Steve_L Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 I'm not invested in Blu-Ray yet, I'm not an early adoptor but I'm at the point where I do watch so many movies and do have a Hi-Def TV. Sony WEGA 42'rear projection LCD. I am wondering how much Blu-Ray moview and especially concert video content is out there and have the studios taken advantage of uncompressed 8 channel codecs? I'm just wondering how much better my audio system needs to be and do I need to add more speakers to my current 5.1 surround system. Has 7.1 discreet channel sound really taken off with the advent of Blu-Ray? Or is it just great video with the ability to have the great audio in the future? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 There are a handful of 7.1 Blu-Ray discs out. In almost any situation, 5.1 will suffice unless you have a huge, wide room. 5.1 in the lossless formats is unbelievable. Great audio from Blu-Ray is here now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_L Posted January 11, 2009 Author Share Posted January 11, 2009 There are a handful of 7.1 Blu-Ray discs out. In almost any situation, 5.1 will suffice unless you have a huge, wide room. 5.1 in the lossless formats is unbelievable. Great audio from Blu-Ray is here now. That goes right to my question. Do the discs shipping have a "lossless" 5.1 sound that is different/better than DTS 5.1 or Digital Dolby? I'm guessing that the sound os very similar to my SACD 5.1 discreet CDs? I guess I need to go visit some HT stores and see/touch and feel the difference. I try to stay out of them pretty much, as they always seem to cost me money. But it's time I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eskimo1 Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 That goes right to my question. Do the discs shipping have a "lossless" 5.1 sound that is different/better than DTS 5.1 or Digital Dolby? I'm guessing that the sound os very similar to my SACD 5.1 discreet CDs? Good analogy... yes. The difference isn't night and day, but it's there for sure.. the dynamic range is what impresses me most. The video quality, however... is nothing short of AMAZING. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 That goes right to my question. Do the discs shipping have a "lossless" 5.1 sound that is different/better than DTS 5.1 or Digital Dolby? I'm guessing that the sound os very similar to my SACD 5.1 discreet CDs? I guess I need to go visit some HT stores and see/touch and feel the difference. I try to stay out of them pretty much, as they always seem to cost me money. But it's time I think. Yes, virtually all Blu-Ray discs have some type of lossless audio format on them. The dynamic range is much broader than DD or DTS. I listen/watch mainly to Blu-Rays that I get through NetFlix. When I switch to a regular DVD it sounds like someone threw a blanket over the speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_L Posted January 11, 2009 Author Share Posted January 11, 2009 WOW! That must be incredible. That goes right to my question. Do the discs shipping have a "lossless" 5.1 sound that is different/better than DTS 5.1 or Digital Dolby? I'm guessing that the sound os very similar to my SACD 5.1 discreet CDs? I guess I need to go visit some HT stores and see/touch and feel the difference. I try to stay out of them pretty much, as they always seem to cost me money. But it's time I think. Yes, virtually all Blu-Ray discs have some type of lossless audio format on them. The dynamic range is much broader than DD or DTS. I listen/watch mainly to Blu-Rays that I get through NetFlix. When I switch to a regular DVD it sounds like someone threw a blanket over the speakers. WOW! I need to get myself upgraded!! The video is nice, but I'm an audio junky! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hifi jim Posted January 11, 2009 Share Posted January 11, 2009 There are plenty of BluRays that still have DD and nothing more to offer. Check the back for lossless before you buy. Mostly it is some of the new movies which they were quick to put on BluRay or the older films, in either case it reminds me of early DVD when I built a huge collection to have them "remastered" for video and audio such as the early Bond films I bought on DVD which were mono and then later replaced with a "remastered" DD soundtrack. Further, I think BluRay will see some serious competition from the download market which is growing and improving everyday. Still, downloads will not offer lossless audio anytime soon and the video pales in comparison but as we know the audio/videophile market is not who decisions are based upon. Much the way iTunes has dominated music sales, I fear the same will be said about video someday and BluRay will be that clunky box in the corner that still requires physical media. My biggest complaint with BluRay is the ridiculous loading time on some discs, the inability to pause some discs for more than a minute (others pause indefinitely) before they revert back to stop and need to load the disc again! While guests are blown away by the sound and picture, most are less than excited by the seemingly slow and complex nature of these new machines. I hope future BluRay players will be MUCH faster and pause friendly, however I fear that before Japan masters the design of BluRay players, companies like Apple and Microsoft will/are offering download services that may steal much of BluRay's thunder. As far as concerts available on BluRay, it is a very dismal collection of the same five you've seen playing in the stores... eerily similar to seeing Fleetwood Macs "The Dance" or the Eagles "Hell Freezes Over" on DVD a few years back. Here we go again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_L Posted January 11, 2009 Author Share Posted January 11, 2009 Thanks for the injection of reality. I would hope that the Movie Theater market might drive the production studios to add the "GeeWhiz 7.1" formats for at least some of the new stuff coming out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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