I'm totally confused about Hi Rez formats

Admittedly I'm a classical listener and that seems to be the area where the most SACD release activity is taking place, but I have around 400 SACDs and add 4-5 most months. In general I have been thoroughly delighted with the sound, and that's 2 channel only (I have a 4 channel ambiance/delay system from the late '80s which I love, and use in all formats). As a general rule SACD is far superior to CD sound, even with PCM to DSD conversion of redbook (of course there are exceptions) and I have no doubt SACD is here to stay, with or without SONY. DVD-A is another story: sonically it's fine, but it isn't really an audio-only format, different players have trouble with particular discs, Dual Disc is an absolute disaster, and the software release schedule is at best just a trickle. (In my wandering around to non-classical areas of the stores, it doesn't seem much different there.) Sure analogue at its best still delivers the most in many respects, but that still means that you're limited to what was available in 1980, or reissues of it, and there were a whole lot of sonic stinkers in the LP period too, which everybody conveniently forgets. The old "redbook is here to stay, and if you want good sound go listen to used LPs" story is just sticking your head in the sand. Or somewhere else.

I tend to agree for the most part with Mgottlieb, as I too am a classical listener and have found plenty of good new material coming out on SACD. I find myself preferring to listen to SACD over CDs, and generally don't buy many CDs anymore--while I don't find the differences to be as earthshaking as some, there's an openness and relaxed quality to the sound (very much similar to analog in that regard) that makes most (not all) CDs sound artificial or "boxed in" in comparison, and that makes a huge difference to me subjectively in my listening. The posts above about two-channel and multichannel are good descriptions; I think right now SACD is the better hi-rez format for two-channel playback. I listen to two-channel stereo, but my speakers are quasi-omnis so I get much of the same effect from my two-channel rig as I've heard with good multi-channel rigs (that surprised me). If you don't listen to classical, the pop SACD catalog is pretty sparse, you might not want to make the investment, but if you do like the available SACDs, an inexpensive SACD player, or (better yet) a used Sony SCD-1 or 777ES or higher end Marantz might be a good addition to a second system, and might even find its way into your main system.

Mstram: I believe all DVD-As can be played in 2-channel mode. Some will have a separate 2-channel track on the disk; others will require your player to downmix 2-channel from the multichannel track.

Both SACD and DVD-A are just about dead, however. New releases will continue to trickle out (possibly for a long time, if the audiophile labels decide it's still worth their effort), but trickle is the operative word. If you want to explore a "dead" format, try vinyl. There's just a lot more to explore.

Pabelson, are you saying these formats are "dead" because of lack of acceptance from the public, and therefore, a paucity of new releases?

Well, three of the posters on this thread are sounding pretty gloom and doom for the Hi Rez formats. Maybe I'll just pick up another CD player and continue the wait and see approach. Right now I'm using an iPod w/ AAC files for the front end of my second system (Levinson 383 and Thiel CS2.4). That simply won't do for the long haul.