Topic: Is a High Fidelity CD an SACD?

[lncc63]

Went to Astro (something) at The Podium looking for SACDs.  The salesperson did not know the term "SACD" but did show me to a rack where they have "High Fidelity" CDs.  Couldn't find the label "SACD" or "SACD Hybrid" but all were marked "24-bit 192kHz" (or something like that).  Are these SACDs?

[streetsmart]

Went to Astro (something) at The Podium looking for SACDs.  The salesperson did not know the term "SACD" but did show me to a rack where they have "High Fidelity" CDs.  Couldn't find the label "SACD" or "SACD Hybrid" but all were marked "24-bit 192kHz" (or something like that).  Are these SACDs?

No, they're not SACDs. In fact, I'm not even sure if they truly can play at 24-bit 192kHz. I've tried one of those in my system and I couldn't get the 192kHz reading. With true SACDs and even HDCDs, my system can read the discs accurately.

I think that Fully Booked at Serendra is likely one of the very few places you can get SACDs locally.

[lncc63]

Thanks bro.  Good thing I did not waste P500 or so.   Serendra is rather out of my way.  I wonder, would you guys know if Fully Booked at SM Megamall has SACD?

[coastal]

Frootloops sells SACDs, HDCDs and Hybrid CDs. Got most of my sacds from him, mura pa. Look for his thread at the Music Section.

[Stagea]

Thanks bro.  Good thing I did not waste P500 or so.   Serendra is rather out of my way.  I wonder, would you guys know if Fully Booked at SM Megamall has SACD?

Wala po. I tried many branches. Sa Serendra/High Street ko lang sila nakikita na Fully Booked.

Don't waste your time on those "192/24-bit" thingies... they're 192kHz/24-bit MASTERED, but the actual format is redbook (44kHz/16-bit). They're normal CDDAs.

[streetsmart]

Wala po. I tried many branches. Sa Serendra/High Street ko lang sila nakikita na Fully Booked.

Don't waste your time on those "192/24-bit" thingies... they're 192kHz/24-bit MASTERED, but the actual format is redbook (44kHz/16-bit). They're normal CDDAs.

That's exactly what I concluded ... after wasting my money buying one of them. 

[at_sunset_blvd]

only the FULLYBOOKED in Boni & Rockwell has a Record Bar, I always drop by by there when I'm in Manila. Hope this help 

[Stagea]

only the FULLYBOOKED in Boni & Rockwell has a Record Bar, I always drop by by there when I'm in Manila. Hope this help 

I didn't see SACDs in Rockwell though. I only saw CDs there.

[at_sunset_blvd]

I didn't see SACDs in Rockwell though. I only saw CDs there.

Baka linipat na nila yung SACD sa SERENDA lahat. Sorry for the wrong info but I use to see them also in the mezzanine floor of Fullybooked Rockwell before

[Questor]

So-called hi-fi or audiophile cds bearing 96khz/24 bits or 192/24  marks are not sacds. The 96/24 or 192/24 refers to the mastering hz and world length used (bits). But the high-resolution masters are downconverted to the red-book or CD standard which is 44/16.

HDCD or high definition CD, on the other hand, has extra resolution "folded" into the red-book standard which an hdcd-capable player can retrieve and play. But HD CDs still play on standard players. 

[warmaster]

Don't waste your time on those "192/24-bit" thingies... they're 192kHz/24-bit MASTERED, but the actual format is redbook (44kHz/16-bit). They're normal CDDAs.

so di rin pala totoong audiophile quality yung mga audiophile voices series na binebenta sa astro?

[lncc63]

so di rin pala totoong audiophile quality yung mga audiophile voices series na binebenta sa astro?

It seems so.

[Questor]

If by audiophile quality one means being in high-rez format 96/24 or 192/24, then CDs are not that. But then, the implementation of the CD standard and the recording and mastering techniques have improved by leaps and bounds since the introduction of the CD, so a well-recorded and superbly mastered piece of music can still be "audiophile" quality. But as we all know here, what may be audiophile to my ears may be crap to others. 

[Stagea]

It indeed may be audiophile-quality material for many, and I'm not saying that it's not. What I'm just saying is that it's not of a higher resolution than standard CDs.

[Stagea]

The record company is just flaunting the mastering resolution (a marketing tool), when most record companies are already using that resolution (or even higher) to begin with.

[streetsmart]

The record company is just flaunting the mastering resolution (a marketing tool), when most record companies are already using that resolution (or even higher) to begin with.

What I've noticed with 2 of these so-called audiophile discs is that they suffer from huge dynamic compression. They actually sound awful to me -- they are very loud and that may sound good but actually, you will notice that there is little variation in volume between the softest and loudest passages; all instruments are equally loud.

Some companies are traditionally very good in producing CD's, among them Telarc, Lynn and Chesky. If you buy one of their CD's, you're practically assured that the recording is very good and can be equal to or better than SACD's.

[Questor]

+1 on streetsmart. I have a number of DVD audios, DADS and SACDs that  sound just slightly better, to my ears, than their CD counterparts. I have a DVD-Audio of Carly Simon's No Secret Album (two channel 192/24) that comes nowhere near the sound quality, again to my ear, of the LP version I bought at Bebop. So, it's not all about the format because there are so many factors involved. The higher resolution discs, in my experience, even bring forth or make very clear poor recording implementations.

[Stagea]

+1 on streetsmart. I have a number of DVD audios, DADS and SACDs that  sound just slightly better, to my ears, than their CD counterparts. I have a DVD-Audio of Carly Simon's No Secret Album (two channel 192/24) that comes nowhere near the sound quality, again to my ear, of the LP version I bought at Bebop. So, it's not all about the format because there are so many factors involved. The higher resolution discs, in my experience, even bring forth or make very clear poor recording implementations.

I have to agree that there are truly bad DVD-A and SACD recordings, especially from the earlier releases (and later mainstream releases). It seems like record companies wanted to bank on the hype, and rushed the products to the market.

Well-recorded and properly-mastered material in high resolution formats is still noticeably superior to CDs imho, when played in a revealing system. For me, many fluid-sounding systems gloss-over the sound to smooth out sonic imperfections (to the benefit of lower resolution formats), in-turn hiding the inherent advantages of high resolution formats (causing a "sameness" between formats). The delectable detail and urgency gets suppressed, though the dynamics is largely retained. This makes many otherwise pleasant-sounding systems less suitable for these formats (in terms of getting the most out of the media).

On top of this, many DAC implementations run the anti-aliasing filter too low to deliver the full spectrum available from high res formats. The reason is supposedly that those ultrasonic frequencies are inaudible anyway. It's a heresy for those who care to get those upper frequencies (whether or not they are truly audible), especially since the lower resolution data gets oversampled/upsampled anyway.

[jovend]

guys,

noobie here. first post actually.

i'll be going manila next week so i am wondering where the best place buy SACDs, san may stocks? and how much does it normally cost? will not have enough time to really roam around so..

thanks in advance

[audiojunkie]

guys,

noobie here. first post actually.

i'll be going manila next week so i am wondering where the best place buy SACDs, san may stocks? and how much does it normally cost? will not have enough time to really roam around so..

thanks in advance

not familiar sa saktong lugar pero pwede ka magtanong sa mga A/V at record shops.