I've never had the chance to do a very serious ABx comparison of 16/44.1 against 16/48 with a solid source.
Perhaps regrettably, along comes the new Trey album on DualDisk with a DVD-V side of 16/48 Enhanced Stereo and a 16/44.1 CD side.
I say regrettably because 16/48 seems like a waste of a good DVD-V.
I'm guessing that PC compatibility for 16 bit cards was the driver.... but I digress.
So here I have identical studio recordings to compare. 16/44 v. 16/48.
Is the higher sampling rate discernable ?
Absolutely. Cymbals, sibalants, anything at the very top end was immediately and repeatably heard.
The CD side "whites-out" all through "Spin." The DVD-V at 16/48 is much more transparent.
By far the best comparison that I've heard.
Surprise ! Even old ears can tell.
Now laugh at those earplugs I wore under the stadium stacks at all of the dead shows in the 80's....
I wonder what a 24/96 or 24/196 source would have sounded like.