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Recommend a SACD player please

uncl_nigel said:
Not as horrendous as it sounds...
Well, not quite as :)
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Did you use PC or Mac? - I only really have a Mac although I could borrow a PC laptop (but the idea of having to use a PC and do something difficult really does fill me with dread).
 
Alex S said:
Did you use PC or Mac? - I only really have a Mac although I could borrow a PC laptop (but the idea of having to use a PC and do something difficult really does fill me with dread).
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I prefer the iMac and have been avoiding windows for quite some time :)

I do all my ripping using the iMac. For CDs, DVDs and BLURAYs I use a computer drive connected to the iMac and dbPoweramp or DVD Audio Extractor. SACDs require a suitable SACD/universal player and involve one extra step prior to ripping - the process takes longer but is painless.
 
uncl_nigel said:
I'm very much into one single set of DAC+NAS+software for all my digital music so my SACDs have become DSD files. A bit time-consuming but worth it. Amongst other things the DAC is much better at its job than the audio circuits in the universal player could ever hope to be given the cost constraints.
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Absolutely. I have a Marantz KI Pearl Lite, a decent enough SACD player, but my TEAC UD-503 DAC (which was a comparable price) playing 24/88 rips from SACD is definitely better than the DAC in the Marantz. Not hugely so, but certainly enough to justify ripping all of my 50 or so SACDs.

Like CD, SACD is best regarded as merely a storage medium. Media that require to be read by a laser in real time are a bit old hat these days... files stored on an SDD are a simpler way of achieving the same result, and simpler is generally better in the hi-fi world, don't you think?
 
Can someone please set out a step by step guide to easy SACD ripping, in my case using a MacBook Pro and an Oppo 103. It would be greatly appreciated.

Having said that, the only DAC I’m likely to use has the TDA1541A so would the whole idea be pointless?
 
My notes, Windows-specific but I'm sure you can translate:

see posts 24, 26, 64 and 77 here:
https://hifihaven.org/index.php?threads/rip-sacd-with-a-blu-ray-player.3652/page-2

Acquire a cheap usable Sony Bluray player (which needs its remote control to access Sleep mode - ones offered on eBay are often missing the remote) - mine is a BDP-S390.

Prepare a USB thumb drive (older = better) with the Autoscript ripping firmware which temporarily hijacks the Bluray player, enabling you to circumvent SACD's copy protection as described in the thread referenced above; install the other necessary stuff (SACDExtract programme and GUI) on your hard drive.

The ripping process relies on having a network enabled so that the relevant pieces of equipment can "talk" to each other. Set up the Sony player (while connected via HDMI to a screen) as follows:

1. Setup > Audio Settings > DSD Output Mode (Off)
2. Setup > BD/DVD Viewing Settings > BD Internet Connection (Do not allow)
3. Setup > Music Settings > Super Audio CD Playback Layer (SACD)
4. Setup > System Settings > Quick Start Mode (On, i.e. Sleep mode enabled)

While connected to the screen make a note of the player's current firmware version, visible in System Information. Don't do a firmware update on the Bluray player unless all else has failed in terms of troubleshooting.

On a BDP-S390, firmware may need to be version 0502 rather than 0422 (try with 0422 before updating).

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Next, install this app somewhere: https://www.fing.com/

When the Bluray player is in situ and connected to your router via an Ethernet cable use the app to find out its current IP address, which will be required in the SACDExtractGUI ripping process.

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Rip SACDs to a directory with a short name - e.g. C:\RIP

2-channel rips can be made straight to .dsf files - only multichannel uses DST compression and needs decompression.

My ripping procedure (which gets a speed of about 0.55 MB/sec, much slower than suggested in the thread referenced above, but reliable):

1. plug in the Sony (it powers up)
2. power down the Sony (it takes about 20 seconds)
3. insert the USB thumb drive

4. Start SACDExtractGUI and check its parameters:

Program = (browse to the sacd_extract.exe application file and add it)
Input/Server = Bluray player's IP address, no leading zeros, "2002" in RHS 5th box
Processing = DSF, Stereo, Padding-less DSF
Output directory = C:\RIP (or browse for the target folder)

5. power up the Sony (drawer opens)
6. place the SACD in the tray, then power down - the disc tray closes
7. wait until the Sony player has gone to sleep - this indicates that the Autoscript file on the USB drive has set up the player correctly and it is ready to start ripping via LAN in Sleep mode
8. once that is the case, leaving the USB drive in, click on Run in SACDExtractGUI

9. once the rip has finished ("We are done"), to rip another SACD awaken the machine with the Open drawer button and load the next SACD into the tray, then once again Power Off (tray closes). The unit will resume sleep and SACDExtractGUI will accept the Run command again.

You can do this as many times in a row as you want unless power to the machine is physically cut, i.e. the power cord is unplugged. If that happens, the USB thumb drive needs to be reinserted and the AutoScript read in once again.

If I get "Can't open 192.nnn.n.nnn:2002 for reading" message, then:

open drawer
power down
Run ...has overcome this before now

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I know it sounds like an awful fag... but once you have succeeded with your first rip, it's just drudgery.

My DAC cannot play .dsf files directly, so I convert them to 24/88 PCM using the free TASCAM Hi-Res Editor.

I suspect that a TDA1541A chip cannot process .dsf files. If so, conversion to 24/88 PCM should fix that. There is nothing inherently magical about the DSD format!
 
Many thanks. I will attempt to digest (and then probably play the CD layer due to incompetence).
 
I bought a cheap Sony BluRay player to try the HiFi Haven method described above, and although it reads like faff I must have thrown 50+ SACDs at it and all now reside on my NAS in both DSD and PCM (for iTunes/iPhone use) forms. The most trouble I had was finding a workaround for my single layer “Getz/Gilberto” when special characters in the disc’s metadata borked the process.

TL/DR: try it, it works, it’s great!
 
marshanp said:
Absolutely. I have a Marantz KI Pearl Lite, a decent enough SACD player, but my TEAC UD-503 DAC (which was a comparable price) playing 24/88 rips from SACD is definitely better than the DAC in the Marantz. Not hugely so, but certainly enough to justify ripping all of my 50 or so SACDs.

Like CD, SACD is best regarded as merely a storage medium. Media that require to be read by a laser in real time are a bit old hat these days... files stored on an SDD are a simpler way of achieving the same result, and simpler is generally better in the hi-fi world, don't you think?
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Absolutely! Having read the instructions from HiFi Haven, I therefore decided to stick with laser :)
 
Another vote for ripping. I have bought a Pioneer BDP170 (cheap), have followed the instructions from HifiHaven (on a PC running a Linux distro) and enjoy the freedom of choice, without unreasonable cost, re DAC.
 
MotelBlues said:
...The most trouble I had was finding a workaround for my single layer “Getz/Gilberto” when special characters in the disc’s metadata borked the process...
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Yes, I had this with a disc with an umlaut in its title. The answer was to make an ISO image rip, which doesn't care about the non-standard character, rename it, and then rip the renamed ISO to .dsf files. More faff... but we are not defeated!
 
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