Can an external DAC do SACD 2 Channel?

Only with HDMI.

No...

ben62670 wrote: »

I know many SACD's are dual format, but can an external DAC do the d a c for the SACD layer in 2 channel. I'm pretty sure the answer is no:(

Dependent on your definition of "DAC".

In the traditional sense, there're only a handful on SACD-capable DAC and they're generally super expensive. Not to mention they often require a proprietary SACD transport with a proprietary connection.

However, if you want to do the DSD bitstream decoding external of the player, you can now do it with a DSD-compatible receiver....such as Yamaha's new 663. If you use a player such as Oppo's 980 or 983, both of which can send the naive DSD bitstream using their HDMI output, you can use a receiver like the Yamaha to do the DSD decoding. There're other options, such as receivers from Marantz and Onkyo. The Yamaha 663 will set you back about $400.00 and the Oppo players start at $170.00.

ben62670 wrote: »

Thanks Danny. For the limited number of SACD's I can't justify sinking that kinda dough into processing. I have an Outlaw990 dedicated Pre that handles everything else pretty good. I have an Adcom GDA-700 in my near future that will do the DA conversion for my Sony CD, and DVD carousels. I just can't give up the convenience. Someday a nice source may be in my future, but for now I have to look at the big picture.

No problem, Ben.

There's no reason that a SACD player, by itself, can't do an excellent job of processing DSD. Aside from the convenience of a single cable passing the DSD bitstream, instead of six separate analog cables for 5.1 multi-channel surround sound, external processing doesn't guarantee better sound quality. OK, maybe better bass management....but an Outlaw ICBM unit (discontinued) can easily fix that.

Edit: Oops....just saw your mention of 2 channel. Nevermind about the surround sound part.

Danny Tse wrote: »

Dependent on your definition of "DAC".

In the traditional sense, there're only a handful on SACD-capable DAC and they're generally super expensive. Not to mention they often require a proprietary SACD transport with a proprietary connection.

However, if you want to do the DSD bitstream decoding external of the player, you can now do it with a DSD-compatible receiver....such as Yamaha's new 663. If you use a player such as Oppo's 980 or 983, both of which can send the naive DSD bitstream using their HDMI output, you can use a receiver like the Yamaha to do the DSD decoding. There're other options, such as receivers from Marantz and Onkyo. The Yamaha 663 will set you back about $400.00 and the Oppo players start at $170.00.

Perhaps a bit of rail here sorry, but is this like the I-Link with Pioneer?

Gaara wrote: »

Yes. The two ways to transfer DSD digitally are I-link (IEEE 1394) or HDMI.

To be precise, HDMI v.1.2 or above. You will still need a receiver that can decode DSD even if you have HDMI v.1.2 or above.