DSD vs. PCM vs. MQA - Group listening experiment

The title of this thread is :-

" DSD vs. PCM vs. MQA - Group listening experiment"

OP - " I only posted what was supposedly for an ideal file, not an ideal dac. "

If someones wishes to talk about dac types, please start a new thread.

When will this hijacking ever stop? - and it’s always about the same thing.

BTW here are a users findings of the Schiit dacs with Multibit upgrades doing pcm conversions.
https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/difference-between-schiit-modi-versions

So saying that it's really impossible to compare DSD, and PCM as they both need different dacs to get their best. 

Cheers George

Fery few multi-bit dac's left really.

  Not really they are more than ever now, as in the hi-end they're realizing now that to do PCM conversion right it has to be done with Multibit.
Hi-End ones like MSB's flagships, Total Dac, Metrum, Schiit (has upgrades to multibit) Aquahifi and many many more.
Here is the latest from Aqua.
http://www.aquahifi.com/formula.html

Cheers George

@georgelofi

I only posted what was sopposedly for an ideal file, not an ideal dac.  Fery few multi-bit dac's left really.  I'm interested in what DAC's users have, and if they can find some files that they feel are absolute demonstrators of a particular format's virtues.

Or at least, on their DAC shows a noticeable difference. :)  Of course we can't have perfect.  99% of DSD recordings are DSD to PCM to DSD to begin with. 80% of modern DAC's are bitstream anyway. So no matter how we go we aren't going to get whatever the theoretical ideal is.

Best,


Erik

If that's the case, then the PCM for it to sound it's best should only be listened to via a dac that is Multibit conversion.
Not one that is a DSD dac with/or Delta Sigma, Bitstream, Single Bit, Saber, or Wolfson sd DAC convertors.

From MoJo Music: and others have said the same.
" When a PCM file is played on a DSD or Bit Stream converter, the DAC chip has to convert the PCM to DSD in real time. This is one of the major reasons people claim DSD sounds better than PCM, when in fact, it is just that the chip in most modern single-bit DACs do a poor job of decoding PCM."

Cheers George

@georgelofi

Sorry, the idea was that we would all listen at home with whatever we have.  The "group" part was that we can use the same library of files.

@ahendler Nominal 44khz is really 44.1kHz, so same deal. :)

Best,


Erik

Shouldn't the MQA file be 24/44 or 24/48?
Alan

Does anyone know what type of dac was used to compare these group listening experiments with??

Cheers George

So far I've been listening to a Vivaldi Contata, about 70 Megs at 24/96 in FLAC and 44.1/24 MQA FLAC.

I hear no difference, though my DAC indicates the MQA file is playing at 24/352.8kHz.

However, though I hear no difference, the MQA recording makes my ears hot, and uncomfortable. More on this later.

Couple of notes. MQA should sound it's best when the ADC is known and adjusted for. DSD should be at it's best when there has been no modifications to the original, which is nearly impossible due to post processing needing to occur in the PCM or analog worlds.

Or so these are the claims I have heard.