Have you gone hi-rez? Which format and why?


I've had a taste of SACD and really liked it. I have an inexpensive Sony SACD changer and a few SACDs. I have not heard DVD-A. At some point I'd like to get a higher-end hi-rez player and I'm leaning towards SACD. My search at Tower informed me that there are more SACDs available than DVD-As, but some research suggests the availability of either runs along record label lines. I also get the impression that DVD-A leans toward multi-channel listeners where SACD still addresses both equally (is this a valid assumption?).

There are some universal players coming to market, but you know the old addage... jack of all trades... Regardless of my hi-rez choice, I will keep my redbook CD player for some time. I read today that Arcam is releasing two new DVD players in March that support DVD-A. Their news page stated that it would be too difficult to incorporate SACD and I wonder if this is a sign or if it's just Arcam's choice to support only one format for whatever reason. In my searching I also noticed that the number of CD players is decreasing (at least in the mass market) and most are producing DVD players with CD playback. According to the Arcam news page, it's easier to incorporate DVD-A into a DVD player because SACD requires a separate reading mechanism.

I'd like to hear whether or not you decided to add hi-rez to your system and if so which format and why? FWIW, I don't have and won't have multi-channel. Thanks!
budrew

Showing 1 response by thedautch

I have gone with SACD. For one thing, enough titles were eventually released (or are scheduled for release) that I knew I would buy SACDs in legitimate volume (I have about 25 and counting so far, vs. maybe 200 CDs).

Also, you can listen to good quality SACD for a much smaller investment than good quality DVD-A. For SACD, two full range speakers will do it (Polk Lsi 25, in my case...very happy, by the way). But for *true* DVD-A, I would have needed FIVE full-range speakers, and I wasn't willing to make that investment. If I want DVD-A, I can always build through the Polk series by adding two Lsi 15's (still pretty close to full range) and the Lsi center channel.

I'm also happier with the broad range of SACD recordings that have been released. I don't find DVD-A to be as comprehensive, according to my personal musical tastes.