SACD Support?

[U-Phorik]

Can someone give me a quick run down of what SACD support is, I'm a pretty technical guy, and I think I got an understanding of what it is from Wikipedia, but I guess my question is, do I need it?? will it affect game play in anyway?

[un4gvn94538]

sacd support are is only for sacd playck. music. has nothing to do with games. different formats

[moviefan]

SACD is multichannel music playback. (SuperAudioCD)
Many SACD discs are "Hybrid", meaning they have both multichannel and regular stereo tracks. These will play on any DVD player.
Playstation 3, except the 40GB model, supports SACD, and the sound is outstanding on a 5.1 home theater system.
A few regular DVD players also support SACD, but to date no standalone Blu-ray players support SACD.

[U-Phorik]

So when watching a BD movie, would I notice much of a difference, I don't have a home theatre yet, just some extra speakers from my stereo receiver which helps give it the surround sound feel.

[jibucha]

Hello

SACD l SACD is Super Audio CD, which is a high fidelity music replacement for CD, as Blu-ray is a high definition replacement for standard definition DVD.

SACD Hybrid Disc l Hybrid Disc is the comprehensive disc formatting, that is backwards compatible with the CD format, as it has a completely separate CD Layer, that is still better than an original CD, as it is derived from a DSD Master, as Blu-ray can be from the higher quality 4K or 6K transfers, eventually to 8K Transfers, significantly improving the fundamental quality of the format.

Additionally, it will have a SACD two channel master as CD, but higher fidelity, and a SACD multi-channel master as well, for those seeking high fidelity surround sound.

So; a Hybrid Disc, has three distinct copies available, one that can play on any CD Player, and two that can play on dedicated SACD Players that support two channel or multi-channel, or both.

SACD Only Discs l Unfortunately, all SACD Discs are not Hybrid Disc's; these poorly thought out discs, will only play on SACD Players, and may additionally, be limited to either two channel only or multi channel only.

It was the original intent of SACD that all discs would be Hybrid Discs, therefore replacing CD entirely, as this comprehensive format availability allowed for a single release of titles that would eventually entirely replace CD's. Unfortunately, marketing forces and poorly thought out releases that were not Hybrid Discs, led to confusion and a remarkable format only supported by those of us that still cherish the ultimate in sound quality, as those of us that support Blu-ray support high definition movie and television quality.

SACD is not available to DVD Players, unless they have been designed to support SACD, as a Blu-ray Player may or may not play DVD, unless specifically designed to do so. It is noteworthy, that all PS3, with the exception of the 40g unit, have full support for SACD, making the PS3 an extremely remarkable design in every sense.

Thank You

[un4gvn94538]

Originally Posted by U-Phorik

So when watching a BD movie, would I notice much of a difference, I don't have a home theatre yet, just some extra speakers from my stereo receiver which helps give it the surround sound feel.

also has nothing to do with movies. again, only music that are sacd format

[U-Phorik]

Thanks guys for clearing that up!

[HDJK]

Originally Posted by moviefan

SACD is multichannel music playback. (SuperAudioCD)
...

There are quite a few stereo SACDs around, featuring the (remastered) record in the DSD format, which can be an improvement over regular CD audio (44.1/16 PCM).
MCH is one of the benefits of SACD, not a part of the basic specs.

[egon_spengler]

Originally Posted by U-Phorik

So when watching a BD movie, would I notice much of a difference, I don't have a home theatre yet, just some extra speakers from my stereo receiver which helps give it the surround sound feel.

Well... its certainly more immersive, I had a quadraphonic setup before I got my Audio Video Receiver (AVR)... its like listening to music in a car... two stereo speakers at the front and two at the back. Whilst it sounds better (IMHO) it's not really surround sound. Trust me when you get your HT system rigged up you'll wonder how you ever got by without it.

I just thought I'd post a word of caution:

Whilst you can play GAMES, DVDS and BLU-RAYS in 5.1 surround sound on ANY Dolby Digital or DTS compatible amp using an OPTICAL CABLE (aka: Toslink/SPDIF), SACDs will only play in 5.1 on a HMDI AVR using a HDMI CABLE. (HDMI passthrough amps are no good)

With a previous update (I forget which one) SACD was enabled for Optical cables by allowing the PS3 to downmix the 5.1 data to DD or DTS. I loved it because for a few days I got to hear 'Dark side of the moon' better than I ever had before and in a totally new way. I say a few days because they brought out another patch which removed the feature again. Ever since then SACDs WILL PLAY over an optical cable.... but only in PCM stereo. Although sounding slightly better than ordinary audio CD its not what it should be.

So, if its SACDs you want to listen to... (assuming your PS3 supports it... the 40gigs don't) then make sure you invest in a HMDI AVR. In hindsight I wish I'd paid a little extra and got one myself, but I'll make do.

HOPEFULLY one day Sony will re-enable DD & DTS downmixing as many of us witnessed it is possible. I heard they disabled it to prevent piracy... people could somehow record the 5.1 DTS... but if that were the case why don't they just prevent the PS3 from outputting sound and vision too... don't want people recording video, taking screen grabs or sound now do we! The way I see it, pirates will pirate no matter what, but why block out cool features for those of us who just want to appreciate the music. Rant over.

Hope the previous info is of some help though.