How big an issue is DTSMA - how many disks have it as their HD audio?

[Theo Cupier]

Can you guys give me some advice about the soundtracks which appear on BD movies, please, so I can make a decision about what decoding I need from the BD player I buy:

I need my BD player to do its HD audio decoding in the player and for it to have 5.1 analog connections to send the decoded audio to my amp's analog connections.

(This is because:
1. I don't have an HDMI amp
2. I'm not about to upgrade my amp since it will cost FAR TOO MUCH
3. I want HD audio, having experienced it on my HD DVD player, so I won't accept downmixed audio via optical out, as in the PS3 etc, hence 5.1 analog outs are my only route)

So far I've been waiting for a BD player that will decode DTSMA, as well as TrueHD, DD+ and unzip uncompressed PCM soundtracks. However, this limits me to one of 5 players:
- Panasonic BD50
- Denon 3800
- Marantz 8002
- Pioneer 05
- Sony Sapphire 5
None of which are actually for sale yet and only one of which (the Panny) is likely to be affordable.

So, my question: Do I actually need to bother with DTSMA decoding onboard? Or should I be content with TrueHD, DD+ and uncompressed PCM in the player? If so, that seems to add about a dozen more players to my short list, all of which are actually available for purchase NOW!

I'm not especially interested in a discussion about the technical merits of DTSMA soundtracks versus TrueHD / U-PCM / DD+. I'm only asking this from the perspective of what soundtracks are found on Bluray disks.

In other words, if I get a player that cannot decode DTSMA, will that leave me unable to access an HD audio track on any Bluray movies? Or in reality, do all Bluray movies with DTSMA soundtracks also have either TrueHD and/or U-PCM soundtracks as well?

[MOONPHASE]

mostly just the ones from fox have dts hd-ma audio but it does bring out great sound if you have the right equipment

[Theo Cupier]

Originally Posted by MOONPHASE

mostly just the ones from fox have dts hd-ma audio but it does bring out great sound if you have the right equipment

So the majority of BD movies at present have HD audio that is not DTSMA, then?

Which HD audio formats are the most popular? Do I need to worry about TrueHD, even (which was the big issue in HD DVD land) or will most disks have U-PCM on them?

I do want to understand what the difference is between DTSMA / TrueHD / U-PCM, in terms of what I'm hearing, but I'll maybe save that for later in the thread/another thread.

[MOONPHASE]

Originally Posted by Theo Cupier

So the majority of BD movies at present have HD audio that is not DTSMA, then?

Which HD audio formats are the most popular? Do I need to worry about TrueHD, even (which was the big issue in HD DVD land) or will most disks have U-PCM on them?

I do want to understand what the difference is between DTSMA / TrueHD / U-PCM, in terms of what I'm hearing, but I'll maybe save that for later in the thread/another thread.

thats correct and the popular audio options are dolby true hd and linear PCM uncompressed and not all blu-ray movies have linear pcm but can contain dolby true hd. dts hd-ma audio is really awesome but it really just depends on your speakers and if you have a ps3 it doesnt decode dts hd-ma audio yet so it comes out as just a really good just dts sound.

[Theo Cupier]

Originally Posted by MOONPHASE

thats correct and the popular audio options are dolby true hd and linear PCM uncompressed and not all blu-ray movies have linear pcm but can contain dolby true hd. dts hd-ma audio is really awesome but it really just depends on your speakers and if you have a ps3 it doesnt decode dts hd-ma audio yet so it comes out as just a really good just dts sound.

Well, from my time in HD DVD land, I could tell the difference between DTS (full bitrate from an SD DVD) and TrueHD decoded by my player and sent to the amp via analog connectors.

That's why I want to have onboard decoding and analog transmission from my HD player (and hence the PS3 not being an option).

It's an interesting situation because while there are only a small number of players that decode DTSMA and send it via analog, if you ignore this format and stick with U-PCM & TrueHD decoding, then there are quite a few more, but they are almost all Profile 1.0

Now, at present, I'm not so bothered about interactive content, but my kids are growing up and they may be more interested as time passes. Equally, interactive movies in a couple of years could be a lot more interesting than they are today, so I'm not sure I want to limit myself to a Profile 1.0 player since these aren't very future proof.

So, if I care about Profile 2.0 then I think I come down to about the same list of players as those with onboard DTSMA and analogs, so I'm a bit stuck either way!

Seems increasingly like the option is to wait it out until Profile 2 gets more established? Or will Profile 1.1 machines upgrade by firmware to 2?

[WickyWoo]

The BD10A is on clearance a lot of places, has 5 free movies in the box, and decodes the first 2 layers (DTS and DTS HD) just not the final "Master audio" layer.

Might be a good compromise until prices come down

[Theo Cupier]

Originally Posted by WickyWoo

The BD10A is on clearance a lot of places, has 5 free movies in the box, and decodes the first 2 layers (DTS and DTS HD) just not the final "Master audio" layer.

Might be a good compromise until prices come down

Interesting to know, but I'm not looking for a "compromise" I'm looking to do this once and do it right.

However, I understood that DTS-HD was simply an old name for DTSMA, rather than being a separate layer, below DTSMA? reference is Wikipedia

Originally Posted by Wiki

DTS-HD Master Audio is a lossless audio codec created by Digital Theater System. It was previously known as DTS++ and DTS-HD.

I've just sent back my HD DVD player because I can't afford to be dual format. The same logic dictates that I can't afford a BD player now and a new, "finished" BD player in 1-2 years time.

So:
Q1: Is it possible that current Profile 1.1 players can be upgraded to Profile 2 via firmware, or is it a change in hardware too?
Q2: What makes DTSMA so good, compared to other HD audio formats which are also lossless?

[WickyWoo]

So:
Q1: Is it possible that current Profile 1.1 players can be upgraded to Profile 2 via firmware, or is it a change in hardware too?

The only difference between 1.1 and 2 is an ethernet port, and some kind of storage device (a lot of makers are going to just use SDCard slots rather than built in memory). Hypothetically if it has ethernet, BDLive can be enabled, but no promises on that. Data pathways may not be connected properly.

Q2: What makes DTSMA so good, compared to other HD audio formats which are also lossless?

IMO, mostly residule DTS fandom from DVD days gone by.

You could always buy the BD10A now, and sell it in summer when the 50 comes out. You could probably still get $300 on Ebay or Craigslist for it and you still have 5 free movies in the box (and 5 more by mail), and that's at least a $100 shelf value right there. But hey, if that doesn't work for you, best advice is to wait for the 50.

It's $400 at Circuit City right now

http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/produ...T&cm_keycode=4

[Theo Cupier]

Originally Posted by WickyWoo

But hey, if that doesn't work for you, best advice is to wait for the 50.

It's $400 at Circuit City right now

http://www.circuitcity.com/ccd/produ...T&cm_keycode=4

Times like this, I wish I was in the USA. I'm putting money on it being about £500 when it eventually hits the shops in the UK!

EDIT: Sorry just followed your link. thought you were linking to the BD50 at Circuit City, not the BD10!