sensors or processors, but could it be correct that the processor plays a contributing factor to the dynamic range that a sensor is capable of?

If someone here has some more advanced or technical knowledge on camera processors it would be great if they could share some insight.

I do have some difficulties to identify a clear distinction between sensor and processor for creating signals. In all my other non-trivial sensor applications, the two are intrinsically linked to each other in order to provide a consistent high quality signal. It starts with simple stuff as sampling frequency and filtering/smoothing and goes to more complicated signal processing (e.g. fourier transformation). Therefore, I do not understand this often mentioned sensor/processor dichotomy - they belong together and very often it is difficult to distinguish where the limiting factor is. Maybe I am just missunderstand the issue you try to raise?

Processing starts at the sensor though. You basically need to take the light, convert it to data, and push it downstream off the sensor as quickly and efficiently (minimal signal degradation) as possible. When it comes to Sony, IQ, AF capability, and speed are a component of sensor design....backside illuminated sensors in the a7 bodies, and stacked sensor in the a9.

For a while there has been a question of whether or not Canon has the manufacturing capabilities of Sony, who has a robust semi-conductor business, and whether or not they can truly keep up on the sensor front. This is why most of the industry basically sources sensors from Sony in lieu of producing their own any more. Canon could simply do the same too. Some Canon compact cameras are using Sony 1 inch sensors.