Oppo 203 decoding question

[jimfisheye]

Just as DSD is best kept as DSD analogue is best kept as analogue. Call me a purist if you will.

What happens when the best, most intact, sounds most like the original, copy you can make is with a recording device that uses PCM digital sampling/recording technology? Because... that's kind of what happened! I'm a purist too and this is the most pure recording device I've come across.

Something about the nuts and bolts of digital audio tech weirds people out. Some of the nuts and bolts of the mechanical vinyl audio reproduction or magnetic storage are just as weird.

 

[jimfisheye]

Only for Mac

Evidence? I want to say that the OS should have no influence over transcoding settings. Obviously we've seen bugs in software before and sometimes on one platform but not another. But that would be the fault of the app itself.

I've made the comment that to be perfectly safe and comprehensive, to transcode to 32 bit floating point first. Then you can matter of fact see the level and determine the precise boost to normalize it. The +3db guess should work 9 times out of 10. Not a big red flag. Just saying.

 

[par4ken]

Evidence? I want to say that the OS should have no influence over transcoding settings. Obviously we've seen bugs in software before and sometimes on one platform but not another. But that would be the fault of the app itself.

I've made the comment that to be perfectly safe and comprehensive, to transcode to 32 bit floating point first. Then you can matter of fact see the level and determine the precise boost to normalize it. The +3db guess should work 9 times out of 10. Not a big red flag. Just saying.

Foobar does not give the 32 bit option. The program linked to is Mac only.

 

[barfle]

Only for Mac

Hmmm, a new use for my Mac Mini?

 

[mandrix]

For me, HDMI is how signals get from my Roku and from my cable box - audio and video. It’s how they’re built, and I don’t know of any other way to get audio out of those devices.

Until recently, I used my Oppo 105’s DACs for audio from discs and streams. Now, I have to use HDMI for Atmos, but I still use the analog connections. Of course, vinyl and laserdisc are analog, along with a couple more pieces of “legacy” gear.

I just bought a Roku, yet to be shipped. It's a more entry level 4K unit but should do fine for displaying my 4K concerts. I hope. Will also double as my pc monitor.

 

[barfle]

I just bought a Roku, yet to be shipped. It's a more entry level 4K unit but should do fine for displaying my 4K concerts. I hope. Will also double as my pc monitor.

A Roku TV? My Roku is a standalone hockey puck, with power, Ethernet and HDMI connections.

 

[jimfisheye]

Actually, these are my DSD transcode settings.
32:1 results in 88.2k sample rate.

I'm not sure what selecting 88.2k and a sample rate conversion algorithm leads to. ie. If the settings "cancel out" and and up the same of if there's a double back and forth conversion as it were. (Like 88.2 -> something else -> back to 88.2 instead of a straight shot.)

 

[barfle]

FWIW, PS Audio has a branch that makes SACDs (stereo only, definitely appealing to a small niche, but it's their business). They also play them streaming, so they HAVE to be converted all the way down to MP3. And they sound pretty good. Not everyone's cup of tea music-wise, but see what you think.

https://www.psaudio.com/ Click on "listen live" toward the top.

 

[mandrix]

A Roku TV? My Roku is a standalone hockey puck, with power, Ethernet and HDMI connections.

I bought a special model called the ROK-U.

 

[mandrix]

Actually, these are my DSD transcode settings.
32:1 results in 88.2k sample rate.
View attachment 112249

I'm not sure what selecting 88.2k and a sample rate conversion algorithm leads to. ie. If the settings "cancel out" and and up the same of if there's a double back and forth conversion as it were. (Like 88.2 -> something else -> back to 88.2 instead of a straight shot.)

What app/DAW are you using to transcode?
A friend was asking me about converting .dsf files to flac. I think he was using JRiver....but he thought the file size should be smaller.
I don't rip SACD to files myself.
EDIT: I only rip to .iso.

 

[jimfisheye]

What app/DAW are you using to transcode?
A friend was asking me about converting .dsf files to flac. I think he was using JRiver....but he thought the file size should be smaller.
I don't rip SACD to files myself.
EDIT: I only rip to .iso.

XLD (X Lossless Decoder)

FYI, It uses SOX for sample rate conversion. Also has all the lossy formats. Kind of a one size fits all utility.

I can say that the couple titles released in both formats that I have sound identical when precisely level matched. (SACD vs Bluray) Even nulling down to the noise floor. Some of those Genesis remixes put to both. Roger's Amused to Death. Something matching the sound and even nulling that far down into the decimal dust isn't coincidence... that transcode must be legit just like it's claimed to be.

I'd have to gear up with the ability to produce/create for DSD to make a more thorough evaluation. Reading on the tech, hearing an A/B match, and seeing a near full null are all enough evidence for me. 1. DSD is in fact just as full fidelity as PCM. 2. It transcodes back to PCM and thus doesn't need investment in expensive alternative converters.

Transcoding properly is not trivial apparently. I've heard some copies that were corrupt to the point of very audible distortion. There were some early days SACD rips that landed in 44.1k and 16 bit. I don't mean to suggest hearing anything from a sample rate conversion or even sample truncation to 16 bit from that. Take the 16/44.1 there as a telltale. Something went wrong with a conversion that ended with audible distortion beyond anything lossy or SD. I can only speculate about someone's shared SACD rip there. There were some early Genesis and Moody Blues SACD rips like this.

 

[mandrix]

I wonder what the Weiss Saracon app would do. I've used it to create files for SACD authoring, never tried back the other direction.