Video Asylum

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RE: Fine, but unimportant in the grand scheme of things

Posted by racerguy on September 5, 2007 at 12:09:07:
>>but it still wasn't too clear to me whether there would be an actual quality difference between the HD DVD and Blu-Ray soundtracks? If B-D does indeed get the better soundtrack, that's probably the version I'll buy, otherwise, eh, whatever.<<

I speak and read German. Keep in mind that these are the European versions of the release, not the US versions. What it says is that the Blu Ray version will have English-language soundtracks in garden-variety Dolby Digital and in 5.1 PCM. Non-English-language soundtracks (i.e. German/French/Spanish) will be in Dolby Digital.

The HD DVD version will have all soundtracks in Dolby Digital Plus. So for a European who wants the best-quality soundtrack in a language other than English, the HD DVD version will be a better choice, assuming everything else is equal (and assuming the information on the website is correct). Keep in mind that we're also assuming that a PCM soundtrack is always superior to a Dolby Digital Plus soundtrack, which in each individual case may or may not be true.

Sadly, it's this kind of uncertainty and variability that helped to marginalize and ultimately kill off DVD-Audio. I hope the BDA and the HD DVD people realize this before it's too late.