As I cannot afford the Memory Player, I am looking to purchase a SACD player, to play a few SACD discs I have plus my CDs.
Thinking of getting a used Oppo 103D locally.
it will be used via Optical Coax to Directstream, so just as a transport.
Would I be able to get DSD decoding from the Oppo to DSD via this method?
Anything else I should pay attention to?
thanks!
No, you won’t be able to as I understand it. If you get a certain board added to the Oppo, perhaps. But the only transport that will really allow DSD to be transmitted to the DSD is the DMP.
Bummer! So what do I get if I play a SACD disk on Oppo using coax to DSD? Just red book CD 44.1/16?
This thread discusses it in more detail.
The board Veneet mentions starting at post 53 of that thread does seem to put out the DSD layer over I2S, at least on the Oppo player he (and I) used. I haven’t experimented with mine enough to say whether it sounds better than the CD layer or the DSD layer converted to PCM.
thyname said So what do I get if I play a SACD disk on Oppo using coax to DSD?88.2/24 or perhaps 96/24, whatever resolution the Oppo converts DSD to PCM. Licensing agreements with Sony do not allow transmitting DSD in the clear, it must be encrypted.
Legally yes but the board I just referenced does it anyway. Not to be taken as an endorsement. As I said, I’m not even sure it sounds better than the DSD layer converted to PCM.
Yes, this board does send DSD (I was typing my reply before your post).
The Audiopraise VANITY HD board (w/ the DoP output option) sounds pretty good, tho it costs a lot a heck of a lot more than a used Oppo BDP-103D.
I don’t know how they keep Sony off their backs.
Elk saidI'm confused in that AFAIK the 103D should send DSD (over HDMI) if configured to RAW. I've an old Oppo 980 and it'll send DSD to my Denon receiver over HDMI (and the Denon has the necessary decoding in it).Yes, this board does send DSD (I was typing my reply before your post).
However, my main system is optimised for PCM digital throughout, so rather than use the Denon’s decoding I choose to configure the Oppo to convert to PCM (via HDMI) and a unit (which has negotiated 24/88.2) extracts the HDMI converted PCM (to become coax or optical S/PDIF) and then it gets reclocked. Without the reclocking there’s a lot of jitter (a glassy sound) but once reclocked it’s not too bad, i.e. some SACDs sound better than the CD layer would.
UPDATE - the HDMI Audio Extractor I used is marketed by Neet. I 'd tried a different maker but that wanted to negotiate with a display. The Neet has a switch that allows it to either negotiate with the display or use what the source wants to use. I’m in the UK and this is the link to the Neet unit:
The Oppo would send DSD over HDMI if configured to do so but, as Elk said, it would be encrypted. The encrypted DSD could only be decoded by Sony-blessed (and likely manufactured) chips. That HDMI signal would not be compatible with the OP’s Direct Stream DAC even though the latter uses HDMI connectors to transmit and receive I2S. If the Oppo is set to do the conversion to PCM, the data can be sent over unencrypted coax or Toslink, which is what you are doing. The board Veneet found sends the unencrypted DSD over I2S.
thyname,
I bought a HDMI audio extractor from Monoprice that converts HDMI audio to a Toslink output. There are others available on Amazon, but they do not specifically refer to handling 192/24 audio. The Monoprice box did specify that it would work with high resolution and was less than $50, so beware if you decide to purchase one from Amazon.
But, the main drawback is having to convert the SACD layer to a 88.2/24 bitstream in the Oppo. I have a 105 and to me, converting SACD to high resolution PCM and going through the DSJr sounds better than the SACD layer played in native DSD through the Oppo,
The DSJr is superior to the Oppo and my goal was to send all things digital through the DSJr which this box achieved.
@deanhorn this one?
https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=10251
And why would this be any different than simply playing SACD on Oppo 103-D and simply connecting the Oppo to Directstream via coax optical?
Thyname, do you do computer audio? With the Oppo 103 there is a way to extract the DSD info onto a flash drive. The code is available at Computer Audio, or PM Badbeef, he might be able to explain it, and point you in the right direction.
I have some of those converted files, they sound good. Although with my current DAC, I have to let JRiver convert to 24/176.
It would be the cheapest solution. I bought a HDMI extractor and without the handshake it doesn’t give you DSD, I bought one thinking it might. I no longer use it. Using the PWT, the last generation transport with my DAC, the CD layer sounds better than the SACD through my Oppo 83se. The SE was the top of the line at the time.ii
@jeffstarr I used to do computer audio. Until I got a NUC for my Roon Server that is dedicated to just running Roon OS (Roon Optimized Core Kit). My music is now “transmitted” to my Roon Endpoints, the Bridge II on Directstream, and another DAC with built in streamer (similar to DS) for my other system.
Honestly, the SACD is not a big deal. I no longer buy an SACD, and I think I only have a total of ten discs in SACD. Most of my music (700+ red book CDs) is ripped lossless and streamed via Roon. As I was looking for a transport, I just thought it would be nice to have one with a SACD built in.
You could load it to your NUC, it would be a relatively simple, low cost, or no cost if you own a thumb drive solution.
Last time I saw one, I thought a NUC was a type of computer.
I only had a dozen or so SACDs. I had them ripped by Ari Margolis at http://www.goldeneardigital.com
He did a very nice job, including with the meta data. Now I just play them like downloaded DSD files.
thyname said@deanhorn this one?
https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=10251
And why would this be any different than simply playing SACD on Oppo 103-D and simply connecting the Oppo to Directstream via coax optical?
https://www.monoprice.com/product?p_id=13349
The one in your link does not specifically state that it will convert to high resolution (192/24), but it has both coax and optical outputs which is a plus. So, without contacting Monoprice Customer Service, I am not sure that unit would work as intended. And the owners manual had no mention of high resolution audio either.
The Oppo will only output SACD converted to 88.2/24 through the HDMI output. And it does not output it through the coax and optical outputs. Another side benefit is that DVD Audio is outputted in the native format (mostly 96/24) for the 10 or so DVD Audio disks that I have.
The Oppo BDP-205 outputs audio HDMI 7 ch at 192K