Recording PCM Audio to DVD-R

[surfsup]

I find DVD-R to be a good medium for recording audio since one disc can hold as much as six hours of program material. I am currently using a Panasonic standalone DVD recorder for this purpose. While the sound is adequate it suffers somewhat from the fact that audio is recorded in Dolby Digital, a format that uses compression. I was wondering if anybody knew of a standalone DVD recorder that can record audio as PCM files. PCM is a better sounding format than Dolby Digital since it is not compressed. I use the DVD recorder primarily to record radio programs.
Thanks for your help,
Joe

[rvl123]

If you input RCA stereo (Left and Right) cables, then you should get PCM stereo.

PCM is only a stereo format while DD is a 5.1/6.1 format.

But yes, PCM is better for music.

[surfsup]

Thanks for the reply. I believe Dolby Digital can be recorded as a stereo format also. For example, there are DVD-V titles, particularly music videos, that are playable as Dolby Digital stereo recordings only. I am using RCA stereo cables for recording purposes but have always been under the impression that the recording format was Dolby Digital. In fact, I don't think the Panasonic recorder is capable of recording in 5.1 or 6.1.

Thanks again,
Joe

[rvl123]

Thanks for the reply. I believe Dolby Digital can be recorded as a stereo format also. For example, there are DVD-V titles, particularly music videos, that are playable as Dolby Digital stereo recordings only. I am using RCA stereo cables for recording purposes but have always been under the impression that the recording format was Dolby Digital. In fact, I don't think the Panasonic recorder is capable of recording in 5.1 or 6.1.

Thanks again,
Joe

That was Dolby Stereo that you were listening to.

I checked on the panasonic website and it seems that all the recording decks have Dolby Stereo (2-channel) recording.

Here's what I would do: Go to a store with a good return policy, Buy the unit you are interested in, See if the audio/video quality is acceptable, if it is keep it, if not return it. Sorry for that huge run-on :P .

Another thought would be to use a high-end CD-recorder. I know Yamaha made one that had a 30 GB (I think) hard drive and would record digitally. You can find it cheap on eBay since it was discontinued this past winter.

Hope this helps you!

[surfsup]

Thanks very much for your help!
Joe