Streaming vs Physical Media

In another thread on cables, I linked an article by the Pink Floyd recording engineers but there's this one statement about digital recordings and making copies:

In my opinion there are a lot of misconceptions about digital audio. Disregarding the good points, some of the bad points are that it is almost impossible to do a digital to digital copy and retain the resolution; it is far more susceptible to the sound changing from many different reasons – RF, A/C mains, harmonic distortion and fluctuation, physical vibrations, etc., than most people realize. What we have tried to achieve is to get our HD system sounding as good as possible, given the parameters of what it is in the first place. We have spent many days listening and testing. Accordingly, every area of improvement has been implemented to the highest degree: all the A/C mains, audio cabling, digital cabling, anti jitter boxes, master clocks, physical support of the units, etc.

Granted, that was back in 2005, but it's still relevant today.

All the best,
Nonoise

I don’t want to turn this thread into that same old debate. However, I do believe that mentioning "the inherent noise in streaming" as though that is an incontrovertible fact and that these devices are necessary to correct them does a disservice to the less experienced wanting to get into streaming/digital music.

Great point, and one that I’ve used a few time when people would denigrate CD playback due to all the "inherent" drawbacks that were stated as factually occurring all the time when, in fact, that was never true.

That was at or around the time when streaming first started taking off and everyone was rushing to it like moths to a flame. Factor in the numbers game (high rez sampling rates!) and it was practically a blood fest with CD users feeling like they were on someone else’s menu if they spoke up.

Now here we are with a mature technology that’s getting even better and one just past it’s nascent stage that has quite a journey ahead of itself.

All the best,
Nonoise

Uneven playing field. Try a CDT(maybe borrow?) around the same price as your streamer that has i2s outputs, using the same brand and type cable, and then tell us what you hear.

That would be a more valid comparison.

All the best,
Nonoise

@charles1dad , as usual, you head the bullseye with your comment on the Technics SL-G700. Any company willing to do what is necessary can build a fantastic  CD/SACD player, can do so.

All the best,
Nonoise

I recently had someone over to buy my old Timbernation stereo rack. He was quite an avid audiophile who's friend with one of the guys at Sony who invented SACD  (the person still makes custom equipment for those who can afford it).  

He took an interest in my Technics set up (SU-G700M2 & SL-G700 SACD/steamer/network/WiFi player) so I played him some Black Acid Soul by Lady Blackbird and not 5 seconds into it, he said, "wow...that's fast". The only other comment he made was "this just sounds great" a few times, as we listened to practically the whole CD. 

I mentioned how I have to use Pure Disk Playback on the SACD's settings to get the best sound. Doing that shuts down all other features (networking, WiFi, streaming, etc.) including the display. I don't have anything else set up with the SACD player but defeating PDP results in a noticeable downgrading of the sound.

My friend said it's most likely due to the power now being shared with the other system features even though nothing is hooked up to it. I think there's something else at work that even with the most careful R&D that Technics used, CD playback sounds the best, by a noticeable margin.

The reviews out there are mixed as some of them only streamed and used WiFi and were mightily impressed but at least one reviewer was so enamored of the disc playback that he asked Technics if they were going to make a dedicated player using the exact same CD drive as the one in the unit but they said, no. I wish they would as I'd have saved maybe a third off the price and gotten a SACD player with all the attention dedicated to just that. 

Some day I may try some of the other features but I'm in no hurry to do so.

All the best,
Nonoise