Originally Posted by Puma Cat
Okay, Robert, hopefully, I can provide some useful context for you and answer some questions.
The files on SACD are encoded, either from a remaster from an analog tape, or directly recorded as DSD, then "authored" for SACD during the SACD disk creation process. DSD is a digital file format with a 1-bit word length and a 2.56 gigahertz sampling rate. In PCM terms, it is probably most analagous to a 24bit/88Khz sampling rate (from a data format perspective only, DSD, in the opinion of many, still sounds better than PCM).
Your DAC does not support DSD playback, so it will not be able to decode a DSD file directly. It can play SACD files, but it cannot play a DSD file fed to it's DAC from, say, a computer-based music server or from a disc player that is serving, from a functional perspective, only as a transport.
However, there are solutions for this. Both the Audirvana and JRiver music streaming software applications support transoding DSD to PCM, so that a PCM DAC *can* play DSD content this way.
Okay, for the file formats. As you know, most CDs are recorded in "Redbook" format, in PCM (pulse-coded modulation) with a 16-bit word and a 44.1 KHz sampling rate. Other discs that provide greater storage, e.g. DVD-A or Blu-Ray can support higher resolution PCM files. As we go up the chain in resolution, there is more and more content now becoming available as individual music files in 24/48, 24/96, 24/88, 24/176 and 24/192 resolutions.
Now, regarding 24/96 and 24/192 vs. "native" DSD. Most folks will state that both the quality of the recording and mastering are the most important factors for any reproduction of a musical performance, and they are absolutely correct. For example, I have "Redbook" CDs, specifically the AudioWave Blue Note XRCD24s that sound as good and generally better, than SACDs of the same album. This is because of the care in the recording/master and disk production process used in creating these XRCD24s (Alan Yoshida is a genius...)
Now the whole DSD thing comes into the equation. In order to play "native DSD" files as DSD (that is, files that have not been trancsoded to PCM or authored into SACD format), you need a DAC that will supports native DSD playback. There are more and more of these becoming available, and some DACs, e.g. the Ayre QB-9, can be upgraded to support DSD playback. Some disc players, which also function as DACs, also support native DSD playback. Examples are the Oppo BDP-105 and the Playback Designs MP series, as well as the MSB systems.
What most folks are doing now, however, is using inexpensive computers (the de facto standard being the Mac Mini) as music servers, and streaming native DSD files to DACs that support DSD playback. The new Sony DACs, the Teac UD-501, and the little powerhouse Schiit Loki, which costs a whopping $149, all support native DSD file playback.
Now, as to the sound. All things being equal (album/recording/mastering), I've found, with admittedly a limited data set, that native DSD sounds superior, IMO, to 24/96 and 24/192 PCM content. The sound is more musical, natural, with greater inner detail, spaciousness and airiness, and overall a more analog presentation than PCM. Other view and experiences may differ, but for me, if it came to listening to the same musical performance on PCM or DSD, I'll take DSD any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
Hope this helps.
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12-08-2013, 03:01 AM
Linear Mode
