Stones Super Audio discs continue to roll... (1 Viewer)

[Justin Lane]

What really irritates people is that I don't accept the orthodoxy for DVD Audio or against high end and I am intelligent enough to make some compelling points.

Lets not get religious. I have yet to see any "orthodoxy" here for DVD-A. Once again, some people like the format and feel it is better then SACD, others like both formats, and some are die hard SACD fanatics (like yourself, don't try to deny it, it is ok). Which ever camp you are in is your own perogative, but there is no reason to continually try to one up those who have different opinions then your own. It is old, boring, and quite trite. As has been said before, Audio Asylum is a perfect place for these same old threads, where you will be sure to get a half dozen "DVD-A is Dead", and "DVD-A sucks" replies over there. I would like to think the HTF is beyond these meaningless discussions.

J

 

[robertLP]

On a related topic....

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...798025-0558432

The above is Beck's 'Sea Change' HDCD link on Amazon. As you can see, it's climbed all the way to #56 in sales ranking. This will help build the case for more big-star albums in HDCD.

And let's not have another debate as to how many were to CD buyers and how many were HDCD buyers...no one knows and in many ways it does not matter.

 

[Rob M.]

I must object once again to this generalization. You don't know anything about the breakout since no figures are available. It could be that a sizeable number of SACDs are being sold to the grassroots audiophile base. I suspect the percentage is small, but we don't know if the answer is 1%, 10% or 20%. We just don't know and it likely varies per title.

I think most of us "know" this because we have the gift of common freakin' sense. You are constantly making the point that there is no way to differentiate between people who bought one of these for the CD layer and those who want the hi-res. We all know this. It doesn't need to be repeated again and again in every thread about SACD.

However, common sense tells me that a very small percentage of these Stones discs were sold based on the SACD layer. I'll tell you what--hang out at Best Buy for a while, and ask the next few people you see looking at the Stones discs if they are buying it for SACD capability. Then report back how many blank stares you get.

I know some pretty tech-savvy guys, and I'm the only one who owns an SACD player. Or a DVD-A player. These are niche formats, and probably will be for the forseeable future. Can't we just enjoy the sound that comes off the discs and stop the "debate"?

 

[LanceJ]

Out of that big blah list of new sacd's is one shining star: Groove Armada's Vertigo. That was in my CD player a LOT for the first two months after I bought it. It's a great album. The track "Chicago" is my favorite.

Only complaint: just like some other dance/"fun" music it has way too much high frequency energy--I usually have to turn down my treble control when listening to it. But i would still love to hear it in surround. I'm sure the Armada has some cool ideas for that!

When they go on concert tours they usually bring a huge band with them; they have sell-out crowds all the time.

Why Jive Records chose to put it on sacd I truly don't understand. I would have bought this instantly on dvd-audio.

Groove Armada's homepage

Groove Armada's Vertigo at cduniverse.com

LJ

 

[Justin Lane]

The above is Beck's 'Sea Change' HDCD link on Amazon. As you can see, it's climbed all the way to #56 in sales ranking. This will help build the case for more big-star albums in HDCD.

Once Paul and Ringo see the sales figures for this HDCD it will be a no brainer for the Beatles catalog. Not to mention HDCD is backwards compatible with standard redbook CD. Stealth marketing at its finest.

J

 

[Kevin C Brown]

Lee- Oops sorry, didn't read the original article, thanks!

I feel bad. My dad had a good Panny DVD (only) player. He just "upgraded" to a JVC DVD-A/V player. I tried to point out to him, the existance of universal players, *and* the "benefits" of SACD (more currently available "relevant" releases IMO), but he's still moderately a newbie. DSOTM might just push him over the edge though...

 

[Al B. C]

What exactly does your "experience" as an audiophile have to do with you continuously updating us on everytime David Kawakami changes his underwear.

Lee, just a bit of advice, take it or leave it, you'll catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Your constant barrage of SACD related garbage is turning into cheap Heinz white vinegar.

You deny it, but you act like a man with an agenda.

And just for the record - I own 42 SACD's & 28 DVD-A's and enjoy everyone of them (well almost everyone, those Alice Cooper DVD-A's really blow).

My take on the whole thing is this - GIMME THE FRIGGIN' TITLES and let the chips fall where they may!

 

[KeithH]

Al said:

And just for the record - I own 42 SACD's & 28 DVD-A's and enjoy everyone of them (well almost everyone, those Alice Cooper DVD-A's really blow).

Well, there you have it! Your Alice Cooper experience must say something about DVD-Audio. Gee, I don't see you complaining about SACDs.

 

[John Kotches]

Lest anyone forget, this is 1.65 million sales across 22 titles.

Based on the amount of time the Stones discs have been on the market, what's to be excited about an average sales volume of < 3,000 discs per week per title or an aggregate average of 75,000 discs per title?

This is but a bip in the total sales of these albums, which were sold in the millions of copies.

Maybe I'm missing something here in all the hype.

Regards,

 

[Lee Scoggins]

GIMME THE FRIGGIN' TITLES and let the chips fall where they may!

There is nothing wrong with that Al. I want more titles too, which is why I posted the thread in the first place.

We should celebrate good news from the Super Audio as well as DVD Audio worlds.

 

[John Kotches]

Lee,

How many millions of copies did the original discs sell on CD? 10 million? 15 million? 20 million? 40 million?

What I'm asking is, are the numbers truly impressive in comparison to the overall sales of these discs?

It's a shame you can't deal with any type of questioning whether this is really a success or not without getting your feathers ruffled.


Regards,

 

[Lee Scoggins]

What I'm asking is, are the numbers truly impressive in comparison to the overall sales of these discs?

In absolute terms, no. But this is not the right measure for back catalog sales...the artist is most interested in how the album did versus prior efforts. The answer from label seems clear it did very well.

Also, it is not nearly as important as generating a case study of success.

The marketing gets easier with every success - this is always the case.

 

[Phil A]

It is very similar to what can be seen for DSOTM by back catalog sales before and after the current release. Those buying (back catalog) it are obviously fans of the particular artist and may or may not have prior copies of the same disc. With the increasing numbers of SACD hardware, there is little doubt that some increments are due to the inclusion of the SACD layer. One also has to remember while that it is great to get the classic stuff that a genuine old guy like me can appreciate, while it will help spur more interest in hi-rez, there has to come a point when new releases of current popular artists are added to the mix. Probably over the next couple of years we will see major back catalog stuff on both formats - e.g. Dylan, Peter Gabriel, Beatles, etc., with some current releases mixed in.

 

[jeff peterson]

there is little doubt that some increments are due to the inclusion of the SACD layer

Just as some increments are due to the inclusion of a remastered redbook version.

Just playing the logic cop

 

[John Wes]

I don't think that anyone can compare the ifs and whys of Dark Side of the Moon to any other reissue. Simply because of the collect-ability of it.

I'd also say, there are those who buy it simply because it's the 30th anniversary issue....

As to the Stones catalog...I'm going to try a few...but I'll be danged if I'll buy the whole lot.

And I would agree with a few above that a certian member "likes" stiring the format pot...

IMHO, both are going to survive. I would wish this issue was given a rest.

 

[Lee Scoggins]

IMHO, both are going to survive. I would wish this issue was given a rest.

You'll like my next thread then.

By the way, it's not nice to talk about John Kotches "stirring the pot".

 

[LanceJ]

Well, at least for dvd-audio sales we know what people are really buying them for.

LJ

 

[Kevin C Brown]

Some thoughts:

1) I personally find the marketing of SACDs to be a lot more cohesive and focussed than DVD-A. Maybe Sony learned something from the Betamax vs VHS thing.

2) I personally don't care which one "wins", although I don't really like the video display "requirement" for playing DVD-A discs. (Yeah, yeah, on *some* players this isn't needed...)

3) DSOTM was already remastered before. So a lot of people who would buy for that reason, and that reason alone, probably already did: years ago.

4) If I was only going for PCM for DSOTM, and if I didn't know that the prior remaster wasn't that great, that'd be the one that I'd keep anyway, because I think they butchered the cover on the new one.

 

[Lee Scoggins]

because I think they butchered the cover on the new one.

So I guess you don't like my signature then?

 

[Kevin C Brown]

Lee- Hee, hee. Just a reminder that I still have yet to pick mine up...

Oh yeah, I forgot my conclusion: So I tend to also believe the the increment in sales between the *old* remaster to the *new* remaster is probably mostly due to the SACD layer.