CD vs. SACD vs. DVD-Audio vs Vinyl vs...


Which format do you like the most, or find to be the closest to the original master tapes? Or, if you attend live concerts (or play and instrument), which format do you prefer and why?
wenterprisesnw
I had a 1996 911 cab moded. Superchargers give you instant on power. Ok, the Purcell and the Delius, I understand. I am open to hearing each other systems, but I live in Chicago. Regards, Mike
MIKE, I was referring to the (as yet released) factory 996 (911) Turbo. What model year is the 911 you had modified? I'm glad you know the difference. (Hope you don't just drive the speed limit!) I thought that tuners like Ruf in Germany were supposed to be the best, though I know there are tons more. BUT, I DON'T KNOW OF ANY RACING TEAM (driving Porsches) THAT USES SUPERCHARGING. THEY'RE ALL EXHAUST TURBO. If you're near me, we should get together and hear each other's systems. You could even let me drive your Porsche. YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THE WRONG dCS combo. I'm referring to the new models (NOT the ELGAR). Look it up. The combo is like $11,000. I can't afford it yet, and any preamp that would really make use of it would cost more than that.
Carl I said I wanted a Porsche with a supercharger so I bought one. I bought the car, and I sent it to Supercharging of Knoxville where Mike Parker (a really nice guy who by the way is a master mechanic and avid racer) broke down the engine, rebuilt it with a supercharger and intercooler to the tune of 450 bhp. I know the difference between an exhaust driven turbo and a belt driven blower. Last time I checked the DCS combo was about $19000.00 retail which is $14000.00 more than the SCD1's $5k retail. Perhaps you are right though, I may not know anything about highend audio or fine autos, in any case it is your right to state your opinion just as I stated mine. I will now try to find the hole you so colorfully refer too. Best regards, Mike PS>Porsche doesn't make superchargers either, they source them from other manufacturers for factory install on some models (currently the 996 only).
MIKE: I apologize for seeming overly aggressive. It is you who is wrong, however. For one thing, Porsche doesn't make "superchargers". (Get real!! You don't even know the difference between a turbocharger and a supercharger!) It's obvious that you're the one who thinks it's all a contest. I'M MERELY STATING FACTS. The SACD process does nothing at all for CD playback, SO GET OVER YOURSELF! And the new dCS combo only costs a couple thousand more than the SCD-1, so you're WRONG about that too. Also, my CD-50 driving the power amp directly has NOTHING AT ALL TO DO WITH THE WHOLE PASSIVE PREAMP DEBATE (in case that's what you're getting at). You can't compare it to Wadia either, because their filter kills the top octave. AND VINYL LOVERS AREN'T IN DENIAL ABOUT ANYTHING. It is vinylphobes who have the fear issues. I'm plenty open minded, and I never said SACD's were no good. YES, INDEED I HAVE HEARD THE SCD-1. I think when a real highend company gets the rights to make a machine, we'll all look back on all the "Sonymania", and have a good chuckle!!! BTW, MIKE, YOU'RE FULL OF CRAP! You wouldn't know fine automobiles, or fine audio, IF IT BIT YOU ON THE KEESTER!! I suggest you crawl back in your hole...
I too have noticed that many have just not heard the SACD and do not realize that they are making fools of themselves. Even my at one of the local hifi shops, one guy who has offered great assistance in the past, is wondering what all the fuss is about the new formats. I keep telling him to go and listen for himself. He just keeps saysing it can't be better than vinyl. I think he is afraid, as are many other, because he has fought digital for so long and now there is not denying that the technology has ripened. Vinyl lovers listen, that is the sound of the fat lady warming up in the next room. No she isn't ready to sing just yet. But when she does there will be not room for denial.
This is for Carl. I have not heard the Resolution Audio CD 50, but I have a SCD1 and I have had the Wadia 7 (in my home, not as the owner), Krell KPS 25s, ARC CDP1, Esoteric P2S and Meitner Super Bidat and I find the unit to be on par with those components for std CD playback. I seriously doubt it plays CD’s better than the Accuphase DP75V which also handles SACD so your statement, ("but I say my Resolution Audio CD-50 will play CD's better than any SACD player in the here and now.") is most likely invalid. Also I find that some preamps are better than no preamp, the Sim Audio P5 for instance is my current unit of choice. Your aggressive tone would lead any reasonable person to assume some level of envy on your part. It is not a contest, if you don't want a SACD player don't buy one. I wanted one thus I bought it. One last thing, if you need the best in CD then use an outboard processor with the SCD1. Now you have SACD and CD sound tailored to your taste for less than half the cost of the DCS rig and 1 less digital interconnect. PS> I also wanted a Porsche 911 with a supercharger so I bought that too, triple black convertible with money I had left over by not buying the DCS gear. One last thing, have you ever heard, seen, touched a real SCD1? I notice a lot of people with such strong opinions have never even auditioned the equipment they are denigrating. Best Regards, Mike
Well, I'm no expert, but I say my Resolution Audio CD-50 will play CD's better than any SACD player in the here and now. I DARE ANYBODY TO COMPARE THEM SIDE BY SIDE, playing a CD. (Of course, you'll need that extra linestage for the SACD player. Good luck getting one that's as good as not having one at all, heh heh.) "WHY", YOU ASK? Because the SACD process isn't compatible with CD, and so IT DOES NOT A DAMN THING FOR IT. It'll be A DECADE before everything is available in the next digital format that actually "takes hold". AND THAT MAY, OR MAY NOT, BE SACD. All these early adopters that proclaim it's so "great" really annoy me! LISTEN TO VINYL FOR A FEW MORE YEARS, and stop worrying about being "left behind". UPSAMPLING IS THE ONLY THING THAT WILL HELP CD's, so you need to look into those, if you want CD sound that Scull in Stereophile thinks "sounds better than SACD"!!!!!! THE ONLY GUYS WHO'LL BE LEFT BEHIND ARE THE EARLY ADOPTERS OF A NEW FORMAT, HOWEVER "GREAT" IT MAY BE RIGHT NOW... Think about it, and maybe save for a dCS setup. Or, if you've got A LOT of disposable income, go buy another SUV before gas goes back over 2 dollars a gallon...heh heh. They're about as useful/practical as SACD. I'd rather have a Porsche 911 Turbo anyhoo...
I bought a sacd player about 2 weeks ago and I am in the process of selling my turntable and all related items to offset the cost.If I had a large treasured record collection with many irreplaceable gems not found on cd then I would not be able to sell.Even if sacd does it better than both analog and regular cd ,there are only about 50 sacd discs currently available, as opposed to thousands of records and cd s .The sacd players are also exceptional at playing regular cd s.
It is evident that neither of the other two have heard SACD. I would have agreed with them a few months ago. Vinyl does sound better than cd if you can put up with the pops and clicks. But SACD sounds just like vinyl!!!!!!! You can have your cake and eat it too. Imaagine that glorious vinyl sound but crystal clear and not pops and clicks. Sound too good to be true? Listen for yourself!
Pretty much agree with Davebauer, except I won't go so for as to digital sucks....it has its place. When I want to completely lose myself in the music, vinyl. If its just background, or "I'm tired and just back from work", digital does me just fine.
VINYL VINYL VINYL I used to enjoy CD fidelity but after hearing vinyl on a good set up its no looking back.I now have a rega 25/Grado platinum.3oo albums 0 cds DIGITAL SUCKS!!
Hi Carl, I'm lucky enough to have a few friends with second homes and get invited frequently to Upstate NY, The Berkshires near Tanglewood and Fla. I go to London about once every 5 years to see family. I must admit for many, many years I couldn't be dragged off the island of Manhattan, but my fiance` is slowly curing my wicked ways. At 18 I signed with Mercury records to do a few Rock and Roll albums. My first demo was done at Bell Sound studios before it was closed. That is where Buddy Holly did his recording here. I was managed by some of the same people that managed Jimi Hendrix and my second studio experience was in Electric Lady studios in Studio B using Jimis' actual amplifiers (talk about if these walls could talk). I did my first album at Plaza Sound. It is on the top floor of Radio City Music Hall. The Rocketts dressing room was down the corridor.WOW! I drifted into jingle writing and producing for 10 years after that.The spots I worked on won a Cleo and other awards. I had to become adept at different styles of music and my tastes were growing. I once had to conduct multiple tracks of a string section made up of the finest players from the major NY orchestras. I struggled to keep up with them but everything went well. I discontinued producing and began teaching music privately due to poor health. I have been operating at a slower pace for a while now but hope to get up to normal speed again soon. The equipment you mentioned was exactly the type of equipment I used in many sessions. I used to like the older Harrison soundboards a lot. Usually I let the engineers set up a few different mikes for a session and picked the one that sounded best in that particular room. Sometimes I combined mikes. I had my own small recording studio for the lower budget commercials. I chose the Neumann mikes most of the time. I enjoyed growing in experience as a producer but I couldn't continue to sing about potato chips forever, even if the money was good. I have heard and appreciate some audiophile type recordings but I was of the mind that if a $90 mike got it better than a $4000 mike in the given situation I chose interesting sound first. BTW I was at Sound by Singer recently and the head of DCS was there with the president of Straight Wire. He told me that it many ways the design of the Sony SACD players was based on the Elgar Ring technology. He said that the cost to develope the Elgar would have been too high for any other company but that the Elgar was based on the work of the scientists who developed the British intelligence national security system. They started developing the DCS system as an offshoot of their intelligence work. Talk about a NY minute! I hope this bit of background info helps to introduce me to all of the regular participants here. I am happy to be in the same "room" with so many experienced and fun people. Here's hoping to find you all happy and well. Bye for now.