My comments about CD being around for a long time was referring to continued production for the millions who own the hardware to play them. I was not referring to the archival qualities of the format. |
Newton: I seem to recall some early concerns about the quality of adhesives used in CDs or something, but that was a long time ago. I've got CDs that old or older, and they're fine. Old news, my friend.
As for SACD, it will not "arrive" until Britney's *next* album appears simultaneously on CD and SACD. Don't hold your breath. |
Calm yourself, Albert. My goodness, such upset about such a little thing. I regret that you were offended; such was not my intention.
The fact is that I had several thousand LPs for many years, a fine analog setup, and a very dedicated and careful approach to cartridge and arm setup and record cleaning. As twl notes, good equipment reduces impulse noise. It does not totally eliminate it as you very well know. Some people "find it easy to disregard" as twl observes. Others do not.
I'll ignore your remark about CDs as it had nothing to do with my post and does not speak to my opinions.
This is supposed to be fun. Let's let it be so.
will |
I agree with Famaraca, why pay more for less! I agree with Sean , 80% of the population are not about to upgrade to SACD player. And not even upgrading their speakers or amps. SACD is a big gamble for Sony and Philips. The investment loss is a drop in the bucket in their loaded pockets, especially Sony (Sony , MADE IN CHINA, worth half what you pay) It's a shame that Philips channeled the SACD research into their version of the "Capitole" at a fair price. It's amazing how labs get blindly carried away with tech! New is not always better, most often it's not. I mean they already have the transport down to the worlds best..??? Anyway i've worked up a nice classical cd collection, i one of the majority that will remain a "plain old cd" owner. |
Albert Porter states that SACD and redbook (cds)will be around for a long time. My understanding is the redbook cd's have an expected life of 10-15 yrs; at some point physical decay sets in. Please don't laugh at this comment. I enjoy both cds and lps, but I've read along the way that cds will not have a long life. Has anyone read similar things? |
Bishopwill, your lack of experience with proper analog setups renders your comments uninformed and irritating as well.
If you believe the record companies invented and promoted the compact disc to help us audiophiles achieve high quality results you are sadly mistaken. |
It's not that strange that Meridian are backing DVD-A as it is their code , the so called "loss less packing" that is used for DVD-A.
Jim |
As far as I'm aware Rumours has never been remastered and it does have that typical mid-80's flat,quiet,dead sound that some early CD's have.
A friend of mine commented recently the Rumours tracks on a Fleetwood Mac greatest hits sounded a lot better than on the original CD.
As much as I'd like to see the new formats take off-I agree with my namesake Sd's post which accurately states the economic and market reasons why the odds are against them.
Interesting to note that Meridian's new state of the art digital set up,some £10k's worth ($16.5k?)totally ignores SACD-they've went DVDA with no plans for SACD...and even then the top man said he wasn't sure either format would survive |
Like many others posting on this thread I too ran to my CD archives and pulled out my copy of Rumors. I have it playing right now as I type. Ok, I admit it sounds very flat and dry, see what happens when you stop using drugs :^)
It's no wonder the only Fleetwood Mac that ever gets any airplay in my system is *The Dance* on DVD. This is actually one of my reference discs when making changes to my H/T system or trying to impress friends (Track 9 & 10 are about worn out)
Despite the poor quality of this particular disc I'm still not ready to commit to another format change, Not till the war is over. |
Unfortunately, the digital domain is still in it's infancy. I doubt very much if the spinning disc actually survives whatever lies ahead for this format. The NASA tech briefs sometimes give a glimpse into the future of the digital world. Houston, analog has landed.
Happy listening,
Patrick |
Interesting comments on Rumours and Crowded house .... my CD of Rumours is quite bright but listenable, but my CD of Woodface by Crowded House is one of the best sounding CDs I own. Which Crowded House CD did you not like, and would you characterize your system as rather bright in the first place ?
IMHO nothing will make SACD take off since the vast majority of the population listen on systems that are not able to distinguish CD from SACD. CD beat LP because of convenience ... I can't see that SACD will ever be more convenient. |
Ah, another thread of wishful thinking about the viability of SACD (and DVD-A). With due respect to CB, even a release of an old Rolling Stones recording will not make SACD a success. The reality is that, barring a major change in the market, there are simply too few serious listeners today who are willing to pay for SACD and DVD-A releases. The sales figures for CD's have been headed downward for the past two years, and given the state of the economy it will be necessary for the newer formats to provide better audio quality than CD's, at lower prices, with a significant number of contemporary artists (not just people who are either dead or getting there), and direct digital output on playback machines (which ain't likely to happen any time soon, given the recording industry's paranoia about copy protection), or they simply won't attract enough people to generate the sales volumes necessary to satisfy the major labels. The moral to this story is: don't sell your LP's and CD's just yet.... |
I have to agree with Albertporter. In a correct anolog system, even less-than-pristine albums will play quietly. Proper tracking and a quality, well designed phono stage will remove nearly all of the "snap, crackle, and pop" that was not removed by proper record cleaning. Any remaining scratches and such will be rendered to the smallest type of "click" that is easy to disregard. Most scratches are not nearly as bad as they sound. They just overload the hell out of a mid fi phono stage which then blasts the hash out through your speakers. I can assure you that Albert's Aesthetix IO phono stage will not engage in any of that nasty type of activity. Nor does my MFA tube phono stage. Nor will a Naim phono stage. I prefer the tubes, but for a SS phono stage, the Naim is nearly overload proof. I played thousands of used records that didn't look too good through my Naim preamp years ago, and the clicks and pops were negligable. A quality front end AND phono stage are a requirement for enjoyable analog listening. DO NOT skimp on your phono stage.
About the SACD, I use SACD and I hope it is taking off. I look forward to many new releases, but am not too wild about the Rolling Stones. I would definitely go for a Supertramp "Crime of the Century" however. Or a Mercury Living Presence "Khachaturian Violin Concerto". Or David Bowie "Alladin Sane". Or Joni Mitchell "Miles of Aisles".
The real answer is as Albert and I both do. We both have the Sony DVP-S9000ES CD/SACD/DVD player and an analog system. We play what we can on the turntable, and what is available only on CD or SACD, we play on the Sony. That way you get the best sound you can from whatever format the music is available on. By the way, I just bought over 100 near mint records from a used record store for $1 each. Eat your heart out. |
The sad thing regarding SACD owners is:discovered latter they pay more for less!!HE,He,He,He.Sorry |
I was actually perusing at the local music emporium the other day and came across a couple SACDs that were a) actually in the bin with the other CDs, where you would most naturally find them, and b) albums I wanted. Getting a player is not a big deal if the software is there. Being able to buy titles for less than an outrageous premium is definitely an issue. In any case, it was the first time it REALLY crossed my mind that SACD capability would be good to have. -Kirk |
Alas, no amount of setting up, tweaking, adjusting, cleaning, polishing, or praying will eliminate the snap, crackle, and pop. You just have to learn to listen around it.
Would that it were not so. Many of us would still be listening to vinyl.
will |
That's very interesting about "Rumours". I don't believe there has been any remastering or revision of the original mid-80's CD. The dismal quality of my copy is noticeable on every player I have ever tried. My only recourse has been "The Dance".
I'd be interested to know if I'm wrong on the "Rumours" issue. |
i disagree. i use rumours as one of my reference redbooks. sounds utterly fantastic. (at least the release i have does) |
What is the answer for a "2-Channel Person" who wants great sound without the "snap, crackle, and pop" of the LP?
The answer to that part of the question is buy a good quality turntable and set it up correctly. There will be no snap crackle and pop.
As for longevity, LP will still be around and so will SACD and redbook. |
