Choosing sampling rate with Blu Ray Audio discs

[BruceB]

I have a 2-channel audio system, two older Sony Blu Ray players, and am a newbie when it comes to Blu Ray Audio. I recently bought my first Blu Ray audio disc, and beside Dolby Atmos etc it has a separate 2-channel 24 bit/ 192kHz audio version on it. I have the PCM output of the Blu Ray players connected to a DAC which is spec'd as 32-bit 192kHz. When I play the disc, whether it is the toslink or the coaxial output of the player, I get 48kHz sampling rate out according to my DAC. I realize that for audio playback purposes 48kHz sampling as probably all I need, but it leads me to ask these two questions: 1) Which piece of gear is downsampling the data stream to 48kHz and why? 2) How do I get a higher rate (96kHz or 192kHz) from player to DAC, since the disc has it and the DAC supposedly can handle it?

 

[JStewart]

Welcome to the forum!
It’s probably the Sony blueray, but a check of the owners manual should provide a firm answer and also if a higher sample rate is possible without using HDMI.

 

[ddude003]

It would be helpful if you would state what model number your Sony Blu Ray player is... On my Sony UBP-X700 4k HDR I have to select the sampling rate when outputting to the DIGITAL OUT (COAXIAL)... I think 48kHz is the default...

 

[BruceB]

It would be helpful if you would state what model number your Sony Blu Ray player is... On my Sony UBP-X700 4k HDR I have to select the sampling rate when outputting to the DIGITAL OUT (COAXIAL)... I think 48kHz is the default...

The one I am currently using is very old -- A Sony BPD-S360. It has a rather long setup menu, but today I found this statement in its operator's manual "...the signals will be set to 48kHz / 16 bit if the source is copy protected." Possibly all Blu Ray discs are copy protected? I am planning to buy a new Blu Ray player, but I really see no point in it if the new one also will do no better than 48kHz.

 

[ddude003]

Digital Rights Management (DRM) might be an issue with these hardware players... Look into software "Ripping" solutions to digitally extract higher resolutions from your BluRays if you are so inclined...

 

[Todd Anderson]

Oh.... that's so frustrating. There's no getting around that gateway set by the Sony player.

@Bob Rapoport, you're into Blu-ray audio...is this common across all BD players? I just did a cursory search, and as far as I can tell, players can typically process higher sampling rates with their internal DACs, but are gated when dumping digital audio to an external DAC.

I agree with @ddude003, it might be time to start thinking about ripping to extract the full bandwidth. Tho, I wonder: will you be able to hear a difference? I guess that's the biggest question you need to answer. Is time/investment worth the end result?

 

[BruceB]

Oh.... that's so frustrating. There's no getting around that gateway set by the Sony player.

@Bob Rapoport, you're into Blu-ray audio...is this common across all BD players? I just did a cursory search, and as far as I can tell, players can typically process higher sampling rates with their internal DACs, but are gated when dumping digital audio to an external DAC.

I agree with @ddude003, it might be time to start thinking about ripping to extract the full bandwidth. Tho, I wonder: will you be able to hear a difference? I guess that's the biggest question you need to answer. Is time/investment worth the end result?

Part of my motivation here is that I'm inclined to purchase a new Blu Ray player for various reasons but if my dts-HD Master Audio tracks on Blu Ray Audio discs won't play back at full sampling rate then I'm not paying $800 or $1200 for a Blu Ray player. I'm primarily a 2-channel audio listener -- a $90 2k Blu Ray player with coaxial or toslink digital output works just fine for the movies I watch (most of which are on DVD anyway). At this point I am just dabbling in dts-HD MA and don't know how much I want to invest in it. So far it seems the industry has done a poor job of making it a convenient transition from CD for the old school audiophile. As for the biggest question, I already have 48k Hz capability, and that is 90% of the way there IMO so there is validity in asking if the end result is worth it. Right now I am able to play back 24-bit/192k Hz FLAC files on a USB stick if I want to go that route. It's my hobby and I am retired so I have plenty of time. The cost to add dts-HD MA to what I already have is not very high if I make the correct purchase and get to where I want to be the first time around.