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SACD v Streaming

I just recently hooked up my new (to me) McIntosh MCT500 via MCT (din) to my C53 (DA2).  I have an MC312 driving a pair of B&W 702 S3.  I then played a couple of SACDs - Van Halen (I) and then Carole King Tapestry - both high quality MoFi discs from original master tapes.

Holy heck, I was blown away.  This was the closest to analog I have ever heard from digital.  The detail in the timbre of guitar, bass, and piano was stunning to my ears.  And the voices of both David Lee Roth and Carole King were so real.  The soundstage was deep.

This was the first time I have heard true SACD.  I'm normally streaming through an Eversolo DMP-A6 or straight from my Roon Nucleus One (via USB to the DA2).  My internet connection is really good, though there is wifi and ethernet (versus fiber optic) in the chain.  I also have several dozen CDs and some DSD recordings on an SSD as well.  The sound from streaming is really terrific....but the SACD experience with really good recordings is clearly superior.

Am I just imagining this?  What do I need to do to match or exceed this SQ with my streaming?  Better streamer? DAC? Streaming connection? Power?  Curious as to your thoughts and your experiences.

mattsca
ghdprentice
7,780 posts
 

If your SACD player costs ~$10K then you should be able to get similar sonic performance (by carefully choosing) for around $10K - $12K.

mahler123
3,549 posts
 

I have never heard a streamer in the 10 K range but I am highly sceptical that spending into the stratosphere on a streamer will best SACD.  The key here from my standpoint is the DSD.  Perhaps if the streamer is used for DSD downloads it will rival SACD but otherwise I think it’s just chasing the asymptote.  I personally haven’t been able to tell much difference between a good $3K and a $10K streamer into the same DAC with FLAC

jayctoy's avatar
jayctoy
4,339 posts
 

To equal the Marantz SA 10 SACd player on streaming , probably you have to spend a lot more. I listen to my friend house who is pure streaming, using good audio mirror dac and good streamer , it’s sounds good but I prefer my SA 10 , on good SACD recording it’s hard to beat.

jayctoy's avatar
jayctoy
4,339 posts
 

SACd players are less complicated as well.

mattsca's avatar
mattsca OP
29 posts
 

I'm not ready to spend $20K, but I already have a Denafrips Pontus II 15th and I just ordered a Lumin U2 Mini, which would be about a $4,500 streaming front end before interconnects.  I'll be able to compare DSD streams and I expect I'll have a nice improvement over the current streaming setup.

But I think there will still be a gap to the SACD setup that can be closed further with a separate LPS, fiber optic, better interconnects, and perhaps even better clocking that I will get from the Mini.  At some point I would expect my Denafrips DAC to show up better than the DA2.

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