New-fangled

My 3 year old DVD player (Arcam DV88) stopped working t'other week. Decided to splash out £109 on a new player, a Pioneer DV-575A. Build quality is really shite, it weighs less than a really lightweight thing, but despite that, the picture is great, CD playback sounds pretty good to me, and it plays SACD and DVD-A too. Tomorrow I'll have to try and find some music for sale on either of these new-fangled formats that's actually worth listening to, preferably something I already have on vinyl and CD. Results to follow.

-- Ian

 

Ian,

the Jaques Loussier SACD comes highly recommended, as does Peter Gabriel "So". Not sure those pygmies have reached high rez yet though.

 

Sony did release a SACD multi channel Gamelan album a while back. It wasn't very good, though (I only heard it in 2 channels, maybe it would have been better multi - as it was recorded specifically for this). The JVC pygmy stuff was recorded direct to PCM if I remember correctly, so the potential is there...
Did the Pygmies ring your bell. Merlin? I've got a whole lot more if you're interested, and how about some very high quality recordings of Gagaku, the ancient court music of Japan, or Japanese taiko drumming by Ondekoza (24bit K2 production on radioactive unobtanium CDs) if you want to give your ProAcs a bit of a work out

Ian:
Are you feeling lucky, or is it the Jacques Loussier trio

 

There appears to be only one Coltrane SACD, and, typically, that's Blue Train, an average album by his standards which is only revered because it was his sole recording for Blue Note. Audiophiles like it though. Piss-poor jazz SACD selection on Amazon. I may have to haul my arse into the Virgin Meagre Store or somewhere equally hideous to stand a chance of finding any kind of choice.

People who've spent an arm and a leg on one of these new format players must feel a bit short-changed, surely?

-- Ian

 

Funnily enough Joel, I'm really keen to hear them now and Ian left them at home last weekend

I'm sure Graham will give the Proacs all the work out they need courtesy of Mahler's 5th tomorrow

 

Yep,

still there's always Nora, Diana, Jasintha & Jaques

 

Wear ear plugs, and prepare for your power meters to crack asunder.

Edit: is that Led Zep DVD-A multichannel only?

-- Ian

 

No it's got a 24bit/48khz stereo track which some complain about but it's worth it for the music IMO, more than can be said for most high rez discs. You are welcome to borrow it.

 

If I see it tomorrow I'll buy it, failing that, I'll take you up on that offer.

Must copy the pygmies for you.

-- Ian

 

What a palaver. I'm supposed to be working today, so only had an hour or so to nip into the Virgin Megastore and HMV on Oxford St.

Virgin: no DVD-A at all, and I searched. A small display of SACDs in the rock and pop section, none of it of any interest.

Some SACDs in the jazz department, but nothing of any interest either, easy-listening guff rather than real music, apart from Mingus's Ah Um, for which they were asking over 20 quid. Since you can buy a mint early vinyl pressing for that sort of money I passed.

HMV: A wider selection of DVD-A. I toyed with the idea of a New York Dolls compilation at £10.99, but it was mostly stuff post-first album, and therefore not great. Ended up choosing Neil Young's On The Beach, didn't have anything I already have on vinyl or CD for a comparison. In the jazz department, DVD-As of Jane Monheit and Diana Krall ferchrissakes, a few Miles SACDs, Trane's Blue Train on SACD for nearly £30, lots of easy listening shite, and a very nice Wynton Kelly 1959 Riverside album, Kelly Blue, on SACD that I also have on vinyl, so I went for that.

I don't normally shop in these sorts of places, what's really obvious is that several years on from the launch of both formats, they both have the smell of death about them. Lots of CDs, lots of DVD-Vs, lots of vinyl. Bugger all high-res digital. And this in large mainstream music shops.

More when I've had a listen.

-- Ian

 

Try these guys out for SACD, DVD-A, HDCD etc. https://www.shop.vivante.co.uk/home.asp they seem to have a fairly reasonable range of stock.

 

Thanks for that. A few decent jazz SACDs there, they don't appear to have any DVD-A at all, either that or their search isn't working (a search for DVD-A, any label, any genre, returns no results). Might order a couple of things from them.

Can't find the vinyl of Kelly's album, presumably misfiled, but I have compared the SACD layer to the CD layer (playing the latter on my Sonneteer CD player and also on the Pioneer). Interesting results. Used "Softly As In A Morning Sunrise" as the test track, a trio recording. Listened to the SACD first, lots of detail in the bass notes, piano sounds quite brightly lit and delicate. Playing the CD layer through the Sonneteer loses a bit of the spaciousness and detail, but the piano suddenly has some percussive presence, and you realise Kelly isn't really playing that delicately at all. This is confirmed by listening to the CD layer on the Pioneer, which doesn't sound as good as on the Sonneteer but still has more body and physical texture than the SACD layer, even though it probably has less resolution.

Probably can't draw any conclusions from one recording, but an interesting result nonetheless. Must find the LP.

-- Ian

 

Ian, the best selection tends to be here .

If you are thinking of ordering anything, might I suggest joining up to avoid some shipping charges?

We had an interesting comparison today. Mahler's 3rd on SACD via the £650 Denon vs the CD layer on a Wadia 861 at £7950.

I think we both felt the Denon/SACD more than held it's own, being more natural and open with greater bass definition and impact. So not a bad result for the cheaper combo.

 

I recall having a demo at Chris Gally's, after buying his Chord Dac 64, he also had a Sony which did SACD, and I didn't find it convincing.
It wasn't my own system/room, so I couldn't say for sure, but sometimes the sacd sounded better, sometimes the regular cd, this was on a recording which he had copies for both. At times the sacd had lighter bass.
I agree, its a bad sign that for all the pushing of these formats, there is piss poor support.
It will take something more to usurp regular cd, and I suppose, its tried and trusted, and is pretty good.
In this game tho' the makers always want change, and us poor folks to replace our whole collections every so often, so won't be long.
Pretty incredible tho that you can pick up sacd players for £109 tho.

 

Will do.

The Neil Young won't play. Gets to the main menu then locks up the machine. Arse. Are there DVD-A compatibility issues that I should know about?

-- Ian

 

Which recording of Mahler's 3rd was it? I now have 3 on SACD - all of them are great performances and superb recordings - Boulez/VPO (upsampled from 48khz/24bit though sounding superb), Chailly/Concertgebouw and Zander/philharmonia. Overall the Chailly one on decca is my favourite.

BTW, if I wasn't heavily into classical I would probably have no interest in SACD.

 

Alan, it was the Zander (not that this makes much difference to a non classical chap like me!)

But the drums were mighty impressive If I were a classical buff, the Proacs would be my speakers for life I suspect (cue chortles!)

 

Chortle!