OT: public beta of updated DVD Audio authoring app

[TotalSonic]

Just a heads up that Cirlinca did a major update to their DVD Audio authoring app, DVD Audio Solo, and has posted a beta of this version 2 software at -
http://www.cirlinca.com/betarelease.htm

I've yet to try this new version but with the improvement to its feature set it might make a decent alternative to things like Discwelder - and at $45 it certainly is cheaper. While DVD-A has failed as a consumer format I think its still nice to have if you're wanting to burn one offs of hi-res references that you can play while away from a DAW.

Best regards,
Steve Berson

[Angie]

I tried DVD Audio Solo when it first appeared and had a lot of trouble with it. I'm anxious to try the new version.

Thanks Steve!

[Angie]

I've had a chance to test the beta version (within the five disc limit. :( ) and I am impressed. All the problems I had with the earlier version seem to be gone. And the ability to create hybrid DVDs is pretty exciting. I've had a bunch of old Quad recordings ready in hopes of being able to afford Discwelder's Chrome version some day. Looks like I can finally do it. :D

[TotalSonic]

I've had a chance to test the beta version (within the five disc limit. :( ) and I am impressed. All the problems I had with the earlier version seem to be gone. And the ability to create hybrid DVDs is pretty exciting. I've had a bunch of old Quad recordings ready in hopes of being able to afford Discwelder's Chrome version some day. Looks like I can finally do it. :D

Angie -
Very cool to hear! Thanks for taking the time with this. The support for "hybrid DVD" to allow for compatibility with standard DVD-V players seems like one of the best feature improvements to me as well, as these days while DVD players are everywhere DVD-A isn't always supported by them. Looking forward to trying this out as soon as I have some time.

Best regards,
Steve Berson

[Perry]

Angie -
Very cool to hear! Thanks for taking the time with this. The support for "hybrid DVD" to allow for compatibility with standard DVD-V players seems like one of the best feature improvements to me as well, as these days while DVD players are everywhere DVD-A isn't always supported by them. Looking forward to trying this out as soon as I have some time.

Best regards,
Steve Berson

Better hurry before Blu-ray replaces all the DVD players! :)

Joking mostly.. but... seriously for a moment... I'm noticing how fast the video store here is converting more and more space for Blu-Ray... seems much faster than the change-over from VHS to DVD did.

I'm sure DVD will be around for a while yet... but looks like the writing is on the wall.. already!

I'm watching prices and thinking of jumping into a Blu-ray recorder soon myself as a back-up medium... would save so much storage space and mean far fewer disks for large projects. Might jump soon actually.

Anyone here using Blu-ray as a backup?

Cheers,
Perry

Forgot to say.. thanks for the info and the link... downloading.

[Dave Labrecque]

Better hurry before Blu-ray replaces all the DVD players! :)

Joking mostly.. but... seriously for a moment... I'm noticing how fast the video store here is converting more and more space for Blu-Ray... seems much faster than the change-over from VHS to DVD did.

I'm sure DVD will be around for a while yet... but looks like the writing is on the wall.. already!

I'm watching prices and thinking of jumping into a Blu-ray recorder soon myself as a back-up medium... would save so much storage space and mean far fewer disks for large projects. Might jump soon actually.

Anyone here using Blu-ray as a backup?

Cheers,
Perry

Forgot to say.. thanks for the info and the link... downloading.

How much is Blu-ray media?

[TotalSonic]

How much is Blu-ray media?

Just now doing a look at the media vendor I get a lot of my blanks from seems it starts at around $8/disc for Ritek unbranded 25gig single layer in bulk 25 pack - and goes up to $43 for Panasonic rewritable 50gig dual layer - with lots of choices in the middle ground between those two extremes.

So - a good bit more than DVD-R's - but obviously they store a lot more on each disc - and I'd expect prices to come down as the format gains momentum.

Best regards,
Steve Berson

[Dave Labrecque]

Just now doing a look at the media vendor I get a lot of my blanks from seems it starts at around $8/disc for Ritek unbranded 25gig single layer in bulk 25 pack - and goes up to $43 for Panasonic rewritable 50gig dual layer - with lots of choices in the middle ground between those two extremes.

So - a good bit more than DVD-R's - but obviously they store a lot more on each disc - and I'd expect prices to come down as the format gains momentum.

Best regards,
Steve Berson

If the cost/GB isn't as low as DVD, I'm sure taking into account the time and pain spent backing up (and/or restoring) equal amounts of data for each medium should be considered. Sounds like a few of you have already decided it's worth it. Unless you're all just geeking out on the new technology. ;)

[Dave Labrecque]

And the room taken up on the shelf.

Backing up to external HD is *WAY* faster than burning a disk...although I've never timed the difference.

The size of a 500gB FW drive takes up incredibly less room than the 100 DVD to store equal amount of data.....or 200 DVD to match a 1tB. And the cost of a 500gB drive these days isn't that much more than 100 blank DVD in the big picture.

Mark

True 'nuff. I've always just been scared of depending on something with moving parts. We've had this discussion.

But... the idea of two redundant drives pretty much kills that worry. Maybe that's the way I'll go soon. HDD or DVD or whatever... they're all going to be obsolete some day. But if we want forever access to old archives I guess we can just keep moving the data over to bigger and bigger drives, no matter what form they take. Someday my whole "body of work" (and probably my cryogenically preserved body itself) will all fit on on the head of a pin. Along with them thar dancin' angels.

Don't loose that pin.

[Cary B. Cornett]

Hard drives seem to be the only format that has remained consistent as long as I've owned a computer.

I could be wrong about this, but I think theoretically, anything from my first computer circa 1988 or so, could be plugged in to my current motherboard via an ATA connector and be read from. Actually, probably not. Before the ATA spec was plain old IDE, although to some extent the two are compatible. Before that, though, there were MFM and, I think, RLL drives (no I don't remember what the acronyms meant) which required completely different controllers. I can tell you that the first HD I ever had (probably around 1988) was "pre-IDE" and came bundled with its own controller card.

[jazzboxmaker]

Actually, probably not. Before the ATA spec was plain old IDE, although to some extent the two are compatible. Before that, though, there were MFM and, I think, RLL drives (no I don't remember what the acronyms meant) which required completely different controllers. I can tell you that the first HD I ever had (probably around 1988) was "pre-IDE" and came bundled with its own controller card.

True both the MFM & RLL drives from the early 80's had their own controller cards. & held 5-20MB for the most part. I forgot what they stand for too- it specified the encoding format. My first IBM PC around 85 came with 2 floppies & I remember the MFM & later RLL drives I bought were a PITA to install & configure-I didn't miss them

[Dave Labrecque]

Hard drives seem to be the only format that has remained consistent as long as I've owned a computer.

I could be wrong about this, but I think theoretically, anything from my first computer circa 1988 or so, could be plugged in to my current motherboard via an ATA connector and be read from.

Of course, there was that SCSI era that I needed to jump on badly, but that computer is still grinding away in the office, as slow as it may be.

Mark

Looks like CDs and HDs are about neck-and-neck, then, in terms of reaching across the ages. Both being about the same vintage, and both being backward compatible. Unless the hard drives won't go back quite so far, as is being suggested by others.

[Angie]

Backing up to external HD is *WAY* faster than burning a disk...although I've never timed the difference.



True, but it is becoming common practice to do both. And if you back up to a HD that will sit on a shelf (or powered but not spinning), be sure to power and access it once a month or so.
I'm one who does not trust hard drives for backups, particularly long term.
Most of my projects are backed up to DVD (or CD if a small project) twice! And on different brand discs if possible. Time consuming, yes. But my clients are very happy when I can go back and pull up a project from seven or more years ago.

We have the added worry of media obsolescence as mentioned already here regarding HDs. If you plan on long term storage great thought has to be given to migrating backups to future media and file formats. (Is Blu-Ray really a good idea?)

Then there is the whole documentation trail problem. But maybe that should be another thread.

Though I quoted Mark, this long winded post was not directed specifically toward him.