![\"analog_magic\"](\"http:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/analog_magic.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nFigure 1 – Mastering a standard definition source through an analog console makes it “high-resolution”? No. [Click to enlarge]<\/p>\n
I’ve tried to point out the difference between a real HD-Audio file and one that simply “pretending” to be a high-resolution audio track. The fidelity of a track is established at the time of the original recording. The signal to noise ratio and the frequency response cannot be fundamentally improved through subsequent postproduction phases. And in reality, maximizing either one of these parameters runs counter to the industry norms. Making “hits” isn’t about making something sound great! The records that we all cherish are special because of the song, the artist, the arrangement, the “soul” of the track and a myriad other factors. The actual fidelity of the record is relatively unimportant in the scheme of things.<\/p>\n
But wouldn’t it nice to try to produce a real high-definition version of a big hit record. I’ve tried to demonstrate that very possibility with my productions but they are clearly not hits. Just give me about 4 hours with John Mayer, Neil Young, Adele or any other artist that can really sing and I’ll show you what fidelity can contribute to the overall listening experience.<\/p>\n
For many professional engineers, audiophiles and everyday music lovers, analog is the Holy Grail when it comes to reproducing the ultimate fidelity. The concept that an original recording of any resolution in any format can be magically transformed by merely passing through an analog stage prior to being digitized at a higher resolution into the same of a different format is ludicrous. The new “HD” tunes are marketed as high-resolution audio at premium prices and reviewers rave about them. But they’re not actually any better than what you had before.<\/p>\n
There’s a lot of this going on in the world of high-resolution digital downloads. If I could only reveal what I hear from insiders, you’d never purchase another high-resolution audio track again. Do you really want to spend $25-30 on a track that was simply pulled from an SACD disc (which originated from an analog tape produced in 1958 or 2005)? Do you feel good about getting the same fidelity as your previous vinyl LP or CD version of a classic album in an “HD” version that simply bit doubles the file (resulting in no additional fidelity…just a larger file)?<\/p>\n
Can the nascent HRA business survive another misstep? I don’t think so. The entire industry is marching arm in arm towards the cliff. And it seems we’re going to tumble into the abyss. I’m not encouraged. Some of the prime advocates simply don’t know what they’re talking about or they’ve chosen to ignore the facts in favor of a short term upside.<\/p>\n
We need to establish a set of guidelines about what is and what isn’t high-resolution audio. We need meaningful specifications on both the source format and the delivery format of an individual album or track. We need to do a rigorous research project to determine whether HRA actually matters. We need to inform professionals about high-resolution audio through a series of seminars, an accurate website and marketing push. If we do these things, then maybe, just maybe we have a chance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Here’s a little data point that left my jaw on the ground yesterday. If a particular mastering engineer receives a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1923,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[40,26,42,251,227,169],"class_list":["post-1922","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dr_aixs_posts","tag-analog-vs-digital","tag-hd-audio","tag-high-resolution-audio","tag-high-resolution","tag-hra","tag-mark-waldrep"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1922","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1922"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1922\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1925,"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1922\/revisions\/1925"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1923"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realhd-audio.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}