In Reply to: SACD to HDMI to ??? to external DAC? posted by Stimpson J. Cat on October 24, 2016 at 22:37:12:
If you play the SACD discs on a non-SACD spinner then, if the discs are hybrids ( most are), you will be playing the redbook layer. So this is effectively the same as playing a CD. If you believe that CDs are inferior to SACDS then this is the answer to your question. If not then you have no worries.
Part of the specification for SACD players as defined by the original patent holders, Sony and Philips, is that no output of the DSD stream is permissable. Hence the only transports able to output the stream did so (after agreement with Sony) as an encrypted version which can only be decoded by that manufacturer's DACs.
It is possible to rip the DSD content from the SACD and store it as a computer file to be replayed via a DSD DAC. It can be done ( I understand) using certain Oppo players plus some free software. So you may already have the player needed. However I don't think that any of the Schiit DACS have DSD capabilty as they don't use Delta Sigma converters and in any case you may not wish to become involved with computer audio.
As for your exisitng setup there are conflicting views as to whether or not conversion of DSD to high rate PCM is optimal. Certainly the material on most SACDS has been through some kind of DSD/PCM/DSD conversion process in order to allow for editing. As for on the fly conversion for replay I suspect that the success of it depends upon the algorithms chosen for the process.
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Follow Ups
- RE: SACD to HDMI to ??? to external DAC? - PAR 03:44:23 10/25/16 (0)