SACD ripping using your PS3 (part 2)

[bleedink]

Sorry Ted for some reason I thought you were talking about errors with the iso...should have read more carefully! I can play DSD (my amp does decode DSD via hdmi) but haven't been able to configure Jriver to bitstream the files in native DSD. The DSDIFF files I am playing are getting converted to PCM no matter what I've done thus far with the ASIO drivers and what not. Sorry to hijack the thread with my poor reading skills! :-) I haven't gotten around to converting the iso's to DSDIFF quite yet...sounds like it's gonna take a few--then to figure out how to play the darn things! I would think if it was some kind of DRM thing it would affect the iso way before it would affect the resultant files. (ie if the iso plays then whatever is extracted from it should therefore play...weird Ted.)

 

[Mr Wicked]

For Linux users out there..

 

Do a "cmake ." in the sacd_extract folder and run "make" afterwards, it should compile without errors or warnings.

 

I have no access to an OS X machine, but if someone volunteers to try to do the same on OS X it should work on that platform as well.

 

[Synfreak]

I only have the "European" - speak dual-layer - SACDs of the Peter gabriel catalog, but I might be able to take a closer look at the issue later this week / weekend, as my (silver pre-amp version) Mytek has arrived today.

 

I will get back on you, as soon I'm able to do some critical tests.

 

 

Cheers

Harald

 

[ted_b]

up as "Peter Gabriel - Peter Gabriel 3(Melt)". I was given a PG3 ISO that comes up "Peter Gabriel LTD - Peter Gabriel 3"...it also exhibits the same problem. Loads fine in either software player, shows "dsd" and plays no sound. Converts fine. ?

 

[pepar]

How much of a difference is there in sound quality using the external DACs I read about here and other audiophile forums compared to a typical high end preamp/surround processor? I have experienced DAC upgrades as I have upped my pre/pro, and I get that there is better transparency, detail and dynamics. But is it HUGE?

 

And then ... what is the cost of these toys that I didn't know I needed? ;-)

 

Thanks,

Jeff

 

[elcorso]

Jeff, I don't understood your specific question, then I bring you several answers:

 

• Between native DSD playback versus PCM hi rez I found a HUGE difference, winning DSD. Like from two albums, "Cantate Domino", Propius label, and "Kuniko Plays Rich" Linn Records label. I have bot on 24/192 DL and on DSD rip.

The boring high frequency on PCM doesn't exist on DSD, the 'air', presence and tone from instruments and singers is more accurate also on DSD (for my ears).

 

• Digital music reproduction is better served by a music server that from a cd/sacd player to an typical high end preamp/amp/speakers (I'm not on surround). I found also HUGE the difference (for my ears too).

 

Regarding of the "cost of these toys", I have two answers from two jokes:

 

--"The difference from toys men & kids use is the price"--

 

--"One more foot on your yacht length is like to have one more inch i pe**is size" I don't own a yacht, but some friends.--

 

Best,

 

Roch

 

 

[pepar]

Thanks, Roch. I mostly own multichannel hi-res SACD/DVD-A and have a very capable surround system in a dedicated and acoustically treated theater. I do own a few stereo hi-res titles, and a large CD collection, but even for them I will engage a listening mode to "expand" to the whole system.

 

My question is how much difference in sound quality would I hear if I used an external DAC as opposed to the ones in my preamp/surround processor for my SACD/DVD-A titles? And do 5.1 externals DACs even exist?

 

Jeff

 

[ted_b]

prosumer (pro companies that sell to audiophiles too) companies as Metric Halo, Prism Orpheus, Mytek, etc.

 

My take on most (not all) pre-pros is that they are a jack-of-all-trades machine that compete in features-wars, and that put very few dollars and very few quality parts into their analog stages after the DAC chip. As soon as I say that someone will find a diamond in the rough, of course. But on average, the external DAC will pund-for-pound present a much better sound. The external DSD-DAC market is very small, however (growing, but small).

 

[pepar]

Thanks, Ted.

 

I'd guess that an external DAC would require a PC .. no way to feed it data otherwise?

 

Jeff

 

[ted_b]

be it a cd transport with a digital out, a universal player with a digital out (redbook and DVD-A only), a computer, etc. If you are ripping SACDs as per this thread then I assumed you had a computer. I guess I'm confused, once again, by the question.

 

[pepar]

Yes, I have seven PCs around the house .. but none in the home theater. And I've been leaning toward a Popcorn Hour or Dune networked media player connected to my pre/pro as a one-box solution. I've looked at XMBC, but presently it's not able to do what the dedicated appliances can do with movies.

 

I still haven't gotten to that part of the plan yet, so it's still up in the air. However, I was just cured of my curiosity when I google the 8-ch Mytek DAC and saw the prices. :-)

 

Jeff

 

[Synfreak]

I got arround of all the needed installing/preparing/copying today, and - even this might be not what you wandted me to write ... ;-) - I got the EXACT same problems as you described when trying to play native DSD (DSDIFF files) of the Peter Gabriel albums.

 

They ripped fine, extracted fine, and even converted without any sign of a problem (used Audiogate to convert to 176,4/24 PCM).

 

But if I try to play the DSDIFF files (using HQPlayer on Win7), only some accasional blurbs come thru.

Mytek shows "DSD", and HQPlayer indicates playback, but ... no sound at all.

 

Grmmmblprfrmmmmfd :-(

 

Other albums/files seem to play fine (at least up to now ...).

 

Psitiv thing is:

 

I got my Win 7 setup and the Mytek playing DSD up in a few minutes!

 

- installed the latest (USB in my case) driver

- installed a evaluation version of HQPlayer

- made the adjustments as described for playing back via the "dCS method"

- and ... voila ... it works

 

Hopefully someone could get arround that "PG-problem", as I really love these albums a lot ;-)

 

Cheers

Harald

 

[ted_b]

One, congrats for joining the native DSD listening club!!

Two, congrats for affirming that I haven't yet gone insane!!

 

Very strange about these PG albums. Michal has a song I dl'd him (he will erase after testing as he doesn't own it) from "Us" so we'll see.

 

Ted

 

[Synfreak]

... straight on the edge, it seems :-)

 

After setting up the Mytek, I choosed to do some adjustments on his menu settings.

 

And what jumped out at me was a setting called

 

"Remote"

 

Ha!

 

Switched it to enabled, grabbed the nearest remote I could get my hands on (from my Loewe television set), and ...

 

 

...

 

 

......

 

 

.........

 

 

Coooooool, I'm now be able control the Mytek volume with my remote.

 

This is getting better from minute to minute!

 

And this will get a very very long evening today ;-)

 

Cheers

Harald

 

[ted_b]

and have been asking Michal and team for codes (Philip[s Pronto). I will PM you to ask how you did it.

Ted

 

[ljames]

What is gapless in SACD_Extract?

If I specify -g it still gives me individual dff tracks.

I know there is DSD merge utility, but it will be nice if rippler/sacd_extract will give whole disc as one big def file and cue file, this is very useful for some SACDs, such as Mahler's Symphonies etc.

 

 

[pepar]

I *think* that gapless comes into play when one song segues into the next without a fade. Not Mahler, though I'm sure there are examples ... :-) .. I would cite Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon ... or any thematic album. Without a gapless feature, there would be gaps placed between "songs" on playback of the entire "performance" even though the original recording was continuous.

 

Jeff

 

[ljames]

I do have dark side of the moon.

I ripped it with PS3 as ISO, and use scarletbook.exe extract dff files and then use dsdmerge.exe make them I big dff file and it plays flawlessly from Korg MR2000S. (I mean gapless between tracks and nothing missing either.)

So I was thinking if "gapless" option is specified, it should generate one single file of the whole disc, otherwise, it's so vague what gapless means when you still have all those single tracks. .

I don't have time to test it thoroughly, just use an ISO I still have on the hard drive, it looks like with the -g option, the output file is slightly bigger.

 

 

[pepar]

"Gapless" is a playback thing, not a file thing. You only have one file when in ISO format. Once you extract, you have individual files. But if the songs flow together on the album, then you probably want them to when playing from the extracted individual files. Hence, "gapless."

 

Jeff

 

[pepar]

I ripped my first hybrid stereo/mch SACD. During the disc analysis step, area 0 was listed as stereo DST and area 1 as mch DST. I did not at the time step through the output options, just accepted the default ... and got the mch layer.

 

If I had looked at the output options, would I have found that I could designate the stereo layer instead of mch?

 

Jeff

 

[ted_b]

sacd-extract program? The ripper has ALWAYS had the capability ("O" button on US PS3 controller) to toggle/cycle through all the extract options

ISO

Stereo DIFF

Stereo DSF

Multichannel DIFF

Multichannel DSF,

DST-compressed

....and back to ISO

 

These options will be available based on the nature of the SACD (i.e of course multichannel options won't show if the SACD is stereo-only). Regardless, 99% of us rip only ISO's, then take our ISO's to the desktop (Windows, Linux and now MAC, I guess) and use sacd-extract. What are you puzzled about?

 

[pepar]

You're saying that the ISO includes both layers? When creating the ISO, it specifically said "mch" for the "area." That suggested, to inexperienced me at least, that there would be a different ISO for "stereo."

 

Jeff

 

[ted_b]

n/t

 

[pepar]

Roger that, Ted.

 

[elcorso]

Ted et al,

 

I was looking for some art for my ISO rips, and found the ultra exotic prices for out of print SACDs!!!

 

Natalie MacMasters "In my Hands" (new) $217.54 + $2.98 shipping

 

Roch