Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon -dsd Sac... ◎
Because the disc was discontinued years ago, physical copies of Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon - DSD SACD (Catalog number: CAPP 81033 SA / GUBR 111) command high prices on eBay and Discogs—often between $100 and $300 for a mint copy.
Beware of fakes. Counterfeit SACDs are common. Look for the SACD logo (a silver circle with a triangle inside) and the specific barcode. Alternatively, the Discovery box set (2011) contains the same DSD master on standard blu-ray, but the pure SACD remains the holy grail.
Digital alternative: You can purchase the DSD files legally from sites like Acoustic Sounds (SuperHiRez) or NativeDSD Music. A search for Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon - DSD SACD download will lead you to 2.8 MHz (DSD64) files, which are identical to what is on the disc.
| Release | Stereo DSD | 5.1 Mix | Notes | |---------|------------|---------|-------| | 30th Anniversary SACD (2003) | Yes | No | Single-layer SACD (no CD layer). Harder to find. | | Why Pink Floyd? Discovery Edition (2011) | Yes | No | Hybrid (CD + SACD). Most common. Same DSD master as 2003. | | Immersion Box (2011) | Yes | Yes | Includes both SACD & Blu-ray, plus book, memorabilia. Expensive. | | Japanese pressing (any year) | Yes | No | Often higher quality control, but same master. | Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon -DSD SAC...
Avoid unofficial “DSD downloads” – only official SACDs contain the actual studio-approved DSD transfer.
SACDs cannot be played on a standard CD player. To experience the DSD layer, you need:
This release remasters the album using DSD (Direct Stream Digital) technology, which captures audio at a significantly higher resolution than standard CD. Because the disc was discontinued years ago, physical
Pros:
Cons:
When you find a copy of Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon - DSD SACD, you are actually getting two legendary mixes: Avoid unofficial “DSD downloads” – only official SACDs
The 5.1 mix is a revelation. In “On the Run,” the synths circle your head. In “Money,” the cash register pings from the rear speakers. In “Great Gig,” Torry’s voice envelops you. However, purists argue the 2.0 stereo mix on SACD is the definitive version because it keeps the intention of the original quadraphonic vinyl intact without phase cancellation issues.
In the pantheon of recorded music, few albums have achieved the mythic status of The Dark Side of the Moon. Since its release in 1973, Pink Floyd’s masterpiece has sold over 50 million copies, spent 741 weeks on the Billboard charts, and served as the sonic gateway for generations of music lovers. But for the critical listener—the one who hunts for the texture of Roger Waters’ bass strings or the decay of a cymbal crash in “Time”—there is only one question: Have you heard the DSD SACD version?
For those typing “Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon - DSD SACD” into search engines, you are not just looking for a file format. You are searching for a revelation. This article dives deep into why the combination of Pink Floyd’s analog masterpiece and Sony’s Direct Stream Digital (DSD) encoding on Super Audio CD (SACD) represents the closest modern approximation to sitting in the control room at Abbey Road Studios.
There are several SACD editions, but the most praised is the 2003 30th Anniversary Edition SACD (catalog number: 5 1099 2). It was mastered by James Guthrie (Floyd’s longtime engineer) from the original analog master tapes. This version is widely considered the definitive digital release.