The "DSD Revolution" Still Coming, or a Bust?

There is no controversy. DSD is a superb, but very specialized format. There will never be the amount of titles promised. DSD will survive in small
circles. The one thing that could be a game changer is SACD ripping freeware.

 

It has to be mechanical device, not just software. It has to be able to read the encryption key on the SACD, and a Sony licence was required in order to do that. Sony would have to give the rights, but certainly I hope it does happen.

 

I understand there is a fellow crowd funding SACD software that will essentially allow you to rip an SACD from a BluRay drive just like a CD with a turnkey, no fuss solution.

At this point, I think Sony is irrelevant in the matter quite frankly.

 

It's true that the encrypted signal can be sent over HDMI, but I would be impressed if someone could crack the 80-bit key without some insider help from Sony. You may think Sony is irrelevant in the matter, but I can't see it.

 

We'll have to agree to disagree. Not by a long way is how I describe 16/44.1 desperately trying but ultimately failing to get it right. But, it's all about ones point of reference. For me that starting point was growing up in a centuries old church with a magnificent pipe organ and a phenomenal organist (world class). I won't bore you with my musical resume. Suffice to say, I hear the real thing(s) everyday and CD sounds broken in comparison to higher resolutions, vinyl and tape. CDs sound great in a vacuum. I just choose not to live in that vacuum (unless there's no other way to get the music). Will DSD become a niche? I don't know if there ever was a "revolution". Nevertheless, there's no question that a native recording at a high(er than Red Book) resolution gets a whole lot closer to the "audio truth", DSD or PCM.

I'm glad you think most of the CDs you have from the early days are excellent. Enjoy them! Why not enjoy them? You bought them.

 

Yeah yeah I was a bit punchy when I wrote that.
On the humor side, I saw this getting started with DSD guide: http://schiit.com/guides/dsd-setup
Getting Started
Sit back. Relax. Take a few deep breaths. If you imbibe, you may want to pour yourself a drink. Getting DSD playback working is more like a science project than “plug and play.” If you’re easily frustrated, non-technical, short-tempered, or all of the above, you may just want to take a pass on this whole DSD thing. Seriously.

 

I really enjoy recording live in DSD. I've used a Tascam recorder with just 2 mics. Just has a real natural, full sound that captures the life of the music. I wish more titles were released this way. But at least there are a few labels putting out great recordings.

 

Wait - Let me get this straight. You're into hi-res, own a squeezebox touch (which does 24/192) and you don't rip sacd's via a PS3?

It's there for the taking man. What are you doing?

 

OK that was a multi-bit multi-level "Ergo". I tried to get a DSD license right now - for anything - playback, file manipulation, record take your pick. Couldn't find it anywhere. I was curious I persevered with quite a few searches. Even on Sony site I searched DSD, Sonic Studio, there were dead links, I couldn't click on the Scarlet book specification, nothing. Then I tried the same thing for FLAC - first page had links directly to the BSD and GPL licenses. If I was a developer 15 minutes more and I'd be done. Hence, everything supports FLAC and few things support DSD. If you want a DSD license you have to send in to Sony/Philips or the licensing entity and wait for ever get lots of lawyers involved.

So my point is that DSD is proprietary. The only way DSD would prosper is if the rights holders just absolutely positively refuse to release on anything but DSD and actively sued anyone clutching a FLAC file, like they did back in the day for DVD Video with CSS encryption. But that ship has sailed, they're releasing on FLAC and ALAC in a big way. Open always wins for media simply due to playability and ease-of-use.

I'm sorry for those that invested in DSD hardware I truly am. I hope it also does a good job playing PCM. We had a Betamax once, it was technically superior but can't remember what happened there .... Oh wait, that was Sony too ... what a co-incidence.

 

Hopefully you are joking.

I have much better things to do then hunt down a PS3 and and then having to do all the hacks.

I retired my Squeezeboxes...the SOtM Mini Server and Simaudio MiND are far far superior and I had it with the POS know as LMS.

99.99 of my collection is PCM and no new major catalogs are being done DSD.

Lastly $25 a pop for DSD albums? Fogeddaboutit.

 

It is a specialist two channel recording method, or a great way to archive tape. That is it.

The few labels producing DSD downloads are releasing music no one has ever heard of.

 

Nice gear!

I'm guilty of sticking with older gear and hope to upgrade in the future.

The PS3 really isn't the technical beast people try to make it out to be - It's cheap as hell too but ripping discs does take time and work. However, once you do it you're good to go - forever.

There is no and will be no other way to unlock the dsd from the stereo discs we already own as Sony has left us twisting in the wind. They're morphing in to a medical device company now. For now and forever the PS3 is the only way. Unless you're talking downloads of course.

 

As I note a few posts above there are folks working a solution to making roping SACDs just as easy as ripping CDs. Let's see what develops.

 

Can't rope em or rip em. The hole in the PS3 operating system was a short lived mistake.

BTW the guy in post 2 of this thread was part of the Sony development/test team. He knows the deal.

 

Are you sure about that?

 

Name 5 major pop or rock projects multitracked, mixed, and mastered in DSD.

 

Don't throw in qualifiers after the fact. You said, "It is a specialist two channel recording method...", and that is simply not true.

 

I go by what few native DSD recordings are available which almost all classical, jazz quartets, and other specialty genres like percussion and reading the liner notes of every single one. The eXaSound DSD recordings are done with two microphones.They are superb btw.

Enlighten us....

 

Nice go at redirection; but, your statement is still erroneous. Since when does the usage of a technology dictate the capabilities of the technology? If you understand my question, consider yourself enlightened.

 

C'mon with the double speak and obtuse smug nonsense.

The fact remains Not a SINGLE major recording artist has anything to do with DSD. Period.

It is obviously used by boutique labels for small runs of SACDs of legacy recordings,, but rarely do youngest a straight DSD transfer.

 

I'd rather be smug than voraciously stand by a false statement, my friend. SACD/DSD is NOT restricted to 2 channel. Period. All your posturing won't change that.

 

You have blathered on about how I am wrong..without a single example why. Without showing how it is not a capture format....put up,or shut up.

 

Oh, you were wrong because you failed to point out that of all the DSD titles just flying off the shelves, many of them are 5.1!

 

Oops. lol. Yeh, nothing is flying off of shelves or off of servers.