Does GNI have any audiophile in the house ?
Wanna chat about music and hardware.
Lets talk about FLAC, DSD, SACD etc. Lets chat about DACs, Turntables, CD players and transports, Cassette players etc.
Don't forget about Vinyl, CD, SACD, DSD High Res etc.
Let's also talk home theatre too.
Drop a line and let's chat here.
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I think D2 may be the guy
Boss, I hope he contributes.
You might have heard of DSD audio, but what exactly is it? Hereâs everything you need to know.
In the last few years, digital audio has become a bit more complex than it used to be. You can listen to digital files in a wide variety of formats and weâve written blog posts about these and the differences between compressed, lossless and high resolution files before. There is one format thatâs supported by some of our products thatâs different to any other digital media though. This format is called DSD and there are some myths and misconceptions about the format that weâre going to try and clear up.
DSD stands for Direct Stream Digital. Itâs a high-resolution format that produces a high-resolution signal in a different way to that employed by the PCM system that can be transmitted as WAV, FLAC, ALAC or AIFF. If we were to look at a â24 bit 96kHzâ file- a commonly used high resolution sample rate, this contains a stream of information 24 bits in size. This stream of information is then sampled 96,000 times a second- giving us the 96kHz part- to produce a signal that is then converted to an analogue signal by a DAC. The system has been used since the dawn of CD (which uses a 16/44.1kHz signal) and it also represents the basis of how our ATF upsampling process works.
DSD takes a different approach to the creation of a high resolution audio signal. Instead of using many bits of information in the signal, DSD uses a single bit. However, instead of sampling the information several thousand times a second, this single bit samples 2.8 million times a second to generate the audio signal. The result is still a high-res signal itâs just generated in a completely different way.
DSD also came into being for slightly different reasons to most other formats. In the 1990s Sony and Philips worked together to develop the replacement for the CD. The result was Super Audio CD, a format supported by our CXU Universal Blu-Ray Player. The high resolution content on SACD discs is encoded as DSD (many discs also have a CD layer so they will also work on a conventional CD player). SACD didnât go on to replace CD and remains a specialist format, but the world of digital audio has moved into places beyond physical discs.
This left DSD a format without a medium, but the âcharacterâ many people feel that DSD brings to music has meant that it has returned as a downloadable format that can be used via UPnP Streaming or USB. So what is this character? Many fans of the format say that there is a naturalness and tonal sweetness to DSD thatâs not found in more conventional formats and that itâs easier and more forgiving to listen to. This is hard to prove outright but our view has always been to try and let people decide for themselves, so both our CXN and 851N network audio players support DSD.
There are some important details worth knowing when making a comparison between DSD and a FLAC file, for example. The first is that DSD is not magically better than its rivals. A âstandardâ DSD file- often referred to as DSD64 is roughly equivalent to a sample rate of 24/88.2kHz. âDouble DSDâ or DSD128 samples that single bit of information 5.6 million times a second to give you a signal equivalent to 24/176.2kHz. Again, this is a sample rate that can be reproduced by formats that are not DSD. Higher rates exist but they are very, very rare. If anyone says that DSD is âbetterâ than other formats, the numbers donât necessarily support that.
Against this, there are some more logical answers why many DSD recordings sound very good indeed. Studios that master music in DSD specialise in high quality recordings of extremely good musicians. Because of this, DSD material includes some sensational music and if youâre a fan of classical music in particular, youâll find that some of the finest performances by orchestras and composers have been captured in DSD and thanks to the care and effort that went into them, they sound fantastic even before any of the benefits of the format come into play.
DSD isnât currently a mainstream format and thereâs a chance it wonât ever truly be something thereâs a huge choice of music in. Despite this it does have some truly stunning recordings in exceptionally high quality and thanks to its inclusion on our network streaming products, itâs something you can enjoy as part of your wider listening.
Do you have DSD files in your digital music collection? Is it your format of choice? Make sure you let us know in the comments below!
I love DSD over any other format. I do critical listening on a Denon DSD DAC with a Schiit Headphone amp and an AKG Q701 reference Headphone.
I find DSD 128 as the best format.
You don't know what you're missing out on until you listen to His res DSD music.
As more and more music lovers consider their personal computer or laptop as their principal audio source, they find that the sound quality they're getting simply isn't on par with what a premium component music system can deliver.
Denon's DA-300USB combination D/A converter and headphone amplifier elevates computer-sourced digital audio tracks to purist audiophile levels, delivering superb sound quality without compromise.
Equipped with a range of advanced digital technologies, the DA-300USB connects via asynchronous USB to the computer and features the ability to decode both PCM (traditional digital audio format) and DSD (Direct Stream Digital - the advanced digital audio format of SACD).
For connection to other digital audio sources, the DA-300USB also features three digital audio inputs - two optical and one coaxial.
Featuring audiophile grade construction with highest quality component parts and circuit design, the DA-300USB delivers a level of sound quality on par with Denon's highly praised universal disc players.
At the heart of the DA-300USB is the high resolution PCM1795 D/A converter, which features advanced segment 32 bit architecture along with the ability to handle up to 192kHz PCM sample rates as well as the ability to decode both 2.5Mhz and 5.6Mhz high resolution DSD files (either natively decoded or via DoP - DSD over PCM).
Via the USB-B port, the DA-300USB communicates with the PC or Mac via asynchronous data transfer mode, which ensures smooth, jitter-free digital communication, which is especially vital with very high bandwidth digital audio datastreams. For optimum compatibility with the broadest range of sampling frequencies, the DA-300USB is equipped with two master clock crystals, instead of the usual one.
For the widest dynamic range and lowest distortion, the DA-300USB features sophisticated digital signal processing, including Denon's exclusive Advanced AL32 processor that delivers vastly improved detail especially through the critical midrange band, providing noticeable improvements in clarity with low level softer sounds.
Housed in a sleek casing, the DA-300USB features no less than 7 separate printed circuit boards, to ensure the highest isolation between circuit blocks. Powered by a 15V/1A AC adapter, the DA-300USB features sophisticated DC power conversion technology with a power block that delivers separate DC voltage sources to power the various stages.
To ensure the most stable and accurate digital audio and timing data at the critical D/A converter stage, the DA-300USB also features advanced isolator chips that combine high speed CMOS technology with unique on-chip micro air-core transformers. A total of 9 isolator chips are employed, with 18 channels of isolation, delivering superior common mode noise rejection and maximum protection against digital noise transfer between critical stages, compared to conventional optoisolators.
The asynchronous USB-B port connects to your computer's USB-A port. Once connected, the computer recognizes the DA-300USB and routes the digital audio data to it, bypassing the source device's internal audio circuitry.
For connection to other sources, the DA-300USB features 3 digital audio inputs - two optical and one coaxial - so you can enjoy greatly improved sound quality from your HDTV, satellite or cable box, game console or disc player.
The line level output connectors are high quality, with full 2Vrms output for compatibility with integrated amplifiers, pre-amplifiers and other analog audio components.
The front panel headphone jack features a standard-sized 6.3mm/ž" connector, along with a convenient volume control.
For the purest audiophile grade sound quality, the DA-300USB is equipped with separate audio output circuits for the line level outputs and the headphone output. The headphone amplifier block features dedicated buffer and gain stages, and is compatible with the widest range of headphone types, including low impedance models.
The elegant front panel features an advanced OLED display that provides clear indication of the input selected, along with the audio file type (PCM, DSD), the sampling frequency and the headphone volume level. The Touch Control lets you easily cycle through the various modes.
You can choose to mount the DA-300USB either vertically or horizontally, depending upon your equipment configuration. An internal sensor detects the chosen orientation, and rotates the OLED display data accordingly. A custom bottom plate is provided for vertical orientation.
By What Hi-Fi? Posted
The competitively-priced Q701s keep their five stars for a third year running
The AKG Q 701s may be ludicrously big and green, but design isnât their real talking point (honest).
The flagship in AKGâs Quincy Jones-endorsed product range, and closely based on the companyâs K701 model, these over-ears have been residents of the five-star club for some time now.
And as theyâre ÂĢ100 cheaper than when we first tested them in 2011, weâre interested to see how these old-timers fare in new company.
The 701s sound just as we remember them: big, open, analytically detailed and superbly balanced.
Magni 3+ and Magni Heresy raise the bar even higher for affordable headphone amps, with by far the highest output power in their price classâat least 200% higher than any competitor. At the same time, they provide the cleanest measured performance of any Magni, ever. Go ahead. Compare these new Magnis to anything out there at the price, and we think youâll agree: thereâs really no competition.
| UP TO 5 YEAR WARRANTY |
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Audirvana is a high-performance audio playback software which handles all formats and resolutions, makes music a priority on your computer, adapts its settings to your sound system, and offers you all the necessary features to optimize your setup.
It looks familiar.
Regardless of the size or location of your music library, let Audirvana know where to find it. Then you can navigate it using an easy and elegant user interface, organize it as you wish, and create playlists.
Itâs simple. Audirvana is an open platform that accepts all formats used by our most demanding customers â FLAC, MQA, DSD, Apple Lossless, AIFF, WAV â but also M4A, MP3, WavPack, Cue Sheets, or APE.
Some of the above gear are for critical For audiophile Listening.
Now some hardware for day to day listening below:
"The new Cambridge Audio Azur 851W is impressive. I recently tried the 851W in my system and was really wowed by it."
Delivering immense power and incredibly low distortion, the 851W power amplifier is perfectly matched to partner our 851E pre-amplifier and 851N network player; taking their pure signal and amplifying it with huge presence and authority.
Rather than use a Class A design, which is sonically brilliant but generates vast amounts of heat, or a Class AB design, which is efficient but sonically limited, we developed our own Class XD amplifier design which the 851W takes advantage of. This has the sonic purity of Class A and the efficiency of Class AB for the best of both worlds. For more information on our unique patented Class XD technology watch the video at the bottom of the page or click here for a full description.
"With its 851E preamplifier and 851W, Cambridge Audio has built a pre/power combination that offers not only 'holy grail' audio performance, but also an almost complete suite of features and facilities. If you're in the market for separates (and you should be if you want seriously good audio!), this 851 duo should be high on your short list... if not at the very top of it. Highly recommended."
"If you are looking for a high-end amplifier that provides the performance of the $25,000 exotics but without the crazy price, the new Cambridge Audio Azur 851W is impressing many reviewers in the audio world."
"The new Cambridge Audio Azur 851W is impressive. I recently tried the 851W in my system and was really wowed by it."
"Simply, this is one of the most transparent, thrilling and richly rewarding amplifier combinations I have encountered, with fine grip on the speakers with which itâs used, vast amounts of information delivered and never even the slightest sense of the music being held back or sold short."
"These amps represent a genuine introduction to true high-end amplification at the same time offering real value for money. Features-wise theyâre fully loaded."
I normally struggle to summarize reviews â however, in the case of the 851E/W, itâs simple. Buy it, and thank me later. Chances are youâre already raising a phone to your ear and calling your local dealer for a demo â if thatâs the case, this review has served its purpose. If not, I suggest you do so nowâĶ if anything, you owe it to your music collection.
By What Hi-Fi? Posted
Marantz remains a master of the affordable CD player
The Only True Stereo Loudspeaker
Polk Legend Series Premium Floorstanding Tower Speaker with Patented SDA-PRO Technology
Introduction, September 2018
If you were an audiophile in the late 1970s or early 1980s-or just a teenager with a fresh driver's license-the Compact Cassette was integral to your life. While reel-to-reel magnetic tape introduced the concept of the âmixtapeâ decades earlier, it was not until the cassette's launch by Philips in 1963 and its later adoption in automobile decks and portables in the 1970s that music lovers got the ability to create personal playlists and take them to-go in a convenient, pocket-friendly format.
But eeking out high-fidelity from a design that traded a consumer reel-to-reel's ž-inch wide tape and typically 7-1/2 inch-per-second maximum speed for a 0.15-inch strip running at a meager 1-7/8 inches per second was not without challenges. Dolby B noise reduction, released in 1971 in Advent's Model 201 cassette deck, was a step in the right direction, as was the introduction of three-head decks with dedicated heads for erase, recording, and playback. Dual-capstan decks reduced speed variations by grabbing the tape on both the feed and take-up sides of the head cluster. Eventually, new metal tape formulations further improved performance. Still, serious hurdles remained. Notably, the small size and physics of the cassette calls for near-perfect alignment of the vertical gap in the playback head across the width of the tape. Any minor variance from perpendicularity results in a potentially dramatic loss of high frequencies. To make matters worse, the ideal cassette deck needs to retain that âazimuthâ alignment even after the tape is turned over or the tape direction reversed (and/or the head flipped) for playing of the B-side. Furthermore, minor azimuth differences between the angle of the play head and that of the original recording deck (a given with prerecorded cassettes) undermines any attempt to tune the deck for perfect repeatability.
Fortunately for audiophiles, these and other obstacles indigenous to the cassette became a source of fascination for Niro Nakamichi. The company bearing his name was founded by his brother Esturo in 1948 as a research outfit before it veered into reel-to-reel tape deck design in the 1950s. But it was Niro who later took over and gave the firm its greatest fame as provider of the world's finest (and most expensive) cassette decks. Among these, none was as heralded or lusted after as the Nakamichi Dragon.
Although the deck integrated several prior Nakamichi advances, what came together in 1982 in the $1,850 Dragon (later repriced to $2,499) was nothing short of an engineering marvel. Among its features was a beltless and springless dual-capstan transport with direct-drive motors controlled to remarkable accuracy by a quartz clock; the mechanism intentionally pushed away the cassette's troublesome, built-in pressure pad (normally intended to improve tape-to-head contact) and relied solely on the motors to provide the desired pressure. In Stereo Review's April 1983 review, written by Craig Stark of Starksonic Studio (who had by then taken over tape deck reviews to ease Julian Hirsch's burden) and reproduced here, the Dragon's measurements revealed the lowest wow-and-flutter of any cassette deck ever tested. But, as you'll read, its biggest breakthrough was the inclusion of Nakamichi Auto Azimuth Correction (NAAC), a microprocessor-driven system that used a cleverly-designed feedback loop to detect azimuth error in real time and physically correct it with a servo-controlled head, thus ensuring perfect alignment even with prerecorded tapes!
Fairly quickly, the complex and costly mechanics of NAAC technology and the difficulty of servicing these auto-reverse machines caused Nakamichi to abandon it in its RX series of UDAR (Uni-Directional Auto Reverse) decks, which mechanically flipped the cassette to best maintain azimuth accuracy. But the Dragon held on, finally exiting the market in 1993 after an 11-year run. Nonetheless, with the rapid advance of the Compact Disc in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the demand for Nakamichi's cassette decks waned, and the new digital audio tape (DAT) format it banked its future on failed to gain traction with consumers. The company eventually lost its financial footing and disappeared. After years of dormancy, the brand is now controlled by Grande Holdings, a Chinese firm based in Hong Kong that offers the Nakamichi Shockwafe series of high-performing soundbars and other lifestyle electronics. -Rob Sabin
There is much higher end gear with a single Amplifier going over $ 10,000 but based on my experience, there is a lot of snake oil in the audiophile market.
The above gear is affordable and provided among the best listening bang for buck.
So why wait ? Dig out your Vinyl, Cassettes, DSD, FLAC and enjoy them. It's all about the love for music. A whole generation lost out with streaming of low quality MP3 music. Let them sample some higher quality music and relish in the real quality of sound.
If you are picky and still want Hifi, Tidal offers FLAC music streaming.
Share your gear, you might be sitting some very cool hardware.
I have been blessed with a golden ear so I can pick up a lot of details. The younger folks have excellent hearing and still have a chance to enjoy. We are losing an older generation who love music and cannot share their experience with us.
I will try to share my home theatre experience in the near future sharing some 4K projectors, Dolby Atmos Amp and speaker system, Projector screen, Subwoofer, ceiling and floor standing speakers and comfortable seating. 4K Bly ray. Streaming your 4K Movie collection from a home server etc.
I watched the latest Star Wars movie in theatre and my projector quality, seating and sound system is much more enjoyable than what I saw in the theatre.
Stay tuned.
I rather just build a simple headphone amp using the lm386 audio amplifier IC. I'm not up-to-date with the new digital designs of amplifiers. I can't afford the expensive stuff also I will still hear distortion coming from one source or another no matter how expensive the equipment is. I currently have a radio shack PA amplifier connected to a ONN boombox to play CDs and radio. When I record my rap I use a cheap dynamic microphone with a homemade mixer that uses an OpAmp IC and a transistor for the mic preamp. I used to steal parts at radio shack but I wish I worked there. My dad gave me money for much of my hobby to buy parts and I really appreciate him for that. Some days I would buy capacitors and resistors and other low-cost items.
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