acuralvr1

DVD-A sounds great in the car. Garbage in- garbage out though. The Steely Dan and solo DVD-A efforts by the vocalist are extraordinary. Lynyrd Skynyd DVD-A was recorded live and is only for huge LS fans- like me.

This reminds me of a Steely Dan joke:
Why has Steely Dan sold 20 million CD's?
Answer: Because people that listen to Steely dan don't know how to download music for free off the internet.

Listening to the LA Woman album by the Doors on DVD-A is like listening to them for the first time- amazing quality on a very old product.

Eagles- Hell Freezes Over- WOW!

Sting- Brand New Day- Terrific

Grover Washington- Winelight and George Benson- Breezin'- very nice jazz DVD-A's

jkuniverse

Thanks for the recommendation. I will check them out.

allstar2850

Agreed. Eagles' "Hell Freezes Over" is incredible! First heard that in an Infiniti M35 in the dealer's showroom. I knew it would sound even more awesome in my RL! I want to try Grover Washington and George Benson, too. I have Marvin Gaye DVD-A that sounds so clear and sweet...

jftjr

Blue Man Group's "Complex" is the most amazing DVD-A I've heard yet.

The Talking Heads put out a box set of their work on dual-disc, remastered by Jerry Harrison, and apart from all the fan bonus goodies, there's some extraordinarily great recordings -- lots of stuff is done in a remote with a simple set up in a NYC loft, and the recordings really capture the "space" very well.

Also -- Porcupine Tree's "In Absentia" is completely righteous, if you're into prog rock.

Rob L

It isnt the greatest for surround sound use but Frank Sinatra Live at the Sands is a great dvd-a. First, it is quite old yet sounds a lot newer. Second, it is Frank.

REM's Best of 88-98 (or whatever the year period) is very good in both SQ and surround effects.

Queen's A Night at the Opera has a lot of surround action too. SOunds pretty damn good too.

I also have Tchaikovsky 1812 Overture on dvd-a and the first track ahs some crazy cannon blasts that test the quality and depth of bass a system can produce. The problem with this is that since it is classical you have some of the quieter parts washed out by road noise and stuff.

I really need ot get mroe dvd-a discs. Shame it never caught on.

jhr3uva90

Diana Krall, "The Girl in the Other Room" dual disc.

jhr3uva90

I clicked too soon. It is a shame that there aren't that many DVD-A's out there, and it seems that the format is slowly fading away. At least the RL also includes the ability to play MP3's.

HughJassell

The best I've heard are the Steely Dan albums. I have Gaucho in the DTS format -- unbelievable. Two Against Nature is in DVD-A and it sounds fantastic as well.

Nine Inch Nails Downward Spiral (dual disc) is mind blowing, especially the buildup at the end of Closer.

Nine Inch Nails (dual disc) - With Teeth - very good

The Police (DTS) - Every Breath - excellent

3 Doors Down - newest album - good and clean but not too much surround action

Metallica - Black - good

The Who - Tommy - good

Seal - greatest hits - good

GoHawks

Marvin Gaye - Forever yours is also impressive.

kollamala

Faith Hill - Cry sounds great
Linkin Park - Reanimation
Porcupine tree - In Absentia
The Crystal method - Legion of boom
Shangrila - Mark Knopfler
Roxy music - Avalon (Hybrid SACD) but audio sounds great in cd format in RL

Thanks for the other recommendations. Will check it out. I have a Eagles Hell freezes over CD and am not sure if its worth buying the DVD-A. Is there a big difference between the two formats?

acuralvr1

I don't know if it's worth it to buy the DVD-A version of a CD you already own. It does sound better in your car and in your home theater, but if you already have it you may want to pick up some other DVD-A discs.

kollamala

Thanks for the advice on the eagles cd.

These are the following sites I have found that have a good dvd-audio collection.

www.deepdiscountdvd.com (Great prices,limited selection,free shipping,takes longer to get)

www.buy.com (decent prices,fast shipping)

www.cduniverse.com (decent prices,fast shipping)

Any other recommendations?

GoHawks

Best buy carries some of these, but selection is limited.

I just picked up Eagles - Hell Freezes Over for $14.00 there.

GoHawks

Does the RL's system leverage SACD? There were a few titles over at Best Buy on SACD that were interesting, but I wasn't sure that the system in the RL would exploit exploit, much less support the format. The Acura website does not specifically mention SACD.

kollamala

No the RL does not support SACD format. Supported high resolution formats

DVD Audio
DTS DVD ( Does not support DTS CD)

If you look a title in SACD make sure it is a hybrid SACD, plays in regular CD players also. Then you can hear it in the acura and in your SACD player at home if applicable.

acuralvr1

Here are some others:

www.digitalcity.com

www.dvdplanet.com

www.amazon.com

Best Buy has a decent selection and so does Borders Books.

bluemule

I’ve given up on Best Buy and have resorted to ordering DVDAudio online from other sources. I’ll continue checking in their brick fronts, but at last look, the stores I’ve visited in Mississippi and Alabama are not restocking. And, the last time I checked, I couldn’t figure out how to browse their DVDAudio catalog. BTW, thanks to everyone posting links for online DVDAudio sources.

One site I’ve recently used is (I’m shopping wherever I can find DVDAudio, and not necessarily comparing prices, so I don’t know how this outfit’s prices compare to the other links posted here):
http://www.musicdirect.com/default.asp
http://www.musicdirect.com/products/...sp?category=70

Recently purchased DVDAudio disks that I’m enjoying both for the content and how well they sound in the RL:
Dire Straits – Brothers in Arms. Dual Disk with one side DVDAudio. I’m a Mark Knopfler fan, and this album plays well in the RL at higher volume levels.
Crowded House – Crowded House. After their drummer recently died, I purchased all their albums in CD format that I could find and then grabbed this one in DVDAudio when I saw it online.
The Corrs – The Corrs in Blue.
Eagles – Hell Freezes Over.
Inside the Music – Women on Top. Various artists.

Recently purchased DVDAudio that I don’t care for:
Emerson, Lake & Palmer – Brain Salad Surgery. This album has favorable reviews at several online sites, but why…I don’t know. It’s so bad, that I haven’t done anymore than give it brief listens before going onto something else. Yuk.

Recently purchased CD format that I’m enjoying both for the fine way they sound in the RL and for their content (I’m using the surround mode with non-DVDAudio disks):
Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris – All the Roadrunning. Just a great listening album with original content by fine artists. Purchased this album after hearing the artists on Bob Edwards.
Dixie Chicks – Taking the Long Way. The first half or so of this album sounds as good in the RL as anything else I’ve purchased, and the album includes title and track text. Until this album came out, I considered this just another “girl group”, but they’ve got something to say and do it very well musically. Purchased this album after hearing the artists on Bob Edwards.
Afrocelts – Seed. World music. This is a likeable and interesting group of folks...their music is engaging. I “discovered” them when TIVO caught their appearance on MHZ.

NJRonbo

Let me ask....

Are they still releasing new DVD-A titles?

I had a feeling that perhaps the format was dying off.

bluemule

Good question, and I've wondered that myself. I certainly don't have a definitive answer, but recently read a very favorable review of the DVDaudio version of the Dire Straits album. This was either in Sound & Vision or Rolling Stone. So, with reviews still being published, I've assumed that the format is alive.

What is hurting DVDaudio and the CD format overall is the stampede to inferior quality recordings.

The July/August issue of Sound & Vision looks at whether the CD format is dying out. MP3's and the like are of lesser quality but the market is opting for lesser quality and more of it.

Personally, I'm going with the best I can find for the time being, and really never could understand why stuff compressed and manipulated got so in demand...it's counterintuitive IMHO.

BTW, OT to this thread, but XM is now broadcasting 5.1 surround (something called Neural or HD surround) on Fine Tuning, XM Pops and some of the Artist Confidential broadcasts (June issue of Sound & Vision.)

Gator5000e

Circuit City on-line seems to have a large selection of DVD-A and Dual Disc discs. Here is a link I found - http://entertainment.circuitcity.com...rmat=DVD+Audio

Has anyone ordered from DVD-As from CC ? How was the experience?

acuralvr1

Border Books and Best Buy have the best selection of DVD-A discs in my area. I've never used their respective websites.

kollamala

Thanks for this find. I did not know this and they have a good collection and prices.
I have ordered Steely Dan Gaucho,Will post experience soon.

headersplus

When i bought my car in July 05, there was the offer from www.5point1.com for 1 free DVD-A CD in the DVD-A demo pckge. Did they offer that in the '06 models?

I got on their email list & I get their monthly newsletter but they don't have a great selection list.

GoHawks

Yep I had the offer for mine as well.

kollamala

Got the dvd audio if Steely Dan - Gaucho, excellent album and amazing clarity.
Order from circuit city arrived fast with lowest cost shipping option. Good experience.

kollamala

Well I am a Steely Dan fan now. First time I heard it. excellent clarity. Thanks for the recommendation.

acuralvr1

Donald Fagen- the voice and composer of Steely Dan- has 2 solo efforts on DVD-A that are quite good too. Walter Becker is the guitarist and other member of Steely Dan. In case you didn't know, there are no other members of the band. These 2 guys just got together over the years and hooked up with some studio musicians to make great music.

NavyDoc333

Recently got 3 new disc's for my 06RL
1) Police "Every Breath you Take" DTS 5.1 - Very good
2) REM "Automatic for the People" DVD-A - Great
3) Black Eyed Peas "Monkey Business" - Just a regular CD.. but I swear, with the 'Center Point' turned on.. this one sounds better than the other 2, hands down... especially if you are looking to test the bass in your system. Truly a stand out disc!

-Navy Doc

CL6

DVD-A is pretty much a dead format, but some of the songs sound great, others sound weird. Beck's Earthquake Weather sounds amazing but Touch Me by The Doors sounds forced. Sometimes hearing a horn section coming at you from the back right is unnatural. Has anybody had problems getting a DVD-A to load on your RL?

philgates

Beck's Guero Alblum is out on DVD-A??????

kollamala

Thanks for the info.

kollamala

Why do you say its a dead format. Does this mean SACD is the format of choice for surround music. I am suprised because there are lot of artists and albums available in DVD-A format. I like the option of video footage and extras when available.

HughJassell

surround audio in general is less popular because most people turn on a TV if/when they are in a surround environment. its sad because the format is fantastic, especially in the car, and particularly in the RL. what format could possibly deliver a better audio experience then DTS or DVD-A (or competing formats like SACD)? i may be wrong but i predict all of these formats will die unless surround in the car gets popular. do your job of keeping it alive by buying up many discs (while you still can) and play them for all your friends.

The Police "Every Breath you Take" DTS 5.1 is clean and refereshing (just ignore the snare echoes in the beginning of Can't Stand Losing You).

CL6

SACD is 95% dead. DVD-A is maybe 80% dead. Record companies not getting behind it, lack of support by carmakers. I like the format, personally. Been a lot of articles about it in Sound & Vision about the format.

kollamala

In cars like RL the default is 5.1 channels but in a home audio setup you can select stereo high resolution if someone prefers stereo to 5 channel. Sometimes the person who mixes the album messes up the 5.1 option but the high resolution stereo is still much better than stereo on a CD.
The amazing thing is that these high resolution formats are available at nearly the same prices as regular CD's and sometimes even cheaper on some sites to store CD's.

Your point is accurate, if people do not have players to play them on then how can these formats become popular. For examples cars and common audio players.
Even the Bose high end home theatre systems do not play SCD's OR DVD-Audios.
The Denon DVD-2910 and the DVD-1920 are excellent players for home audio/theatre systems that support both SACD and DVD-Audio.

NavyDoc333

Have a birthday coming up...and have been asking for DVD-A's as presents.
So far I've gotten
The Eagles Hell Freezes Over (5.1 DTS) and SEAL (DVD-A)
The SEAL CD is great... very crisp.
The Eagles is "LIVE' and amazing... if nothing else... get it to hear the audience applauding from the rear speakers. It's like you're sitting in the 'front row' enjoying the concert.
-NavyDoc

acuralvr1

Hopefully some other car manufacturer's will get on board with the 5.1 systems in their vehicles. I know some of Infiniti's vehicles and probably Nissan vehicles have this system.

jhr3uva90

I thought Lexuses (Lexi?) have DVD-A and DVD-V in their cars.

db22

It is strange that there is more interest in installing an IPOD interface to listen to compressed music than there is to listen to the highest quality available. (and then the complaints about the audio system in the RL)! This thread is at least related to "quality" audio.

jftjr

That's been the case for years and years...how many people bought music on cassette just to put it in their walkmans?

The average music consumer doesn't know what true high fidelity is, nor do they care.

However... the true superiority of the iPod is that you can rip into Apple Lossless format.... and the iPod actually has decent audio quality.