Are SACD's worth it?

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wrl

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Joined 2003
Ok, I realize that this is very open to oppinion, but I am looking at getting a new cd player. Most likely a used one as I want a single disc player (not a 500 disc, DVD/video game/toaster model)

I was wondering what are your opinions, should I consider getting one that will play super audio cd's as well. I am currently running a bi-amped system centered around a set of electrostatic panels, so if there is a difference, I should be able to hear it...

There are refurb sony models available on e-bay that I was considering. Any other suggestions are welcome (although I don't want to build my own... no time)



Thanks,
Wes
 
djmiddelkoop

djmiddelkoop

Member
Joined 2003
wrl,

I think it's worth the extra money if you can find the music (SA)CDs you like.
I prefer vinyl over my CD player, and once I heard a demo on a couple of different electrostatic panels with different CD players.
It was easy to hear it was CD, compared to vinyl I mean, but one of the demos was a SACD player with a SACD inside. It was easy to hear the improvements compared to CD.
The mids and highs were more detailed, more fluid.
It didn't sound like digital but like top analog.

hope this helps,
Dick
 
sam9

sam9

Member
Joined 2002
drachen-audio.com
Yes. It may be just that extra pains are taken in the recording process, but even so, if that's what it takes . . .

A good example is the Rolling Stones remaster. The redbook tracks are themselves substantially improved, 5the DSD track even more so. Perhaps it is just that remastering now in didital format, the sound no longer has to go through a dozen or so old 741 opamps . . . but who cares the results are super.

Anyway I've been happy with all the SACD's I've bought. However, same goes for DVD-As, DTS-CD and 24/96 CDs.
 
andy_c

andy_c

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Joined 2003
andycpublic.50webs.com/
wrl said:
(...)I am looking at getting a new cd player. Most likely a used one as I want a single disc player (not a 500 disc, DVD/video game/toaster model)

I was wondering what are your opinions, should I consider getting one that will play super audio cd's as well.(...)
Click to expand...

I'd say "Go for it!". I just got a Denon DVD-2900 and it's literally breathed new life into my old system (80's equipment with Magnepan MG-III speakers). I don't have many hi-res disks yet, and unlike most I have more DVD-A disks than SACDs. Of those, the SACDs are of disks that I hadn't heard before, so I have no basis for comparison with their Redbook counterparts. I did duplicate a few items from my CD and LP collection on DVD-A though. I got the Grateful Dead "Workingman's Dead" and "American Beauty" DVD-A disks. I'm intimately familiar with both the LP and CD of these, having originally bought the LPs when they came out in 1970, and the CDs in the 80s. These DVD-A disks sound fantastic! On these disks, the vocals and instruments are more distinct and not seemingly "smeared together" as they are on CD. Part of this effect may be from the remastering that was done, so I don't want to give more credit to the format than what is due, though.

Another comparison I've made is the CD vs. DVD-A of Steely Dan's excellent-sounding "Two Against Nature". They both sound great, but the DVD-A version seems to also have this "individual elements of the music are more distinct" property, as well as an enhanced sense of three-dimensional space when compared with the CD.

It's really hard to put this stuff into words and have it mean anything. But I've found when searching for the words to describe the improvement of high-res that "distinct" seems to come up a lot. There seems to be more detail, yet less harshness at the same time - something that I had previously dismissed as an inevitable compromise. Keep in mind that I'm an objectivist kind of guy, and that my observations are subject to all the human errors relating to "perception vs. reality" and other religious issues of audio. Your mileage may vary :) .

So I'd suggest getting a universal player so you can play DVD-A's as well. This will allow you maximum exposure to high-res music in general. Since the amount of available high-res music is somewhat limited, having a player that supports both formats is a good thing. One annoyance with DVD-A is that to negotiate the menus of the disks, it becomes necessary to have a video display attached to your player. I got a 13" TV for this purpose. You can get them at Circuit City for $60.

So far, the best deal I've found in stores on the disks themselves is at Best Buy and Fry's Electronics. I got the Steely Dan DVD-A for $13.99 at Best Buy and the Grateful Dead DVD-A's also for $13.99 at Fry's. Makes the Tower Records price of $17.99 for the Steely Dan CD look like a complete ripoff.
 
Brett

Brett

Member
Joined 2002
The Pioneer 655/656 is getting a lot of good press in some quarters as quite a decent DVD player, as well as SACD, DVDA etc. I think it's under $400 in the US.

Edit: the link finally worked for me. That looks very similar to the one I mentioned. Maybe it's the next years model or a US variant. Should be good.
 
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