I buy the Remasters on Qobuz when I can get 24.96 or 24.192 versions. I believe I am done buying DSD versions. I have 1000’s of titles in DSD as it stands. Edgar has me convinced that DSD is a crime against God and Man. LOL.
Since I’ve never been able to tell the difference between 24/96 and anything above that, DSD is only a crime against my bank account. I will get higher resolution only if it’s the same price as 24/96 just in case my ears wake up one day and decide they can hear the difference.
I am in a weird spot. I have 5TB of DSD albums. But my BACCH gear doesn’t play DSD. It has to be converted to PCM to be played. That doesn’t trouble me. But to hear DSD in its pure form, I have to leave the BACCH out, and just listen to the MU2 play the DSD to the DAC in the MU2. How does that sound? It sounds glorious! Especially DSD256. That sounds so pure.
But, like you, 24.96 sounds so good it puts me in a who cares position. BACCH processing is required by me to hear the sound I want to hear. And it does such an excellent job with 16.44.1, and 24.96 that higher bitrates just don’t matter to me. I still buy 24.192 files. But I am done done done buying or worrying about DSD.
As good as streaming is, my CD transport betters any file no matter the bitrate. It’s puzzling, but it is repeatable.
Wait! BACCH does not do DSD? That is just sad to hear. How about SACD? Does it convert it to PCM too? That will be even sadder to hear.
Confessions of an audioholic. ![]()
You would be favorably surprised how little concern you would have about such things if you had a BACCH in your system. It actually doesn’t bother me at all. What BACCH adds more than compensates for format idealism.
It took me awhile to overcome my idealism, what with the enormous DSD library I have. I listen to and enjoy all my DSD music. It’s just all converted to PCM on playback. No fussing with the files needed. I leave them as they are for the two to three minutes per year I listen to them unconverted to see if I am missing out on anything. I’m not.
BACCH processing is better than pure DSD. Every time.
I only know a little about BACCH (Johannn Sebastiann), that it is a room-correction system, right? If so, my experience with Focus Fidelity room-correction would lead me to DEFINITELY run the audio in PCM to take advantage of correction. Focus Fidelity creates convolution filters that plug into several audio management applications, including Roon, which I use. Because my turntable uses the phono stage in my pre-amp, I can’t run it through Roon, and I have gotten to where I’m noticing shortfalls from not having the filters when I play vinyl. Yeah, I know, there are ways of getting my turntable signal into Roon, but my vinyl setup isn’t really impressive enough to warrant it.
BACCH processing could be considered a room-correction system. But that would be like considering an aircraft carrier a canoe. BACCH started out as a crosstalk correction DSP. Room correction was added much later. What is crosstalk cancelation? Sound from the right speaker hits you right ear first. And after a small delay, it hits your left ear. The same delay occurs with the left speaker. The fact that these delays exist corrupts the timing and imaging you hear. BACCH corrects this problem so what you now hear is correctly placed instruments and features of the sound. It enhances the realism of any stereo recording. It is not subtle. Roon does not offer anything similar.