2 channel SACD vs Multichannel SACD players...

On all SACD's there is a 2 channel stereo version. On multichannel discs there is also a seperate multi-channel version of the same music, mixed differently. The stereo version is not converted to stereo on multichannel discs by the player(though on many players you can select which version you want "on the fly" through the players controls), its seperate from the multichannel information. In some cases the stereo version is preffered on multichannel discs, though there is no universal rule about that. When in doubt about a disc do as I do search: http://www.sa-cd.net Search the title and read the reviews and see what others have to say- you'll save a lot of time and money that way. It seems that a lot of the users here prefer stereo sacd, then again this is a site which is mostly stereo only guys- so it may not seem like a fair debate to hold.

Without going into the science, I will just say that I have owned two multi-channel SACD players, but have used them both exclusively for two channel listening and they have both sounded great in two channel.
When it is said that a SACD player is multi-channel, it means it means it
can play in both two-channel AND Multi-channel. When it is said that a
SACD player is Two-Channel, it means it doesn't have multi-channel
capability. Personally, I think some multi-channel SACD players sound
better in Stereo than in multi-channel, but since I have a strong preference for two-channels when it comes to music -- I am probably
too biased in that regard to render an objective opinion.

Rsbeck, I am a two channel person myself. Have you had the opportunity to listen to 2 channel SACD from a dedicated 2 channel player? If so, how did it compare to 2 channel reproduction from a multi-channel system?

There is absolutely no technical reason why playback of the SACD 2 channel program should be better or worse than the 5 channel one. Of course the 2 channel mix might be more to your liking than the multichannel mix, but that is a function of the disc, not the player.

Some confusion may result from the DVD-A 2-channel capability, where the stereo mixdown is done by the player using information provided on the disc by the recording engineer.

Well here I go again, "....DVD-A 2-channel capability, where the stereo mixdown is done by the player using information provided on the disc by the recording engineer."

There is proprietary two channel information on a DVD-A disc?

I know there is always proprietary 2 channel info on SACD. I might add that, in a 2 channel only SACD player, it stands to reason you could get higher quality construction because of fewer channels. That should be fairly obvious.