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Is the SACD Format Flawed?

I have just received my new APL 3910 and am loving it already with less than 20 hours on it! As this is a multi format player, I am now looking into SACDs.

There are some in the industry including some respected non mainstream reviewers and people in the industry I respect who say they hear something fundamentally wrong with SACDs and the DSD format. I haven't had enough exposure to come to my own conclusions, but would like to know what others think.
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Showing 2 responses by eldartford

eldartford
4,262 posts
 
SACD has been so incredibly hyped by Sony that nothing could live up to expectations. I find that SACD and DVDA, when represented by well mastered discs, are equally good, and better than CD. I appreciate the multichannel capability also, and some of the video on DVDA is interesting.

The dogs bark, but the caravan moves on.
eldartford
4,262 posts
 
The DSD encoding method is fundamentally different from staightforward PCM, so there is plenty of room for people to argue about whether SACDs are better or worse than CDs. The arguement about high frequency deficiencies of SACD are persuasive, but so is the argument that these high frequencies do not require the same fidelity as those below about 8000 Hz.

The DVDA encoding is like CDs, PCM, but with a higher sampling rate and greater bit resolution. Although the disc mastering can make either format sound good, or bad, it's a "no-brainer" that DVDA is a superior medium to CDs.
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