| Editorial March 2005
The Wait for High-Definition DVD
The question of Will there be HD
DVD and/or Blu-ray Disc? has been answered and the wait has begun. There will
definitely be at least one higher-resolution video format released on an optical-disc
format. The home-entertainment market won’t sit still for long, what with all those
hi-def displays pouring out of the doors of your local big-box stores. The remaining
questions are: When will it appear? How much will it cost? How fast will either or both
formats succeed? The prevailing wisdom within the A/V industry is that we will have
machines in the stores and videos on the shelves by early 2006. The discs and players will
cost more than their standard-def DVD equivalents, but prices will rapidly fall as format
acceptance becomes widespread. But no one knows which format will dominate.
If these are the questions the industry is asking, what are
the questions regular Joes like myself are asking? Here are my thoughts.
I own an Esoteric DV-50 universal audio/video player
($5500). It provides excellent video and outstanding two-channel and multichannel audio
performance. I bought it because, at the time, it was perfect for my varied tastes.
I’m an audiophile turned videophile turned multichannel-music enthusiast. It fit the
bill. When the new hi-def machines appear, they will certainly surpass the Esoteric in
video playback, but how will they fare with today’s audio formats, such as SACD,
DVD-Audio, and CD -- areas the Esoteric excels in?
My guess is that I’ll want to hold on to a dedicated
high-quality, audio-only machine like the Esoteric while I ride the tide of affordable (I
hope) hi-def video players. Once the dust has settled, perhaps in a few years, newer
universal players that are excellent in every regard -- meaning high-resolution
audio and video -- should appear. I’ll surely plunk my money down for one of
those. Until that day, I imagine I’ll have two sources to satisfy my cravings for
good audio (via the Esoteric) and ever-improving video (via an HD DVD or Blu-ray player).
What I won’t do is buy a first-generation flagship player for either new
format. First-generation players are usually quickly surpassed in performance at half the
cost. Been there, done that.
How soon will studios begin to release hi-def movies in
mass quantities? As I said above, there will be movies on the shelves in early 2006, but
when will I be able to cruise down to Blockbuster or Hollywood Video and rent all the
newest releases on HD DVD or Blu-ray? I hate to buy movies when I don’t know whether
I’ll watch them more than once. I buy certain titles and rent the rest, so my
enjoyment of the new formats will largely depend on the availability of rentals. Might I
be sticking with regular DVD for a while? If the rental stores do, I probably will, too.
And last, with all the talk about video performance, what
about high-resolution audio? With SACD and DVD-Audio likely to become things of the past,
will studios use the increased data storage and new audio formats from Dolby and DTS --
both included in the specs of both HD DVD and Blu-ray -- to advance the cause of fine
audio playback in the home? Will the new disc formats be used strictly for video, or might
we finally see a replacement for the CD? Or is the general public so enthralled with
hi-def video that they’ve forgotten about the sound?
The landscape is still hazy to these eyes. I know change is
coming, and I’m excited about the possibilities for better audio and video playback
in my home. I don’t, however, know exactly what form it will take, or in what order
it will happen. Like most of you, I’m just excitedly waiting. The upside is that, in
the meantime, we have a magnificent wealth of movies and TV shows on DVD to enjoy. That
will keep me going. How ’bout you?
...Jeff Fritz
editor@hometheatersound.com |
