I have somewhere around a terabyte of files ripped from SACDs. Sound quality varies, but the very best of these represent the very best sound I get from digital. Same is true of purchases from HDTracks. The best sounding DSD is it least on par with the best sounding PCM - though my Mytek DAC seems to really shine with DSD.
It's really difficult to make fair apples-to-apples comparisons of the same album from both sources. If the same album can be found, often the master is different or the PCM had been derived from the SACD. I have compared "Like Minds", for example. The SACD rip is superior to the 96/24 purchase from HDTracks, but I'm pretty sure the latter was derived from the former.
I have not compared the SACD rips to playback in a disc player, but friends who have report what Kr4 reported.
It's really difficult to make fair apples-to-apples comparisons of the same album from both sources. If the same album can be found, often the master is different or the PCM had been derived from the SACD. I have compared "Like Minds", for example. The SACD rip is superior to the 96/24 purchase from HDTracks, but I'm pretty sure the latter was derived from the former.
I have not compared the SACD rips to playback in a disc player, but friends who have report what Kr4 reported.