[headphone4me]

I have a soundcard as my first source Creative Titanium HD. I want to get an SACD/DVD-audio source for when not hooked to the computer.
 
1. When coming from the sound card would it be better to go RCA out or headphone mini out?
 
2. Should the volume on pc be adjusting volume and Schiit the gain setting?
 
3. SACD/DVD-audio source if it is worth the sound difference vs. regular cd's and DTS audio.
 
DAC will come later but any suggestions are fine.
 
Thanks For Any Help 
 

 

[ProtegeManiac]

1. RCA.
 
2. Ideally digital volume should be 100% and then you match the analog volume on the amp to that.
 
3. Question is will you find your music on SACD? I barely found anything save for some Jazz, most of the SACDs are Classical and I listen to only a few of them (Mahler, Grieg, Mozart, Wagner.)
 
---
 
Does the Lyr have two sets of RCA inputs so the SACD source will have its own alongside the soundcard? And given #3 above, why not just get the DAC, then you use that to feed the Lyr? In any case most DACs might not decode the SACD anyway. IMO, if you're thinking of using the soundcard as a source when you don't need high quality decoding, like games, it's still a waste overall: tubes wear out faster than chips. Might as well get a solidstate DAC with a headphone output.

 

[headphone4me]

1. Thanks.
2. Thank you.
 
3. I looked after you wrote that and it seems SACD will not work in windows at all or not without a lot of work arounds I do not want to go through. Do you like what you here in the SACD DVD-A though? I probably just need a good source dvd or cd drive that can send detailed music. I am not sure which is a good brand now much less a good model.
 
I think the LYR has only one set of inputs.
 
I have 2 places that need this type of equipment.
 
I was hoping Schiit would come out with a DAC. Do you have any suggestions for combination amp/DAC or DAC? Is there a special DAC needed for SACD and DVD-A
 
I will be getting a solid state for my office which is where I need another setup. The woman in the office next door likes to complain even at low low levels. The low vibration seems to bother her.

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Oh, I thought you meant you'd get an SACD or universal player. DVD-A might play on Windows, but I don't think SACD will unless you have that software that comes with some Korg and Sony recorders since they encode in DSD. Might as well just enjoy only DVD concerts since they'll work just fine, but I think they also use 24/48. I liked the SACD improvements, but the lack of support is frustrating.
 
Personally, skip the SACD. A good DAC isn't always expensive. The NFB-12 I think has SPDIF and USB, so you can use it with PC's and if you upgrade your soundcard or get a CD transport/Media Server later on you can use the SPDIF inputs. Plus it has enough power to drive most cans, and analog output to feed the Lyr, in case you have one rig that might need the Lyr but a solid state DAC-Amp for that or another can for when you might want to put less hours on the tube when not listening critically (gaming, YouTube and listening while browsing/working, etc.)

 

[headphone4me]

I am sorry I am confused a little on this because I need a source for sitting in my office I thought maybe SACD DVD-A would be good to play all formats for sound. That way if I could get something different it would be able to be played. I always try for the highest quality best sound I can get. The same problem exists with DTS not much support and hard to find. My favorite is the eagles on DTS. What kind of DAC or component would I need to get SACD and DVD-A and DTS? Can that be done with headphones?
 
I never get to sit and really enjoy my music at home so SS. I enjoy the family chaos LOL. For now I am trying to get started and can only get one. I thought the LYR and Denons could get broke in while waiting for the SS to be purchased and a new set of phones. That was just my thought.
 
I am really interested in what is needed for SACD playback do you have any suggestions for equipment? I was thinking about setting up the LYR with a source and some DAC preamp to get it to the LYR and some different headphones.
 
 

 

[ProtegeManiac]

I'm not sure, but I think the Benchmark DAC-1 can decode all of those save for SACD.

You might want to start with the entry-level Sony SACD first, it's only $150 I think. Or get a good universal disc player. I caution against the latter with SACDs, though. Some entry-level Universals, like the slimline Pioneer and Philips players (other brands do not read the DSD layer on SACDs), DO NOT play SACDs natively. Instead of a true DSD DAC, they convert/downscale the stream to regular - ie, CD - resolution and sampling rate, which gets converted by the 24/48 or 24/96 DAC designed primarily for DVD-A. So in effect, cheap "universals" won't really give you the real deal with SACDs. Although honestly at the time I had a Pioneer DV696 and Sony SCD595, the difference in sound could be attributable to the analog output more than the digital decoding, since I had only Wharfedale Diamononds then. 

An alternative will be to buy the Korg MR-1, rip the DSD-format tracks from SACDs, save them in the MR-1, and use them like a portable CDP - ie, desktop while plugged into a wall socket (batt life sucks.) This way it's transportable and less bulky than a regular player designed primarily for speaker-based systems. Otherwise, I think ES-series Sony players and Oppos have true DSD playback.

 

[headphone4me]

I really appreciate the help. Two questions on source one on changing to a digital format like MP3 or FLAC.
 
How can the MR-1 make digital files from SACD would it need to be connected directly to something like a Sony or Oppo digital out? What is a good Oppo model to look at doing all of my formats?
 
I was looking at my CD collection and I may be months changing them to digital what is the best format to get the most out of my cd's? Windows media player Itunes or some other way MP3 seems most compatible but does it sound good enough at say 320kbps?

 

[Uncle Erik]

You do realize that SACD is encyrpted, right? I have seen a way to get around that, but we don't discuss that kind of thing here. It is against the TOS. For the record, I only play SACDs I've bought on a SACD player, I have never ripped a SACD and do not intend to.

Second, is there music on SACD that you want? About 90% of music available is classical. Then about 9% jazz and 1% other. Further, quite a few of the rock SACDs are out of print and appreciating fast. You might pay $100 or more for a particular SACD. I was lucky to buy quite a few at retail. I could not afford to replace my collection at today's prices, though.

If you're a hardcore classical and jazz listener, your best bet is to buy a dedicated SACD player and forget about using it with a computer. That's what i do.

As for DVD-A, it lost the hi-rez format war. The catalog is extremely limited. I run DVD-A because I found a terrific player for $100 and occasionally stumble across DVD-A discs. I have about 20 of them. It's a very, very small niche. But because I have a player, I pick them up now and then.

If I were you, I'd think more about getting a good DAC and setting up a computer-as-source rig. Don't bother with SACD or DVD-A unless you're seriously into classical and jazz and running a setup with dedicated components.

 

[headphone4me]

Ok then no I did not know it was encrypted probably the reason I hate sony for most things sony. I guess I will give this up this is really not what I was expecting 100 per cd. I do like classical and jazz but not at that price. To build a library it could get too expensive. I thought they would be a lot less than that but more than regular CD's. This is starting to be a difficult thing to do. What is the best thing to do is there higher quality cd's or is it back to a turn table. Me personally I can not go back to that records are hard to find turn tables are hard to find needles and dusting brushes are hard to find. What DAC do you recommend?

 

[ProtegeManiac]

Quote:

I really appreciate the help. Two questions on source one on changing to a digital format like MP3 or FLAC.
 
How can the MR-1 make digital files from SACD would it need to be connected directly to something like a Sony or Oppo digital out? What is a good Oppo model to look at doing all of my formats?
 
I was looking at my CD collection and I may be months changing them to digital what is the best format to get the most out of my cd's? Windows media player Itunes or some other way MP3 seems most compatible but does it sound good enough at say 320kbps?

AFAIK, you can't just rip them. SACD is DSD, not simply PCM on higher sampling rate. The MR1 encodes into DSD, and if I remember right, it has software to transfer DSD files into it, so I assume it has a way of ripping discs.
 
Personally, just rip your PCM music collection to FLAC and call it a day, then buy more CDs or try other gear. Unless you listen to a lot of Classical don't bother with SACD. Although I am sorely tempted to encourage people to buy into that format just to encourage studios to make more and from other atists, but that's a long shot anyway and I decided to just save people money.
 
 

 

[headphone4me]

I had a sony DVD player I was giving to my son and by chance it does SACD so I got a few to try. What software is the best to rip with FLAC?

 

[ProtegeManiac]

I use MediaMonkey. Research on that DVD player you have, even some Sonys have that PCM conversion trick. Best bet is the SCD-595 on the cheaper side, and then there are the ES universal players.
 
I had the 595 before but after a few months it stopped reading CD-Rs; then it stopped reading the SACDs, but read regular, commercially-printed CDs just fine. Sold it out of frustration. But when it worked, I loved the sound for the price. Although since I was on speakers at the time and my room wasn't deadened, the difference over a more reliable NAD (post-C520 with busted transports) worth 3x the price wasn't appreciable until about 11PM since my old "dorm" was near a main road.

 

[headphone4me]

Yes you were right the one I have can only send the signal through HDMI but I will be able to play them in my stereo. I think in a little while after getting my amp and headphones I am going to get an Oppo of some kind. This is turning into quite an investment to get it all right. I think I am going low end compared to some of the people on here. Hey I have to start somewhere. If the Lyr can do the trick for now and I get the Oppo I will move those together with some other headphones and get a SS amp for my Denons maybe the Asgard but hopefully a little cooler one that sounds good too.