Originally Posted by
walpurgis
Is there still a demand for 'universal' players? I don't know anybody who uses Blu-Ray.
I still have (and use) a universal disc player - Sony UHP-H1. It plays Blu-ray / DVD / SACD (dig or analogue out) / CD.
A fair number of "deluxe" releases where physical formats are amongst the options have Blu-ray discs to variously accommodate high-res LPCM audio and "extras". Floyd / Marillion / Steven Wilson come to mind fairly readily.
Case in point is the forthcoming release packages for Floyd's "Animals" (2018 remix) which includes a standalone Blu-ray as an option. Also, a remix of Marillion's "Holidays In Eden" is scheduled for release in Sept 2022 and the "deluxe" version has a Blu-ray (in addition to 3x CDs) which contains a fair chunk of material not otherwise going to be available - including audio/visual content.
I hope physical releases are forthcoming for a while longer but it's notable that some bands / artists are starting to release packages in such a way as to steer people towards electronic consumption - Porcupine Tree's "Closure / Continuation" is arguably in this category. If you want the bonus tracks, the options are either to pay £50+ for a box set or download the files at a less hefty price point from an official site such as Qobuz - the standard CD doesn't contain the bonus tracks.
I do not look forward to the day when most of the music I want is only available via streaming and/or download files. Once again, record companies are in control and not in a good way.
Happy listening all.
Kevin
Main system:
Sources: EverSolo DMP-A6; Sony UHP-H1 (disc player)
DAC: Denafrips Pontus II
Pre amp: Quad Artera Pre (is also the main headphone amp)
Power amp: Willsenton R8 amp (running JJ E34Ls) / Aiyima A07 (with Sparkos SS3602 Op Amps)
Speakers: Dynaudio Special 40s with Van Damme UP-LCOFC (4mm) cables
InterConns: Tellurium Q Black XLR; Morrow Audio MA4 - pre 2018 (analogue RCA); Mark Grant (coax x1); Atlas (coax x1)