When I compared audio formats in the past I used my headphone rig rather than my 5.1 system. I downloaded files from 2L-the Nordic Sound's "Test Bench". The files were of the same piece of classical music, all from the same master, but of varying formats (44.1/16, 96/24, 192/24, DSD, 2xDSD). These different files were made from a 352.8/24 master. Playing back in foobar2000 allowed me to switch between files in a fraction of a second.
As a "test" for my own personal edification, I believe this approach was sound (pun intended...I taught 6th grade).
I have downloaded all those available 2L demo files and have listened to them many times. As someone else alluded to, if the masters are the same, base on all else being equal, CD quality meets humans requirements in terms of transparency. Unless you really follow the typical DBT protocols, you quite likely would perceive differences, something like the higher bit rate/depth would sound better to you, such as, you might find:
DSD256> 352/824>192/24>DSD64>96/24>44.1/16. If you do follow DBT protocol then I would bet (speculating only of course...) you 10:1 you could not score better than 70/30 or even 60/40, like many had tried before and made claims on forums.
I like DSD, at least DSD128 and above and 24/96 and above and would continue to buy them from the likes of HDtracks, NativeDSD etc., but not because of the formats, rather, only because from my experience, the masters of HR files tended to be of higher qualities, so it is more of a quality assurance thing for me. I believe recording/mastering quality is the determining factor, not the playback bit rate/depth/sampling rate. I am not sure why I found the HR files tended to have high quality masters but I can guess human nature is such that if they are going to put more efforts in the process, and aim for higher price/margins, they might just do their due diligence better in the master selection process. Obviously, there are always exceptions, I have quite a few 192/24, 96/24 that don't sound as transparent as many of my CDs or 44.1/16 digital files. A few MP3 stuff sounded great too lol...
What gear you use and how you use it does matter. Listening on your speakers, you need to ensure that you are bypassing all DSP functions and bass management (if DSP is on, your AVR is probably converting the incoming digital signal to 32 bit for the DSP chip). If your Yamaha AVR has something like a "pure direct mode" where DSP and bass management are "off", listening to your speakers should be a good way to go. My AVR at the time (Anthem 520), could not handle DSD nor was it friendly for turning on/off DSP functions and bass management.
Have fun!
I don't think I would generalize it so much, it really depends, such as on what you are comparing, the only thing I would not hesitate is that comparison listening should be done in consistent way so that if I am to compare the same master but say 44.1/24 vs 192/24, then the playback of the files must be done with the exact same gear and listening conditions (including seating positions, ear heights etc., and if DSP is used then it should be used on both and in the exact same way, same for pure direct.., but now I am stating the obvious.
