Recorded at Victoria Hall in March 2023, this concert “Mozart & Poulenc, Double & Triple Piano Concertos” brings together the four members of the Nagano-Kodama family – Kent (husband), Mari (wife), Momo (sister) and Karin (daughter) – and the OSR (Orchestre de la Suisse Romande), echoing the practice of Mozart, who also played with his father, sister and daughter. The San Francisco Classical Recording Company Production and Polyhymnia International B.V. record and produce the album.

The DXD format was used for this concert, and is also available for download in stereo and 5.0 versions. Does this super DXD 24-bit 352.8 kHz format live up to its promise in terms of musical quality (samples available)?

For this review, you will find 4 versions tested: Amazon UltraHD and Tidal Dolby Atmos, DXD stereo and 5.0 in 24 bits 352.8 kHz

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 9 tracks:

1. Piano Concerto No. 7 for 3 Pianos in F Major, K. 242 ‘Lodron’: I. Allegro
2. Piano Concerto No. 7 for 3 Pianos in F Major, K. 242 ‘Lodron’: II. Adagio
3. Piano Concerto No. 7 for 3 Pianos in F Major, K. 242 ‘Lodron’: III. Rondo. Tempo di minuetto
4. Piano Concerto No. 10 for 2 Pianos in E-Flat Major, K. 365: I. Allegro
5. Piano Concerto No. 10 for 2 Pianos in E-Flat Major, K. 365: II. Andante
6. Piano Concerto No. 10 for 2 Pianos in E-Flat Major, K. 365: III. Rondo
7. Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: I. Allegro ma non troppo
8. Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: II. Larghetto
9. Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: III. Finale

Summary, scoring and Samples

Ed 1: Amazon UltraHD – 2024

Presentation

This is the Amazon UltraHD version presented in FLAC 24 bits 192 kHz.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR13

The waveform shows high dynamic range, as the graphs below confirm, with a dynamic range of at DR13, with values between DR12 and DR15 depending on the track.

The spectrogram of the stereo version of Tidal Max shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz (yellow arrow) and that there is indeed signal above this frequency (white arrow), due to the 192 kHz sampling frequency used. The red arrow also shows a spurious frequency peak at 20 kHz.

Synthesis and listening

The Amazon MAX version, presented in lossless high-resolution stereo (24/192), is superior to the Dolby Atmos version in terms of finesse, nuance and micro dynamics. The rendering brings greater detail to the orchestra. This version is very close to the DXD version, but sonic differences may appear between the 192 kHz and 352.8 kHz sampling frequencies, depending on the processing performed by the DAC.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4)

Sample : “Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: I. Allegro ma non troppo ” 24 bits 192 kHz:

Ed 2: Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2024

Presentation

This is the Tidal Dolby Atmos presented in Dolby Digital Plus or AC-4.

Below the spatialization for all tracks. Click on the images to zoom in.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR15

The waveform of the Tidal Atmos version downmixed in 2.0 shows good dynamics, as the graphs below confirm, with a dynamic range of at DR14 (DR15 in 7.1.4).

The spectrogram of the Dolby Atmos track downmixed in stereo is limited to 20 kHz (yellow arrow) with no signal above (white arrow). This limitation is due to Dolby Digital Plus encoding, which is a lossy encoding that limits bandwidth in order to optimize data size for a bit rate of 768 kbits/s.

Synthesis and listening

A Dolby Atmos mix is different from the Deutsche Grammophon mixes, which widen the soundstage. Here, this is not the case at all, as the soundstage representing the orchestra with the pianos exploits the 3 front speakers to provide a beautiful energy when the volume is turned up. The side and high channels provide a little volume, with reverberation at a fairly low level, but it’s the rear channels that provide the sound feedback, representing the reflection from the back of the room, bringing volume and a space that’s pretty close to the DXD 5.0 mix. But using Dolby Digital Plus, which is a lossy format, doesn’t provide all the finesse of the stereo version.

The Dolby Atmis version, encoded in Dolby Digital Plus Atmos at 768 kbit/s (lossy), it’s a far cry from the DXD 5.0 version at over 19,000 kbit/s (lossless)!

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●● (5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●●●oooooo (4.2)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3.5)

Sample : “Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: I. Allegro ma non troppo ” 7.1 Dolby Atmos (Downmixed in 7.1) :

The sample is in 7.1 wav format, if you can not play the sample in your navigator, you can save it, right button menu and Save Audio As and play it with an external player.

Sample : “Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: I. Allegro ma non troppo ” Dolby Atmos (Downmixed 2.0) :

Ed 3: DXD stereo – 2024

Presentation

This is the DXD stereo version presented in FLAC 24 bits 352.8 kHz available for download on NativdDSD.com (ref SKU PTC5187202). Files weigh 2.79 gigabytes. Recorded in DXD format, the choice of 352.8 kHz DXD is identical to that of the master for this album. Other formats in PCM 192 kHz or DSD are obtained by conversion from the DXD master. Other formats are available at www.pentatonemusic.com or www.nativedsd.com.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR13

The waveform shows high dynamic range, as the graphs below confirm, with a dynamic range of at DR13, with values between DR12 and DR15 depending on the track.

The spectrogram of the stereo version of DXD 2.0 shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz (yellow arrow) and that there is indeed signal above this frequency (white arrow), due to the 352.8 kHz sampling frequency used. The red arrow also shows a spurious frequency peak at 20 kHz.

Synthesis and listening

It’s hard to beat the quality of the master we have available for audiophile, with no intermediate format conversion in this 24-bit 352.8 kHz DXD version. The dynamic range is very wide and natural, as is the spatial quality.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Restitution: ●●●●● (4.5)

Sample : “Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: I. Allegro ma non troppo ” 24 bits 352.8 kHz:

Ed 4: DXD 5.0 – 2024

Presentation

This is the DXD 5.0 version presented in FLAC 24 bits 352.8 kHz available for download on NativdDSD.com (ref SKU PTC5187202). Files weigh 8.67 gigabytes! Recorded in DXD format, the choice of 352.8 kHz DXD is identical to that of the master for this album. Other formats in PCM 192 kHz or DSD are obtained by conversion from the DXD master. Other formats are available at http://www.pentatonemusic.com or http://www.nativedsd.com.

Below the spatialization for all tracks. Click on the images to zoom in.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR14

The waveform shows high dynamic range, as the graphs below confirm, with a dynamic range of at DR14, with values between DR13 and DR17 depending on the track.

The spectrogram of the stereo version of DXD 5.0 shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz (yellow arrow) and that there is indeed signal above this frequency (white arrow), due to the 352.8 kHz sampling frequency used. The red arrow also shows a spurious frequency peak at 20 kHz.

Synthesis and listening

In multichannel listening, this DXD 5.0 version is far ahead of the Dolby Atmos version in terms of precision, dynamics and definition. The Dolby Atmos version, even if it fills more space with the upper speakers, remains less musical than this DXD 5.0 version. This 5.0 version brings a real immersion in the concert compared to the DXD 2.0 version, with the 3 front channels exploited to give the music excellent dynamics and energy. This DXD 5.0 version surpasses the DXD 2.0 version in terms of sonic and spatial realism.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4.5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Spatialization: ●●ooo (2.5)
• Restitution: ●●●●● (5)

Sample : “Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: I. Allegro ma non troppo ” 5.1 24 bits 88.2 kHz:

The sample is in 5.0 wav format, if you can not play the sample in your navigator, you can save it, right button menu and Save Audio As and play it with an external player.

Unsurprisingly, the DXD stereo version and especially the DXD 5.0 version bring more finesse, nuance and dynamics to the listening experience. The Amazon stereo version is very close to the DXD version, while the Dolby Atmos version lags far behind the DXD 5.0 version in terms of sound quality.

Dynamic Range measurements and spectra are shown below.

Subscribe to MagicVinylDigital

If you like this review, please subscribe. You’ll receive information on new articles directly in your inbox.

Measurements

Dynamic Range comparaisons

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 4 editions reviewed have obtained the following Dynamic Range (DR) :

	Amazon UltraHD – 2024	Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2024	DXD stereo – 2024	DXD 5.0 – 2024
Global	DR13	DR15	DR13	DR14
Min	DR12	DR14	DR12	DR13
Max	DR15	DR17	DR15	DR17
Piano Concerto No. 7 for 3 Pianos in F Major, K. 242 ‘Lodron’: I. Allegro	DR15	DR15	DR15	DR16
Piano Concerto No. 7 for 3 Pianos in F Major, K. 242 ‘Lodron’: II. Adagio	DR13	DR14	DR13	DR13
Piano Concerto No. 7 for 3 Pianos in F Major, K. 242 ‘Lodron’: III. Rondo. Tempo di minuetto	DR13	DR15	DR13	DR15
Piano Concerto No. 10 for 2 Pianos in E-Flat Major, K. 365: I. Allegro	DR13	DR14	DR13	DR14
Piano Concerto No. 10 for 2 Pianos in E-Flat Major, K. 365: II. Andante	DR15	DR17	DR15	DR17
Piano Concerto No. 10 for 2 Pianos in E-Flat Major, K. 365: III. Rondo	DR13	DR14	DR13	DR14
Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: I. Allegro ma non troppo	DR13	DR15	DR13	DR15
Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: II. Larghetto	DR13	DR14	DR13	DR13
Concerto for 2 Pianos and Orchestra in D Minor, FP. 61: III. Finale	DR12	DR14	DR12	DR13

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.

Spectrum comparisons

The graph below compares the spectrum of the DXD stereo – 2024 (white curve) with the spectrum of the Amazon UltraHD – 2024 (blue curve).Perfect superposition of the 2 curves up to 90 kHz, frequency limit of the Amazon UltraHD version due to its 192 kHz sampling frequency.

The graph below represents the spectrum of the Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2024.
The spectrum of Tidal’s Dolby Atmos version decoded in 7.1 shows that not all channels are used (the bass channel is not used, the side channels are also poorly exploted.). The yellow arrow indicates the high-frequency limit at 20 kHz due to Dolby Digital Plus encoding. The white arrow indicates the 24 kHz high-frequency limit due to encoding at the 48 kHz sampling frequency used, confirming that it is the Dolby Digital Plus encoding algorithm that cuts the 20 kHz frequencies to reduce data size in order to maintain the 768 kbits/s bit rate.

The graph below represents the spectrum of the DXD 5.0 – 2024.
Frequencies above 150 kHz confirm recording at a sampling frequency of 352.8 kHz. The red arrow indicates a spurious frequency at 20 kHz.

Detail of the ratings :

• Dynamic :
  1. Significant dynamic compression, DR less than 7
  2. Compression of the present dynamics, DR between 7 and 9.
  3. Correct piece DR >=10
  4. No dynamic compression (DR >12), dynamic rendering
  5. No dynamic compression, high DR and very dynamic sound rendering
• Spectrum :
  1. Spectrum cut and less than 15 khz
  2. Spectrum cut at 15 khz
  3. Spectrum not conforming to the original and cut (not HD) or original but limited bandwidth (but less than 20 kHz)
  4. Spectrum conforming to the original (but not HD)
  5. Spectrum conforming to the original with HD resolution (higher than 24kHz)
• Surface noise (only for vinyl):
  1. Continuous audible noise
  2. Audible surface noise except on passages with a high level of noise
  3. Reduced surface noise, barely audible on low level crossings
  4. Low surface noise, very good quality
  5. Very low surface noise, no defects, almost inaudible on the quiet passages (exceptional disc)
• Spatialization :
  • Between 0 and 5 for 5.1 or 7.1 channels configuration
  • Between 0 and 10 for Atmos configuration (7.1.4)
  • For more information on spatialization, you can read the article describing this parameter here.
• Restitution :
  1. Low quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  2. Average quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  3. Quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Good record.
  4. High quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Very high level disc.
  5. Maximum quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Exceptional disc.

---