Hand crank Victrolas and 78s have survived, and for neither of the aforementioned reasons.

There are thousands of reasons that "things" survive. Not all of them are for all the right reasons.

Yeah, Isn't it funny...........?
It's the same with MD, MP3 and CD's.
;-)

"dolph"

It is. I've made no personal statements over which format I prefer, but since I own 19 cassette decks you can form your own opinion. But as stated in your quote, the digital formats HAVE survived, proposered and vanquished all to the role of niche or professional formats, mostly hidden from the sun and all aspects of polite society. And it'll only continue the trend as the industry finds a way to make everything and anything be capable of mp3 or mp4 playback or some other digital format like AAC. You can argue forever which one "sounds better", but any question of which one is on top and is king of the hill at this moment is a moot point.

Well, imo the king is naked....

If Sony – the most important company also with Philips in the digital development and the cd inventor – see some advantages in starting out a “new” kind of format (again) taking it one step further with the new BlueRay technology, don’t you guys think this is a warning because they are starting to see the end of the cd as a profit format.
The decline of cd sales, the uprising of the old vinyl and the super fast increase of new download formats – some with good sound quality – all this contingencies, appeared to me that something going to happen in a near future.

Record companies don’t want small profits, all they want is what all they were accustom to: Large profit margins. Adding this, the world economic crises and we have the perfect ground to a new format uprising. Whatever that is…
Why we buy (bought..?!) cds?
First, for the sound, second for the portability. Today the majority of the cds sucks and for portability we have mp3. So what’s the role of the cd in the dawning of a new era?

I remember when the Cubic Zirconia first came out. It was laughed at, and all of the "experts" figured it would be a 90 day fad. As time went on, though, the method of producing it improved. Since most people knew that a big diamond on a finger was no more that a "status symbol" (aside from the investment), one could attain the same "status" with a CZ, and at an enth of the cost. Sure, there are a SELECT few who can tell the difference, but the majority can't. To John Q Public, discussing the virtues of a real diamond falls on deaf ears. Even if they require the "real thing", there are few who know one from the other.

I submit to you that walking is the safest, cheapest, and most eco-friendly mode of transportation, yet all of you ignore that and use some other form for the sake of convenience.

Digital is here to stay, and it will improve just as CZs and modes of transportation have.

Of course the CD format is dying, but not because it's digital music or because analog sounds better. It's dying because (a) it relies on mechanical sound reproduction and if you can move away from the spinning CD, you can move to systems with no moving parts that are cheaper to make. (Note how fast mp3 players have dropped in price or exploded in size for the same cost) and because ( new formats (if "proven" by some audio expert and sold to the world) mean that you'll have to (or want to) buy all your old titles on the new format.

Does the eye really see much difference between a 720i TV and the new 1080i or HDTVs? No, but if they can sell it, the world will beat a path to their door.

The Cubic Zirconia has a rounded surface in the same way as the highest resolution of digital encoded sound gets close to the Analog Reference.
It never quite gets there, but close.
Lots of Cubic Zirconia come from Africa and has caused many a slave-like life - and death.
To some, however, the status is more important than the origin and quality.
;-)

Oh.....and by the way: You must be a bit older than me when you remember understanding geological scientifics in the early 60s?
Or do you mean the commercial break through of Cubic Zirconia in 1976?

"dolph"

Does anyone tried any SHM-CD?
Anyone know anything about this format?

you mean this format?

http://www.positive-feedback.com/Issue39/shmcd.htm

elroy

Yes, that's what i mean.
Does anyone tried it yet?

"We have found that using a green colour dye makes a big difference to the audio quality of the music, as it mitigates the reflectivity of the laser on the disc."

A quote from Sony UK’s audio guru Eric Kingdon speaking to "Home Cinema Choice" in Tokyo.

http://www.homecinemachoice.com/features/b...D+sounds+better

Does anybody tried one of these:
http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/popular_formats/B...CFQhJagod5QmcDg

Also i remember read somewhere that the Japanese are also now selling Audiophile CDs created from masters that were created using BluRay, after being sourced from high quality master tapes.