Sony release second generation Blu Spec format - CD2

[Dixie4]

I own one Blu Spec CD ( Toto - In The Blink Of An Eye 1977 - 2011 ) I've just received e mail from cdjapan stating new Blu Spec CD2 ( second generation Blu Spec )
Does anyone own any of the first generation discs & if so what do you think of them ? ( i've only briefly read info on cdjapan about CD2 - noticed info such as DSD 24/192...apparently there will be a redbook cd & Blu Spec CD2 of each artist release, to compare the difference.

 

[cupboy]

I own one Blu Spec CD ( Toto - In The Blink Of An Eye 1977 - 2011 ) I've just received e mail from cdjapan stating new Blu Spec CD2 ( second generation Blu Spec )
Does anyone own any of the first generation discs & if so what do you think of them ? ( i've only briefly read info on cdjapan about CD2 - noticed info such as DSD 24/192...apparently there will be a redbook cd & Blu Spec CD2 of each artist release, to compare the difference.

hope these aren't packaged in cardboard

 

[Dixie4]

According to cdjapan some titles are in cardboard sleeves. I'm more intrigued to know the difference between 1st generation & 2nd generation ? Is it just another marketing scheme by Sony ?
I wish there was another format like SACD / DVD-A, that we could be excited by. ( out of interest has anyone got any of the SuperDisc titles from MonsterMusic ? ) Wondered what they were like ? ( supposed to be some form of surround concept ? )

 

[Quad Linda]

I have three Blu-Spec CD's, all recent:
Pure Music - Chase
Azteca
Pyramid of the Moon - Azteca
They all sound great and come in paper sleeves. I have no idea if they're 1st or 2nd Gen, but I assume they're all second.

The Monster SuperDiscs are all well done, but only Dolby 5.1. Most are original Productions. I own:
Givin' It Up - George Benson & Al Jarreau McCartney guests.
Songs & Stories - George Benson
Sketches of Spain - Miles Davis
A Charlie Brown Christmas - Vince Guaraldi

 

[leevitalone1]

oK wki says they are playable on a reg cd player, and do not need the blue laser. so are they HR? are they just stereo?

 

[Quad Linda]

Just CD's that play in 2ch.

oK wki says they are playable on a reg cd player, and do not need the blue laser. so are they HR? are they just stereo?

 

[LizardKing]

I have three Blu-Spec CD's, all recent:
Pure Music - Chase
Azteca
Pyramid of the Moon - Azteca
They all sound great and come in paper sleeves. I have no idea if they're 1st or 2nd Gen, but I assume they're all second.

The Monster SuperDiscs are all well done, but only Dolby 5.1. Most are original Productions. I own:
Givin' It Up - George Benson & Al Jarreau McCartney guests.
Songs & Stories - George Benson
Sketches of Spain - Miles Davis
A Charlie Brown Christmas - Vince Guaraldi

All the Monster Music discs have DTS 96/24 right? Sketches of Spain definitely does....

 

[Quad Linda]

Yes, they are also DTS 96/24. They are NOT DVD-A.

All the Monster Music discs have DTS 96/24 right? Sketches of Spain definitely does....

 

[fredblue]

I have three Blu-Spec CD's, all recent:
Pure Music - Chase
Azteca
Pyramid of the Moon - Azteca
They all sound great and come in paper sleeves. I have no idea if they're 1st or 2nd Gen, but I assume they're all second.

The Monster SuperDiscs are all well done, but only Dolby 5.1. Most are original Productions. I own:
Givin' It Up - George Benson & Al Jarreau McCartney guests.
Songs & Stories - George Benson
Sketches of Spain - Miles Davis
A Charlie Brown Christmas - Vince Guaraldi

The George Benson Songs & Stories Monster Disc is superb -- easily one of my favourite surround discs.. the sound quality's right up there (its not Hi-Rez DVDA but you could be forgiven for thinking it is - the DTS 24/96 sounds gorgeous).. the mix is really nice and the album is as smooth as a baby's bum!

Turn down the lights, turn up the volume.. do me wrong, do me right.. but grab that disc tight - and get it right now, right now baby! you won't regret it!

 

[Dixie4]

I have three Blu-Spec CD's, all recent: I have no idea if they're 1st or 2nd Gen, but I assume they're all second.

The Monster SuperDiscs are all well done, but only Dolby 5.1. Most are original Productions.

Hi Linda, i don't think the first batch of CD2 discs are released till the 5th Dec...so i assume you have the first generation ? I might order one of the SuperDiscs....

 

[Dixie4]

Turn down the lights, turn up the volume.. do me wrong, do me right.. but grab that disc tight - and get it right now, right now baby! you won't regret it!

 

[Dixie4]

Well guys, i have just finished listening to my first Blu Spec CD2 ( John Williams - Greatest Hits 1969 - 1999 ) 2 disc set, good value. ( i had some frequent shopper points, so even better ! )

I do not have the original redbook release, so obviously can't compare, but i have to say i'm very pleasantly impressed. ( The neighbours are out....so i cranked up the volume. ) There's no sense of distortion, with the volume cranked up, i'd describe the sound as emmersive, with a detailed sharp clarity. Very enjoyable.
As previously stated i own one of the first generation blu spec discs ( Toto - In The Blink Of An Eye 1977-2011 ) First impressions, i'd say there may be a difference between the two, but i think i'll have to purchase one of the forthcoming Toto releases to compare. Which i'm sure i will ! ( some of the releases come with a redbook cd & the blu spec cd2 version to compare )

 

[Quad Linda]

I'm anxious to hear the new Blu-Spec 2 CD's. Yesterday, I listened to the Blu-Spec CD's of Azteca's two albums. In light of the covers, they were an appropriate choice.

 

[Dixie4]

I'm anxious to hear the new Blu-Spec 2 CD's. Yesterday, I listened to the Blu-Spec CD's of Azteca's two albums. In light of the covers, they were an appropriate choice.
View attachment 8589

Well Linda, i'm glad the cd arrived, before the world end ! Just listening again, i'm really impressed.

 

[Quad Linda]

Since Ed started a poll on this one, I'm spinning it, as well.

 

[watsontr]

Does this blue spec thing make a difference? Why is it that I get the feeling like SHM that this can't make any difference in a digital medium? Surely if somehow some of the digital data from these discs is different it should drastically affect the sound and regular CDs should be obviously glitchy? These things sound more like marketing to me than anything else

 

[ArnoldLayne]

Precisely what I needed, yet another format...

 

[Quad Linda]

It's not a new format, just a process for manufacturing CD's.

Precisely what I needed, yet another format...

 

[neil wilkes]

The way I read it, the phrase "Snake Oil" sort of comes to mind.
Given a decent CD player with a sensible design & transport and a good DAC - or better still, outputting to a separate decoder board altogether - regular CD should not sound any worse than one of these unless someone has been asleep at the wheel on the QC desk.
The Audio is still Red Book, 16-bit 44.1KHz digitally encoded using (presumably, if compliant) the same error correction code
so, unless given a catastrophically bad manufacturing process how can this be better? I wager it can still be ruined by bad mastering, and that would render any fancy manner of actually manufacturing a disc utterly pointless, as distorted by overcompression & brickwall limiting will still sound horrendous.

Excuse me for my natural cynicism, but I get a definite whiff of silver fuses and speaker cable "bridges" that magically make music sound better etc.

EDIT
And it seems I am not the only one either, as a google search also reveals this:
http://crave.cnet.co.uk/digitalmusi...what-is-it-and-should-you-even-care-49301249/

 

[watsontr]

The way I read it, the phrase "Snake Oil" sort of comes to mind.
Given a decent CD player with a sensible design & transport and a good DAC - or better still, outputting to a separate decoder board altogether - regular CD should not sound any worse than one of these unless someone has been asleep at the wheel on the QC desk.
The Audio is still Red Book, 16-bit 44.1KHz digitally encoded using (presumably, if compliant) the same error correction code
so, unless given a catastrophically bad manufacturing process how can this be better? I wager it can still be ruined by bad mastering, and that would render any fancy manner of actually manufacturing a disc utterly pointless, as distorted by overcompression & brickwall limiting will still sound horrendous.

Excuse me for my natural cynicism, but I get a definite whiff of silver fuses and speaker cable "bridges" that magically make music sound better etc.

EDIT
And it seems I am not the only one either, as a google search also reveals this:
http://crave.cnet.co.uk/digitalmusi...what-is-it-and-should-you-even-care-49301249/

I'm in total agreement with this hence my previous post. Even when it comes to the issue of DACs I'm struggling if the spec is suitable for the application and given the slew rate of most electronic gear I expect most will be. I wonder whether it is the analogue stage and the colouring caused by whatever filtering is applied there? There is no doubting that they cost more. This probably heads into the vinyl/valve warmth argument but I wonder how faithful they sound compared to the original audio?

Whatever, for myself, I'm pretty happy with CD quality in general and my feeling is that if the CD release doesn't sound good, it probably never sounded good on any other format. Mastering can screw any CD release. Brickwalled it is harsh and tiring. If too conservative you get reduced bit rate audio and tend to lose dynamic range.

I started buying these DVD-A and SA-CD discs for there surround mixes, not for the high resolution audio but whatever pleases anyone else is a good thing IMO. I still listen to pre recorded RTR and vinyl but that's probably just enjoying the process of threading a tape and marvelling that these marvellous electro-mechanical things still work. I think I'll listen to my Doris Day, Latin for Lovers tape now