Absolutely! I am astounded by that young man’s taste in music. I have no desire to pay any attention to a reviewer who uses Aerosmith to evaluate audio components.

@@daniannaci3258 A blend of Classical Musical taste combined with Music History is needed. We all know what we like when we hear it. We need somebody to guide us along the way.

Dude acts like he was alive when the classical music was created 😂

@@mikechivy he was!

I, too, am a senior in my 80s and an obsessive audiophile. I just bought my first SACD player, an Ayre DX-5 DSD. I am having goosebump making experiences listening to the many hybrid SACDs I’ve acquired in anticipation of finally having an SACD player. I very much want *Many More* of his classical music recommendations. Please!! I am only disappointed in the mostly high prices of SACSs compared to CDs.

Julia, I looked at the specs for the Yamaha. It supports DSD files, but not DSD over HDMI, so you are mistaken about its ability to support SACD natively. Decoding DSD over HDMI is very rare these days; perhaps only SONY still supports it.

which unit do yoou own?

Oh, right. I forgot that you know better than I what I hear. Your theoretical explanation must hold sway because it's pseudoscience wrapped in engineering lingo that you yourself are unlikely to understand. That certainly negates the decades I've spent listening to live music and recorded music in all its forms. @@nicksterj

I have a Yamaha TSR700 AVR and recently purchased a Sony UBP-X700. I ordered a SACD sampler to verify DSD capability. It sounds amazing. I will be heading over to The In Groove and pick up Dark Side of the Moon, and Animals when it is released.

On our living room setup I output my Sony player into the TV - then out on an optical cable to my aging Denon receiver (forget the model but it was top of the range when it came out) which has no HDMI inputs. It sounds pretty great. Could try putting a DAC in the loop to see if it makes any difference but, to be honest, I'm quite sceptical. And of course this only works with stereo layers. I only have 2 speakers on that system so it's not a problem.

I'm going to try to get full SACD sound by running my Yamaha blue ray BD-A1010 into my Yamaha AVR receiver RXA -1000 via HDMI. Both units contain 24/192 DACs. Hopefully this works.

It may be that LVDS is becoming a de facto I2S standard. My previous W4S dac used that and my current Matrix Audio dac uses it as well.

Thank you!

Hi Johnny, while I've never used a C2600, I have a lot of experience with the DA1 dac module mcintosh uses on many of their products (do you have DA2?), and I can safely say that they sound very different from the pontus. How many hours of play has the Pontus gotten? Something with so many caps in it may require a break in period of close to 200 hours. Now, the Pontus is likely not going to be as super detailed as a lot of chipset DACs out there, but in my experience it more than makes up for it in soundstage and three dimensionality. That and a smooth non fatiguing sound signature make it one of my favorites. Be sure to experiment with the filter options on the Pontus. You have "No Oversampling" "OS Slow" and "OS fast". Most people tend to like "No Oversampling" and "OS Slow". If you don't know how to change these filter settings theres a handy video by Alvin at Vinshine audio that can walk you through the steps. Hope this helps!

@@poetryonplastic Thank you for your reply. I got the same suggestions from Alvin on the break-in time. In fact, from my last night audition (the 5th day) I have already heard some improvements. I will continue to burn it for another week and report back to you. I did try NOS/OS, I found OS has a tiny opening for the sound but very subtle, almost no difference. I am listening to classical music mostly, I would appreciate your suggestion of OS Slow or Fast setting and I will continue to learn the set up as well. One more thing I also have noticed is that the signal level on the Pontus II is kinda low. I have to turn the volume way up to have the normal sound level for my room. Don’t know if this is correct. The Mcintosh C2600 is DA1.

@@johnnyz4427 I’ve found in my system the setting I prefer is OS slow.

I have had three AVR’s that do DSD 2.8MHz/5.6MHz DSD (Marantz, Sony, and Onkyo). Except for Sony (obviously), DSD is done over PCM (just like DTS-HDMA (PCM 96/24 delivered via DTS bitstream). They don’t sound anywhere near as good as my PS Audio DirectStream DAC with Windom installed including the Sony. Implementation is everything these days with DAC’s. Just like it was with Phono Preamps many years ago. The RIAA curve never changed but it’s implementation is everything.

Make sure the output is not set to change the DSD to 24/88.2kHz, on the Oppo for sure there is another setting for that.

@@nacarp2000 Not quite sure what you mean. Could you be more specific. Thanks, Tim.

@@timmurray9065 I think he meant that on your oppo settings menu, there should be a page for Output, then HDMI and then an option to allow DSD over HDMI or convert to PCM. Most of the times by default, it will be set to convert so you should check those options. I don't have an oppo so I can't be more specific but hope it helps.

If you have a great dac

666?!

The best way to do it, no additional hardware required other than (potentially) a streamer that is DSD compatible to play back the ripped files.

Now that you have had your PS audio gear for a year, what do you think of it? I am considering buying the same 2 items you have. I have read that if you have to send anything back to PS Audio for repair, it is $550 just for them to look at it and give an estimate for the repairs. Not sure if that is true or not.

@@CliffCollipriest2013 Hi Cliff. You may not be aware that there is now a Mk II version of the DirectStream DAC and I would definitely advise you to purchase that model rather than the one I have. There is a KZfaq video of Ted Smith, the designer of both models, being interviewed by Paul McGowan where they discuss the changes between the models and it would seem that when Ted designed the original DirectStream DAC, some of the components he wanted to use were almost at the limits of his design requirements and they have been replaced in the Mk II version by updated components with better specs, like the Field Programmable Gate Arrays. In addition, noise and jitter issues seem to have been further reduced with better power supplies etc. I'm still very pleased with the model I have but I would have bought this newer version had it been available at the time. I live in New Zealand so I'm not sure what would happen if I needed to get either my transport or DAC serviced.

@@johnmarchington3146 thank you John for the quick reply. Yes, I am aware there is a new MkII out. I am on Paul's email list. My only concern is reliability from what is for most an unknown brand (well, and the price). I am glad you are enjoying your PS audio and can still recommend it.

@@CliffCollipriest2013 That is always a concern, Cliff, no matter what. From the various KZfaq videos and interviews I've seen, I have always gained the impression that PS Audio spends a considerable amount of time and energy selecting the best possible components and I have heard Paul speak of estimating the equipment lasting for decades. All that talk is no guarantee, of course. If you are feeling anxious about it, choose another brand.

John, I'm in a similar boat of perhaps upgrading my Modwright (Marantz) sacd player. The only (I2S) SACD Transport is the PS audio transport. The new MK II dac seems like it has had some functional issues and there were some part compromises made due to supply chain issues. That being said, I gently chided them at the last Rocky Mountain Audio Fest about their pricing model after they went direct only. Their prices were at the full retail value even though they cut out all the dealers. Oh well. I may go with the transport if they have a sale on it and perhaps another dac or I need to check the new Luxman D-07 an all in one sacd player. I was hoping some other manufacture would offer a sacd transport.

+1 on this. There is no indicator on this dac to show it's a DSD flux

You don't need an outboard DAC to listen to sacds, you can just listen to them on your sacd player, this video is for people who have already invested in a high end DAC and want to play their sacds through it. Further, the price of the Denafrips Pontus II is $1750 usd, you are quoting the singapore dollars number.

Well I know that Esoteric remaster everything themselves, recordings where the original masters are in PCM are upsampled to higher resolution and then converted later. I'm not an expert in the technical aspects of this process, but i know one of the esoteric recordings I have (Karajan's last Tchaikovsky cycle) sounds much, much better than the original cd. Obviously working with a native DSD master file is always going to be better than converting, but sometimes you work with what you have. The results are really what concern me though.

Any luck? Im new to ths have the x800 and an amp with coax/optical in only?

@@andymill32 I have not gotten that far as of yet sadly life hasnt allowed me the extra $. I most definitely will, just cant say when.

No idea about the ins and outs of the copy protection. The player is not sending pure dsd through the hdmi output from what I understand, it's sending dsd attached to video, which the box is then separating as far as I can tell. My DAC recognizes the i2s signal as raw DSD, so its not converting to pcm.

@@poetryonplastic Thanks! That makes sense. You never cease to inspire.

@@bart1366 Based on what I’ve read, PS Audio and I think DCS have licensing agreements with Sony WRT to DSD “Native” playback. Other DAC’s are using either chip based DSD over PCM decoding or some sort of FPGA system. All Denefrips DAC’s do DSD decoding via an FPGA whereas all PCM decoding is done via their R2R Ladder Networks. Paul McGowan did a Video on the licensing stuff a few years ago.

How did sound via Oppo analogue out vs Oppo to magic box and out to Holo May DAC?

@@matthewhoult1350 The first thing I noticed was that the output is much hotter than what I was getting from the Aurender ACS10. The loudest I usually play my Magnepans is - 17dB at my preamp with the ACS10. From the Oppo - Holo combination, - 35dB and I'm worried about wreaking my speakers. Sound wise, this combination runs rings around the ACS10. I have not had much time to compare the XLR direct to preamp versus the i2s but what was immediately noticeable was the highs were less sibilant and less fatiguing. One drawback this setup has is that my system is integrated with my home theatre and having a HDMI cable connected to the Audio out on the Oppo over rides the multi channel audio going to the AVR and comes out in stereo through the Holo. I have not been able to fix this in the Oppo setup preferences. The only way to fix this is to physically unplug the second HDMI. Luckily I've been hesitating selling my Oppo BDP103D that was replaced by the 205 and am now using it as a dedicated SACD transport with identical results. My next project is to convert the USB output of the ACS10 to i2s with a Sonore Ultradigital converter but this little magic box costs 10x more than the Aliexpress box.

That is really the best way to do it, because it allows you to stop putting wear and tear on the aging disc player. Once the SACD data is ripped to a file format (typically DSF), it can be played by any number of music streamer/software/DAC combinations and the disc can be safely stored away for archival purposes. Usually that would be a via USB connection between DAC and streamer, however some DACs can take DoP over SPDIF.

DVD-A is essentially and while Blu-ray Audio is surviving, it has nowhere the amount of software support like SACD.

Yes I’d love to experiment with different designs for these. The turntable is a Pure Fidelity Horizon.

@@poetryonplastic Thanks.. Deck looks elegant.

Exactly... aka I²S (Inter-IC Sound)

Disconnect pin 16 of your HDMI cable and your Topping should work.

While ladder DACs that can decode DSD are rare, the Denafrips actually decodes native DSD. its not being converted to PCM or using D2P/DoP.

@ArnoldG how’d it go?

I’ve had the converter for close to 6 months now and so far it’s working flawlessly . It’s pretty much a plug and play thing with the converter . The only thing I have to configure was on the Pontus to get the signal on the i2s and it wasn’t too bad . I’m able to play all of my SACD’s using my Pontus as an outboard DaC and sonically , the music is taking every bit of the Pontus’ character (which is very analog). Absolutely love this converter . Absolutely love the sound of my SACD’s on 2 channel playback using the Pontus . Thanks for asking .

Sony UBP-X1100ES/UBP-X1000ES or Sony X800S or X800M2.

I have! Search Metronome on Audiophilia, I’ve reviewed both their cd transport and their DAC. But not their sacd player, yet…

@@poetryonplastic oh that’s awesome 🤩. I never actively looked it up. I will look into it 😊

Why would anyone want to convert a cd to sacd ? It will still have 'the cd sound' you know ! And no ,sacd's are not obsolete - i buy some every month !

The Esoteric discs are hybrid SACDs, so there is a normal CD layer that you can play with a regular CD player. While the fidelity won't be the same, the mastering will be. The Esoteric discs are quite expensive though, personally if I didn't have an SACD player, I would buy other, cheaper versions of these recordings on CD. But by all means try one out and let me know what you think.

@@poetryonplastic I echo those comments. The Esoterics do sound superb but they are usually twice as expensive as standard SACDs. Some of that additional cost is probably in the packaging, which is stunning

While the UDP 205 does have an hdmi out labeled “Hdmi audio out” the 105 just has hdmi out 1 and 2 (I’m using 2). I know someone else with a Denafrips dac that tried the hdmi audio out from his udp 205 to the terminator directly, but it didn’t work until he added the converter box. My DAC recognizes the signal as DSD, not PCM, so the Oppo is sending out DSD (this may depend on your Oppo settings).

@@poetryonplastic - oh, fantastic infrormation, partner. i have my 105 HDMI2 / (DSD set up in menu) -but its going to a pre/pro for conversion. Yes, the pre-pro recognizes it as DSD. So, knowing you're using that HDMI2 and through the conversion getting such dramatic results, let's me know i need to move to a similar set up. (current set up using HDMI2 does sound better than using HDMI1 (conversion to PCM in Oppo105 - but not by a huge amount. found your channel as i was precisely looking for information on experience with SACD through outboard DAC ;) However, i'm thinking on simply upgrading to a matched system since my 105 is now starting to act a little funky... :( thanks for the channel! Subscribed!

Hi John, to the first part of your question: From what I've been able to understand, if you can run HDMI out from an SACD player, if you use one of these convertor boxes, you will have a DSD signal going out the other end. However, every I2S input on different DACs use a different pinout configuration, this means that you may need to change the pinout configuration on your DAC to achive proper sound (it could be out of phase, or perhaps channel-swapped), I2S is not standardized so each DAC is a little different in how they deal with it. That being said, if you have an I2S enabled DAC that allows you to change pinout config, you have a DAC that will work for playing SACDs/DSD files over HDMI. 2. Esoteric make first rate SACD players, but I have no idea how they compare as I've only ever heard one once at a show. In general, usually standalone DACs tend to sound better than integrated ones. I'm not really worried about any loss in the signal chain as the gains from an external DAC are very big, especially over my Oppo's internal DAC. Esoteric may be another level though, you may have to step up to the Terminator to better the DAC in an Esoteric unit. Metronome also make a world-class integrated DAC/CD/SACD player called the AQWO that I will be reviewing this summer. If you are looking to buy your last ever digital unit, and want everything in one box, that's what I would take a look at.

@@poetryonplastic Thanks for your fast reply and help on my questions. As I mentioned I am your fan and been following your videos for a while, seeing your growth of LP collections and your upgrade of your sound system. You are also a professional musician. I am an old school classical LP collector, not good at the digital stuff. I believe your music taste matches mine well. That’s why I want to follow your system set up to buy the Denafrips Pontus II DAC from Singapore and that convertor box on eBay so I can also have the same sound quality as you described in your video. I have a Mcintosh c2600 tube preamp and a Mcintosh MC452 power amp with my B&W 802N, primarily listening to classical LPs and some CDs. My CD player is a high end old one but can not play SACD and no DHMI output. If I buy the Denafrips DAC, I wonder if I just buy an inexpensive SACD player with HDMI audio output to the convertor and to Denafrips DAC regardless if it has a builtin DAC or not as I will use the Denafrips DAC anyway. The below Sony DVD/SACD player seems a good fit and is available from local BestBuy stores. www.bestbuy.com/site/sony-ubp-x800m2-streaming-4k-ultra-hd-hi-res-audio-wi-fi-built-in-blu-ray-player-black/6336494.p?skuId=6336494 If I want to have the similar sound quality as you describer in your video, would you please let me know if my thought is correct, if not, would you please recommend some SACD players to me because I can use buy used Oppos now. Your help is very much appreciated.

You have to use digital out, does your player have a second HDMI output? If not, then you may need to split the one HDMI output into 2 first, one to go to the TV, one to go to the HDMI/I2S box. You can get HDMI splitters from Amazon or Monoprice.

@@nacarp2000 That's great, thank you very much. Mark🤟

Yes, I’m using the 2nd hdmi output and the Denafrips is recognizing the signal as DSD.

@@poetryonplastic dope, thanks for that!