Kels:
I think that there is a huge aggravation factor when you compare the JVC XRCD24 versions of the RCA Living Series with the new SACD versions of the same series. It may or may not be how they sound ... but it is how they are priced ... $30 vs $13. I would wait until the NYC Stereophile Show each May to purchase the JVC XRCD's for $20 to $25 each, thinking that I had gotten a bargain and along comes RCA with their across the board, excellent sounding $13 discs that Tower usually sells for $10.
A similar experience was had with the Creedence Clearwater Revival SACD's ($25 a pop) versus the 20 bit remastered Redbook versions ($14 a pop). Yeah sure, there are some minor (and I mean minor) sound differences, but not worth double the price.
I may be becoming too dramatic about all this, but it as though the person seeking to obtain that last bit of performance expects to pay the full freight and companies realize and exploit this. Some of the discussions at the SACD forum at Audio Asylum focus on what was the original source for a particular SACD release and just what did the recording label do/not do to transform the redbook release to a SACD release. Same types of discussions for the XRCD's. Eye-opening to say the least.
The JVC XRCD family of releases are pretty much OK, it is their pricing that I always viewed as orbitant. These releases have been with us since at least 1990 ... you would think that the start-up costs have been paid for a hundred times over and their prices should come down a bit.
Regards, Rich
I think that there is a huge aggravation factor when you compare the JVC XRCD24 versions of the RCA Living Series with the new SACD versions of the same series. It may or may not be how they sound ... but it is how they are priced ... $30 vs $13. I would wait until the NYC Stereophile Show each May to purchase the JVC XRCD's for $20 to $25 each, thinking that I had gotten a bargain and along comes RCA with their across the board, excellent sounding $13 discs that Tower usually sells for $10.
A similar experience was had with the Creedence Clearwater Revival SACD's ($25 a pop) versus the 20 bit remastered Redbook versions ($14 a pop). Yeah sure, there are some minor (and I mean minor) sound differences, but not worth double the price.
I may be becoming too dramatic about all this, but it as though the person seeking to obtain that last bit of performance expects to pay the full freight and companies realize and exploit this. Some of the discussions at the SACD forum at Audio Asylum focus on what was the original source for a particular SACD release and just what did the recording label do/not do to transform the redbook release to a SACD release. Same types of discussions for the XRCD's. Eye-opening to say the least.
The JVC XRCD family of releases are pretty much OK, it is their pricing that I always viewed as orbitant. These releases have been with us since at least 1990 ... you would think that the start-up costs have been paid for a hundred times over and their prices should come down a bit.
Regards, Rich