SACD titles

[jls001]

Just now.. had a chance to play and hear my first SACD and the experience was sublime.
...
a. I enjoyed at 12 o clock volume position. In normal CD's i cannot go about 10 o clock as it gets too loud. I do not know why i had to increase the volume to this level. But funnily.. the sound was not loud at all.

In my experience too the volume of Water Lily Records recordings are very low. I crank up the volume by 10 odd dBs more than other recordings when playing Tabula Rasa. Ditto for A Meeting By The River (Ry Cooder and VM Bhatt) on the same label.

c. Sometimes i had to look up to see if my surround speakers were in action.. i swear.. i could feel the sound coming from above / behind me.. not full passages.. but bits of it.

d. The instrument separation was very precise.. and i think the CD inlay cover also says this.. this particular CD was recorded in 1 sitting for most songs.. no mixing, no re-recording, no brushups.. nothing..

d. I do not believe a Floorstander would have done a better job. Re-affirms my faith in quality bookshelves for 2 ch stereo..

Am getting more SACD's by next week and will listen to these too. As of now - this 1 SACD is fabulous. I must thank jls i think for pointing this out to me. I never heard it.. just bought it.

mpw

"Software" matters a hell lot to get the best from a music setup. Hence the existence of so called "audiophile" recordings from various labels. That some of these records don't sound too much like music (by some reckonings) is another matter, though.

I would say you have not been milking the real capability of your player

@Staxx: he's referring to Tabula Rasa by VM Bhatt, Jie Bing Chen, Bela Fleck and others.

PS: @mpw: I really enjoyed reading the liner notes of Tabula Rasa. Kavi Alexander elevates sleeve note writing to high art.

 

[sud98]

a. I enjoyed at 12 o clock volume position. In normal CD's i cannot go about 10 o clock as it gets too loud. I do not know why i had to increase the volume to this level. But funnily.. the sound was not loud at all.

Was it the type of music being played ? or any technical reason ?

Most SACDs are hybrid ones which mean they have a stereo track as well as a multichannel track. If your player is picking the multichannel track and then downmixing it to 2 channel, then the volume would be a bit low. See if you change the audio source from the player and it has an effect.

 

[mpw]

I would say you have not been milking the real capability of your player

JLS,

can you explain what i am missing with my SACDP.

regards,
mpw

 

[jls001]

can you explain what i am missing with my SACDP.

Nothing now. The only thing missing was to get good SACD titles which you have started.

 

[mpw]

enjoyed Norah Jones album.. Come away with me in SACD. The vocals are very enthralling.

Dont have the heart to toggle into CD mode and play the SACD ( in CD fashion )..but there's something about... SACD !!

mpw

 

[sud98]

I am assuming you are listening it in multichannel mode,right?

Just bought the Pink Floyd DSOTM SACD, its truly an amazing mix. Heard it in santhosh's system and had to buy it. Doesnt sound as good in mine, but still quite good.

 

[grubyhalo]

I am assuming you are listening it in multichannel mode,right?

Just bought the Pink Floyd DSOTM SACD, its truly an amazing mix. Heard it in santhosh's system and had to buy it. Doesnt sound as good in mine, but still quite good.

The few times I listened to multi-ch SACDs (and DVD-As), including the DSOTM, I was not impressed at all. I found it a bit too made up and gimmicky. Movies were alright though. If your 2-ch system is good enough, you may not need to spend on a multi-channel setup...

 

[mpw]

I am assuming you are listening it in multichannel mode,right?

Just bought the Pink Floyd DSOTM SACD, its truly an amazing mix. Heard it in santhosh's system and had to buy it. Doesnt sound as good in mine, but still quite good.

===============================================

would multichannel mode bring in the AVR into play ?

then not.. i am just listening to SACD in 2 channel mode

mpw

 

[mpw]

Signal will be output from the digital audio out jacks (OPT./COAX.) only when an Audio CD disc is played. No signal is output when playing a Super Audio CD.


This is the msg i get on the Marantz SA7001 instruction book..

does this mean that i cannot use the digital out / coaxial out of the SACDP when playing SACD ??

BTW.. my NAD C356 does not have digital input too..

So am i missing something when i use RCA cables as interconnects between the SACDP and the amp ?

mpw

 

[grubyhalo]

Signal will be output from the digital audio out jacks (OPT./COAX.) only when an Audio CD disc is played. No signal is output when playing a Super Audio CD.


This is the msg i get on the Marantz SA7001 instruction book..

does this mean that i cannot use the digital out / coaxial out of the SACDP when playing SACD ??

BTW.. my NAD C356 does not have digital input too..

So am i missing something when i use RCA cables as interconnects between the SACDP and the amp ?

mpw

From what I've seen, you would not be able to tap into the digital stream of either an SACD or a DVD-A player through the co-ax or optical outs. It is possible in some cases though, where a proprietary encrypted channel, like Denon Link or an encrypted channel like HDMI could be used to connect the player to the processor (DAC). If you are interested in getting just the DVD-A content out, you could hook up your DVD-A player to a HDMI de-embedder like the ones below and connect the co-ax output to your DAC:

Atlona Technologies connectivity solutions, cables, splitters, extenders, distribution amplifiers, converters, switchers for commercial, professional and industrial applications

For only $39.15 each when QTY 50+ purchased - 4X1 HDMI? Switcher w/ Toslink & Digital Coaxial Port (Rev.2) w/ 3D support. | Auto & Powered HDMI Switches

You will find more info on these here.

If you are not DIY-shy, you could hack into some models of Denon universal players and tap the DVD-A and SACD streams...

 

[jls001]

Signal will be output from the digital audio out jacks (OPT./COAX.) only when an Audio CD disc is played. No signal is output when playing a Super Audio CD.


This is the msg i get on the Marantz SA7001 instruction book..

does this mean that i cannot use the digital out / coaxial out of the SACDP when playing SACD ??

BTW.. my NAD C356 does not have digital input too..

So am i missing something when i use RCA cables as interconnects between the SACDP and the amp ?

mpw

To get SACD DSD-64 or -128 stream on one of the digital output port or ports, you will also need a DAC that is capable of decoding a DSD stream. AFAIK, such DACs are very few and far in between (not to mention costly).

So, the digital output port in the 7001 will not give you digital (DSD) output when playing SACD. Meaning you cannot use it as pure SACD transport.

And, your NAD C356 has digital input? or doesn't have?

 

[mpw]

jls,

my nad does not have digital inputs.

Do you have a SACD setup ?

can i drop in and hear one of the SACD's ??

that will help me compare.

mpw

 

[mpw]

gruby,

thanks for your reply.

I am DiY shy ( at the moment ).

I am perplexed as to why marantz would call the SA7001 an SACDP when the instruction manual says that there can be no digital o/p when SACD is played..

This implies that the SACD information wil be relayed onto the Amp thru the RCA ..
But is this possible ??

Even if it were possible thru the digital o/p of the Marantz SACDp then my NAD C356 does not have digitral input..

ie again i have to use RCA per force..

But i swear.. i heard much much better ( or differnrnt ) sound thru the SACD discs in SACD mode of the Marantz..

I am hoping to audition an SACD setup in Mumbai and that will solve the problem ( as i will be able to compare what i hear at home vis a vis what i hear in the audition..

Any mumbaikars with SACD.. please chip in....

mpw

 

[jls001]

jls,

my nad does not have digital inputs.

Do you have a SACD setup ?

can i drop in and hear one of the SACD's ??

that will help me compare.

mpw

I don't have SACDp but you are still welcome to drop in and come and listen to my modest setup. The manufacturer's blurb on my CDp: "...has been designed with the idea to equal the SACD and DVD performance." I haven't proven or disproved this claim:lol: but you would be the perfect person to come and do it.

Regarding your doubt about your NAD not having digital inputs: your SACDp outputs analog signal of the SACD at the RCA analog out points. Meaning the SACDp's DAC decodes the SACD signal from the disc and give you the analog version of it straight out of the box.

So there is not need for the SACDp to communicate further - in the digital domain - to the next equipment in the chain.

Of course it is also possible - theoretically - to send the DSD stream further to the next equipment to decode, but that would be a very different implementation.

 

[grubyhalo]

...I am perplexed as to why marantz would call the SA7001 an SACDP when the instruction manual says that there can be no digital o/p when SACD is played...

It is mandatory for SACD players to NOT be allowed to output digital data through the digital outs and allow only analog output through the RCAs, if I understand the standard correctly. Yes, I agree that the sound off of the SACD layer is better than the Redbook layer on hybrid SACDs...

 

[manoj.p]

mpw,

There are some hardware/communication limitations. SACD is hi bitrate, multi-channel format. The spdif/co-ax digital out can either output stereo uncompressed PCM or multi-channel Dolby Digital/DTS. For the SACD tracks, there would be some conversion needed to output this way. Also, Sony being paranoid about piracy, they decided not to implement Digital out for SACD at all and player output only analog.

There were some more implementations though, like the i-link/Firewire output which can transfer DSD to the compatible receivers directly. More common now-a-days is "DSD over HDMI" or "PCM over HDMI". There are players which can do this and transfer the SACD data digitally. Google will list you these. But you will need an HDMI 1.2 compatible receiver to start.

As for the analog out, the SACD DAC's are considered top grade, so there is not much that you are losing out. Unless, you were doing bass managemet/any other digital filters.