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Hi-Rez Highway New high resolution SACD releases, players and technology. |
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Hi-Rez Highway New high resolution SACD releases, players and technology. |
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In Reply to: This is very difficult for me to admit, but.... posted by Dalton on January 26, 2004 at 10:34:22:
I listen predominently to rock and over 2 channel only; I also have a moderately high-end CD playback system (belt drive Parasound player) which is remarkable. However, on a well recorded SACD the music is better all the way around than the SACD's corresponding CD layer or CD only pressing; yes, in some areas the improvement is subtle, but in key areas (i.e., key areas important to ME anyway) SACD performance is the hands-down winner, and not by a nose! BTW, for reference, my SACD player was modified by SACDmods.Where does SACD (2 channel) impress me over most CDs, you might ask? Well, sibilance has always been an irritant in hotly mic'd recordings (studio & live) that stands out on many CDs; you know, that annoying, unnatural almost tinny harshness that is present in pronounced "s" sounds that sounds more like distorted mechanical hissing noise than a more fluid "s" sound. This spitting sound can ruin an otherwise impressive performance for me, so I'm grateful that this isn't in evidence on SACD. BTW, that doesn't mean that the overpronounced "s" sounds aren't present in "hot" recordings released on SACD, it's just that they are conveyed more natuarlly.
The improvements don't end there of course, but that's one of the personal issues I have with recording accuracy. Other elements such as soundstaging (i.e., side to side) and inner detail are usually improved on SACD, and bass depth is often a phenomenal improvement on most SACDs over their CD counterparts, dependent of course upon the remastering of both the former and the latter.
One other point is relevent to this discussion: you didn't qualify the gear you were comparing, and it does make a difference. The quality of the SACD processing is crucial aqnd may be indicative of a greater or lesser subjective difference in listening experiences. Also, I didn't see your gear listed over on the Inmate Systems pages (i.e., mine is, in case you're interested), so I couldn't tell whether you were listening to the CD layer on a separate player, the same player, or whether your player was high-end, modified, mid-fi, or what. In some cases, I could almost imagine the CD layers sounding as good, although "crispness" can either be more musical (i.e., dynamic) or less musical (i.e., etched) dependent upon the ear of the listener and the gear in his/her system; that goes for rock music as well as classical & jazz.
Anyway, my experiences are somewhat different from your's and Duilawyer's, and that isn't discounting the quality of CD remasterings, some of which are undeniably exceptional.
AuPh
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- Well, different strokes I guess. - Audiophilander 12:22:26 01/26/04 (0)
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