September 2007

What's Next After The Compact Disc?

  Twenty-five years ago, a revolutionary new audio format debuted that dramatically changed the way we listen to music. The Compact Disc launched in the U.S. on October 1, 1982, eventually made digital audio a household commodity and was a crucial step in making music more transportable and accessible.

This issue's feature article commemorating the 25th anniversary of the CD's launch chronicles the format's conception and development, and describes the high end's contribution to improving CD sound quality. What the feature doesn't address, however, is the important issue of what's next in digital audio. The CD's fundamental technology was devised in the late I 970s — a lifetime ago in today's rapidly changing world. Think back to the state of computer, data-storage, digital-processing, and digital-audio technologies nearly 30 years ago, and suddenly the CD begins to look primitive.

The CD format has served us well, but it's time to look to the future for the next-generation music-carrier. That carrier could be a packaged media such as HD DVD or Blu-rav Disc, both of which have written into their specifications the provision for an audio-only disc that can store up to eight channels of 192kHz/24-bit PCM digital audio (on Blu-rav; HD DVD's maximum spec is 96kHz/24-bit). It's frustrating that the carrier exists to deliver high-resolution rnultichannel digital audio, along with the professional recording/mastering infrastructure to create or remaster content, but that you can't buy music in either format. The simple reason is that record companies don't think that the public will buy the discs. A high-resolution muitichannel disc flies in the face of the movement over the past decade toward lower-quality and cheaper playback devices, free access through pirated downloads, lower bit-rates, and greater convenience through smaller size. In a world where people expect their cellphone to be their hi-fi system, it's no wonder that record companies are skeptical of a new high-res music disc. A new music format would, however, be in the record companies' best interests; the discs could contain powerful copy-technology, offer vastly better protection )und quality, and deliver a multichannel experience — none of which is possible with low-bit-rate downloads.

The solution for those of us who care about sound quality might just be to skip packaged media altogether and go straight to high-resolution downloads. A number of companies are offering high-resolution downloads, some of them in multichannel (AIX Records and Music Giants, for example). This idea has certain inherent advantages, including instant access to the world's great legacy of recorded music, not just the music in your collection. A download system would also make it possible to select the quality level and price you're willing to pay for that quality; higher bit-rates would command a premium. Although the technology exists to download high-res music now, it's not vet the ideal solution because we need a larger installed base of music servers to download to and access from. In an upcoming issue, I'll address this question with reviewers of several high-end servers, along with a report on the state of high-res downloads.

In the meantime, we have vinyl, SACD, and DVD-Audio. In a most welcome development, Warner Records is releasing scores of titles from its vast (and amazingly good) catalogue on high-quality LP and DVD-A. The recording giant is also promoting, through its new Web site becausesoundmatters. corn, the idea that sound quality is important to fully appreciating music.

It's a heartening sign when Warner Records spreads the message of sound quality and offers its music in high-quality formats rather than pursuing the lowest common denominator of MP3. Let's hope Werner's move is a harbinger of the future, because, after 23 years, the Compact Disc is showing its age.