High Resolution Audio

[AudioBuffCO]

Hey All - I am considering some gear to play High Resolution Audio. I would incorporate it into my home system. Any thoughts as to whether it really is better sound quality than CDs? I refer you to this article which highly disputes that:

https://www.kirkville.com/how-the-audio-industry-is-deceiving-consumers-with-high-resolution-audio/

but, I am always open for others' thoughts/opinions.

Thx,

Tom

 

[mtrycrafts]

I don't see a link to anything.
But, even without it it has been hashed to death. Nothing to it except it may sound different due to their processing.

 

[AudioBuffCO]

Thx for reply. Sorry, forgot to include link. I have now inserted it.

 

[lovinthehd]

Why do I even want to consider what kirkville.com has to say about it? Can you summarize why you think "hi res" is advantageous in your use?

 

[AudioBuffCO]

Whether you want to or not is, of course, entirely up to you. Call me weird, but I am open to all opinions. I do not KNOW if it is advantageous in my use. I am asking for the input of the experience of others. My GOAL, and desire, however, is the best available, quality sound. Thanks.

 

[lovinthehd]

Well some more research or perhaps a link that looks more conducive to click on for the subject....

Generally not a lot of provenance for much of the "hi-res" so far so take whatever you see with that label with a grain of salt; there have been instances of cd being transferred to a "hi-res" format on even relatively well known "hi-res" download sites. Hard to know just what you're getting.....

Can you really distinguish it to make it worth the expense in any case? Have you tried your own experiment of taking something like a cd and comparing it with a 320kbps compression codec (there's a few)? You can do something like that on your own with software like Audacity. Same thing with a 24/96 "hi-res" file, put it into various formats with Audacity and do the dbx comparison, see if you find it revealing of a significant difference....

 

[AudioBuffCO]

Thanks to all for some great points to ponder. I've decided to stick with CDs. I am a huge fan of SACD - I have 6 or 7 titles so far, and will buy more, for sure. Additionally, I have been replacing some of my favorite CDs with remastered versions. So far, I have had excellent luck - hearing considerable improvement over the original CDs. If the source material sucks, the "best" system in the world is not going to do much to make the material sound great. Hence my focus on quality CDs / SACDs. Thanks again all - really appreciate it!

 

[lovinthehd]

Thanks to all for some great points to ponder. I've decided to stick with CDs. I am a huge fan of SACD - I have 6 or 7 titles so far, and will buy more, for sure. Additionally, I have been replacing some of my favorite CDs with remastered versions. So far, I have had excellent luck - hearing considerable improvement over the original CDs. If the source material sucks, the "best" system in the world is not going to do much to make the material sound great. Hence my focus on quality CDs / SACDs. Thanks again all - really appreciate it!

Curious, you exploring multi-ch SACD? That's all I look for personally in that format.

 

[AudioBuffCO]

Yes - interested only in Multi-channel SACD

 

[lovinthehd]

What have you got so far?

 

[VonMagnum]

I recorded my own album in 24/48. Hell if I can tell any difference at 16/44.1....

If you look at the specs you can see why. How many albums use anywhere near 16-bits of dynamic range, let alone 24-bit? Who'd want to listen loud enough to hear it (you'd go deaf pretty fast). Most of us can't hear even 20kHz so what good is a sampling rate that lets you go higher? There's filtering, but oversampling solved that back in the 1980s. It's moot.

I'd be happy if iTunes sold lossless CD quality even and studios didn't squash dynamic range to the point an LP does better just because it physically can't be compressed that much/loud without causing the styles to jump out of the groove...

 

[PENG]

I have many SACDs, DVDs, CDs, digital files from 16/44.1 through 24/384 and DSD64 through DSD256, and based on my own experience, it is the quality of the recording that determines the overall sound quality. So I have CDs that sound better than SACD or DSD256, but the odds seem to favor SACDs and 24/192, DSD128 or higher res files in terms of the quality of the recording/mastering.

You can down covert a dsd256 file to say 16/44.1 or even MP3 256, if the recording is too notch, it could still sound better than some SACDs or DSD256 files that are of subpar recording quality. As always ymmv..

 

[DigitalDawn]

Love my SACD and DVD Audio discs -- especially the multi-channel versions. Wish there were more titles.

 

[AudioBuffCO]

What have you got so far?

Eagles - Hotel California
The Allman Brothers - Eat A Peach
The Allman Brothers - at Fillmore East
Elton John - Honky Chateau (just for Rocket Man!)
Derek and the Dominos - Layla
The Doors - Waiting For The Sun
Heart - Alive in Seattle
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon

How about you??

 

[lovinthehd]

I have the Pink Floyd DSotM disc. I have a multich DTS disc of Fillmore East. Plus:
Monty (Alexander) meets Sly & Robbie
Hiromi - Brain
Bloomfield Kooper & Stills - Super Session
Jeff Beck - Blow by Blow
Dire Straits - Brother in Arms
The Doors
The Doors - Morrison Hotel
The Doors - LA Woman
The Who - Tommy
Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde
The Rolling Stones - Sympathy for the Devil (several remixes of that song)
The Rolling Stones - Get Yer Ya-ya's Out (2ch)
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Jazz at the Pawnshop - 30th Anniversary 3 SACD disc set with dvd
John Abercrombie & Eddie Gomez with Gene Jackson - Structures
Weather Report - Tale Spinnin'
Monty Alexander - My America
Herbie Hancock - Gershwin's World
Concord Jazz - SACD Sampler Vol 2
RS500 SACD sampler
Welcome SACD Ultimate Collection (sampler, some 2ch, some multich)

 

[AudioBuffCO]

Cool - of the ones you have, "Wish You Were Here" & "Tommy" are at the top of my "To Buy" list. They both sound pretty incredible??

 

[lovinthehd]

Wish You Were Here is very good, I like it a bit better than DSotM. Tommy didn't blow my socks off but beats hell out of my old vinyl

 

[lovinthehd]

Forgot about some more discs with multich:
Vivaldi - The Four Season/Concertos for Double Orchestra DTS
Mozart Requiem Alexander Jero DTS
Snarky Puppy - Family Dinner Vol 2 (cd/dvd set)
Van Morrison - It's Too Late to Stop Now vol. II, III, IV (dvd/cd set)
Jethro Tull - Benefit (cd/dvd set with Steven Wilson remix)
Emerson Lake & Palmer (cd/dvd set with Steven Wilson remix)
Emerson Lake & Palmer - Tarkus (cd/dvd set with Steven Wilson remix)
Steven Wilson - Insurgentes (cd/dvd set)

Then there are the blu-rays:

The Police - Certifiable Live in Buenos Aires
Led Zeppelin - Celebration Day
Beatles - Yellow Submarine
Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
Jeff Beck - performing this week...Live at Ronnie Scott's
The Planets - an HD Odyssey (7.1!)
Fantasia & Fantasia 2000
Beethoven Symphones 5 & 6 The New Dimensions of Sound (DTS)
The Nordic Sound - 2L Audiophile Reference Recordings (with SACD)
Trondheim Solistene - Divertimenti (with SACD)
Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live
Eric Clapton & Steve Winwood - Live from Madison Square Garden
Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense
John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers and friends - 70th Birthday Concert
Porcupine Tree - Anesthesize
Steven Wilson - Get All You Deserve
Steven Wilson - The Raven that Refused to Sing
Steven Wilson - Hand.Cannot.Erase
Steven Wilson - 4 1/2
Steven Wilson - To the Bone
Steven Wilson - Home Invasion
Yes - Tales of Topographic Oceans
Frank Zappa - Roxy the Movie

DVDs
Spike Jonze - The Work of the Director... (2ch)
James Taylor Live
Emerson Lake & Palmer - Pictures at an Exhibition
Tool - Parabola
Zappa plays Zappa
Nirvana - Unplugged in New York
Alice in Chains - Unplugged
Gorillaz - Demon Days Live
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Pink Floyd - In Concert Pulse
Porcupine Tree - Arriving Somewhere
Yes - Keys to Ascencion
Emerson Lake & Palmer - Live at Montreux
Keith Emerson Band - Moscow
Led Zeppelin - The Song Remains the Same
Al Dimeola, Jean-Luc Ponty, Stanley Clarke - Live at Montreux 1994

 

[AudioBuffCO]

Nice collection & variety! Can't wait to add some tiles to my collection/

 

[lovinthehd]

Nice collection & variety! Can't wait to add some tiles to my collection/

Can be a good starting place https://www.facebook.com/swremixes/