Pono DAP Saves Universe from Destruction?

[The DarkSide]

We may not all like this, but it's news. How about a posting on the front page, the same as the new iriver AK100!!!

[CrowdAds]

[Marvin the Martian]

Originally Posted by The DarkSide

We may not all like this, but it's news. How about a posting on the front page, the same as the new iriver AK100!!!

You do have a point there.....front page needs some content.

[kp-j3]

Neil Young was on The Daily Show last night and brushed upon this if anyone's interested.

I normally just watch the show from DVR and skip the web continuations, but there's one out there as well.

[skip252]

Same lack of any solid info there as in the other fluff pieces he's done about this. Whenever the interviewer asks a specific question he changes the subject.

If the process involves actual remastering from the original tapes it might be interesting. I have some old vinyl I digitized poorly that still sounds better than the reissues that are on CD. The reissues were apparently remastered using today's loudness war standards. Some of the reissues have real issues with lack of dynamic range and clipping. I've yet to find a CD reissue of Miles Davis "Kind Of Blue" I consider worth having.

If he intends to fix those issues I could see paying a premium to have a copy of some of the old classics that are properly done. If all he intends to do it just upsample them and say the larger files are somehow better they won't get a penny of my money.

[WalkGood]

Don’t call me a pessimist but I find it doubtful.

[Marvin the Martian]

Originally Posted by WalkGood

Don’t call me a pessimist but I find it doubtful.

Pessimist!
bd75f4c7.gif

[musichound]

If it's virtually impossible to determine the difference between FLAC and decent MP3 rips during ABX testing, why bother at all double spending one's money on Neil's idea? I know, these rips would be remastered but I can't see much of an audible difference being made. Doesn't make any sense to me at all. With that said, however, Neil Young is a living legend!

[skip252]

I'm also find it doubtful which is why I'm saying he seems to be ducking what will be done to produce the files for this player. Remastering is both expensive and time consuming. Upconverting is cheap and can be done transparently in a few minutes. Until someone makes a definitive statement I'm thinking that the easy thing to do would be to upconvert and then hype that the larger files are better.

I'd like to be proven wrong on that. I would be willing to spend the dough to hear some digital remasters properly done. I didn't have a clue when I was digitizing my old vinyl and some of those are still leaps and bounds better than reissues I bought expecting the official CDs to sound better than my amateur efforts.

[The DarkSide]

I like how one can "upconvert" cd's you already own,...that's my favorite part!!!

[Marvin the Martian]

Originally Posted by The DarkSide

I like how one can "upconvert" cd's you already own,...that's my favorite part!!!

When I got the newest Spider-Man movie recently, (on DVD which is a maximum of 720x480) when I ripped it I upconverted it to 1280x720 just out of curiosity.....sure enough, when I played it on the big screen, it filled the whole screen. I'm sure that if I got really close to it and inspected it, it wasn't any better of a picture....lol. Same principle!

[The DarkSide]

So, I can take a 128kbps mp3 rip and upconvert it to FLAC and get cd quality sound? Hmm,...?

[Marvin the Martian]

Originally Posted by The DarkSide

So, I can take a 128kbps mp3 rip and upconvert it to FLAC and get cd quality sound? Hmm,...?

If you were listening to a pair of crappy headphones, it might sound the same as a CD, sure! lol

[musichound]

Upconverting only makes the audio file sound either the same or worse, with additional bloatware. The only way to improve the audio is to rip again to the preferred format.

[skip252]

They know that, musichound. They're just yanking each others chain.

However, a properly done remaster can sound very different. That's the basis of most of the claims of audible superiority made by those that are buying "hi res" files. The houses that are selling them are most often selling a different master than the one that's commonly available.

Without the brickwall mastering that's come to be the norm as a result of the loudness wars the hi res files quite often really do sound better. Having a greater dynamic range and no audible clipping can make enough of a difference that's it's easy to spot the one that sounds better.

If the files for this player come from different masters that aren't brickwalled I'd think they may be worth a premium price. Not 3-4 times as much but higher than an standard CD. If they're just the same thing pumped full of bits you can't hear to make the uninformed believe the bigger file sounds better they can keep them.

[The DarkSide]

I agree. If the remasters aren't the overly loud clipping garbage the public is getting now even I'M jumping on board to get a PONO!!!

[Marvin the Martian]

Originally Posted by The DarkSide

I agree. If the remasters aren't the overly loud clipping garbage the public is getting now even I'M jumping on board to get a PONO!!!

Is that a PONO in your pocket? lolz.gif

[The DarkSide]

I can't see your gif Marv,...

[skip252]

I'm more interested in the files for the player. If they're not somehow DRMed converting them without losing quality should be fairly simple. foobar2000 with the SoX resampler component should handle that easily.

[The DarkSide]

Naw,...I want a player that looks like a TOBLERONE!!!



(I just wanted to post this hot chick's pic again!!!)

[skamp]

Originally Posted by skip252

I'm also find it doubtful which is why I'm saying he seems to be ducking what will be done to produce the files for this player. Remastering is both expensive and time consuming. Upconverting is cheap and can be done transparently in a few minutes. Until someone makes a definitive statement I'm thinking that the easy thing to do would be to upconvert and then hype that the larger files are better.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/ne...rvice-20120927

Warner Music Group – home to artists including Muse, the Black Keys, Common and Jill Scott – has converted its library of 8,000 album titles to high-resolution, 192kHz/24-bit sound. It was a process completed prior to the company's partnership with Young's Pono project last year, said Craig Kallman, chairman and chief executive of Atlantic Records.

Doesn't look like they're even pretending that they're not just upconverting their catalog.