Do we really need anything greater than 24/96? Opinions?
Plus, I really think the recording (studio-mastering) means more to sound quality than the actual output format/resolution. I've heard excellent recorded/mastered recordings sound killer on iTunes streaming and CD.
Opinions?
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FWIW, just picked this up from a Google search: Lindell B. Jones Jr., Long-time music lover. Met a handful of rock/pop stars.Answered 1 year ago · Author has 156 answers and 144.5K answer viewsSee www DOT quora.com/Is-there-a-significant-difference-between-16-bit-and-24-bit-in-audio-accessories No comment from me other than it is just one gent's opinion. And for the sale of full disclosure, I have never critically compared redbook CD (16 bit/44.1kHZ) to other hi-rez formats. Not sure this is relevant, but my ARC CD-9SE can oversample my redbook CD playback to 176.4kHZ. Not sure the output sounds all that much better that just playing the CD at the native 44.1kHZ sampling rate. That said, I have critically compared my CD-9SE playing back redbook CDs source to vinyl played off my turntable. IMO, vinyl "usually" sounds better, but not always. I surmise that the SQ of the recording stamped onto the media (i.e., a CD versus an LP) can make a big difference in what comes out of the speakers. For example, I recall A/B'ing a track on a CD of John Mellencamp's greatest hits to the same song on a Mellencamp record. Interestingly, IMO, it was a photo finish of which format sounded better. Maybe in the end, it may come down to garbage-in/garbage-out. What I am interested in exploring is the DAC side of my Ref CD-9SE for streaming. Just have to get the courage and time to dip my toes into the streaming waters. Interesting thread. I'll stay tuned. |
My note on shm was on the physical medium being superior vs regular cd (better material). As to the Steely Dan Aja sacd-here is an interesting read on the different versions-https://audiophilestyle.com/ca/the-best-version-of/the-best-version-of…-steely-dan’s-aja-r772/ |
Whereas hi-res recordings bring little advantage over well recorded and mastered redbook, upsampling redbook to higher sampling rates has real advantages in digital to analogue conversion. This applies obviously only to delta sigma dacs. R2R dacs conversely have to contend with euphonic distortion which is often referred to as analogue sounding. |
@antigrunge2 - my ARC Ref 9SE can upsample redbook playback to 176.4kHz. I tried it several times and cannot say it really sounds better overall than native sampling of 16Bit/44.1kHz. You did mentioned that upsampling works best with delta sigma DACs. Sorry for not being digitally technical, but is a delta sigma DAC refer to a type electronic architecture used in PCM DACs like Burr BrownDACs? |
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