SYW DVD-Worth it?

[David R]

I bought the "say you will" cd, limited edition cd, and the dvd audio the same day... I did my part supporting the mac... haha...

It is great sounding, I wish more stuff had been added like the rumours DVD-audio... even if you listen to it with headphones it is suppose to sound great because it is recorded at a higher rate...

I also have the dvd-audio of Boz Scaggs "Dig" that sounds great too... overall dvd-audios are amazing just not alot of people are buying them yet... they still need more support.... and sony needs to stop making super audio discs... sony and their dumb formats...

What is DVD audio exactly? A music CD that is only meant for DVD's...no picture, but can't be played in a regular CD player?

A dvd-audio is a DVD that displays pictures while playing music in a 5.1 surround sound format but also supports 2.0 dolby digital(regular stereo)... it can only be played on a DVD player...

*there are special dvd players that play dvd audio disc better than regular dvd players but I haven't had to listen to the difference on a dvd-audio player*...

[RavenOfRhiannon]

I got it!!!!!!

Awsome. I concur with JS's standout tracks, but Illume is also brilliant. Anyone who is riding the fence on this should get it!!

Randy

[worldturning75]

Originally posted by David R
...A dvd-audio is a DVD that displays pictures while playing music in a 5.1 surround sound format but also supports 2.0 dolby digital(regular stereo)... it can only be played on a DVD player...

*there are special dvd players that play dvd audio disc better than regular dvd players but I haven't had to listen to the difference on a dvd-audio player*...

Well, almost correct. Without getting too technical, DVD-audio (a.k.a DVD-A) is a higher resolution, greater frequency range format than that of cd. To be compatible with regular DVD players, DVD-A discs may also include Dolby Digital (usually 2.0 stereo or 5.1 surround) and/or DTS tracks (these satisfy the DVD-Video specifications).

The "advantage" of DVD-A over Dolby Digital, DTS and regular cd is the higher quality audio available in the DVD-A format. Whether you hear that difference is dependent on your system and the "quality" of the DVD-A audio mix. Yes, there are some bad DVD-A mixes out there. Faith Hill's "Cry" DVD-A mix comes to mind.

And I still say that Ken Caillat "screwed up" GYOW in the Rumours DVD-A disc (at least the DVD-A mix). The drums are too boomy and the vocals are too distant. IMHO, the stereo GYOW version included in the DVD-A, sounds better.

Bottom line is if you have a DVD player that doesn't support DVD-A, then your listening to either the Dolby Digital or DTS versions, not DVD-Audio.

Also, even if you have a DVD-A capable player, if your not using the DVD player's 6 analog outputs (front left, front right, center, rear left, rear right, subwoofer) to connect to the receiver, then your not outputting the DVD-A signal. If your connection to the receiver is by a single standard digital coaxial or optical cable, then your outputting either Dolby Digital, DTS or regular cd stereo (remember, Dolby Digital and DTS, which are audio formats, are part of the DVD-Video specification, not the DVD-Audio specification). Confused yet?

Coaxial and optical cables are not capable of handling the data rates that can be generated by a DVD-Audio player. Future DVD-Audio players may include a digital FireWire (IEEE 1394) connection with can handle the high data rate. You'll find a FireWire connection in most digital video camcorders and some pc's.

And by the way, the SYW DVD-A disc is worth it.