How to tell if a CD is Encoded?


 I recently bought a boxed CD set of Beethoven’s Symphonies (von Karajan’s 1963 recordings, on DGG), and cannot find any information on the digital encoding,  either on the CDs or the Internet. Is there a simple way to determine whether a  CD was recorded as PCM or DSD, and at what sample rate (my DAC does not display this)?
128x128cheeg
Fascinating -- thanks for the explanation.  Can you recommend a good book that covers these topics?
That's a good start -- I have never seen this topic described using visual analogies, and it is much easier to understand the concept that way.  Thanks again!