Gentlemen, check out the link:
HD-AAC
Do you think this is the knockout punch for the venerable CD and the record company executives who still daydream about the juicy profits they wrung out of it? Le, what is the audiophile's point of view on this format?
4 comments:
Knockout for the CD? I don't think so. What advantage this provides is saving on storage space. So in effect they could put more songs on the same CD but that is not likely. Then there is the better quality than CD's. But I believe if most people seem content with MP3's and the current AAC then the average ear is not going to get excited about the higher quality. It is good enough now, so the rest is diminishing returns. Only true audiophiles will rejoice in this. When CD's first came out, the audiophiles said it was inferior to vinyl. Maybe now this will be acceptable enough for most of them. I still think that unless there is a blow you away better sound quality, it will end up just a nitch market. Maybe Apple will start offering this compression as an option for an extra cost.
I think I'm looking at the situation from my personal perspective. The reason I buy CD's right now is that I want the most fidelity I can get for the music I care about the most. So if I buy classical music, I would never buy even iTunes plus tracks. I would, however, buy a 70's tune from my youth on iTunes with no reservation. I grew up listening to some of that music on the radio - not exactly Hi Fi!
With a "better than CD quality" format that I could download, why would I want to buy CD's? I wouldn't have a reason anymore!
I see your point. If you can get better quality in a download rather than going to buy the CD then why buy a CD. But how much extra would you be willing to pay for this? I'm sure this will be hashed out by the market. But I guess even now, CD's have a price premium over the same download.
And that's an excellent question. Record companies are likely to jack up prices to take advantage of "better quality than CD's". Will I have to pay $3.00 for one of these tracks? And will a downloaded album sell for $15.00 because of this format? Suddenly, a $10.00 cd looks a lot better - I buy the CD at a lower price and fidelity I have become accustomed to, rip the CD in a lossless format if I want a digital copy, and I'm back to my normal self! I know I would refuse to pay a huge premium just to line the pockets of the record companies! I really hope it doesn't go that way!
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