On 5 Dec 2003 17:48:19 GMT, "normanstrong"
wrote:

"Peter" wrote in message
...
Does anyone know of the existence, or perhaps the planning, of "Universal"
players, that will play CDs, CDRs, CDRWs, SACDs, and DVD-As, but not DVD
Video?

It wouldn't then be a universal player, now would it? :-)

There are high-fidelity audio discs from labels such as Chesky which
use the DVD-V standard to reproduce 24/96 audio.

It seems to me that a "Universal" player as I described above would be much
simpler, and less expensive, to build than one that also incorporates
DVD-Video, and at least I for one, and I would think many other music
enthusiasts, really have no interest in combining Video with High-Fidelity
audio systems.

The amount saved by dispensing with video in your example is so small
that I can't imagine any company ignoring that piece of the market.
e.g., how much would be saved by building a high priced TV set with no
sound (on the theory that the sound is going to come from your home
theater system?) Probably none. The manufacturer will lose more
market share than he can make up in parts saved. Besides which,
DVD-A for one has a substantial video component.

If I were in the market for a $1000 universal player, such as you
describe, I wouldn't buy one without video just to save $20. If the
manufacturer was that eager to save a few dollars, I'd wonder where
else he might have chosen to save even more.

I think the point about DVD-A being difficult to use without video is
the key issue. One could certainly imagine 'purist' high-end companies
producing a dedicated audio-only player, but how would you engage all
the facilities of DVD-A?

As you note, the video circuitry costs pennies (heck, you can buy a
whole DVD player for $50 these days!), and there already exist players
which can switch off the video circuitry when playing audio discs, so
the interference issue is a non-starter. While I have some sympathy
with the purist aspirations of the original poster, it does seem
rather perverse to build a full-range multichannel audio system
capable of doing full justice to the capabilities of DVD-A, and not
adding a video screen - even if only for concert videos.
--

Stewart Pinkerton | Music is Art - Audio is Engineering