SONY introduces "Blu-spec CD"

[Epicurus8a]

Sony is back in the news with a new format called Blu-spec CD. It takes advantage of Sony's Blu-ray Disc technology to press new high-quality discs while somehow maintaining compatibility with regular red-laser CD players.

http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&u=http://av.watch.impress.co.jp/docs/20081105/sme.htm

[yoda313]

So is this a replacement for dvd-audio? Can it work with normal fiber optic or coaxial digital connections? Other question - how much more expensive are the discs and are they encoded in 5.1 as well as stereo?

[jman98]

I looked at the article and itt seems to be a case of Sony eating its own children, SACD in this case. It's simply a BluRay based replacement for SACD with similar dual layer technology at work that supports a CD compatible layer.

Sony totally botched SACD with its refusal for years to make dual layer discs, so I wouldn't expect a lot here from them. Note too that Sony and Philips (co-inventors of SACD) NEVER made an SACD drive available for PCs, so I wouldn't necessarily assume that they'll make a Blu-spec drive for PCs either. This will basically be a more expensive version of SACD, so I just don't see what the point is but it's rather typical of Sony to bring something to the market that there's no demand for. The barely alive and already invented DVD-Audio and SACD formats don't need replacing for high def audio. They have sufficient storage capacity.