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I own a Sony SCD777-ES SACD. When jumpered to the 100MHz setting, the soundstage and clarity are incredible.

I'm looking forward to listening to bad recordings in higher resolution.

The massive analog-domain filtering—7 to 10 poles needed to achieve even a 55dB broadband signal-to-noise ratio—cannot be done transparently. These filters are often done with one or more op-amps per filter stage. There is also a phase shift of frequencies that seldom sounds good. A simpler, three-pole, linear-phase Bessel filter can be used on the output of a DVD DAC to pass the music through almost unscathed.

I checked "They both survive," but that's ONLY if the hardware industry comes out with affordable all-format players. If not, then DVD-A may have a chance by riding on the coattails of home theater. SACD is for audiophiles only, who, as we know, represent the smallest possible slice of the consumer electronics pie. Without universal players, SACD has no chance.

Enough already with the SACD and DVD-A discussion.

advantage- dvd-video function - eventually dvd-audio win

Ordinary people are under the impression that CD is perfect. The slogan "perfect sound forever" is true to most people, so why change a good format for another? Also, young people listen to music on the inferior MP3 format and seem to prefer this to the much better quality of current CDs. Audiophiles represent such a small market that it could not be financially worthwhile for CD pressing plants and recording studios to change to a higher-resolution system when the present system is satisfying the demands of users and the market.

Public apathy -- the average Joe/Jane thinks CD is perfect sound forever.

SACD and DVD-audio are both likely to survive, although it is arguable that, in the short term, sales will not be especially great. This will probably be due to the reluctance of many of us to invest in new formats after having spent a great deal of our money on existing CDs and good-quality CD players. I won't be fooled into investing in these new formats; no doubt in the near future, even newer formats will arrive to displace SACD and DVD-Audio! I wonder if someone, one day, in reaction to these fromats, will develop an analog format based on some composite (other than vinyl) that is as durable as CD but could deliver true analog fidelity. Am I dreaming?

Both are wonderful, but neither has any public support. The products are too similar for both to survive, and in this very limited community, the war of attrition will kill both parties. The consumers have just bought their new DVD players and will be alienated by a new, incompatible format—no sales there. I think Classic Records and others with DAD formats will be the ones to survive here.

If sound quality is the determining factore, SACD is all ready the winer

I don't think the general public feels a need for a superior-quality format. It's obvious most of the public is quite pleased with the CD format, and with the advent of Napster (and others) on the Internet, the world of recorded music will never be the same, especially at escalated prices!

I think the idea of stereo is too entrenched in people's minds, and the memory of quadraphonic too painful, for people to adopt a new surround music format.

Whichever one is cheaper will survive, and it will probably be the one that sounds much worse, or that has to be played on 5-channel or some other nonsense. I'm truly sick of the format babble.

PCM/DVD is old tech and more expensive to build.

May be they both survive

Neither will ever get off the ground. In general, consumers are perfectly happy with the sound of digital as it is now. They aren't about to buy into another new technology.

sorry haven`t had the pleasure of either! I live under a rock! in ROA

They sold us tapes, vinyl, and CDs. They have to sell all the titles again, and that is why DVD-Audio will succeed.

It'll be like Beta vs. VHS: The better format will lose!

In most real households, keeping the box count low is more important than sound quality. After all, you can't appreciate sound quality if your ears are still ringing from the last screech of "You're not bring that in MY living room!" So even if SACD sounds better, DVD-A, or more likely recordable DVD-Multi, will win.

SACD as a truly audiophile media, DVD A as a consumer multi channel, multi purpose media..

Since SACD is apparently the better format (sonically) and older adults are accounting for most of today's music sales re-releasing many of the popular titles in Sony's music catalog should provide SACD with an immediate and powerful sales presence. If Sony is smart they'll put both formats in their players and let the consumer decide. It won't hurt them a bit.

SACD seems to be a better audio format than DVD. But DVD is supported by more companies and you have to consider also the DVD video compatibility.

At the moment at least - the studio support - seems to be in favor of DVD-A. Not to mention Sony doesn't seem to be reaching into their archieves as much as they could.

I would have to say that SACD will win out over DVD-Audio, simply because it was brought to bear so much sooner and done with a sense of craft that is often not displayed by the mass-market guys. In addition, the DVD camp stresses multi-channel reproduction, something that frightens most audio purists and is only marginally interesting to those who would be hard pressed to name the brand of their components (Sadly, that latter group accounts for the vast majority of the money-spenders who make up our buying public!). The fact that the SACD players are also quite exellent players of the 44.1/16khz CD is also an attractive feature, allowing those of us that have sunk vast quantities of money into that format to continue listening to the convienent, cheap media we have grown to love. One final thought: With all the resolution and natural sound that the engineers and artists have been able to coax out of the old CD format, imagine what greatness may come from this far superior platform, once years and thousands of man-hours are applied to its outer limits of response.

Data word-length interpolation and upsampling converters and 24/192 kHz DAC's will make SACD and DVD-Audio a moot issue. The overwhelming library of Redbook audio CD's will swamp the meager availibility of SACD or DVD-Audio software.

Due to the wide range of home entertainement (quality audio and video possibility too), DVD-audio is the more choerent investment for the huge part of costumers.

The DVD format will survive only for video

Ihope any and all higher fidelity mediums have a chance to succeed in the market. My personal desire is for SACD to win because of backward compatibility. I hope for a player to replace my Wadia 850 that has a volume control and plays SACD's.