DVD-A Vs. DD 5.1 (1 Viewer)

[Derek Baker]

I have a quick question :
I'm very interested in buying some DVD audio discs but i don't have a player that is DVD-A compatible.
Do all DVD-A discs also provide a DD 5.1 mix ? And do these DD 5.1 mixes measure up to the true DVD-A tracks ?

 

[Philip Hamm]

quote: Do all DVD-A discs also provide a DD 5.1 mix ? [/quote]Technically they do not have to. However, AFAIK most or all of them do so far. quote: And do these DD 5.1 mixes measure up to the true DVD-A tracks ?[/quote]Not even remotely. However, some discs have a DTS soundtrack which seems to sound much better than the DD soundtrack for 6 channel music.
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Philip Hamm
Pat's the best!™
AIM: PhilBiker
click on the little green house to see the evolution of my home theater!
[Edited last by Philip Hamm on September 18, 2001 at 07:29 AM]

 

[Paul Boyle]

Derek - Although I am just about to take delivery of a DVD-A capable player I have, up until now, been listening to my various DVD-A's on a "normal" DVD player and yes it is correct that all such discs have a DD5.1 (or DTS in some cases) track ...
The DD5.1 tracks sound superb on the ones I have (ELP, Deep Purple, Foreigner, Metallica) I hope to update this post in a day or two as to how much better the DVD-A tracks are ...
I have had some DTS Audio discs before and would say the DVD-A DD5.1 tracks are at least as good ...
Hope that helps & BTW http://www.dv-depot.com
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... hi - my name is Paul and I'm a dvdaholic ...

 

[KeithH]

Derek,
I agree with Philip. DVD-Audio is significantly better than Dolby Digital for music. I've compared the Dolby Digital and DVD-Audio tracks on many of my DVD-Audio discs, and there is no comparison. I just don't feel that Dolby Digital works well for music. There are a few exceptions such as James Taylor Live at the Beacon Theater, which is a DVD-Video disc. It was done in Dolby Digital 5.1 and sounds quite good, but I would like to hear it in DVD-Audio (and preferably in multi-channel SACD). Also, I agree with Philip that DTS, while still not as good as DVD-Audio, comes much closer than Dolby Digital.
Paul,
I realize that you are pleased with the Dolby Digital tracks on the DVD-Audio discs you own, but I think you will be very pleased with the sound of DVD-Audio by comparison.
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[Paul Boyle]

Keith ...
Guess what - You were right! I picked up my new Panasonic DVD-A player yesterday & got it up and running (what a pain you need 6 analogue connections to get the DVD-A!)
I heard that the difference from DD5.1 and DVD-A was the difference between night and day - I wouldnt go that far but the DVD-A is far superior - The placement of the instruments and overall sound is just a differnet league - Even my wife noticed it and that's the highest compliment I could pay DVD-A (mind you she still thinks I need therapy for my "serial upgrading" addiction!)
Lets hope some more mainstream DVD-A stuff comes out soon - I hear they are working on Queen's Night at the Opera - Now Bohemian Rhapsody in DVD-A that'd be cool
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... hi - my name is Paul and I'm a dvdaholic ...

 

[KeithH]

Paul, glad you are enjoying DVD-Audio. Having your wife appreciate the format is an important step in the evolution of your audio/video system. With a bit of luck, your wife will be supportive (I suppose only to a degree ) of your hobby now that she has an appreciation of why you are doing what you are doing. My girlfriend had a revelation a couple of weeks ago and now knows why I pursue high-end audio. I played a CD for her in one of my Sony ES CD megachangers and then the same CD in my Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player. The difference in the quality of these two players is night and day. She heard the difference instantly, and her eyes opened wide when the she heard the '777ES. When she was done emoting about the sound quality of the '777ES, I merely replied, "I told you."
I too have heard about Queen A Night at the Opera coming out on DVD-Audio. I hope this is true.
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KeithH: Saving the Home Theater World Before Bedtime

 

[Paul Boyle]

KeithH - Thanks for that ... Re upcoming DVD-A's I noticed these on the Rhino web site (www.rhino.com) Rhino have produced three of my current DVD-A's (ELP, Foreigner & Deep Purple) so hopefully their new ones will be of equal quality
DUE September 25
America - Homecoming DVD-Audio (Warner Archives)
DUE October 30
Foreigner - 4 (DVD-Audio) (Atlantic & Atco Remasters)
The Grateful Dead - American Beauty (DVD-Audio) (Warner Archives)
DUE Nov 27
Carly Simon - No Secrets (DVD-Audio)
The Grateful Dead - Workingman's Dead (DVD-Audio)
DUE Dec 18
Doobie Brothers - Captain & Me(DVD-Audio) (Warner Archives)
Van Morrison - Moondance (DVD-Audio)
Billy Cobham - Spectrum (DVD-Audio)
Regards - Paul

 

[KeithH]

Paul, I had heard about all of these titles coming out on DVD-Audio, but I had not heard release dates. Thanks for posting this information. I am especially interested in the Doobie Brothers and Foreigner releases. The Van Morrison Moondance release should be a good one also. I hope they all have 24/96 stereo tracks. They should because it seems as though Warner stopped releasing 5.1-only discs like the ELP and Natalie Merchant discs.
I am still looking to pick up Paul Simon You're the One. I don't even have the CD, but I've never heard anything from Simon (solo or with Art Garfunkel) that I didn't like.
By the way, I assume that the release dates you quoted are for the US. It is possible that these titles will come out later in the UK. I know that DVD-Audio titles have been slow to get to the UK. What Hi*Fi? and Hi-Fi Choice have complained about that many times, and rightfully so. Has the situation in the UK improved?
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[Paul Boyle]

KeithH ...
No the DVD-A situation in the UK is dire
None of the main retail outlets stock DVD-A
Even the main etailer (play247.com) who are based in Jersey only stock a couple of DVD-A discs
All my purchases have been from "across the pond" usually Canada (best prices)
Re the upcoming releases Foreigner 4 is top of my list - I hope it is as good a package as the first self titled one
I listened to the commentary last night - that was cool - and in the main very informative as was the indepth bio about the start of the band ... More releases like this please

 

[KeithH]

Paul, sorry to hear the bad news regarding DVD-Audio availability in the UK. That is most disappointing. I was in the UK in June (Manchester and London) and did not see any DVD-Audio discs in Virgin, Tower, or HMV stores. I was hopeful that the situation had improved. Although I hadn't given it much thought, I guess ordering from North America works since DVD-Audio discs have no region code. I've never seen a globe with a '1' on my discs, for example.
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KeithH: Saving the Home Theater World Before Bedtime

 

[PatrickM]

Paul,
There are not many B&M's carrying DVD-A in Canada yet either so those of us here are also ordering online via Canadian e-tailers.
I've only ever seen DVD-A's in a store at C&L.
Patrick
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