Hello Again,
It's a shame we can't have a multiple format release of certain soundtracks with a standard stereo CD and a bonus Blu-ray audio disc together to help that format gain more interest. That's how I think movie Blu-rays did better in the market place, by offering the Blu-ray & DVD (and possibly also a digital copy) to consumers all in one package. That's how I initially made the transition. I started buying Blu-rays that came with DVDs and used the DVDs until I finally purchased a Blu-ray player. By the time I had the player I already owned 20 or more Blu-rays.
Of course, with Blu-ray audio discs, it would all have to be cost effective enough for the retailer to warrent including them without fear of the consumer being unwilling to pay the extra amount of money for their inclusion. Lots of people always get up in arms when they're forced to pay another $5-$10 for a soundtrack that includes a 2nd or 3rd disc. But perhaps very popular titles, that you have a strong feeling will sell very well, could be used to test the waters? I've read how quite a few people would love a multi-track release of "Conan The Barbarian", which is sure to be a huge seller for Intrada.
Until more retailers try this (which may be a long time coming) I just keep looking forward to the certain movie Blu-ray releases with the isolated score option. I like how FOX has been offering them for a number of their catolog titles ('Planet of The Apes & the Mel Brooks collections, to name a few) but there are always others I would love to have that are not available. "Blade Runner" is being released again on Blu-ray and oh, what a treat it would have been to have an isolated score option included (the complete score being a holy grail for many of us) but no dice.
Too bad there isn't a way to put both the CD & Blu-ray information on one disc (not a dual disc) like they tried with SACD, giving it two different layers (standard PCM Stereo CD & 5.1 SS SACD) all on one side of the disc. That would have at least cut the costs of having to produce a 2nd disc. I do think it's sad that superior sounding audio is being overlooked and forgotten because of inferior sounding digital downloads. And, unfortunately, until someone can find a way to keep costs down enough for consumers to justify investing in a better format, this lousy DD trend will continue.
It's hard going back to standard stereo once you've heard something in, say, DTS, or even just 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound. Some older music artists re-released their albums on CD and included a bonus DVD like this, and many of the differences in quality were staggering. The music industry has so many rules and regulations that I still don't fully comprehend them all. Just wanted to add my 2 cents to this discussion. Looking forward to the LCR Music Sourced version of the 'Christine score (knock wood).
Alan1
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