DVD-A , SACD

[Mike Stosich]

Has anyone out there been burning these more advanced audio CD's? I would be interested in the software you are using. My source would be a PT HD system.

[froyo]

Hello. Well as it turns out they are not actually CD's as it were, but DVD's. Even SACD has more in common with DVD's than CD's. Any way you look at it, there is precious little in the way of authoring both formats.

DVD-Audio is confined to PC's at the moment for authoring, with two options (or two and a half if you want look at it that way). Minnetonka offers software and Sonic Studio (or is it still Sonic Solutions, I forget) offers DVD-Audio Creator, which is a workstation. Minnetonka offers Steel and Chrome. Steel is sort of the 'LE' version of Chrome. You can't do MLP on Steel; for that you need Chrome and the Surcode MLP encoder. But for quick, easy, simple authoring, Steel will do the trick. Drag and drop PCM .wav and aiff, 5.1 @ 48Khz, stereo @ up to 192Khz, under $500. If you want to encode to DTS, Dolby Digital, etc. with Steel you have to buy the encoders. However, anything related to DVD authoring you have to buy encoders anyway, so that's that. The Sonic stuff is top of the line both in features and price.

SACD also has precious little for authoring. I believe Sadie has an offering, Sonic Studio just came out with a card, and SONY was the first out with an authoring/workstation, which I forget the name but I think it's Sonoma. All very pricey and of course as you know, SACD is DSD, not PCM like Pro Tools. The only way to go to DSD, is to record analog into a DSD capable device (Genex, Tascam, Sony, Merging, etc) from either a workstation or record live. Then you can author a Scarlet disc in one of the authoring options above. Everything about DSD is quite different and more expensive than PCM. It has been my experience that it does sound quite good however.

So to wrap up, if all you are looking for is 'encoding' software so to speak, then Minnetonka Steel is your ticket. Otherwise, you need to invest in some hardware/software combo or shell out more money for the Chrome @ $2500 or so.

[froyo]

Hello. Mike, not to belabor the point, but for the sake of clarity. While Super Audio Compact Disc (SACD) has CD in it's name, it is not PCM, as Compact Discs are. However, hybrid SACD discs can contain a Red Book layer, which is of course PCM, and can be read by any CD player. However, that's a PCM layer, not DSD. If you want SACD, you need DSD and the appropriate recording and authoring devices, software, etc.

DVD's, both the -Video and -Audio varieties, can do PCM, AC3, MPEG-2, DTS, SDDS, etc. However, ironically and to muddle things more, while a DVD disc can use PCM to author a disc, it can NOT do a 'hybrid' disc, a la SACD. In other words, it can use PCM, but it can't do Red Book so that CD players can read it. Got all that? Good! Can you explain it to me now?

[Mike Stosich]

Thanks for the info. I thought there'd be a cheap way to play. However, I now notice that there is yet another format that only Classic Records seems to care about. It's called DAD. I think it is a two channel DVD system that it 24 bit/96 kHz. Anyone got a clue on how to make em?

[froyo]

Hello. Mike the Minnetonka Steel is very cheap. How much cheaper do you want than $500? As for the other format you are talking about, I have no idea what you are referring to. Are you sure it's not a DVD-Audio? 24/96 on a DVD disc is DVD-Audio.

[Mike Stosich]

That's what I am confused about. Classic Records calls them DAD. They play on any DVD player. Also, they are stereo, not quad or 5.1, or whatever. My impression is that DVDA is more than just stereo.

Actually, 500 bucks for some software that'll be obsolete in a few years is pretty steep. CD Creator, Nero, and Ulead are examples of high power at low cost. I've even got stuff free off the net, like VCDEasy (or is it EasyVCD) that is easier to use and more powerful [img]images/icons/smile.gif[/img] than the stuff you pay for.

[Haigbabe]

Hi Mike.

I'm partly with you on this, however, you're not paying for the burning program you're paying for the encoding program.

The money pays for the R&D to write software which will allow you to AUTHOR a DVD with the complex factors of how the sound is read and played back. It's not as simple as stereo. Nor as prolific! (Hence the price.)

Early CD writing and authoring was way more expensive.

If you wait a couple of years, I'm sure nero etc will have it included.

Best of luck.

Haigbabe