SACD and DVD-Audio, Doomed Formats?

[kennyt]

I have tried to buy every DVD-A and SACD title I could and I still don't have that many, maybe 150 total, the labels just never put out enough software for them.

Many companies are starting to back off producing DVD-A players, so in a word;

Yes, they seem to be.

[Silver Supra]

I'm afraid they are dying... and it's a shame since SACD flat out kicks ass!

[Kato]

Originally Posted by dwbattle

What everybody tends to forget is that the players do not make a new audio or video format: the software content (albums released) makes the format. Who cares if the latest Sony Blu-Ray player supports SACD; that doesn't matter. What does matter is that SACD discs are being produced every month by a wide variety of classical and jazz labels. No other hi-res music format has near the same level of support. Neither Blu-Ray nor HD-DVD show any signs of getting any music software support. When it comes to hi-res music, SACD is the clear winner.

"But the major labels don't support SACD..." WHO CARES. The major labels all produce low-res junk that doesn't even take advantage of the capabilities of normal red-book CDs. Pop music played at high-res sounds just like it does on CD. The jazz and classical labels that do care about sound quality do support SACD. They are the only ones willing/able to truly support a hi-res music format. Jazz and classical music often does take advantage of and sound significantly better on a high-res format such as SACD. The support (or lack thereof) of the jazz and classical labels is all that matters for high-res music formats.

This sums it up nicely, for the “mainstream” music I listen to, CD or even MP3 quality is adequate, however, for the large amount of classical and jazz that I listen to, I want better resolution. I’ve been reviewing the current blu-ray players out there to see which ones support SACD/DVD-Audio, and it’s tempting to buy a first-gen Sony player which supports SACD as they’re dropping to semi-reasonable prices (~$500 CDN) however, the fact that Sony has dropped support in their second-gen player has annoyed me enough that I think I’ll just boycott Sony products from this point forward. They have a long history of dumping unprofitable formats and letting their customers twist in the wind. No blu-ray player that I can find supports both SACD or DVD-Audio, so I think I’ll go get a universal DVD player, listen to both SACD and DVD-Audio, upscale my DVDs to 1080p with the same player (Denon 1930CI) and wait for a reasonably priced second or third-gen non-Sony blu-ray/HD-DVD universal player with the latest HDMI support. If hi-rez digital audio eventually migrates to this format, then hopefully I’ll be covered. #^^%* format wars!

[JerryDelColliano]

I actually think my dynamic and complicated rock and pop do better on high res than Jazz or Classical yet I still struggle to see how everything isn't on one format now that there is a copy protected disc format with 50 gigs of storage and one cable connectivity...

j

[Kato]

Yes, it's probably a bit snobbish to say that only classical and jazz are worthy of or would benefit from hi-rez, there's plenty of rock and other stuff in the SACD / DVD-A catalog that I want to get.

In my opinion, there's one good reason why there isn't one format, it's greed. The company that collects royalties on a format that is widely accepted makes big bucks. Arguably, all the manufacturers could work together and create a world-wide standard and stop @#$$@ing around their customers, but then they would all have to settle for hitting a single instead of one of them hitting a home-run. In industries where the customers are larger and have more clout they force the manufacturers to adhere to standards, usually to the betterment of all involved, the margins get slimmer, but the market gets bigger. The AV market by its nature is too disorganized to make this happen, so we end up with multiple standards, a fractured market, and many potential customers sitting on the sidelines because they don't want another betamax doorstop. Way to go AV manufacturers.

[JerryDelColliano]

I am not suggesting you are being a snob.

Its just that the dynamic nature of the music requires more zeros and ones to truly resolve as opposed to less dynamic jazz and classical.

Once again - I want it all.