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Test your DAC; DXD- DSD-FLAC Comparison Sampler


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 Sound Liaison has released a handy sampler to test your DAC's preference.

http://www.soundliaison.com/all-categories/6-compare-formats

Test your DAC!  Format Comparison sampler

Which format is best for your DAC? Every DAC has it's own character, some sounds better using PCM files and some sounds better using DSD files...... Some people find the convenience of FLAC files more important. Here on this page is a list containing 2 minutes of a song in 11 different formats. The song is called 'A Fool For You' and is performed by Carmen Gomes Inc. It’s taken from the album 'Carmen Sings The Blues'.

http://www.soundliaison.com/studio-showcase-series/276-carmen-gomes-sings-the-blues

 

All the different formats have the same source file, DXD 352kHz (Studio Master). We used the AUL ConverteR 48x44 for the conversion to DSD and Wavelab for the conversion to the other PCM formats and FLAC. When you compare different sample rates always start with the lowest resolution. During listening don't focus too much, hearing is as individual as taste but hearing is also something which can be acquired, like the taste of good wine. You can choose from the following formats: 1. DXD 352kHz 2. PCM 192kHz 3. PCM 176kHz 4. PCM 96kHz 5. PCM 44kHz 6. DSD 256 7. DSD 128 8. DSD 64 9 . FLAC 352kHz 10. FLAC 192kHz 11. FLAC 96kHz

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:D as I just answered on your similar post on another thread;

''That's a good combo those 2 free test files from Sound Liaison and Native; intimate vocal Jazz/Blues and Symphonic orchestral.''

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2 minutes ago, oso said:

:D as I just answered on your similar post on another thread;

''That's a good combo those 2 free test files from Sound Liaison and Native; intimate vocal Jazz/Blues and Symphonic orchestral.''

 

Agreed.   The Sound Liaison test files plus the 15 test files from NativeDSD = plenty of listening adventures! 

 

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The Sound Liaison recording is interesting. Look at the spectrum of the DXD version:

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That's a lot of ultrasonic noise coinciding with the duration of the vocals. Presumably the spot mike or something related to it created or picked up that noise.

 

Ultrasonic noise at these levels can even cause problems with some DACs. Indeed, filtering out everything below 24 kHz and playing the result on an iFi Nano, there are bursts of audible noise, probably as a result of intermodulation distortion. The actual audio frequency content obviously drowns it out during normal playing, but it's still wrong.

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39 minutes ago, christian u said:

Could that be why some people prefer the DSD version above the DXD?

The DSD conversion has a sharp filter applied at 24 kHz, so the only ultrasonic noise there is from the sigma-delta modulator.

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  • 1 month later...
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I received this letter from Blue Coast which leaves  me a bit puzzled, I thought that editing in DSD was not possible. Anyway it is an interesting challenge.

 

 Part Four, editing and fixing in the mixes -- the challenges of working in DSD are different than PCM.



Hi friends, our last session of recording in DSD talked about the multiple tracks we record to and decisions that are made in mixing to create the stereo you hear in your home.

What you may not know is that most performances of concert recordings are not live at all - even well known recordings of famous performers in concert... yes that includes your favorite pop or classical album. Rarely is a piece of music performed once with such perfection that the producer says "That's it! We're done!"

In stage performances of rock and pop stars, the basic tracks from a live concert are often taken into the studio and parts redone (including the lead vocal) for more isolation of the instrument (better sound), correcting mistakes and fixing stray microphone distortion or feedback. The same is true in classical music.

From a string quartet to a large symphony orchestra, it is common to record the same pieces over several evenings of performances to get the best takes possible. Many times, an additional night is added (without an audience) to "grab" (record) small sections where an adequate performances was not captured.

The job of the producer is to keep track of which take on which night is the best performance. The take is notated on the musical score and on the last day the producer records the sections that may still be questionable. The producer will have to make sure the tempos from various recordings match... and in some cases, the pitch must also be considered. A slight difference in loudness from any instrument can negate the best choice for editing.

In the studio, all the best takes (and a few alternates) are "cut and pasted" together to make the final piece of music you hear at home.

That's a very simple explanation of what can be daunting tasks. It takes extreme musicality from a producer to make sure the edits are not audible.... and often takes longer than the performances themselves.

The Contest.. Find the Edit

In Jenna's version of Wicked Game, Rolf has a guitar snap that was VERY loud. Jenna's performance was stunning and we didn't want to use another take. After auditioning several other takes, we found the one note on the guitar we could replace. If you can find the edit, we'll give you a free album of your choice.

Send in your guesses to [email protected] 
http://store.bluecoastmusic.com/jenna-mammina/close-your-eyes

Next week, we'll tell you where the edit is.... if I can remember. ;) 
And more on editing Part Five. Now's the time to ask questions!

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7 minutes ago, PAP said:

I received this letter from Blue Coast which leaves  me a bit puzzled, I thought that editing in DSD was not possible. Anyway it is an interesting challenge.

 

 

 

2

 

Cookie Marenco has an Analog Mixing Console at OTR/Blue Coast Recording.  So she can mix recordings in Analog before printing to DSD.   That also how recording engineers like Jared Sacks at Channel Classics work - recording with an Analog mixing console.

 

She also has a Sony Sonoma Workstation which features editing in the DSD-Wide (8x DSD) format. 

 

So there are some choices she has when it comes to mixing and mastering a DSD project.

She is probably the best person to comment on how this album was recorded and mixed, etc.

 

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Hi PAP,

 

Cookie supplied the answer to your editing question in her piece; "In the studio, all the best takes (and a few alternates) are "cut and pasted" together to make the final piece of music you hear at home." 

 

Unlike a stream of PCM samples,  DSD bit streams contain no values, so can not be computed (altered) in their native form. That means their levels changed, mixed with other bit streams, EQ'd etc without being first converted to PCM. But DSD cutting and pasting is supported. Furthermore, the Pyramix software Cookie uses supports crossfades which make edits difficult or impossible to perceive, with the benefit of only the crossfade interval being converted to PCM.

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Which is why professional studios and mastering engineers use Digital Audio Workstations (DAW's) like Pyramix to automatically insert a imperceivable PCM crossfade (the default being 10 milliseconds) at the DSD edit points, making DSD cutting and pasting very easy, and without the degrading effects of converting the entire DSD file to PCM. 

 

But your point is correct in that any DSD butt splice will exhibit a shift from the previous or leaving DC offset to the new or joining DC offset at the DSD edit point. These ticks can be audible in low level periods such as between track silence or roomtone, but are usually swamped by music content when edits are performed within a piece.

 

 

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On 04.07.2017 at 8:47 PM, oso said:

Which format is best for your DAC?

 

It's fully technically correct phrase.

AuI ConverteR 48x44 - HD audio converter/optimizer for DAC of high resolution files

ISO, DSF, DFF (1-bit/D64/128/256/512/1024), wav, flac, aiff, alac,  safe CD ripper to PCM/DSF,

Seamless Album Conversion, AIFF, WAV, FLAC, DSF metadata editor, Mac & Windows
Offline conversion save energy and nature

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3 minutes ago, audiventory said:

Which format is best for you?

 

 

That's where the sample files come in handy. 

 

Letting you test the same recording in different formats and bit rates on your DAC. 

A fine - and no-cost way - to determine which is the best sounding to you.  :)

 

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23 hours ago, bmoura said:

Letting you test the same recording in different formats and bit rates on your DAC.

 

It is one of ways to improve current audio equipment - looking or the best DAC mode: http://samplerateconverter.com/content/how-improve-sound-quality

AuI ConverteR 48x44 - HD audio converter/optimizer for DAC of high resolution files

ISO, DSF, DFF (1-bit/D64/128/256/512/1024), wav, flac, aiff, alac,  safe CD ripper to PCM/DSF,

Seamless Album Conversion, AIFF, WAV, FLAC, DSF metadata editor, Mac & Windows
Offline conversion save energy and nature

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