I have since found a review of Pure Vinyl, Vinyl Studio and Amarra Vinyl on CA,
http://www.computeraudiophile.com/how-is-ted-coding-the-fpgaent/503-guide-converting-analog-vinyl-digital-files-using-macintosh/
They all do 192/24 but no DSD.Paul, I haven’t tried using it but the “project rate” on my copy of Audacity for the Mac goes to 384k. I have version 2.0.4. You may need to upgrade to the latest version. Hopefully it’s just software and not a limitation on your older 32-bit Mac (wouldn’t think so).
I’m thinking that the smart thing to do would be rip my vinyl into DSD files. I’m still shopping for a DSD-capable DAC, but it’s easy enough for now to convert DSD to PCM with foobar for playback. Keeping the original DSD files would give me optimal sound quality in the future, I think; does that make sense? Is there software for editing DSD on Windows, to break up files into individual tracks etc?
David
I don’t think there is software for splitting DSDs. I’ve been digging around, but software for editing DSF or DFF files does not seem to be out there yet, other than a few tagging programs I have found. Even then, DSF files can only be tagged, not DFFs.
DSF and DFF appear to be the modern day Betamax vs VHS or BluRay vs. HD DVD. DSF appears to be the no-brainer here since it can be meta tagged.
magister said: the original DSD files would give me optimal sound quality in the future, I think; does that make sense?
DSD is equivalent to roughly 90kHz and 20 bits. The question is whether, for you, a DAC decoding DSD sounds better than that DAC decoding high resolution PCM.
magister said: Is there software for editing DSD on Windows, to break up files into individual tracks etc?
No. DSD cannot, by its very nature, be edited without converting it to PCM.
Elk is absolutely correct. DSD cannot be directly edited. In the DoP protocol, it is treated like PCM and easy to record, but not edit.
While a bit more bother, when digitizing vinyl it is easy in most recording software to tell it to end one track and begin another which recording. This way you can obtain multiple tracks without recording each one separately.
Also check out Korg’s AudioGate. It can do some very basic DSD editing by converting to PCM. It’s free! (you have to let it contact your Twitter account).
it seems to me that it should not be all that difficult to break up a DSD recording into multiple tracks. it should not be too hard to determine a (near) zero crossing point and not much more difficult to fine one close to the desired break point with a modest slope. The cut point could then be edited for minimum impulse for the transition from signal to no signal while leaving the data even a modest fraction of a second untouched. Now, to find or create such software…
Yes, I do understand the it is all but impossible to do anything more than that, such as a simple level change without converting to PCM, but a cut should be just about the simplest thing possible… Data up to here - one track, data after here - another track.
Although my understanding and ideas related to the process may be ‘simple’, am I really that far off?
J.P.
Also check out Korg's AudioGate. It can do some very basic DSD editing by converting to PCM. It's free! (you have to let it contact your Twitter account).
And what if one is not a Twit? :D
J.P.
I created a Twitter account to be able to use the software. I may well never use Twitter for anything else. I used the software to convert an Acoustic Sounds DSD download to 88/24. Came out pretty well (certainly beats the CD). Haven’t tried any other features.
wingsounds13 said: And what if one is not a Twit?
I am in this category. :)
I know the account has to be active and the computer on which the program installed must be connected to the Internet to work. I do not know beyond this what Korg is up to. It seems a bit silly, but marketing has its own ways.
wingsounds13 said: it seems to me that it should not be all that difficult to break up a DSD recording into multiple tracks.
Intuitively it sounds simple, bit one needs a program that creates a visual representation and allow breaking up a file.
Additionally, even the most visually perfect cut often results in a click, thus the use of crossfades for essentially all cuts when editing - and we are back to converting to PCM. :(
Elk said: bit one needs a program that creates a visual representation and allow breaking up a file.
The NPC manual mentions the possibility of using Audacity. I have some experience using Audacity to record speech, and it does create a visual representation. Does Paul's comment that one cannot edit DSD still stand, even for just splitting tracks?
Elk said: even the most visually perfect cut often results in a click
OK. I was interested in using Audacity, since a) I have some experience with it, so lower learning curve and b) it's free. Now that doesn't sound like a good idea, even if I use PCM not DSD. Audacity does make it easy to split long recordings; see http://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/faq_i18n?s=files&i=split . But no mention of how to deal with the click problem.
I've read about Pure Vinyl, but it's Mac only and I'm on Windows. Any Windows software besides Audacity that folks can recommend to use with my soon-to-arrive NPC?
Audacity does not support DSD.
Splitting a file into tracks at the points there are digital silence will not be a problem. There will be no clicks here.
I was thinking of those interested in splitting a file of a recording which needs to be gapless and there is audience noise or continuous music between tracks. One cannot rely on a simple break under these circumstances. Sometimes it works however. 
I’m sure Audacity allows fades and this can be used to avoid a click. For example, if there is a click at the beginning a quick fade in would take care of the problem. You will hear the fade however either as a fade in or as a brief dropout if this is done where there is an audible sound on the track.
The best, if one wants a gapless solution, is to record the entire side/album and insert track markers. These tell a CD player where the tracks are, but there are no gaps in playback as the markers are merely pointers. This is how CDs are made. (There really are no separate tracks on a CD, just a continuous data stream with pointers. It is only when a CD is ripped that separate tracks appear.)
magister said, I’ve read about Pure Vinyl, but it’s Mac only and I’m on Windows. Any Windows software besides Audacity that folks can recommend to use with my soon-to-arrive NPC?
Vinyl Studio (AlpineSoft) has a Windows version, $29.95, they have a free trial, but I have not used it.
Sad email from Leslie, production has been delayed a few weeks. Wonder if it was the torrential rains that has delayed production. Hope everyone is okay! :)>-
@Elk: Thanks for very informative post–big help.
@rogerdn: Will check out Vinyl Studio.
We got set back only a few days so I am not sure what Leslie told you. We’re in production right now, the first units coming off the line and ready for Dave and I to start testing and auditioning this week.
Ah, good news. Thanks Paul. B-)
Be careful regarding recordings with Audacity at 24 bit under Win 7, 8 as the WMME drivers on Windows is restricted to 16-bit.
The files will only be 16 bit data padded out to look like 24 bit numbers but you will get smaller file size than the real 24 bit.
New versions of Audacity unfortunately doesn’t support ASIO because of licensing issue.
We’re going to be looking at Vinyl studio in the next few days instead of Audacity.
We completed, tested and shipped the very first NPC yesterday! Yay! Our UK Distributor has a show coming up this weekend and we promised him the very first.