What is DVD Audio. Is it popular?

Answer 1

DVD-Audio players (and universal players) work with existing receivers. They output PCM and Dolby Digital, and some will support the optional DTS and DSD formats. However, most current receivers can't decode high-definition, multichannel PCM audio (see 3.6.1 for details), and even if they could it can't be carried on standard digital audio connections. DVD-Audio players with high-end digital-to-analog converters (DACs) can only be hooked up to receivers with 2-channel or 6-channel analog inputs, but some quality is lost if the receiver converts back to digital for processing. New receivers with improved digital connections such as IEEE 1394 (FireWire) are needed to use the full digital resolution of DVD-Audio.

DVD audio is copyright protected by an embedded signaling or digital watermark feature. This uses signal processing technology to apply a digital signature and optional encryption keys to the audio in the form of supposedly inaudible noise so that new equipment will recognize copied audio and refuse to play it. Proposals from Aris, Blue Spike, Cognicity, IBM, and Solana were evaluated by major music companies in conjunction with the 4C Entity, comprising IBM, Intel, Matsushita, and Toshiba. Aris and Solana merged to form a new company called Verance, whose Galaxy technology was chosen for DVD-Audio in August 1999. (In November 1999, Verance watermarking was also selected for SDMI.) Verance and 4C claimed that tests on the Verance watermarking method showed it was inaudible, but golden-eared listeners in later tests were able to detect the watermarking noise.

Sony and Philips have developed a competing Super Audio CD format that uses DVD discs. (See 3.6.1 for details.) Sony released version 0.9 of the SACD spec in April 1998, the final version appeared in April (?) 1999. SACD technology is available to existing Sony/Philips CD licensees at no additional cost. Most initial SACD releases have been mixed in stereo, not multichannel. SACD was originally supposed to provide "legacy" discs with two layers, one that plays in existing CD players, plus a high-density layer for DVD-Audio players, but technical difficulties kept dual-format discs from being produced until the end of 2000, and only then in small quantities. Pioneer, which released the first DVD-Audio players in Japan at the end of 1999, included SACD support in their DVD-Audio players. If other manufacturers follow suit, the entire SACD vs. DVD-Audio standards debate could be moot, since DVD-Audio players would play both types of discs.

Sony released an SACD player in Japan in May 1999 at the tear-inducing price of $5,000. The player was released in limited quantities in the U.S. at the end of 1999. Philips released a $7,500 player in May 2000. Sony shipped a $750 SACD player in Japan in mid 2000. About 40 SACD titles were available at the end of 1999, from studios such as DMP, Mobile Fidelity Labs, Pioneer, Sony, and Telarc. Over 500 SACD titles were available by the end of 2001.

A drawback related to DVD-Audio and SACD players is that most audio receivers with 6 channels of analog input aren't able to do bass management. Receivers with Dolby Digital and DTS decoders handle bass management internally, but 6-channel analog inputs are usually passed straight through to the amplifier. Without full bass management on 6-channel analog inputs, any audio setup that doesn't have full-range speakers for all 5 surround channels will not properly reproduce all the bass frequencies.

If you are interested in making the most of a DVD-Audio or SACD player, you need a receiver with 6-channel analog audio inputs. You also need 5 full-frequency speakers (that is, each speaker should be able to handle subwoofer frequencies) and a subwoofer, unless you have a receiver that can perform bass management on the analog inputs, or you have an outboard bass management box such as from Outlaw Audio.

Answer 2

DVD-Audio is a digital format for delivering very high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. The first discs entered the marketplace in 2000 and, as of 2006, titles are still being released. It is currently in a format war with Super Audio CD, another format for delivering high-fidelity audio content. Media players that can play many fomats (including DVD-Audio and SACD) are available for under $100[1], both formats are likely to co-exist (as do DVD-R and DVD+R).
DVD-Audio offers many possible configurations of audio channels, ranging from single-channel mono to 7.1-channel surround sound, at various sampling frequencies and sample rates. (The _.1 denotes a Low frequency channel subwoofer for bass.) Compared to the compact disc, the much higher capacity DVD format enables the inclusion of either:

Considerably more music (with respect to total running time and quantity of songs) or
Far higher audio quality, reflected by higher linear sampling rates and higher bit-per-sample resolution, and/or additional channels for spatial sound reproduction.

Answer 3

DVD is f'in aswome...
DVD (also known as "Digital Versatile Disc" or "Digital Video Disc") is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, including movies with high video and sound quality. DVDs resemble compact discs as their physical dimensions are the same (120 mm (4.72 inches) or occasionally 80 mm (3.15 inches) in diameter) but they are encoded in a different format and at a much higher density. The official DVD specification is maintained by the DVD Forum.