The problem with HDCD compatible CDP or DAC's is that the Pacific Microsonics approved chips suck sonically with two exceptions:
1. Mark Levinson who because of the above-mentioned lousy performance, managed to get PM to allow/license them to design and manufacture their own chips which of course can only be used in Levinson products.
2. The other option for great HDCD sound is/are Wadia DAC's and CDP's. Because Wadia uses patented software (a computer) for decoding, their systems don't employ chips and so don't filter out the HDCD data. And due to their decoding algorhythm, upsampling, and wide bandwidth decoding, the result is that the additional (HDCD) information is treated as part of the data stream with spectacular results! You will not see an HDCD indicator light on the Wadia display but that won't affect the great sound :-)
This is the best (i.e. most complete and up-to-date) HDCD website (click on the English version flag if you get the Swedish page ;-) Registration is free: http://www.hifimusic.se/hdcd/index.php?p=home
And don't forget our own born-again Reference Recordings www.referencerecordings.com run by Doc Johnson, HDCD's co-inventor.
1. Mark Levinson who because of the above-mentioned lousy performance, managed to get PM to allow/license them to design and manufacture their own chips which of course can only be used in Levinson products.
2. The other option for great HDCD sound is/are Wadia DAC's and CDP's. Because Wadia uses patented software (a computer) for decoding, their systems don't employ chips and so don't filter out the HDCD data. And due to their decoding algorhythm, upsampling, and wide bandwidth decoding, the result is that the additional (HDCD) information is treated as part of the data stream with spectacular results! You will not see an HDCD indicator light on the Wadia display but that won't affect the great sound :-)
This is the best (i.e. most complete and up-to-date) HDCD website (click on the English version flag if you get the Swedish page ;-) Registration is free: http://www.hifimusic.se/hdcd/index.php?p=home
And don't forget our own born-again Reference Recordings www.referencerecordings.com run by Doc Johnson, HDCD's co-inventor.