After testing the version of Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 3 recorded in 2015 with the Kansas City Symphony, this test focuses on Charles Munch’s version of Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 3, recorded with the Boston Symphony Orchestra in 1959, which is considered one of the best interpretations of this work. Munch, who was a specialist in French music, conducted a thrilling and moving performance of the symphony, highlighting the dramatic and expressive qualities of the work. The rhythmic precision and clarity of the instrument sections are remarkable, adding to the intensity of the performance. In addition, the high-quality sound recording perfectly captures the richness of the orchestra’s nuances. The Charles Munch’s version of Saint-Saëns’ Symphony No. 3 is considered an indispensable reference for this work.

For this review, you will find 6 versions tested: layer CD of SACD, SACD stereo, SACD 3.0, HDTT DXD, Qobuz Hi-Res and vinyl Analogue Production.

Below you will find the description of the different editions, as well as the measurements of each edition in the following chapters.
The synthesis of the review and the samples are available here

The album is composed of 10 tracks:

I. Adagio – Allegro moderato
II. Poco adagio
III. Allegro moderato – Presto
IV. Maestoso – Allegro
I. De l’aube a midi sur la mer *
II. Jeux de vagues *
III. Dialogue du vent et de la mer *
I. Rome-Palermo Calme *
II. Tunis-Nefta Modéré très rythmé *
III. Valencia Animé *

* only on SACD and Qobuz, these tracks are not reviewed

First we will analyze each edition in detail (technical and qualitative analysis), then we will compare the successive editions with their dynamics and assign a final score, and you will be able to listen some samples.

The streaming versions may evolve over time, those presented here correspond to the version tested at the date of publication, or update of the review.

Review of the editions:

Part 1: Presentation of the editions

Part 2 : Waveform and dynamique comparaison

Parts 3 : Spectrum comparisons

Part 4 : Spectrogram comparaisons>

Part 5 : Spatialization

Part 6 : Summary, scoring and Sample

Part 1: presentation of the editions

Ed 1: CD layer from SACD – 2004

Presentation

The SACD (ref 828766138726) is a hybrid version that also has a CD and SACD layer. It is this CD layer which is used for the ED1.

Ed 2: SACD – 2004

Presentation

The SACD (ref 828766138726) is a hybrid version which also has a CD and SACD layer. It is the SACD layer which is used in stereo version for the Ed2

Ed 3: SACD 3.0 – 2004

Presentation

The SACD (ref 828766138726) is a hybrid version which also has a CD and SACD layer. It is the SACD layer which is used in version 3.0 for the Ed3. The sound engineers made the recording with 3 microphones, left, center and right. It is this recording which is retranscribed in its original format thanks to the multichannel SACD. The use of 3 channels (L,R,C) out of the 6 available on the SACD allows to respect the original recording on tape in 3 channels.

Ed 4: DXD – 2022

Presentation

This is the High Definition Tape Transfers version presented in DXD 24 bits 352,8 kHz. This release was edited in DXD PCM from a DSD256 Master then the DXD edited master was used to generate the final DSD files. To avoid an additional conversion to DSD256, the DXD version is chosen.

Ed 5: Qobuz Hi-Res – 2004

Presentation

This is the Qobuz stereo version presented in Hi-Res 24 bits 88.2 kHz.

Ed 6: Vinyl – 2014

Presentation

The vinyl (ref AAPC 2341) from Analogue Production was made from the analog master tape with a very high quality pressing. The vinyl contains the 4 movements of the symphony.

Part 2 : Waveform and dynamic comparaisons

Waveform

The waveform represents the 4 movements of the symphony N°3 and does not include the complementary tracks present on certain media.

The graphs below represent the waveforms of the stereo versions (CD, vinyl, DXD files, SACD and Qobuz). For all these stereo versions, we note a dynamic restitution of the waveform which is confirmed with the measurement of the DR.

Waveform Ed 1 : CD layer from SACD – 2004

The waveform of the SACD 3.0 version is dynamic like the stereo versions. It can be seen that only the left, right and center channels are used as in the original tape recording.

Dynamic

Dynamic represents the ability to reproduce a wide range of sounds from the softest to the loudest. The target is to compare the dynamics of the music and not of the media (CD, digital files or vinyl).

For our 6 editions reviewed have obtained the following Dynamic Range (DR) :

	CD layer from SACD – 2004	SACD – 2004	SACD 3.0 – 2004	DXD – 2022	Qobuz Hi-Res – 2004	Vinyl – 2014
Global	DR12	DR12	DR12	DR13	DR12	DR12
Min	*DR10*	*DR11*	*DR11*	*DR12*	*DR10*	*DR12*
Max	*DR13*	*DR13*	*DR13*	*DR14*	*DR13*	*DR13*
I. Adagio – Allegro moderato	DR12	DR12	DR12	DR12	DR12	DR12
II. Poco adagio	DR13	DR13	DR13	DR14	DR13	DR13
III. Allegro moderato – Presto	DR12	DR12	DR12	DR14	DR12	DR13
IV. Maestoso – Allegro	DR10	DR11	DR11	DR13	DR10	DR12
I. De l’aube a midi sur la mer *
II. Jeux de vagues *
III. Dialogue du vent et de la mer *
I. Rome-Palermo Calme *
II. Tunis-Nefta Modéré très rythmé *
III. Valencia Animé *

We find for all the editions a high dynamic with a DR12 or DR13. We notice that the vinyl has the same dynamics as the digital stereo versions which confirms the beautiful work of cutting of the vinyl.

As a reminder, the scale goes from 0 to more 20, but the dynamics are considered good from 12, quite good between 10 and 11, and deteriorate below 10.

Part 3 : spectrum comparisons

Spectrum

The Spectrum allows to check the tonal balance of the music (balance between treble, medium and bass sounds) and to detect process that may have been carried out during the recording, the mixing, mastering or manufacturing phases. It is also possible to detect frequency interference issues.

The spectrum of a CD and SACD can be compared by overlaying them. There is a small difference that can be observed beyond 18 kHz (yellow zone), where the SACD can offer better sound quality in terms of detail and finesse. However, it is important to note that the CD has a limitation at 22 kHz (yellow arrow) due to its use of a 44.1 kHz sampling frequency. In comparison, the SACD uses a higher sampling frequency, which allows it to reproduce a wider and more detailed spectrum.

Spectrum Ed 1 CD layer from SACD – 2004 (white) vs Ed 2 SACD – 2004 (blue)

The spectrum of the SACD and the Qobuz Hi-Res version are identical up to 40 kHz. However, it should be noted that the Qobuz Hi-Res version has a frequency limitation at 44 kHz due to its use of a sampling frequency of 88.2 kHz. Beyond 20 kHz, a similar increase in background noise as the SACD can be observed, which is related to the use of DSD64. This suggests that the Qobuz Hi-Res version is derived from the same SACD master, offering similar sound quality.

Spectrum Ed 5 Qobuz Hi-Res – 2004 (white) vs Ed 2 SACD – 2004 (blue)

For the SACD 3.0 version, we find the same audio characteristics as the SACD stereo version, notably with regard to the rise of the background noise beyond 30 kHz which is due to the use of DSD64 coding. However, it should be noted that only the three front channels (left, right and center) are used for the SACD 3.0 version.

The spectra of the SACD and DXD are very similar with a perfect overlap between 600 Hz and 10 kHz. We notice a slight difference below 600 Hz of about 1 dB (green zone). Above 10 kHz, the treble level increases on the DXD version to reach 7 dB more at 20 kHz (yellow zone). Above 30 kHz, we observe the same rise in noise in the high frequencies for the SACD version, which is normal because of the use of DSD64, as on the DXD version. But the DXD version is normally issued from the conversion of the recording to DSD256, which should shift the rise of the noise in the high frequencies to 90 kHz instead of the 30 kHz present here. The DXD seems to come from a DSD64 rather than a DSD256.

Spectrum Ed 4 DXD – 2022 (white) vs Ed 2 SACD – 2004 (blue)

The spectra of vinyl and SACD are very similar. There is a difference of up to 2 dB below 200 Hz (green zone), and a different behavior above 20 kHz with a rise towards 30 kHz for the vinyl. The yellow arrow indicates the rise in noise above 30 kHz due to the DSD64 format. The vinyl rendering will be very close to the SACD for the tonal balance.

Spectrum Ed 6 Vinyl – 2014 (white) vs Ed 2 SACD – 2004 (blue)

Part 4 : Spectrogram comparaisons

Spectrogram

Spectrogram is another representation of frequency versus time of a track. For each channel (right and left), horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents frequency. The amplitude is represented by the intensity (brightness) of the color of each point in the image.

The spectrogram below represents the version of CD layer from SACD. The yellow arrow shows the limitation to 22 kHz. This is due to the sampling rate of 44.1 kHz for CD. There is no signal above these frequencies of 22 kHz (white arrow).

Spectrogram Ed 1 : CD layer from SACD – 2004

The spectrograms below represent the SACD, SACD 3.0, DXD and Qobuz versions. The yellow arrow shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz for all these formats (yellow arrow). Beyond 30 kHz, there is a rise in noise indicated by the white arrow.

The spectrogram below represents the vinyl version. The yellow arrow shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz for all these formats (yellow arrow). Beyond 30 kHz, there is a rise in noise indicated by the white arrow. The spurious frequency peak is present below 30 kHz on the whole recording (red arrow).

Part 5 : Spatialization

Spatialization allows you to define the sound distribution of the music on all the channels. The spatialization indicator and the description of the graph are described here.

The spatialization is limited to the front left, center and right channels according to the original recording. No spatial processing has been done, so the surround channels are absent. There is therefore no indicator of the distribution of channels between front and surround.

The spatialization represents the front channels of the SACD 3.0