Can DSD files be played via Digital Coax ?

[stevee1966]

I've got some DSD files on a Fiio X5 portable player which i'd like to listen to on my stero system.

The Fiio has coax out which i have connected to a Cambridge Audio Bluray/SACD player, which connects to a Qutest DAC via an optical cable, which then connects to my amp via analogue cable.

All other music plays ok, but no sound when playing DSD files.

Where in the chain of connections is the DSD file failing ?

Thanks

 

[Al ears]

Having two DACs in the system doesn't help
My setup has digital music player outputting to my Oppo universal player much like yours but then it's simply analogue out of the Oppo to amp. No problems

 

[stevee1966]

I've just set my Fiio to convert DSD to PCM when output via it's coax so i am able to play the files, just not in DSD format.

It'll have to do.

 

[Al ears]

I think you have to do it via PCM. Not many dacs have the ability to get a native DSD signal

 

[Tinman1952]

I've got some DSD files on a Fiio X5 portable player which i'd like to listen to on my stero system.

The Fiio has coax out which i have connected to a Cambridge Audio Bluray/SACD player, which connects to a Qutest DAC via an optical cable, which then connects to my amp via analogue cable.

All other music plays ok, but no sound when playing DSD files.

Where in the chain of connections is the DSD file failing ?

Thanks

Yes DSD files can be played over coax but you’ve got an optical cable in your chain. Plus I don’t think the Qutest accepts DSD over optical…only via USB or Coax. Why not plug the Fiio direct into the coax on the Qutest? 🤔

 

[stevee1966]

Yes DSD files can be played over coax but you’ve got an optical cable in your chain. Plus I don’t think the Qutest accepts DSD over optical…only via USB or Coax. Why not plug the Fiio direct into the coax on the Qutest? 🤔

Thanks for the above. I hadn't tried that as i've not got a coax cable with a bnc connection to hand but i'll give it a go. 👍

 

[manicm]

Yes DSD files can be played over coax but you’ve got an optical cable in your chain. Plus I don’t think the Qutest accepts DSD over optical…only via USB or Coax. Why not plug the Fiio direct into the coax on the Qutest? 🤔

DSD categorically cannot be played over coaxial without converting to PCM. Don’t know where you got that.

 

[Al ears]

DSD categorically cannot be played over coaxial without converting to PCM. Don’t know where you got that.

very true.

 

[stevee1966]

very true.

DSD categorically cannot be played over coaxial without converting to PCM. Don’t know where you got that.

I've just played a DSD file on my Fiio portable player to my Qutest via Coax. The Qutest is displaying a white LED which represents a DSD file being input.

 

[Deleted member 116933]

Yes DSD files can be played over coax but you’ve got an optical cable in your chain. Plus I don’t think the Qutest accepts DSD over optical…only via USB or Coax. Why not plug the Fiio direct into the coax on the Qutest? 🤔

It can do dsd over optical, not full fat. 64 I believe

 

[Al ears]

I've just played a DSD file on my Fiio portable player to my Qutest via Coax. The Qutest is displaying a white LED which represents a DSD file being input.

I believe thi s is because it is receiving it as PCM

 

[Tinman1952]

DSD categorically cannot be played over coaxial without converting to PCM. Don’t know where you got that.

Well I have an HDMI audio extractor box which takes the DSD signal from the HDMI output of my Sony UXB800 and sends it out via I2S and coax. my DAC says it’s DSD64…..🙂

 

[Tinman1952]

very true.

And why do you think that…?

 

[Tinman1952]

I believe thi s is because it is receiving it as PCM

Wrong….

 

[Tinman1952]

It can do dsd over optical, not full fat. 64 I believe

Not according to Chord…..🤔

 

[Al ears]

And why do you think that…?

in the OPs case it would have to be encoded as DoP or converted to PCM

 

[Tinman1952]

in the OPs case it would have to be encoded as DoP or converted to PCM

Correct. But those are two separate things. I’m sure you know this but many think that DOP converts DSD to PCM and it doesn’t. It’s just a ‘wrapper’..

 

[Al ears]

Correct. But those are two separate things. I’m sure you know this but many think that DOP converts DSD to PCM and it doesn’t. It’s just a ‘wrapper’..

that's correct. Surely if DSD could be passed over coax you could copy t hat later of a SACD, and as far as I am an aware this cannot be done.
Native D SD is normally sent via HDMI or I2S

 

[Deleted member 116933]

Not according to Chord…..🤔

Got the manual in front of me.
The optical has an unusual high input on the optical.

 

[Tinman1952]

that's correct. Surely if DSD could be passed over coax you could copy t hat later of a SACD, and as far as I am an aware this cannot be done.
Native D SD is normally sent via HDMI or I2S

Exactly so. But it’s the sending device that prevents onward transmission by anything other than HDMI (copyright protection) not the coax connection itself….👍

 

[manicm]

Well I have an HDMI audio extractor box which takes the DSD signal from the HDMI output of my Sony UXB800 and sends it out via I2S and coax. my DAC says it’s DSD64…..🙂

You‘ll get the uncorrupted DSD only via the I2S.

 

[Tinman1952]

You‘ll get the uncorrupted DSD only via the I2S.

Really? And what kind of corruption are you expecting?

 

[manicm]

Really? And what kind of corruption are you expecting?

Slight hyperbole, but if you want to preserve the DSD stream by not subsequently converting to PCM then you want to go I2S.

 

[Tinman1952]

Slight hyperbole, but if you want to preserve the DSD stream by not subsequently converting to PCM then you want to go I2S.

Ok. But there is no conversion going on here. The Sony is outputting only the DSD stream. It is then sent via I2S over HDMI and over coax. DSD not DOP 🙂

 

[Kellytm272]

Hi, I’ve just purchased an Oppo BCP-103D universal player to use for playing SACD.
I’ve set the player up to output SACD as DSD bitstream and also setup the HDMI output as bitstream (as opposed to LPCM).
The video from the Oppo is sent out through HDMI 1 and the audio through HDMI 2. In other words the audio is separated from video.
The hdmi audio is then connected to one of the little Chinese boxes that takes hdmi audio and outputs it via L2S, coax digital and optical digital. The box is described on eBay as ‘HDMI/MHL Interface Audio I2S/DSD/Optical/Coaxial HDMI To I2S IIS for DOP Board’.
When I connect from the digital box to my chord mojo via digital coax, I get a light magenta colour on the power ‘ball’. I thought that dad shows as white.
So I’m unsure really what the box is doing. I thought it would sent dsd in pcm wrapper (dop) to the mojo - but it can’t be because else the mojo ‘ball’ would be white. Does anyone have any idea of what I’ve got wrong here? I’m sure I’ve got the Oppo set up correctly, and I suppose the hdmi to coax box must be doing something wrong perhaps. I’ve ordered a topping E30II so I can actually see what frequency is being received by the fax, as mojo doesn’t show that info