Be aware that Blu-ray players usually cap their s/pdif outputs at 24bit 48kHz.
Thanks Richard
Not sure how many rules I am breaking with this post but if allowed, it looks to me that this does have a decent audio output.
whathifi. sony ubp-x700 review
āDespite not flashing the hi-res audio badge, the X700 can play up to 24bit/192kHz files in all popular files, including WAV, FLAC and DSD.ā
Am I reading this correctly?
cg
Itās fine.
Just be aware that while it may be able to play them through its own internal DACs, it likely wonāt output them at that resolution through the digital s/pdif output.
It may well āmeanā that it can play 24/192 over the HDMIā¦unless it explicitly states re Co-ax etcā¦?
I didnāt actually realise the point Richard has made re the output being capped on most BD digital outputsā¦and I guess the way of the world then pushes you up to the higher player levels that may feature a higher spec S/PDIFā¦I guess one other approach is some kind of ābreak outā HDMI box, but obviously this is then all getting moreā¦
SC
A really great combination is a mac mini running Audirvana + Qobuz and hsoting the local library using upnp to the streamer and controlled by the Audirvana app on an tablet or phone.
I can vouch for that. Although in my case the Mac Mini is an old Dell laptop.
Same process on a Mac
Yes, there is a debate.
But I donāt actually think anybody agrees with post youāve highlighted.
If transport, cable and DAC are high quality, 24/192 via toslink is an option.
I stream 24/192 into ndac without a problem.
My vote goes to qobuz.
7 weeks - I wish . It took me years but worth it none the less.
I did have a few false starts which didnāt help
Well yes, I tend to agreeā¦!
I linked to that particular post simply to take the OP to the section of discussion that was relevantā¦
SC
As it happens, I have a UBP-X700 in a bedroom, took a while for the lightbulb to go onā¦!
The manual is fairly simple, but it does seem to indicate that 192Hz output is possible through the S/PDIF outputā¦(see pics)
And I dare say it will definitely do so for audio files when streamed or via USB etcā¦The bigger issue is whether it will be allowed to do so when playing via Blu-ray Discā¦After Richard mentioned the ācappingā issue, I read up a little on the subject ā I think itās all to do with Copyright Protection. Unlike over HDMI, S/PDIF and TOS do not feature any form of Copyright Protection, therefore the āAlliancesā insist that no Uncompressed form of audio can be output over S/PDIF when playing BD Movies ā by default, all BD discs carry a secondary ālossyā audio track and this is what would be outputā¦I believe it will still be higher resolution than 16/44, but it will be a lossy compressionā¦
There are also bandwitdh issues at play, as S/PDIF cannot carry uncompressed multi-channel ā I think the limit is 6 channels of Bitstream at 24/48, though Iām not 100%ā¦But it certainly cannot carry uncompressed 5.1/7.1 (i.e True HD).
The big unknown, to me anyway, is just what the scenario is with BD Audio discs such as SOTLW etcā¦Are they copyright protected in the same way as BD Movie discs or are they more lenient ā I know they are typically āregion freeā encoded.
Bandwidth wise, there shouldnāt be a problem with the Stereo hi-res version of the audio ā that should be fine up to 24/192 over S/PDIF, providing the player allows this from a BD discā¦
But the Atmos mix, I donāt knowā¦?
The thing is, re Atmos, is that itās essentially metadata based (piggy backs the True HD signal and tells the decoder/receiver where to āplaceā the height audio based upon the end user setup and number of speakers ā This cannot happen via S/PDIF or TOS as the metadata is stripped out, so basically itās effectively downsampled to āstandardā multi-channel 5.1, 7.1 etc, though I believe it would still be uncompressed audioā¦
Obviously, none of this really matters if youāre interested in simply down-mixing to 2 channel stereoā¦so you donāt really need the Atmos mix anyway and can just use the Stereo Hi-Res mix on the disc ā providing of course, the player will allow that full resolution to output over S/PDIF from a Blu-ray discā¦!!
I guess some testing needs to be doneā¦
It may be worth popping the question over in the Home Theatre room of the Forum, may be someone there with more insight and knowledgeā¦
SC
TOS is arguably limited re resolutionā¦I think Naim have it at 96kHz.
Official original spec was actually 48kHz, but that has grown over timeā¦Modern cables can certainly transmit 2-channel 24/192, but itās very dependent on factors, the end points being one of themā¦
S/PDIF would be the safer bet if you really want/need 24/192ā¦
SC
So just FYI, I just popped the Cureās SOALW BD disc in to the Sony to establish what is on there and how itās formattedā¦
(this is via HDMI v2.1)
You have the Stereo PCM mix at 24/96, which is basically the same (resolution anyway) as the HD formats that are available to download/streamā¦
Then thereās the Atmos Mix ā which does output as uncompressed True HD at 48Khzā¦
So you wouldnāt get the Atmos over S/PDIF, but then you donāt want the multi-channel anyway and would be down-mixing, so better off with the stereo PCM and at the higher 24/96ā¦and then you can question if youāre as well getting the Download and/or streaming direct to your NDX2ā¦?
Iām sure there may be some subtle mastering differences across the formats, but how discernible this ends up beingā¦? @elverdiblanco reported he thought a rip from the Atmos mix sounded better and not as āloudā, though that could be the result of the down-mix to 2-channel, Iām not sureā¦
BTW ā a quick play of a couple of the tracks via the bedroom Tv & Sonos Arc, sounded fairly crap! Give me the 24/96 via the Mu-so in the room any timeā¦!
SC
Thanks SC - thatās brilliant and very helpful.
From what I can tell (given the gaps in knowledge in some of what can be relied upon), I am probably better taking an HDMI output from the BR player into an HDMI to Coax converter (something like this - Blustream HD11AU HDMI Audio Embedder / De-Embedder) and then into the NDX2 using Coax. Potentially not the cheapest option but will be sure to offer the high res I am after, assuming the output from the converter is also high res. I can check with the distributer later on.
I guess that also opens up the BR player options as they will all have HDMI when only some had any other form of digital output (Coax / Toslink)
At the end of the day, thereās no doubt this is more about having a bit of fun seeing what can be achieved and actually being able to play some of the (very few) discs I have in this format. It will also mean being able to play concert DVD / BR discs as audio only.
Thanks again
cg
Rather than all that, wouldnāt it just be easier to rip the audio from your discs then simply stream as normal?
Naim donāt limit Toslink to 96.
As far as I recall they donāt manufacture anything that will output Toslink, itās all coax.
I stream 24/192 into ndac without a problem, so, there is no limit for Toslink at the input.
If dac manufactures specify max input is 96, itās simply because they canāt control the quality of the transport or cable.
If transport, cable and DAC are high quality, 24/192 via toslink is an option.
There was thread a few weeks ago concerning Dave inputs, people seem very happy with toslink sound quality, and very happy it can do 192.
Due to Copyright Protection rules for Blu-ray the coax and optical digital outputs of Blu-ray players is restricted to 16/48.
I have many Pure Audio Blu-ray discs with 24/48, 24/96 and 24/192 tracks, the only way to get Hi-Res out of Blu-ray players is digital via HDMI or the Analogue outputs that top range Blu-ray players have.
Thanks - that fills in the missing info I was after.
Further suggests that HDMI out from Blu-ray player to a converter to Co-ax is the likely solution - and quite probably the only one as well
cg