Hi-Rez Highway

So what if all of my chosen formats die?

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Jim Pearce

I'm going to buy a universal player or an SACD player(and hang on to my Denon 4800). I have a superb collection of CDs, hybrid SACDs and DVD-As. I'm going to keep my turntable and my LPs, many of which are over thirty years old and in pristine condition. The past two years have been a bonanza of CD, LP and Hi Rez re-issues. I'm sure I'll have them in thirty years if I'm alive. This board has been a tremendous resource: for instance, Jazz recently helped me with a list of hybrid SACDs. I know that we live in a society which believes strongly in winners and losers, but I really think that when something like the Stones reissues happens, all music lovers are winners. For the most part, we're just along for the ride.

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No Gaurantees EXCEPT The Players Do Not Cease to Function!! - Robertc88 06:01:04 09/20/02 (6)
Most of us knew there was a good chance the HI-REZ formats would be perhaps nothing more than an audiophile niche and in that realm certainly they may not last forever. If they did, probably not past the next big thing to materalize down the road.
There were no guarantees with the software but there is one with the players as they will continue for the functions they were capable of from the start. My DVD-A and SACD players are not dead and never will be. Perhaps less to listen to with Hi-Rez recordings but so be it.
Actually, I have dove deeper into classical and jazz recordings on other mediums as there were most certainly slow times with the Hi-Rez recordings during the last two years that I have been involved with them. Plenty of great sounding recordings out there as folks well know and I would emcourage anyone who hasn't done some exploring to most certainly do so!!
- So What's The % of Sony Player Failures? - Robertc88 15:31:24 09/20/02 (0)
  I believe this has been covered and it is a very low percentage. There was a post back when requesting info from folks if they had any problems with their players or not. Guess it wouldn't hurt to do another survey!
- except for Sony's which seem to have a rep for breaking(nt) - mark111 12:30:33 09/20/02 (0)
  .
- There's just one little wrinkle with the hardware though, - sgb 06:47:14 09/20/02 (3)
  Robert, and that is that if the unit fails some time down the road there may not be any parts available to fix it.
  There have been several accounts here where Sony has either replaced the unit with another model, or, as in one instance I remember, refunded the customer his money for the unit when they found that they did not have the parts to fix it. That's not very encouraging for a hardware platform that's only 3 years old (in the case of SACD).
  Foolishly, I disposed of some of my Sony redbook titles when I bought their single layer SACDs, so if this happens to me in 5 - 10 years, I'll be faced with replacing the redbooks.
  - Buy a player from a High End manufacturer. - Jim Pearce 06:56:41 09/20/02 (2)
    I'm waiting for a universal player from a well-financed and stable high end manufacturer precisely because of the parts and maintenance issue. Sony just moves too fast to rely on a Sony player to maintain access to your software down the road.
    - Way wrong! - Robert H. 08:40:26 09/20/02 (1)
      Buying a Hi-Rez player from a high-end manufacturer is no different from buying one from Sony, actually it is riskier!!
      Nobody in the high end is making their own transport mechanisms, Jim. They don't have the manufacturing capability. Even with good old redbook CD, there is hardly anyone not using a stock, off the shelf, standard mechanism sourced from Taiwan, Korea, etc. under Sony, Toshiba, etc. brand names.
      What will fail in a player is the transport/laser mechanism. in 95% of the cases - or more, really - that $10,000 player has the same one as a $500 Sony.
      If it's not the transport mechanism that fails, whether the unit is in production or not makes no differeence, as any tech can trace a cap or resistor failure, or semi-conductor failure - or so on. The only part outside of the transport of concern is the digital chips and filter chips, which can fail - again, your mega buck player buys the same chips from the same place as a Circuit City bargain basement job does.
      - Sony transports - Jim Pearce 10:22:38 09/20/02 (0)
        
        In Reply to: Way wrong! posted by Robert H. on September 20, 2002 at 08:40:26:
        
        I would only be likely to consider a player with a Sony transport, because I think they are very reliable and very accurate. And if I have a failure in ten years I won't stand a chance of finding a replacement through Sony.
Agree - JCS 03:06:34 09/20/02 (0)
As long as the hardware survives and can be serviced software survival is a moot point. Every once in a while I'll play a cassette that I recorded over twenty years ago.
My vinyl collection is outstanding and they keep manufacturing better cartridges and tables, my CDs never sounded better now that I have a SCD-1 and SACDs are very good.
So while many appear more interested in taking sides, and get too worked up, I buy and vote with my pocket and listen to music.

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