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Can a GREAT Redbook recording match SACD? (1 Viewer)

Evan S

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Recently, I had a friend over. He wanted to hear some new speakers I had gotten (ACI 25th Anniversary Sapphires). He brought over some of his music that he was familiar with to demo the speaks.

He specifically brought over Eric Clapton Unplugged, some Patricia Barber amongst others. I don't have the Clapton disc, and have actually never heard it played on a decent system. To say the sound was breathtaking was an understatement. I couldn't believe a redbook CD could sound so good. It was truly amazing. We listened to a lot of SACD, specifically the new live Alison Krauss two disc set, which sounds amazing as well.

Tonight I was listening to the first Blues Traveler album which I feel is impeccably recorded. Instantly I was transported back in time 13 years to my college days when this was a staple amongst my college buddies. Arguably the recording sounded as good, if not better, than some of my SACD's that I have in my collection, namely my Aerosmith greatest hits set, Ryan Adams "Gold" and Billy Joel's "52nd Street". Now I know these may not be the hallmarks of SACD fidelity, but does anyone out there think that the BEST redbook recordings could be confused for SACD in a blind listening test?

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE SACD, but feel there are some redbook CD's in my collection that are recorded EXTREMELY well and I would compare them favorably with some of my hi-rez releases.

Thoughts?
 

Javier_Huerta

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I think a properly recorded CD can beat an improperly mastered SACD (case in point - The Police remasters)

Or, could it be that SACD really has a horrid frequency response above 8 Khz? So much talk about it on these forums I'm about to be convinced about it. :D
 

Philip Hamm

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The most important part of the recording happens behind the scenes. A well recorded cassette from an impeccably recorded master can sound better than a SACD from a poorly recorded master.

You should hear the Eric Clapton Unplugged DTS LaserDisc. It is really stunng, and equal to most of my DVD-A and SACD multichannel discs. It's hard to believe they're using 58s up there when you hear how good it sounds. For that matter, read my review of the recent DTS CD of Midnight Oil's "Capricornia". It sounds incredible and is my current multichannel benchmark.
 

Felix Martinez

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Zappa's "Yellow Shark," released in 1993(?), has to be one of the most impressive and dynamic orchestral recordings ever released on good 'ol CD. Fantastic!

Cheers,
 

Mike Broadman

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All SACD really does is provide the potential for a better sounding recording. Just putting something on a newer format does not guarantee anything. As true today as it always was.
 

Lee Scoggins

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Especially read the paragraph underneath the last wave picture.
Lance, the noise that DSD creates is generally confined to 40khz and higher. No one has yet proven that any of the noise is audible and even the DVDA camp has recently admitted that dithering mitigates all of it.

:)
 

Javier_Huerta

Supporting Actor
Joined
Mar 9, 2002
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Look for yourself.

Edit: Especially read the paragraph underneath the last wave picture.
I guess DVD-A proponents must be throwing a hissy fit over the fact that "the crappiest format always wins" (Atari vs. Intellivision, Beta vs. VHS, MiniDisc vs. compact cassette, etc.).

:D
 

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