Recent Comments:
Ask Engadget HD: Best Blu-ray optical drive for my PC? {Engadget HD}
Jan 14th 2009 1:41PM I don't actually own it (major caveat, I know), but the LG GGW-H20 always seemed like a great buy to me...it can read both HD formats (not essential since HD-DVD died, but still useful especially for picking up HD-DVD on the cheap), and write Blu and regular DVDs. Best of all, it's inability to write HD-DVD discs is now meaningless.
Hands-on with Panasonic's new Blu-ray decks {Engadget HD}
Jan 12th 2009 11:55AM It seems dumb in theory, marrying an ancient tech like VHS with Blu-Ray, but it's actually a great idea. I'd bet I'm not the only person who is fairly young, doesn't have a VHS deck or really any VHS tapes, but would like the ability to play them. Reducing Clutter is also a nice feature. Can it write DVDs though? (for copying VHS-DVD)
PS Audio debuting world's first HRx disc player at CES {Engadget HD}
Dec 31st 2008 10:45AM Wait a minute...you have all your files ripped, but you're outputting them at 24/96 and you'd like to output them at 24/192? Ummm...why? The native CD bitrate is 16/44, and your ripped music is surely not higher quality than the original CD. Otherwise your point seems to be that there's not a lot of higher-def music out there, and you probably couldn't hear the difference anyway.
Vizio enjoys a Black Friday bump in sales {Engadget HD}
Dec 5th 2008 1:52PM I'm currently running a 1080p 40" set (albeit not a Vizio - it's a Sony XBR). The difference betweeen a good 1080p encode and 720p broadcast is significant at 6 feet or so.
At the same time, a friend brought a 32" set, and advised them not to bother with Blu.
Denon's DVD-A1UD: world's first universal (SACD / DVD-A) Blu-ray player {Engadget HD}
Dec 3rd 2008 5:54PM I don't get why this site keeps knocking SACD. I mean, I get it, it will never be a mainstream format, people don't give a rat's ass about fidelity in popular music. But the fact remains that in the classical and jazz arenas the SACD is doing anything but receding, it's actually becoming mainstream in these niche but nontrivial markets.
DVD-Audio is tougher, in part because it always seemed aimed more at popular music, but even so, there are people who care, especially people who are fans of bands like the Doors which released their catalog in 96k MLP.
Many first-time HDTV buyers bypassing the HDTV service {Engadget HD}
Nov 25th 2008 2:45PM I was at a lunch a few months back with several female co-workers. They all had large high-def TVs, but were only using them to watch DVDs, as cable didn't seem worth the cost. I tried explaining to them that they should get a $20 antenna which would enable them to receive high-def broadcasts. They were interested but skeptical, and worried that this could be breaking the law. I think I finally got them to understand, but none of them have since spent the $20.
Sony's high-end SCD-XA5400ES SACD player eyes-on at CEDIA {Engadget HD}
Sep 5th 2008 1:46PM I know there aren't many HDMI 1.2 receivers. My point was that you can get a cheaper device to send out the DSD signal over HDMI - it's only worth the extra money for high-quality analog outputs. Since there's no surround analog outputs, you're really just getting a really good CD player that can play SACDs in surround with an HDMI 1.2 receiver.
Will Blu-ray audio discs take off, or flounder aimlessly la DVD-A / SACD? {Engadget HD}
Sep 5th 2008 11:07AM Another no vote for this new format - conceptually it's a cool idea, but in practice it will just be another format that's barely supported with technology or releases.
I'm a big classical guy, and I have one DVD-Audio and two SACD players (laugh away, thankfully they cost $250 in total - the Oppo 980H over HDMI and Sony SCD-CE595 over analog - and I have the LG BH200, so I guess my system is just a cornucopia of dead formats). The classical market is very well served with SACD releases (even in the budget category via Naxos), and I think the classical market has pretty much settled on SACD as its high-def format. There are DVD-A releases also, but they're rarer, and I think the release of the Living Stero and Living Presence catalogs on SACD at a genuine midprice level (~$12) has given SACD the edge.
That said, I don't think anyone beyond the bleeding edge of audiophiles (by which I mean those nerdier than I) will go for Blu-Ray Audio. In the more general market people seem entranced not only by 128k MP3s, but even by music on their phones and ringtones. I don't get it, but the demographics speak for themselves. Further, the classical market seems fairly sated with its current high-def options, and I think many classical fans don't like their audio equipment being mixed with their video equipment.
Sony's high-end SCD-XA5400ES SACD player eyes-on at CEDIA {Engadget HD}
Sep 5th 2008 10:28AM Wait...so they didn't put 7.1 Analog outputs on it? What's the point of paying top dollar for a SACD player if you're just going to use it as a transport for the DSD over HDMI - the Oppo 980H can do that fine for 1/10 of the price.
Sony debuts $1,500 SACD player with HDMI output {Engadget HD}
Aug 28th 2008 10:34AM I've run the test between SACD and the CD layer on Deep Purple's Machine head. The difference in sonic quality was considerable.
