DVDa or Blu Ray?

1711Pend

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I listen to 5.1 surround music and have various DVDa and Blu Ray discs. I am now eagerly awaiting the new Yes release - The Yes Album. It is available in a Blu Ray or DVDa release. I know that there are extras on the Blu Ray but wonder if there is any advantage to either format in relation to the Hi Resolution 5.1 audio. I have the Oppo BDP-83SE universal player and it seems to play both formats really well.

Does this player play one format better than the other for example or are the same codecs/processors used for both formats.

Thanks
Andrew
 
Hi. I am listening to Steve Wilson, "The Raven That Refused To Sing" on blu-ray. It is 5.1 LPCM 96/24 and it sounds as good as my DVD Audio discs. I am no expert but I think 5.1 LPCM 96/24 is as good as MLP audio on the DVD audio discs.
I am happy to buy the blu-ray versions in the hope that it has more of a future although physical media with the exception of vinyl is in decline.
regards stasis.
 
Depends on how your system is linked up and what Blu Ray player you have. If you are using the Digital out or HDMI and the receiver is doing the DAC then there is no reason why Blu Ray should sound any better than DVD-A. Both are using the same coding system (LPCM) and both are using exactly the same DAC. It's then simply down to the mastering. If anyone says otherwise it is heart winning over head (or ears).

If your Blu Ray player has a decent built in DAC then it 'might' sound better than a half decent DVD-A player. 'Might'. However, unless you have something like a high end Pioneer, a top Denon or better still an Oppo, then at under a grand, a decent DVD-A player will beat a Blu Ray player. It's not a question of the medium (Blu Ray is easiiy the superior medium and the far better laser system) but the decoding. Unless you have a high end Blu Ray player you, in all likelihood, have a player in which the Audio DAC is very much a second thought. If any thought has been given to it at all...

There is also though, the question of added value. Because Blu Rays can hold so much more data you get far more options on a properly done disc like the Floyd Immersion discs, Steve Wilson's latest efforts, or Yes CTTE. Like Stasis I buy them in the hope that one day their full potential will be realised.

As a final note though, as Stasis says, the sad truth is, the days of the physical media are looking numbered.
 

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