Concerts in 2.0 LPCM or 5.1 HD

[Travis]

Anyone out there prefer listening to Blu-ray concerts using 2-Ch LPCM over DTS HD Master Audio or Dolby TrueHD?

I am watching Diana Krall live in Rio and the DTS HD MA track souinds great, better than the Dolby, and it fills the room and surround me but I find the vocals sound better with LPCM. I'm not sure if this is usual or a fault of my system.

Maybe my center isn't doing what it should for 5.1 sound. Two 5" drivers and tweeter firing at my collar bone.

Maybe I have the PS3 connected to my AVR with an optical cable and am not getting the HD sound anyway. Even down-converted I'd still expect the DTS HD track to sound better than 2 ch.

Just wondering, for people who have their players connected via HDMI (or 6 analogs) to a receiver that is sending HD sound to their speakers, if they find that 2 channel LPCM sounds better.

Sorry if this was posted; cannot search LPCM, 5.1, 2.0, DTS HD MA, etc. too small or too common.

[GeneD5]

I tend to lean towards the full 5.1...two channel when watching a concert makes me feel "contrained"

[Johnny Vinyl]

I listen to my BD Concerts in 2-channel most of the time and as well in "Pure Direct" mode, eliminating the video entirely. This may sound strange, but I buy Concert BD's for the AQ, not the PQ. When I do want to watch the actual concert I'll employ my 5.0 settings (don't have a sub), but I can't say that I've noticed a deteriorization in the front speaker outputs. I'll try to listen more intently when utilizing the surround option for that probablity. I doubt it is there though, as I think I would have already noticed. Remember though that I'm using HDMI and and do get DD HD or DTS HD-MA and that could be the difference. I think that 2-channel LPCM in your situation would sound better, because via Optical you're not getting true HD output.

As an aside, and because I am much more into audio, I decided to pick-up the Oppo DV-980H DVD/CD/SACD player. At first I considered it so as to take the strain off of my PS3, which I had been using for all formats. Upon further investigation I discovered that the Oppo handles DSD>Analog (as does my Yamaha HTR-6190B A/V receiver), which the PS3 doesn't.

Although I haven't yet compared the DVD upscaling quality on the Oppo vs. the PS3, I can tell you that for CD/SACD, the Oppo blows the PS3 out of the water. It is like night and day!

John

[s_corroon]

you are not gettin hd if you are connected to your receiver using optical

[Rob J in WNY]

Originally Posted by s_corroon

you are not gettin hd if you are connected to your receiver using optical

Optical can handle 2-channel PCM, just not 5.1 PCM or lossless streams.

[Rob J in WNY]

I have only two concert BDs at this moment - Chris Botti: Live with Orchestra & Special Guests and David Gilmour: Live at the Royal Albert Hall.

I prefer to listen to both in 5.1. The sounds of the audience applause and ambient sounds/music in the surrounds makes for a really spatial soundfield.

In the case of the David Gilmour disc, it is Dolby TrueHD. I really wish that the high-hats, ride and crash cymbols, and other high-frequency sounds had a little more brightness. There is a bit of midrange push as well, adding to an overall flatness of sound. The 2.0 track doesn't really help much - it's all in the original mix and not in the post-production (although it could have been tweaked in post-production, I'm sure). Bass audio is absolutely solid, though, and has a presence which adds a lot of compelling nature to the overall aural experience.

The Chris Botti disc is another thing all together. If you enjoy jazz and trumpet, and are looking for reference-quality audio, this title's got it! 5.1 uncompressed at 96KHz/24-bit. Every instrument was superbly captured and accurately mixed, and the delicate reproduction of all the percussion is to die for! 2.0 is a nice audiophile option, but the 5.1 mix is superb. My only point of concern is a bit of flatness on the vocal microphone, but you can easily tell that's a concert setup/equipment circumstance and not a reflection of post-production.

Like John72953 mentioned, I have played my concert BDs without video. Even as background music in my home. Especially the latter disc.

I am looking to get The Police: Certifiable and The Cure: Trilogy in the future.

[Travis]

Originally Posted by John72953

As an aside, and because I am much more into audio, I decided to pick-up the Oppo DV-980H DVD/CD/SACD player. At first I considered it so as to take the strain off of my PS3, which I had been using for all formats. Upon further investigation I discovered that the Oppo handles DSD>Analog (as does my Yamaha HTR-6190B A/V receiver), which the PS3 doesn't.

Although I haven't yet compared the DVD upscaling quality on the Oppo vs. the PS3, I can tell you that for CD/SACD, the Oppo blows the PS3 out of the water. It is like night and day!

John

OPPO 980 sounds great, I hate that my PS3 isn't region-free for DVDs, and doesn't play SACDs.

I have been using Pioneer DV-655A for almost 10 years, which has been running constantly because I only watch movies, don't like, or understand the TV, in Taiwan. Had it repaired once for ejecting DVDs 5 minutes before movie ended.

Looked at the Oppo before, costs 70 US$ to ship to Taiwan, but I'm always worried about how many pieces it will show up in, and what if it needs service. Unless I find it hear I probably won't get it, but I would like to have it for upconverting all my region 1 DVDS and playing CDs. I agree PS3 isn't the best CD player.

[Beta Man]

I always select the 2 channel PCM

On a side note.... I auditioned these a few days ago (for the 100th time)



My local shop is going through a huge clearance, and I may be working out a way to add these to the fold........ time will tell.

[Travis]

Beta Man those are great. How much cash will you have to sepnd?

Beta Man and John, why do you listen to Blu concerts in 2 ch?

[jdc115]

Originally Posted by Strannix136

For music, I usually shut off my center speaker. I like 'quad.'

What do you mean by "shut off"? Do you configure it in the player or processor that for a 4.0 system?

[Johnny Vinyl]

Having just got into SACD the jury is still out. But I truly honestly believe that most of my SACD listening will take place in a 2-channel environment. I got into SACD, not so much because of it's multi-channel capabilities, but because of the superior technology over Redbook CD.

Barring perhaps a great live recording (so you get that feel of being in the audience), my studio produced SACD's will see mostly 2-channel action.

John

[Strannix136]

Originally Posted by jdc115

What do you mean by "shut off"? Do you configure it in the player or processor that for a 4.0 system?

I go into the menu and choose 'center speaker: NO'. The center output is automatically mixed into the fronts.