SACD vs HDCD

That's the first that I've heard that Steve Hoffman and Steven Wilson were competitive bidders for doing the recent Jethro Tull CD/DVD sets. I wasn't aware that Steve Hoffman did multichannel remixes. I have all of the recent Jethro Tull CD/DVD sets and they are amazing in musical content and sound quality. The multichannel mixes are excellent!

 

Yes, it sounds outstanding with great dinamics and very deep bass, for me it's a reference recording. The SPARS code on the back is wrong, reading the booklet on the La La Land 2-CD set from 2010 it states that it was tracked to analog (no mention of noise reduction being used) and mixed down to 24 bit digital, something very new and expensive back in 1996.

 

I never said "bidders for doing the recent Jethro Tull CD/DVD (and multichannel) sets".
I don't know if Ian Anderson just bid out a project to be done exactly as Ian specified, or if the remastering engineers were consulted to help Ian decide exactly what alternatives to choose among, for these "50th anniversary" releases. But I was referring to the audiophile LP releases, that really would have been spectacular under SH. SW is the DVD-A multichannel guy. SH is the "keep it analog guy"; and keep the digital master as close as possible to the original analog recording; and SACD/DSD/multi-channel. I don't have any opinion about multi-channel, or even about any digital format, as these are not my primary interest. I am strictly devoted to 2-channel high-end audio.

 

You did not specify or refer to LP remasters in your earlier post.

You might want to look at some of the releases that Steven Wilson has done. Many of his CD/DVD-V, DVD-A and Blu-ray remixes include flat transfers from the original masters (when available). I'm currently listening to Jethro Tull's Benefit 2 CD/DVD "A Collectors Edition". On the back cover of the digipak case it states (in all caps) "FLAT TRANSFERS OF THE ORIGINAL UK+US LP MASTER IN 96/24 LPCM". I would say Steven Wilson goes to great lengths to "keep it analog" (in a digital format) as well.

I have many discs that Steve Hoffman and Steven Wilson were involved in. I value them all as they are well done remasters or remixes and sound excellent. They certainly have different approaches to their work. I personally don't think one is better than the other.

With this being a thread discussing SACD vs. HDCD I find it odd that you state "I don't have any opinion about multi-channel, or even about any digital format, as these are not my primary interest". Why the interest in this thread if you don't have much interest in digital disc formats?

 

Speaking of the double CD release of the soundtrack, how is the sound quality compared to the original CD release?

 

It's great, as most (if not all) La La Land Records releases. It's only been remastered, unlike other La La Land releases the 2-CD Independence Day soundtrack didn't get a remix as it doesn't need it, it uses the original 24 bit mixes from 1996 and sounds great. With modern mastering, dithering and noise shaping almost 20 bit resolution can be achieved on red book CD.
It's a great release, if you like this soundtrack and it's still available (it's a 5000 units limited edition), get it, you won't regret it. I ordered yesterday the new 3-CD set for the Superman The Movie soundtrack. This is the first time the 1st gen 24 track analog recording sessions tapes are going to be used since the original album and movie mixes over 40 years ago. If features the full soundtrack, some alternate versions and the original album reconstructed (aka: put together again and digitally remixed from the newly found tapes) on CD 3.

 

Are you badgering me about something, or object to my inclusion in this thread? Please don't. I have as much right to be here as you do. If I had no interest and no experience with digital disc formats, I would not have provided my opinion.

I mentioned that I have a collection of SACD, HDCD (particularly Reference Recordings, but also many others) and DVD-Audio discs (including many mastered by Steven Wright). And I briefly described my players which include a dedicated SACD player with direct DSD (top-of-the-line Mararatz, with external power supply and vacuum tube analog output by ModWright); a quite high-end Rotel DVD player that features DVD-Audio and was designed for and marketed to the specialty audio buyer; redbook Mark Levinson and Audio Note(uk) CD transports and D/A converters; and numerous turntables, all with which I have compared sound of the various formats? So I thought my comments were as valid as anyone else's here, including you.

Now, out of all these formats, in which they ALL hold interest for me, I like pure analog the most, (that is LPs and Rt0R tape) I hope you don't think this preference disqualifies me for taking interest in this thread and having a valuable opinion to add. And, my final observation to your finding my comments "odd", I don't remember the OP asking anything about multi-channel. So that was you who decided to discuss that.

 

To those who don’t think that HDCD sounds much better than the standard red book, I say...you obviously haven’t heard what a good HDCD decoder/DAC can do.
I own an EAD 7000mk3 DAC with HDCD decoding...and use a Philips CD80 as a transport...just about everyone who has heard this set up with the HDCD disc playing easily hears the increase in resolution, bottom end extension, top end air and image precision over the standard red book release. A few folks who have heard this combo with HDCD have even commented on how great this sounds compared to even today’s top of the line digital gear...

 

It was in the early 90s i guess, when i read the first (professional) reviews of HDCD Disc players and they found significant improvements (in whatever combination - i cannot remember; i could not afford such a flag ship back then anyway). Even if signal processing improved massively through the years, CD still is 16 bit /44.1 kHz PCM. The more information is encoded, the more we can get.

BTW i tend to prefer an album on early HDCD disc over the same album on SACD/BD-A with "modern" remastering (i.e. wow sound in car, mobile device etc.). And if i was even capable to decode it properly...

 

I believe your judgement. I am obviously going to have to carefully listen to HDCD again. I do remember that EAD was very much devoted to HDCD and was highly acclaimed as about the best for playing it.

But have you heard SACD with DSD or DVD-Audio from a high-end player in your system? I find it to provide a dramatically higher level of resolution and dynamics.

 

Crazy, did you say crazy...? Crazy about $5000 used speakers...? Crazy about $4000 amps to drive them... ?Carazy about records to make them sound good...? Carrrrrrrazy about music...? Who ME?

What about him, who took the time to read what I wrote?.

Or her, , whos gonna get mad when he sneaks $5000 out of their bank account?

 

You changed your post to the crazier side.

 

I'm not badgering you nor do I object to your inclusion in this thread. I'm not sure how you came to that conclusion.

I responded to your earlier post with my thoughts on Steven Wilson. Maybe those thoughts differ from yours but that's what takes place in discussion forums like SH. Also I was genuinely curious as to why you'd be interested in a thread discussing SACD vs. HDCD when you posted that any form of digital audio is not your primary interest.

I see many threads discussing vinyl and gear associated with it. I rarely participate in those threads even though I have turntable setup. The reason for that is that digital is my primary interest. If someone questioned my interest in a thread(s) discussing vinyl or gear associated with it I'd explain my interest. I certainly wouldn't think that person was badgering me or thought I shouldn't be included in that thread.

 

Warren, well could be that SACD/DSD would sound better than HDCD. I am certainly open to that possibility, and no, I have not heard that in my system. I think, like you, I am far more focused on my analog set up. One of these days I am going to try and get an SACD/DSD player and listen for the differences....
Right now, I am quite pleased with my HDCD set up...in some ways it sounds almost as good as an entry level analog system...which, IME, for digital is saying something.