SACD & DVD-A

[mtrycraft]

Maybe you talked witht he wrong people.

http://www.stereophile.com//features/374/index.html

And, Dr. Stanley Lip****z also presented an AES paper on this. So, therte is no real 1 bit processing at Sony anymore. Too much high frequency distortion.

[kexodusc]

Some pretty interesting comments...most reports I've seen from engineers actually favoured the DVD-A format, but now I wonder if they had a vested (and biased) interest. I think they cited the compromised recording process as a setback in SACD, but if memory serves, it was the same or similar process to DVD-A recording.
Sony has a vested interest in both formats, but for the sake of mass production and non-proprietary media, I could see DVD-A winning out. Especially if people perceive value added in the video stuff on DVD-A's. I don't, but maybe some people like them.

It would be a shame if SACD is, in fact, superior, and it doesn't survive. Kind of like Beta. I'm really happy with Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" SACD.

I don't think it matters, I can't honestly say I can tell a clear difference between the two, and since I intend to have a decent universal player, I'm not leaning one way or another. It is very possible that both formats will thrive, as DTS and DD have.
Nothing wrong with a little healthy competition, either.
BTW, does anyone know which format (if either) has more storage capacity?

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

Maybe you talked witht he wrong people.

http://www.stereophile.com//features/374/index.html

And, Dr. Stanley Lip****z also presented an AES paper on this. So, therte is no real 1 bit processing at Sony anymore. Too much high frequency distortion.

Mtry,

I have carefully read Dr. Stanley Lip****z paper. He was asked by Warner to submit it which makes me question his motive. This is now the second time Warner has tried to torpedo competition(look back at the Dts vs DD argument, and see who ran the tests on the Dts encoder). Warner has a vested interest in DVD-A, so I will wait until a third, non vested party to perform test, or present a paper on the 1 bit 64 time oversampling scheme before I form my opinion.

I trust the people that USE both formats on a daily basis, not the people who write about it. IMO journalists always seemed to have an alterior motive, especially when they are trashing something. I am also concerned when they write negative things about a format, and my own hands on experience doesn't mirror their comments. I do not believe Sony's hype, nor do I trust the anti Sony crowd either. Just like with Dts, if the engineers(the people who use it everyday)sing the praises of a format, then it must be good. They don't have an allegiance to anyone but their clients.

[nick4433]

Uh, sorry for the ignorance on these formats Q but my processor does not have 5.1 analog ins so I guess I have to go without it but the positive side is it saves me the expense that I would have incurred! (LOL)

[Quagmire]

Uh, sorry for the ignorance on these formats Q but my processor does not have 5.1 analog ins so I guess I have to go without it but the positive side is it saves me the expense that I would have incurred! (LOL)

I hear ya, Nick. You know what's funny is that until they finally start to come out with some good combo players, even those of us who have 5.1 analog inputs have to choose a player which support one or the other format, or buy two different players and change out the wiring each and every time. This is what I have done... bought two inexpensive players to compare the formats. Well in all honesty, I needed a good progressive scan DVD player anyway, so I just found one that included DVD-A as an additional feature. I already had an entry level Sony CD/SACD player, so the expense wasn't that great but the inconvenience of both players needing the 5.1 inputs on my pre/pro is a PAIN IN THE A$$!

Good to hear from you!

Q

[Woochifer]

I trust the people that USE both formats on a daily basis, not the people who write about it. IMO journalists always seemed to have an alterior motive, especially when they are trashing something. I am also concerned when they write negative things about a format, and my own hands on experience doesn't mirror their comments. I do not believe Sony's hype, nor do I trust the anti Sony crowd either. Just like with Dts, if the engineers(the people who use it everyday)sing the praises of a format, then it must be good. They don't have an allegiance to anyone but their clients.

T -

Good to hear a voice of reason on topics that seem to generate more nonsensical polarization than anything. My demos thus far with SACD and DVD-A have convinced me that either format would be an improvement over two-channel CD. As for the merits of one versus the other, I'm not quite as concerned since either way the listener gets a jump up in resolution, along with (in most cases) improved mastering, and multichannel surround to boot.

It is interesting though that your impression is that audio journalists are solidly behind DVD-A because TAS and Stereophile seem to favor SACD. Just as an example, Shane Buettner, one of Richard Hardesty's proteges at TAS, has done several articles on the two formats and probably reviewed more DVD-A, SACD, and universal players than anybody; and he generally favors SACD, though he doesn't trash DVD-A in the process. If anything, I see DVD-A marketed more as a mass market format, and SACD marketed towards the audiophile market, which is ironic considering that SACD's hybrid disc capability makes it more suited to the mass market.

The current issue of TAS has a pretty good article on the status of both formats. Supposedly, the wave of recent SACD/CD hybrid releases from the likes of Pink Floyd and the Rolling Stones have bottled up the manufacturing capacity for the hybrid discs, and they're pretty much selling as many as they can make. SACD can win this format war, or at least force the market towards universal players, if Sony and its SACD partners decide to standardize all of their new releases around the hybrid disc format. But, supposedly that can't happen until more capacity comes online, and Sony lets go of the idea that they can successfully keep SACD viable as a niche audiophile format and charge premium pricing.

Right now, I favor DVD-A simply because I can play them back on my regular DVD player! Even with just the backup DD soundtrack, I can already hear what the multichannel mixes do, and with the backup DTS soundtracks, I already pick up sound quality that audibly rivals the CD versions, multichannel or not. Higher resolution would be gravy. In the end, I think the advent of universal players will render this whole debate moot, and for now I'm still waiting for the right model to hit my price point.