Beyond SACD with Redbook: Price No Object

The consensus is AudioNote DAC 5 and CEC TX0 transport

Note: I have tried Hybrid SACD/CD's and these disks have such a good redbook CD layer that the SACD layer doesn't seem to be all that much better - at least in terms of early pressings of CD's vs. those remastered to SACD. Has anyone else noticed this?

I have to agree with JcbTubes - I too owned the Marantz SA-1 and while it is a great player felt it had a level of detail that was "in your face" on SACDs. Redbook was just okay. I then purchased an EMC-1 MkII and thought it was a bit better. Ultimately I settled on the Mephisto II which doesn't immediately present itself as being better, instead it seduces and captivates you over time and honestly becomes quite addictive. Scary! There is something that the Mephiso does which is different than any other player I've heard. Its virtues are not in hyper-detail but the way the music simply envelops you with that certain delicacy - the layered soundstage - depth between the speakers - texture... it really is amazing and I prefer that character to any SACD recording on ANY SACD player.

Gendut: SACD is detailed and seems to have more spacial information than ordinary Redbook. But... if you listen closely to your Mephisto compared to an SACD player, you will find that SACDs (as played by most current units) are simply not involving. The Sony XA777ES comes close to making this better however. Sony took a step back with this unit and seems to have tried to acheive a more "analog" presentation vs. hyper detail. This helps to make the SACDs sound a bit more involving but makes the gap between well recorded redbook and SACD seem much, much smaller.

Sugarbrie - I think someone like George Lucas has been playing with a lot of the recordings. Take a look at Miles Davis' Kind of Blue. How many times has that baby been re-issued? And now in Multi-Channel??

Jadem6 - What is and what is not is relative to personal preference. The "shimmer and sparkle" quality that you speak of is clearly a quality present in SACD music reproduction (on early players). Whether that quality is something "George Lucas" added or the first generation SACD players emphasize, I do not know. If you were to compare SACD to vinyl or live music - I think you would find less "shimmer and sparkle" in both live music and vinyl.

The newer SACD players seem to lean toward less emphasis on shimmer and sparkle and attempt to present a more analog or life like - organic quality of the music.

With a new Sony SACD player, the difference between Hybrid layers is diminished simply because the SACD layer on these machines has less "shimmer and sparkle" making the differences less apparent. I too have the Allison Kraus SACD Hybrid disk.

Yes - the capability of SACD is greater than CD but ultimately the outcome depends upon consumer acceptance and the various implementations of the technology. Today we hear so many different sonic signatures in redbook players, just wait and see what happens when the well respected high-end companies really get going on development for the SACD format!!

Oh boy...Today I received the FIM Hybrid SACD multi-channel version of Jazz at the Pawn Shop. This is absolutely the best I have heard digital sound. I am utterly speachless.

Over the past few days I have been messing with interconnects and tweaking/tuning my system to accomodate my Sony SACD player. The interconnects I used with the Mephisto weren't exactly right for use with the Sony. They were close but not perfect.

Now that I have spent some time with the Sony (tuned) I must say that going back to a redbook only player might not be in my future. Considering the upgradability of the new Sony XA777ES to include a tube analog output and separate tube power supply I honestly believe that this piece of equipment has the potential to surpass the performance I had once enjoyed with my redbook only player(s).