How to obtain DSD files and discs

We hear a lot about how great DSD recordings are but how does one obtain them? Find out here.

[ChiefExecutiveOrbiter]

Giorgio's still pretty big, he did help produce a little known album called "Random Access Memories" with Daft Punk.

[artyfhartie]

Bearing in mind that digital audio is just the processing stage. All sounds we hear is analogue that is digital converted to analogue and amplified. If you want pure analogue sound, you need to use records and tapes, recorded and mastered on analogue gear, played on equipment without any digital circuitry eg vintage gear. Enjoy.

[RanNero]

I appreciate the fact that you printed the message and read it. :):):). I paused and subscribed at second 25 into the video, just for that.

[AllboroLCD]

Giorgio is very much an obscure legend and unsung hero! He helped herald us into the age of electronic music, and soundtracked many classic movies of the 80's. Cool dude..

[obsprisma]

"I didn't hear anything about speaker sensitivity".

This was the former wrong subject to announce this video which has been replaced.
This video however contains only the usual sales talk about DSD, which will never be available for older classic analog recordings. That is what disturbs me about this talk about this DSD standard. It may be the best ever but i only earn recordings from a time periode DSD was not there, and it is still a very rare format today.

[johnmarchington]

NativeDSD Music has a considerable number of what it terms "Pure DSD" recordings. I have a number of them and they are superb. They range from DSD64 to DSD512. The higher numbers theoretically sound finer but they will take a lot longer to download and are obviously going to be bigger files and take up more disc space. Most of mine are DSD128 and they''re excellent.

[attilapataki]

Here are the sources that I use:

DSD Download:


SACD:


PS Audio has a blog on how to rip SACDS:

[NoEggu]

Paul, you have talked about the importance of recording (capturing) via DSD, and afterwards converting to PCM is basically seamless (virtually no loss in fidelity).
In other words, playing back the DSD file vs playing back the PCM file (derived from the DSD file) will sound the same.

Ergo, PCM can "capture", if you will, the great sound qualities that we desire. The PCM format is capable of retaining that sound quality. It is just a matter of how we create that PCM file.

Doing so via conversion from DSD is capable, and yet capturing directly from the live performance yields lesser quality sound fidelity.

So since PCM can actually be virtually as good as DSD (via converting from DSD), then might PCM's diminished sound quality (when capturing directly from a live performance) be due to your "capturing" equipment?

Might the PCM capturing problem be due to your real-time analog-to-digital PCM gear?

If just seems odd that PCM has the capability to be DSD's equal, but only when using DSD initially. It stands to reason that the fault of PCM is not actually a fault with PCM, but rather a fault with the live, real-time conversion gear used in creating PCM files?

What gear are you using to create DSD files from live events?
What gear are (or were) you using to create PCM files from live events?

For your "students" to come away with your assertion that "straight to PCM" is not as good as "straight to DSD", then we should know how you drew that conclusion, by way of knowing the equipment that you used to draw that conclusion.

Reputable reviews from Stereophile and The Absolute Sound always list the gear that they used to reach their sonic conclusions.
Please do the same.


Thank you.

[joeythedime]

HD Tracks has a reasonable quantity of albums in DSD.

[graemetodd]

Hoping you and your family are safe Paul. Take care.

[nj]

Answer was at beginning and fine. No dac needed with PDM DSD then. what resolution / quality does that give ??

[killercarpcatcher]

Hi, the description doesn't match the subject in the video.

[dan-nutu]

I hope all of you at PS Audio are safe, I just saw the news about the wildfires and they seem very close to your location. Hope for a much better and Happy New Year!

[dimensionsofmusicD]

I think the video title, speaker sensitivity, is not matching the conversation, whasssup?

[sylviarienzo]

How can you send a DSD file direct to an amplifier or a preamp? I’m in the unfortunate position of having a very expensive DAC whose purist developers refused to accommodate DSD capability claiming it would compromise the PCM experience. And I have a SACD player whose DSD ceiling is the SACD. Is that DSD64? So there is no way I can experience hi-res DSD on my otherwise great system. So back to my original question, how can I send a hi-res DSD file direct to my in this case integrated amplifier which is apparently the only way I can experience hi-res DSD. And, no, I don’t really want to convert it to PCM.

[issadad]

Usually I see "DSD" on my SACD's, but when I see "DSD" on the back of a non-SACD classical disc from, say, 1960, what does that mean?

[ChrisSmith-tcdf]

Acoustic Sounds was initially anchored in vinyl, but has some great SACD's such as the Norah Jones SACD Box Set. In any event you can find some broader genres there.

[NhoyBarangay]

Its 2023 now. When will Studios and Artist support Native DSD Format files?

[joaopedroscarcella]

I'm really like DSD and own some SACD's. I ripped them all and today just play DSF files using Foobar and a Korg DAC.

[Yu-Fei-Hung]

so, it is basically like using Bezier curves against bit maps to draw shapes?