I worked last year for a small company doing high-end whole house ausio/video/network integration, and I had the opportunity to mess around with a few DVD-A players. The reason your scheme won't work is the following:
The RIAA got really antsy after the whole MP3/Napster incident, and decided that they were going to attempt to subvert any of those problems this time around. As such, DVD-A players will not output DVD-A in a Digital format (at least not any of the DVD-A players I've seen or read about). The setup goes something like this: Look on the back of any old DVD-A player in the high-end stereo shop. They will have 6 analog outputs, and (if they're a DVD Video player as well) a TOSLink (fiber) or Coax-Digital output. The Digital out will only function with the audio for video (the movie's sound), the audio (from an audio DVD) will not be output from the digital out. The Audio is instead separately decoded inside of the DVD-A player, and output in analog format to the recevier, which then treats it as if it were any old analog source. This whole setup was devised to keep the consumer from having easy access to the pure digital stream in order to record it.
What this translates into is simply that there will probably not be a commercially available solution anytime in the near future to play DVD-A in a computer. The simple fact that there isn't a feasible way to get the audio to a decoder card that would be able to interpret it and output the 6 analog channels. What would then logically be required would be some sort of hack, a way to decode the signal using software, and then output it using a sound card capable of 5.1 output.
This is, of course, very frustrating to everyone involved with these products. One of the favorite products for our company to sell was Bose sound equipment (not for the quality, but because the markup is so outrageous, and it's an easy sale to uninformed yuppies), and complete Bose systems (their lifestyle series) do not have 6 channel analog input for externally decoded 5.1. Thus, DVD-A would not function at all on a Bose system.
On a completely alternate note, JVC sells a DVD-Audio/Progressive Scan DVD-Video player for around US$400, and it's easily located. Any Best Buy or Circuit City carries the unit. I haven't listened to it at all (since neither store carries DVD-A discs to demo the product), but I can tell you that a world of difference can be made with these products depending upon the patch cables you use for hookup. Invest in 3 good pairs of high-end stereo patch cable, or ask your local audiophile shop for a 6 channel analog patch cable setup.
There are 2 (and only 2) reasons why one should own an SUV.
1) You do serious off-roading. This does not mean driving down a dirt road, or even a muddy road. It most certainly does not mean driving on ice or snow. This pertains to people who take their vehicles over combinations of large rocks, standing water, mud, loose dirt, etc.
2) You have a large family and you frequently tow a large payload (such as a boat).
In all other cases, an SUV is the wrong vehicle for the job, and if you are considering it you need to seriously analyze your choice of vehicle. SUVs are not safe. They are more dangerous in single car collisions (such as when you lose control of the vehicle and hit a guardrail, ditch, telephone pole, etc.), they are less able to handle emergency situations (such as swerving or hard braking to avoid road obstructions). Their Body-On-Frame construction means that in a collision with a smaller car, the brunt of the force will be transferred to the other vehicle, and in a collision with a larger vehicle (such as another SUV), the occupants will suffer the brunt of the force.
Please read the following sites for information regarding the myths of SUV "safety" and their ability to "handle" inclement weather.
On a side note, some have mentioned in defense that SUVs are taxed higher through the gasoline tax. Consider that many high-end sports cars (such as Porsche 911 Turbos, Ferarris, and such) are tacked with gas-guzzler taxes even though they get better mileage than the king of inefficency, the Ford Excursion V10 (8 city/10 HWY) and you will start to see the "fairness" of the fact that these vehicles don't have to stand up to the same crash standards, construction standards, or fuel standards that other vehicles do.
Slashdot Mirror
I worked last year for a small company doing high-end whole house ausio/video/network integration, and I had the opportunity to mess around with a few DVD-A players. The reason your scheme won't work is the following:
The RIAA got really antsy after the whole MP3/Napster incident, and decided that they were going to attempt to subvert any of those problems this time around. As such, DVD-A players will not output DVD-A in a Digital format (at least not any of the DVD-A players I've seen or read about). The setup goes something like this: Look on the back of any old DVD-A player in the high-end stereo shop. They will have 6 analog outputs, and (if they're a DVD Video player as well) a TOSLink (fiber) or Coax-Digital output. The Digital out will only function with the audio for video (the movie's sound), the audio (from an audio DVD) will not be output from the digital out. The Audio is instead separately decoded inside of the DVD-A player, and output in analog format to the recevier, which then treats it as if it were any old analog source. This whole setup was devised to keep the consumer from having easy access to the pure digital stream in order to record it.
What this translates into is simply that there will probably not be a commercially available solution anytime in the near future to play DVD-A in a computer. The simple fact that there isn't a feasible way to get the audio to a decoder card that would be able to interpret it and output the 6 analog channels. What would then logically be required would be some sort of hack, a way to decode the signal using software, and then output it using a sound card capable of 5.1 output.
This is, of course, very frustrating to everyone involved with these products. One of the favorite products for our company to sell was Bose sound equipment (not for the quality, but because the markup is so outrageous, and it's an easy sale to uninformed yuppies), and complete Bose systems (their lifestyle series) do not have 6 channel analog input for externally decoded 5.1. Thus, DVD-A would not function at all on a Bose system.
On a completely alternate note, JVC sells a DVD-Audio/Progressive Scan DVD-Video player for around US$400, and it's easily located. Any Best Buy or Circuit City carries the unit. I haven't listened to it at all (since neither store carries DVD-A discs to demo the product), but I can tell you that a world of difference can be made with these products depending upon the patch cables you use for hookup. Invest in 3 good pairs of high-end stereo patch cable, or ask your local audiophile shop for a 6 channel analog patch cable setup.
-Chris Canter
There are 2 (and only 2) reasons why one should own an SUV.
1) You do serious off-roading. This does not mean driving down a dirt road, or even a muddy road. It most certainly does not mean driving on ice or snow. This pertains to people who take their vehicles over combinations of large rocks, standing water, mud, loose dirt, etc.
2) You have a large family and you frequently tow a large payload (such as a boat).
In all other cases, an SUV is the wrong vehicle for the job, and if you are considering it you need to seriously analyze your choice of vehicle. SUVs are not safe. They are more dangerous in single car collisions (such as when you lose control of the vehicle and hit a guardrail, ditch, telephone pole, etc.), they are less able to handle emergency situations (such as swerving or hard braking to avoid road obstructions). Their Body-On-Frame construction means that in a collision with a smaller car, the brunt of the force will be transferred to the other vehicle, and in a collision with a larger vehicle (such as another SUV), the occupants will suffer the brunt of the force.
Please read the following sites for information regarding the myths of SUV "safety" and their ability to "handle" inclement weather.
Why SUVs are inferior on-road and off-road
Why technically advanced All-Wheel Drive systems are better than primitive part-time 4WD
On a side note, some have mentioned in defense that SUVs are taxed higher through the gasoline tax. Consider that many high-end sports cars (such as Porsche 911 Turbos, Ferarris, and such) are tacked with gas-guzzler taxes even though they get better mileage than the king of inefficency, the Ford Excursion V10 (8 city/10 HWY) and you will start to see the "fairness" of the fact that these vehicles don't have to stand up to the same crash standards, construction standards, or fuel standards that other vehicles do.