best sounding dvd-a or sacd? (1 Viewer)

[BrianEK]

I recently took the dive into hi-rez music and absolutely love it. I have a great set of speakers and am always looking for the best "reference demo" quality material. I can play both dvd-a and sacd and wanted to know what people thought were the best one's out there(concerning sound quality). I'm interested in some good quality tracks containing such things as good vocals, acoustics, violins, saxaphones, or piano.

 

[John Geelan]

Get the new Elton John SACD of Goodbye Yellow Brick Road. Lots of interesting music on that classic album.


Also try the new Flaming Lips DVDA. Excellent sound.

 

[Robert Powers]

Fleetwood Mac: Rumours on DVD-A is the best sound that I have ever heard.

 

[John Kotches]

Some good starter titles with your criteria

Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band XXL Silverline/DVD-A
Laurence Juber Guitar Noir AIX/DVD-A
James Taylor Hourglass Sony/SA-CD

Cheers,

 

[Lee Scoggins]

I second the above recommendations and also recommend:

Keb Mo - The Door SACD
Steely Dan - Everything Must Go DVDA
Ryan Adams - Gold SACD
Various Artists - Four Generations of Miles (Chesky) SACD
Rachael Podger (violin) La Stravaganza (Channel Classics) SACD
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of The Moon SACD, of course given my sig line
Steely Dan - Gaucho SACD

That should get you started.

 

[Rachael B]

The best sounding SACD that I've heard is Will And Rainbow's HARMONY on the Eighty Eight's label. The Eighty Eight's is an audiophile label that does stereo only, single-layer SACD's. All their SACD's are DSD recorded. They release in other formats too and simeltaneously record with other recorders for them. Of the 3 discs I have from them, I think Will And Raibow is the most impressive.

Phoebe Snow does vocals on 3 songs and she just sounds amazingly good. On the instrumental songs the band often flirts with a fusioistic sound, sort'a...? Will Boulware plays purr-dy good piano. Vetern Steve Gadd is on drums. Peter Bernstein, who's new to me, does guitar. There's a synth player and Michael Brecker does sax on 2 cuts.

This is some of the best recording I've ever heard. It's off the chart! I also have Joe Chambers' URBAN GROOVES and the Lonnie Plexico Group's Live (at somewhere) album. I'd call their recording awfully fine too.

Sure Telarc, Heads Up, groove Note, and some others are doing some fine DSD recordings but I think the Eighty Eight's is the top rung.

 

[Felix Martinez]

Sure Telarc, Heads Up, groove Note, and some others are doing some fine DSD recordings but I think the Eighty Eight's is the top rung.

I believe some - if not most - of the Heads Up stuff is PCM transcoded to DSD.

 

[Trina]

I can't recommend Frank Zappa's Halloween DVD-A enough!

T

 

[dpippel]

Another fantastic sounding SACD is Nickelcreek's This Side. It's an amazing high rez recording. Here are some other SACDs that I consider exceptional:

Rolling Stones - Let it Bleed
Mark Levinson - Live Recordings at Red Rose Music Volume One
Rebecca Pidgeon - The Raven
Aimee Mann - Lost in Space
Muddy Waters - Folk Singer
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Couldn't Stand the Weather
Beck - Sea Change
Alison Krauss - Forget About It
Alison Krauss + Union Station - Live
Patricia Barber - Cafe Blue

I don't listen to multichannel very often, so my evaluations are based on the stereo layer of these discs.

 

[GarySI]

To start out with the latest I'd have to go with Flaming Lips. What a great recording and it seems to me that they had surround in mind when doing the sessions.

Allison Krauss and Union Station-Live, killer transfer

Donald Fagen-Nightfly
Carlos Kleiber- Beethoven Symphonies 5 & 7- What a great recording, hard to believe it was done in '75. This was one of the few experiments that DG did in Quad. The sound is really 4.0 but the recording and the performance(some critics thinks this is the ultimate performance of the 5th)is awesome.
Toy Matinee-Toy Matinee
John Coltrane-A Love Supreme
1812 Overture- Telarc DSD
David Johansen and the Harry Smiths-Chesky Records
peter Gabriel-Up
Roxy Music-Avalon
Rotterdam Philharmonia-Pictures at an Exhibition-Pentatone SACD

 

[DaveDickey]

Al Di Meola "Flesh on Flesh" sounds great on SACD. Also George Benson "Breezin'" on DVD-A. The latter is a bigger improvement over the CD version than the Di Meola disc. The Buena Vista Social Club DVD-A is also a very nice sound, but doesn't contain many of the instruments that interest you.

 

[jack w]

i have a few and i think the dead "american Beauty"

 

[John Geelan]

The best sounding SACD to my ears is still the James Taylor ones. They all sound great.

 

[Lee Scoggins]

The best sounding SACD to my ears is still the James Taylor ones.

Start with "JT".

 

[DerekJohnson]

The Flaming Lips, "Yoshimi Battles..." DVD-A is the disc. Plenty of extras. Amazing sound. I've been using this disc as my demo for family and friends.

 

[TomCW]

Uh, this was not transferred, it was recorded direct to DSD.

Tom
PS She spells it Alison, btw.

 

[Brian-W]

I'm still suggesting Air Supply: Greatest Hits for 2 channel

 

[Dennis Nicholls]

The most impressive SACD I have is the new Tilson-Thomas/San Francisco Symphony recording of Mahler's 1st Symphony, recorded direct to DSD. You really feel like you are there.

 

[PierreN]

Excuse my ignorance but what type of music is Flamming Lips categorized ? I've seen quite a few recommendations, just curious ... I'm open to various music (well, maybe not too much rap nor country ...) What other good classical recordings in these 2 formats would you recommend ?

So far, I enjoy:

1. Norah Jones (SACD)
2. The Police - Collections (SACD)
3. Pink Floyd - DSOTM (SACD)

I'm ordering some other DVD-A (Hotel California, Two Against Nature, Rumours) & some SACD (Fragile, Up)

 

[Jeff Keene]

PierreN -

Think Spin Doctors meets Super Furry Animals, if that helps. Electronic loops on top of real instruments playing fun pop (the good kind). Lyrics are sometimes silly (the good kind). I find the album drags a bit in places, but always sounds neato. Very agressive surround mix. The instruments come from everywhere, but follow patterns that make a kind of sense. Hope that helps a little.