|
Audio Asylum Thread Printer Get a view of an entire thread on one page |
For Sale Ads |
194.126.37.40
In Reply to: RE: The big picture posted by Sordidman on January 25, 2016 at 06:28:35
While digital playback is not at its apex it is IMO hardly at its infancy. I can tell you first hand that things can improve to a far greater degree at the beginning of the recording stage. No microphone or recording device can capture the mythical "original event" that audiophiles like to prattle on about.Manufacturers are using a "throw it against the wall and see what sticks" approach because they don't know what else to do. How many ran out and bought "DSD Ready" DACs and now have 15-20 DSD albums in their collection? They are betting the same will happen with MQA.
Although the fact that they are saying that lossless streaming (Tidal etc)
is going to be a major distribution point for MQA may make it a bit different.
Edits: 01/25/16Follow Ups:
Many SACDs are made from PCM recordings.
I use Audiogate to Convert any File to DSD 128, sounds better than in PCM.
Many here do not believe that, which makes me doubt their opinions, or their hearing acuity.
Converting on-the fly works too, with HQ Player.
Original DSD Files would be great, but aren't necessary to enjoy there benefits of DSD Playback.
I've never heard a CD that sounded as good as DSD Playback.
/
About 20 seconds into the clip. . .
Oh dear. You drank the Kool Aid. I guess you are have your fake DSD, so that DSD LED can light up on your DAC. They did a heck of a job.
I have heard many CD's that sound better than DSD. Did you ever think that your DSD playback chain is simply better then your PCM chain?
Alan
"I have heard many CD's that sound better than DSD"
That could have as much to do with the recording/mastering as with the digital format.
That said, if one were to posit DSD as the easier digital format to convert to analog, then it MIGHT make sense to convert PCM to DSD before said conversion.
The fact that both you and I feel the need to reach all the way back to the late 90's for a DAC chip technology we find suitable for the conversion for PCM to analog might be a good argument for that point.
""I can tell you first hand that things can improve to a far greater degree at the beginning of the recording stage""We're not talking about that. The discussion is about the playback stage.
There are only about 8 or so companies who have moved beyond commercial computers. And, very few of those designers are building products that have full functionality, offer great sound, or only offer slight improvements over multi-purpose computers. In fact, some are commercial computers that have been disabled.
There are always "issues" at the recording, - no one here, and none of the products here, are capable of addressing those issues; the scope of anything on any of these forums is in improving home playback. Discussions here sometimes really stray off base in the speaker forums where arguments start about using Pro studio monitors in the home: products that are fundamentally not designed for home use.
"Asylums with doors open wide,
Where people had paid to see inside,
For entertainment they watch his body twist
Behind his eyes he says, 'I still exist.'"
Edits: 01/25/16
I don't fully agree. I don't think you can separate what happens at the recording stage and what happens during home playback completely. To me they are like Siamese twins, joined at the hip.The fact is, it is on topic as MQA purports to "correct" what "went wrong" at the A-D/recording stage. That is the very core of their mission statement.
Many, (sometimes unnecessary), aspects of pro audio have made their way into home playback...XLR connections, networking, active speakers etc...too many more to mention. Many of the best pro audio suppliers also make home hifi products..Manley, Meitner,Bryston, ATC, PMC, etc.
The point is, they are converging. Prism and Merging Tech are now introducing "audiophile" DACs. Many of your favorite recordings were archived to digital with their ADCs.
Edits: 01/25/16 01/25/16
But again, - the playback of digital files is still in it's infancy.No one has built a SOTA digital file player yet, (with the possible exception of Sonore). There is nothing in digital file playback that compares to the VRDS-NEO for digital discs.
We are still waiting for something that's going to be universally recognized as the SOTA standard that we had for Ed Meitner's products in the early 2000s.
There is so much work left to be done improving what is out there now, - I think that it's a bad idea to distract developers away from fixing and improving already questionable products, to pursuing a different format, - starting all over again with new hardware, - that (as history shows) will be improved over time, - once it is better understood what best brings out the files.
"Asylums with doors open wide,
Where people had paid to see inside,
For entertainment they watch his body twist
Behind his eyes he says, 'I still exist.'"
Edits: 01/25/16
Of course digital file playback is not "perfect" in the sense it is not an exact replication of the original event, but then it never will be because there is not a single microphone on the planet that is totally transparent, and there is no recording medium currently that is.
The bottom line is there is no perfect media playback device and that goes for analog and digital.
But I am with you, that many other avenues should be pursued before DSP/software fixes..which to me are band aids.
When I see folks in the studio use a myriad of "plug ins" as opposed to doing the hard work and getting things to sound right organically it breaks my heart.
Post a Followup:
FAQ |
Post a Message! |
Forgot Password? |
|
||||||||||||||
|
This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors: