O.K. guys what official governing body has stated with what sampling rate/word length "true" hi-res actually begins?
As I and others have mentioned before, the word length has a LOT to do with how accurately the analog waveform is constructed i.e. 24 bits gives the DAC many more voltage choices with which to build that sinewave. And IIRC, much less dithering (digital "noise") is required to be added to a XkHz/24bit signal for the final version us customers hear, compared to a 16bit signal (dither can audibly alter the sound of the music).
As far as higher frequencies affecting the ones under 20kHz and adding realism to the listening experience, well, as far as solid scientific evidence goes the jury is still out on that one. But this is what the real world has to say about 20kHz+ frequencies: most analog tape and associated tape recorders don't reach that far up anyway, and the same goes for most studio microphones (though this may be slowly changing because of the hi-res formats). And lots of speakers' response past 20kHz, especially those with metal dome tweeters, either drops off quickly or become quite ragged in turn rendering the signal sent to them nearly useless.
And from what I've seen myself and read about, Sony is the label putting out the huge majority of those DualDiscs with 48kHz/16bit stereo tracks :rolleyes, and according to numerous online reviews, not to mention all those fake-y 5.1 surround mixes that supposedly sound like the "hall" button on a $150 receiver.
As I and others have mentioned before, the word length has a LOT to do with how accurately the analog waveform is constructed i.e. 24 bits gives the DAC many more voltage choices with which to build that sinewave. And IIRC, much less dithering (digital "noise") is required to be added to a XkHz/24bit signal for the final version us customers hear, compared to a 16bit signal (dither can audibly alter the sound of the music).
As far as higher frequencies affecting the ones under 20kHz and adding realism to the listening experience, well, as far as solid scientific evidence goes the jury is still out on that one. But this is what the real world has to say about 20kHz+ frequencies: most analog tape and associated tape recorders don't reach that far up anyway, and the same goes for most studio microphones (though this may be slowly changing because of the hi-res formats). And lots of speakers' response past 20kHz, especially those with metal dome tweeters, either drops off quickly or become quite ragged in turn rendering the signal sent to them nearly useless.
And from what I've seen myself and read about, Sony is the label putting out the huge majority of those DualDiscs with 48kHz/16bit stereo tracks :rolleyes, and according to numerous online reviews, not to mention all those fake-y 5.1 surround mixes that supposedly sound like the "hall" button on a $150 receiver.