DCC Archive Major Labels to Pull Plug on DVD-A Next Year ?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by bmoura, Dec 14, 2001.

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  1. bmoura

    bmoura Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Redwood City, CA
    Here's an interesting one.

    According to an article on the Sursound Listserv entitled SACD Reviews, A&R reps from Warner/Rhino, DTS and 5.1 Entertainment said at the recent Surround 2001 conference that the major labels backing DVD-A will pull the plug on the format next year if sales don't pick up soon.

    Stay tuned...
     
  2. Gary

    Gary Nauga Gort! Staff

    Location:
    Toronto
    Interesting! But I found the last comment even more interesting:

    "On a related note, I heard an advance copy of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the
    Moon in its unretouched quadrophonic glory and all I can say is that it was
    amazing!"

    Anyone know whats happening here? Is this DVD-A? Normal CD? How does that affect the Floyd/DCC rumour?
     
  3. Andrew

    Andrew Chairman of the Bored

    Wasn't the story going around last week that supposedly SACD was going to be binned "next year"? :confused:
     
  4. Sckott

    Sckott Hand Tighten Only.

    Location:
    South Plymouth, Ma
    There's a Q8 of DSOTM that Tab Paterson did in quad. That has to be it, because there's never been any mastering of that 4 channel mix other than the Q8. Sounds great, a bit weird, but very interesting.

    I like the Q8 of WYWH for the fact that after the WOOSH of Have A Cigar, Dave Gilmour plays for another 30 seconds before the radio "dialogue" burys it in the sound. They should have kept letting him play!

    Both are Cds in DTS.

    [ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Sckott ]
     
  5. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    I still can't locate the article but this seems to support what I read about some conpany ditching DVD-A in favor of SACD, especially now that SACD supports 5.1 and can be produced as a hybrid disc with three or more formats all rolled into one.

    Now, let's bring on those hybrid players and CHEAPER players!

    I never cared for DVD-A anyway. It seems that despite the keeno factor, most DVD-As were not being played back properly because one needed a dedicated DVD-A player to do it.

    Besides, there's still a lot to be said for stereo, and now we have high resolution stereo in SACD. This time the companies are going to get it right for once.

    I'm glad I didn't buy into the DVD-A hype from the pros in the industry. In fact, if you go back to standard CD for anything I still think 88.2k would have technically been a better sampling rate. 96k was picked because it sounded better from a marketing standpoint.

    [ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Grant T. ]

    [ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Grant T. ]
     
  6. Unknown

    Unknown Guest

    What a bunch of BULL! You pull a single unsubstantiated post from a forum thread and then post it here as if it's the gospel truth. Get a life. This may be impressive to your SACD buds over at the Audio Asylum but to me it's a typical troll post.
     
  7. Sckott

    Sckott Hand Tighten Only.

    Location:
    South Plymouth, Ma
    Hey now. No more fights. Poop shooting is not cool. Just disagree with ol' Grant with a counterpoint is just fine.

    We is all friendly little audiophile tweekers, that's all. Grant's actually not a bad feller, just strongly opinionated. ;)
     
  8. Holy Zoo

    Holy Zoo Gort (Retired) :-)

    Location:
    Santa Cruz

    Dude - chill out. Since when was posting a pointer to something you read elsewhere a crime? It most certainly didn't call for a personal attack.
     
  9. bmoura

    bmoura Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Redwood City, CA
    According to an earlier message over on Hi Rez Highway, DSOTM is going to be one of EMI's Multichannel/Stereo SACD releases.

    Hmm, that would be an interesting one.
     
  10. RickA

    RickA Love you forever Luke, we will be together again

    Location:
    Tampa, FL
    Interesting?

    I just read not to long ago that EMI has signed on to license titles for DVD-A. The fact that most if not all DVD players ( new models) now incorporate DVD-A as a feature will allow people to enjoy DVD-A. I think some companies are fearful that Sony own's the SACD format and they (WEA & EMI) do not want to increase Sony's "bottom line".
    Personally I do not want another piece of hardware, heck I do not envision ever buying another CD player in the future when DVD's now have the DVD-A and HDCD technologies below $275.00

    Rick A.
     
  11. RetroSmith

    RetroSmith Forum Hall Of Fame<br>(Formerly Mikey5967)

    Location:
    East Coast
    I read that article, and what a I gleaned form it is that the part about 'the majors will pull the plug on DVD-A" was not an 'announcement" of ANY sort.
    If was a few peoples OPINIONs, which mean NOTHING toward the majors actions on DVD-a or SACD, just as MINE means nothing.
    Rhino makes very, very, few DVDs in the first place, and they are hardly representative of the majors.

    Also, the post about "it seems you need a DVD-A player to play DVD-A disks is blatantly untrue. I play DVd-A disk on my normal 5.1 player and the 5.1 surround sound mix is breathtaking. Yes, i know I'm not getting the full resolution...it STILL sounds great.

    My opinion? the Majors will pull the plug on SACD.....no ones buying the players!!
     
  12. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    No, I did not say that you needed a dedicated player to play them, I said that you needed a dedicated player to play them PROPERLY, so my original statement is true. The fact that you aren't getting the full resolution with a regular DVD player is precisely the reason DVD-A is all wrong. Most people won't care, as long as they have a DVD-V player. This happened with the CD and it's woefully limiting 16-bit resolution. And, now look where we are because of it.

    I know there are a lot of DVD-A 5.1 fans out there, so to them it sounds like I'm going against the grain here. But, I stand by my opinion. I think DVD-A is the wrong road to follow. SACD is better all around.

    This is also why you should never invest a lot of money on a new format without sitting through the shakeout period.

    [ December 15, 2001: Message edited by: Grant T. ]
     
  13. thxdave

    thxdave "One black, one white, one blonde"

    I bought a Sony 9000 when I decided to upgrade my DVD video player and got a great (albeit 2 channel) SACD player as part of the package. However, in the 6 months since I bought the player, I have had a near impossible time finding SACD's in any of my local stores. I can walk into my local Borders store and find about 15 to 20 titles but they look at me like I'm from another planet if I ask them about SACD. Tell me this situation is going to get better.
    dave
     
  14. I think that any predictions on the futures of either DVD-A or SACD 5.1-multichannel is premature speculation at best. If the majors were planning to pull the plug on either formats, why are Sony and Warners still putting out product right now? Several titles on both formats are due out this coming Tuesday (the 18th). :rolleyes:
     
  15. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    I agree--it's pointless to predict the future, but when A&R reps from Warner/Rhino, DTS and 5.1 Entertainment are at the Surround 2001 conference saying they will pull the plug if DVD-A sales don't heat up over the next year, it just goes to show that there is no one hardware or software company fully behind the format.

    It's worth pointing out that DVD-A's biggest supporter, Warner, had atrociously poor profits last year, even relative to other record labels. Couple that with the fact that AOL, which owns Warner now, will want to focus on downloadable music, and I think we can see where DVD-A is headed.
     
  16. Cousin It

    Cousin It Senior Member

    Location:
    Sydney, Australia
    EMI U.K's share price plunged 30% in one day after announcing their numbers,I been told the current malaise in the music biz is far worse than the early 80's debacle.The majors are paying(literally) now for their lack of catalog development and plain poor long term planning.
     
  17. RetroSmith

    RetroSmith Forum Hall Of Fame<br>(Formerly Mikey5967)

    Location:
    East Coast
    just thought I'd chime in here.

    Was browsing in Tower Books in the village yesterday, and picked up an issue of (I think) Audio /video Interior Mag.

    There was a quote from an A&R guy at one of the majors who said to the effect of"
    "Theres no question that the future of reissues is in surround sound. It gives the majors yet another way to make money off their back catalog. Can you imagine how many Beatles DVDs EMI can sell if they remix in surround? Plus, the piracy problem is already solved."


    I found these comments VERY interesting.
    As we speak , DVD-A is the premier surround sound audio format. Yes, I know that SACD is capable of surround sound, but that isnt its focus, SACD lives as a higher res format for 2 channel mixes. Indeed, from what Ive seen on this forum, most SACD fans dont even WANT a multichannel SACD, they want 2 channel.
    If Surround Sound is the "future" of reissues, its going to be DVD-A that carries it, not SACD.
    Altho, I think SACD can live on as a niche format, one thing is certain, that prices for a SACD will remain high, since its a limited market. Same as those "Direct to Disk" LPs that cost 20 bucks 20 years ago.
     
  18. Gary

    Gary Nauga Gort! Staff

    Location:
    Toronto
    Don't you think it tells you something that the new inexpensive Sony SACD players also play DVD's?
     
  19. RetroSmith

    RetroSmith Forum Hall Of Fame<br>(Formerly Mikey5967)

    Location:
    East Coast
    What does that tell me?

    The Apex player for 299$ playes EVERYTHING, there is no disk (other than laserdisk) that it cant play.

    whats your point?

    Mike
     
  20. Gary

    Gary Nauga Gort! Staff

    Location:
    Toronto
    Sony SACD players are trying to be - no, not trying - are - compatible with DVD.

    Is it a nod to acknowleging that there will be music that will never be released on SACD? Or is it simply a good competitive move to make Sony players more universal? Did APEX inspire them? Pioneer?

    Just wondering.

    Aren't you?

    [ December 17, 2001: Message edited by: Gary ]
     
  21. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    &gt;&gt; Sony SACD players are trying to be - no, not trying - are - compatible with DVD. &lt;&lt;

    Some are, some arent. I think you are having trouble realizing that DVD and SACD are just marketing names. SACD and DVD are discs read by the same laser wavelength, which can store massively greater amounts of data than CD. Whether you call audio discs like this DVD-A or SACD, you are basically getting across to the consumer that these are next-generation digital audio formats. Frankly, CD has greater name recognition among music fans, so I always thought SACD was a better choice.

    &gt;&gt; Is it a nod to acknowleging that there will be music that will never be released on SACD? &lt;&lt;

    Wow. You'll have to explain how you arrived at this interpretation.

    &gt;&gt; Or is it simply a good competitive move to make Sony players more universal? Did APEX inspire them? Pioneer? Just wondering. Aren't you? &lt;&lt;

    I think most people assumed it was just a good move from a hardware standpoint, to make some players compatible with DVD since it is quickly replacing VHS. When Sony introduced its first progressive-scanning DVD player, it knew many videophiles would jump on board. By making that machine--DVP-S9000ES--compatible with SACD, Sony also appealed to the audiophile market and had a real statement piece on its hands. Soon all Sony disc machines will be SACD compatible. Why, you ask? Because the company is firmly committed to the format's survival.
     
  22. RicP

    RicP All Digital. All The Time.

    Would that be the Vaporware Apex player that has yet to be seen by anyone's actual eyes? The same Apex company that refuses to pay license fees for DVD and Dolby Digital?

    The same Apex player that hasn't licensed DSD Decoding from Sony so will most likely convert the DSD stream to PCM before decoding it, thereby nullifying all benefits of SACD? That Apex?

    Yea, I'm waiting for that player. :rolleyes:
     
  23. jkerr

    jkerr Senior Member

    Location:
    Suffolk, VA
    Supposedly J&R will have the first units by the 20th, and they have about 1000 backorders. So maybe we'll know in a couple days. Also Apex claims to be using Sony's chips and disc loader & ESS Technologies for DVD-A. Here's where I've been reading this:

    Apex Info Pages

    Also, the manual pdf for the 7701 is online at:

    Apex Digital Inc

    Don't take me wrong, I'm not trying to say you're wrong but I do like to know the source of your info. Especially about licensing and DSD/PCM conversions. I'm not that surprised about the delays - could be the chips & could be the software. With all features they're trying to shoehorn into this thing it's probably hell to QA.

    The reason I'm interested in this player is basically for a 2nd player than can handle all the multichannel formats. So if its cheap that's ok, its the functionality that counts. For my serious side I have my Sony 777es.
     
  24. christopher

    christopher Forum Neurotic

  25. RetroSmith

    RetroSmith Forum Hall Of Fame<br>(Formerly Mikey5967)

    Location:
    East Coast
    chris sez:

    granted, it is a different model, but mfg by the same company.


    &gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;Well, I dont think that proves anything. Do you think Sony doesnt make CRAP at the low end of its product line? Or Panasonic? or Aiwa? They all do.
     
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