Canada’s Classé Audio has introduced a new compact disc player as part of its new Delta range. The CDP-100 joins seven other initial Delta-range intros including five power amplifiers, a preamp, and an integrated amp, in the broadest and most significant line change in Classé’s 24-year history.

Onkyo has introduced the DV-CP802, a six disc progressive scan DVD changer that is compatible with almost all current disc formats in use today, including DVD-Audio and multichannel SACD high-resolution audio formats. The six-disc carousel includes the company's blue-illuminated tray light for disc recognition. It features a 108-Mhz/12-bit video D/A converter for video clarity and detail, and progressive scan component video output with 3-2 pulldown capability. In addition to the component video output, there are both composite and S-video connections for compatibility with nearly all televisions, and all video outputs are continuously active.

DTS has just announced the development of a system for delivering lossless digital soundtracks into movie theaters. According to DTS, with lossless technology, a soundtrack played in the cinema is bit-for-bit identical to the original master. DTS lossless technology works with all film specifications used in exhibition, including 16mm, 35mm, 70mm and any pulldown or frame rates, as well as digital pre-show, alternate content and digital cinema sources. Sampling rates include 44.1, 48, and 96 kHz at 16 to 24 bits.

The big hold-up with the new CD/DVD-Audio dual discs has been the physical thickness of the actual discs. In order to make the new CD compatible discs work in many older car audio CD decks, compromises have been made on the disc that are not true of individual DVD-Audio or CD discs. For example, because of the bonding process, the CD layer of the dual disc can now supposedly play only 60 minutes of content, as opposed to 74 minutes on a traditional red book CD. The DVD layer of the disc is what record industry technology geeks call a “DVD 5,” which is a single-layer DVD that is not capable of storing as much music and aftermarket goodies as a “DVD 9,” which is a dual disc DVD.

Universal Music Group reigns supreme as the largest of the 4 major record labels with about 25 percent of the record sales in the marketplace today. Publicly UMG has said and continues to promote SACD as their “preferred” high resolution format however UMG representatives tell AudioRevolution.com that they will continue to create DVD-Audio versions on many of their most popular titles allowing the marketplace to determine the winner in the audio format war.