Coming out 10/7/03 will be one of the first titles that will be released on both SACD and DVD-Audio. 3 Doors Down Away from the Sun was released earlier this year on SACD, the DVD-Audio version will be available tomorrow. Which one do you think will sound better the SACD or the DVD-Audio version? I can almost guarantee that they will be the same mixes. Granted the DVD-Audio will contain some bonus material such as lyrics, music videos, etc. I am just interested which one will sound better. THOUGHTS??????? I will chime back in when I get my copy from Amazon, I already have the SACD.
3 Doors Down Away From the Sun DVD-Audio VS SACD
- Thread starter tlake6659
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Well I finally got to compare the DVD-Audio with the SACD tonight, and I can say that the SACD version wins hands down. It has better fidelity, bass response, and sounds cleaner overall vs. the DVD Audio. I am using a universal player with the same inputs, so there is no discrepancy between players. I went into this thinking that the DVD-Audio version would sound better too. It sucks too because I was hoping to sell the SACD since the DVD-Audio has lyrics, music video, etc. I wonder if Universal botched this somehow, I too thought that the PCM would beat out the SACD.
It's hard to say why you would notice such a discrepancy but the fact that you have a universal player should not be discounted. From what I've read of peoples' own experiences, universal players tend to favor one format over another (i.e. they can serve one format exceptionally well but not both). With that said, I believe using two dedicated players instead of a universal player would offer a better comparison.
Cai Campbell said:
I am using a Denon DVD-2900 as my player and from my experience it handles both formats very well and completely separately, so I really don't think that it is due to my player. I usually thought that DVD-Audios sound better than SACDs too, until this comparison.
tlake6659 said:
Well, if you're going to go with a universal player, the DVD-2900 is certainly one of the best. You are correct that it does offer separate output circuitry for the two formats, and from what I understand, it does a very good job with both. Did you listen to the DVD-A in direct mode, by disabling the video circuitry? That might make a difference. Also, are you utilizing the bass management features for one or both formats? I would disable any additional processing (such as bass management) before doing a comparison like this.
Cai Campbell said:
I am usually large speakers for all 5 speakers so I don't need any bass management since all can handle the LFE response, and I did try disabling the video circuitry and that really did not make a noticable difference. On a side note, I am shocked that more people are not interested in this comparison, since finally we can compare the two high res formats on the same exact music and mixes.
I'm sure more people will become interested now that we can do this... I know I'm interested! I have this SACD and will probably get the DVD-A so I can do my own comparison.
Well, it sounds like your comparison is, for the most part, pretty well defined. I'm surprised that a PCM source can end up sounding better after a conversion to DSD. The only thing I can think of is something happened in the DVD-A authoring process.
Do you know if the PCM tracks are included in their native resolution? If they upsampled for the DVD-A or did any other type of processing, they might have screwed things up. There could have also been some post-conversion tweaking on the DSD side. It's really hard to say what's up without having the full story. Still, I'll be interested in doing my own comparison.
Well, it sounds like your comparison is, for the most part, pretty well defined. I'm surprised that a PCM source can end up sounding better after a conversion to DSD. The only thing I can think of is something happened in the DVD-A authoring process.
Do you know if the PCM tracks are included in their native resolution? If they upsampled for the DVD-A or did any other type of processing, they might have screwed things up. There could have also been some post-conversion tweaking on the DSD side. It's really hard to say what's up without having the full story. Still, I'll be interested in doing my own comparison.
Cai Campbell said:
Well Universal has a strict stance that none of their available or upcoming DVD-Audio discs will be upsampled and all will be done in their native resolution. That is why alot of their new DVD-Audio discs are at 48khz. I too think Universal screwed this up somehow since the PCM layer should be closest to the master tapes. Looking forward to your comparison, as well as comparisons of upcoming DVD-Audio vs. SACD for Steely Dan's Gaucho and Beck's Sea Change. It should be noted that Away From the Sun's SACD is mastered at a higher volume than the DVD-Audio, I did take this into account in my comparison by matching the volume levels.
This result does not surprise me. I compared Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get It On" on my 2900 from the SACD (Let's Get It On) and the DVDA (The Marvin Gaye Collection). After listening to them both, the SACD sounded fuller, warmer and much more pleasing in both multi-channel and stereo. JMO.
