I couldn't disagree more with the premise of this thread. While there is no universal consensus on whether DSD sounds better than PCM, since when do we ever have consensus on anything in this wacky hobby? The answer: never. However, I'm seeing more and more people talk about how they like DSD and prefer it over PCM and I certainly fall into that camp as well. When all of the chips have fallen and the dust has settled, it might come down to something as simple as people who detest analog and only listen to digital prefer PCM over DSD and people who listen to both analog and digital prefer DSD because it sounds the most like analog of any current digital format.
Does DSD sound as good as analog either in LP format or tape? No, it doesn't. There is still a gap in sound quality in my opinion. The good news is that with DSD, you can let yourself relax and listen to music for prolonged periods of time and enjoy it. I have never found this to be true with PCM regardless of sampling rate and bit depth. Even though PCM has what I call 'wowie zowie' bass, it still manages to sound too thin and sharp over the long term to my ears. I can only take it so long (and not real long) before I feel compelled to get up and put on an LP so I can relax and float into the music.
So, instead of saying DSD is "The last thing we need", I would say that it's exactly what digital needs in order to sound less artificial, painful, thin, bright, and more like real live music. And I say all of this knowing there are some people who will swear that MP3s sound just like a master tape and PCM sounds even better than a master tape and the worst sounding digital sounds better than the best sounding analog. Why? Because we don't hear the same, we love to argue, and we seldom agree on anything.
