View source for DVD-Audio

{{short description|DVD format for storing high-fidelity audio}}
{{redirect|DVDA|the band|South Park#Music}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}

{{Infobox storage medium
| name = DVD-Audio
| logo = [[Image:DVD-Audio Logo.svg|class=skin-invert|200px]]
| image = DVD-Audio front view (from Museum of Obsolete Media).jpg
| caption = DVD-Audio release of ''[[Rumours (album)|Rumours]]'' by [[Fleetwood Mac]]
| type = [[Optical disc]]
| encoding = [[Meridian Lossless Packing]] or uncompressed [[LPCM]]<ref name="dvd-audio">{{cite web |url=http://dvddemystified.com/dvdfaq.html#3.6.1 |title=DVD Frequently Asked Questions (and Answers) - Details of DVD-Audio and SACD |author=Jim Taylor |access-date=2010-03-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110709185732/http://dvddemystified.com/dvdfaq.html#3.6.1 |archive-date=9 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| capacity = up to 8.5 GB
| read = 640 nm wavelength semiconductor laser
| write =
| standard = DVD Books, Part 4, DVD-Audio Book, DVD Audio Recording Book <ref name="dvd-book">DVD FLLC (2009–02) [http://www.dvdfllc.co.jp/format/f_bconst.html DVD Book Construction - list of all available DVD Books], Retrieved on 2009-07-24</ref><ref name="dvd-books">DVD FLLC [http://www.dvdfllc.co.jp/format/f_histry.html DVD Format Book - History of Supplements for DVD Books], Retrieved on 2009-07-24</ref><ref name="dvd-books-overview">MPEG.org, [http://www.mpeg.org/MPEG/DVD/General/Books.html DVD Books overview] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100501012533/http://www.mpeg.org/MPEG/DVD/General/Books.html |date=1 May 2010 }}, Retrieved on 2009-07-24</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Audio specifications Version 1.21 (DVD specifications for read-only disc; part 4) |url=https://ndlsearch.ndl.go.jp/en/books/R100000002-I033893213 |website=National Diet Library |access-date=2 August 2025}}</ref>
| owner = DVD Forum
| use = Audio storage
| released = {{Start date and age|2000}}
| extended from = {{ubl|[[DVD]]|[[Compact Disc Digital Audio]]}}
| extended to = [[High Fidelity Pure Audio Blu-ray]]
}}

'''DVD-Audio''' (commonly abbreviated as '''DVD-A''') is a digital [[audio format|format]] for delivering [[high-fidelity]] audio content on a [[DVD]]. DVD-Audio uses most of the storage on the disc for high-quality audio and is not intended to be a video delivery format.

The standard was published in March 1999<ref name="dvd-books"/> and the first discs entered the marketplace in 2000. DVD-Audio was in a [[format war]] with [[Super Audio CD]] (SACD), and along with consumers' tastes trending towards downloadable and streaming music, these factors meant that neither high-quality disc achieved considerable market traction; DVD-Audio has been described as "extinct" by 2007.<ref>Jack Schofield: [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2007/aug/02/guardianweeklytechnologysection.digitalmusic No taste for high-quality audio]. The Guardian, 1 August 2007</ref> DVD-Audio remains a niche market but some independent online labels offer a wider choice of titles.

==Audio specifications==
DVD-Audio offers many possible configurations of [[audio channel]]s, ranging from single-channel [[monaural|mono]] to 5.1-channel [[surround sound]], at various sampling frequencies and sample rates.<ref>{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304060434/http://patches.sonic.com/pdf/white-papers/wp_dvd_audio.pdf |url=http://patches.sonic.com/pdf/white-papers/wp_dvd_audio.pdf |title=Understanding DVD-Audio |publisher=Sonic Solutions|access-date=2014-04-23 |archive-date=2012-03-04 }}</ref> (The ".1" denotes a [[low-frequency effects]] channel (LFE) for bass and/or special audio effects.)

Compared to the [[compact disc]], the much higher capacity DVD format enables the inclusion of either:
*Considerably more music (with respect to total running time and quantity of songs) or
*Encoding at higher linear [[sampling rate]]s and more [[audio bit depth|bits-per-sample]], and/or
*Additional channels for surround sound reproduction.

Audio on a DVD-Audio disc can be stored in many different bit depth/sampling rate/channel combinations:

{|class="wikitable" align="center" style="text-align: center;"
|-
|rowspan="2"|&nbsp;
!colspan="6" align="center"|'''16, 20 or 24 bits per sample'''
|-
![[44.1 kHz|44.1&nbsp;kHz]]
!48&nbsp;kHz
!88.2&nbsp;kHz
!96&nbsp;kHz
!176.4&nbsp;kHz
!192&nbsp;kHz
|-
|align="right"|'''[[Monaural|Mono]] (1.0)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|-
|align="right"|'''[[Stereo]] (2.0)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|-
|align="right"|'''Stereo (2.1)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{no}}
|{{no}}
|-
|align="right"|'''Stereo + mono surround (3.0 or 3.1)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{no}}
|{{no}}
|-
|align="right"|'''[[Quadraphonic|Quad]] (4.0 or 4.1)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{no}}
|{{no}}
|-
|align="right"|'''3-stereo (3.0 or 3.1)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{no}}
|{{no}}
|-
|align="right"|'''3-stereo + mono surround (4.0 or 4.1)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{no}}
|{{no}}
|-
|align="right"|'''Full surround (5.0 or 5.1)'''
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{yes}}
|{{no}}
|{{no}}
|}

{{Optical disc authoring}}

Different bit depth/sampling rate/channel combinations can be used on a single disc. For instance, a DVD-Audio disc may contain a 96&nbsp;kHz/24-bit 5.1-channel audio track as well as a 192&nbsp;kHz/24-bit stereo audio track. Also, the channels of a track can be split into two groups stored at different resolutions. For example, the front speakers could be 96/24, while the surrounds are 48/20.

Audio is stored on the disc in [[Linear PCM]] format, which is either uncompressed or [[audio data compression|losslessly compressed]] with [[Meridian Lossless Packing|MLP (Meridian Lossless Packing)]].<ref name="dvd-audio" /> The maximum permissible total [[bit rate]] is 9.6 Megabits per second. Channel/resolution combinations that would exceed this need to be compressed. In uncompressed modes, it is possible to get up to 96/16 or 48/24 in 5.1, and 192/24 in stereo. To store 5.1 tracks in 88.2/20, 88.2/24, 96/20 or 96/24 MLP encoding is mandatory.

If no native stereo audio exists on the disc, the DVD-Audio player may be able to [[downmix]] the 5.1-channel audio to two-channel stereo audio if the listener does not have a surround sound setup (provided that the coefficients were set in the stream at authoring). Downmixing can only be done to two-channel stereo, not to other configurations, such as 4.0 quad. DVD-Audio may also feature menus, text subtitles, still images and video, plus in high end authoring systems it is also possible to link directly into a Video_TS directory that might contain video tracks, as well as PCM stereo and other "bonus" features.

==Player compatibility==
With the introduction of the DVD-Audio format, some kind of [[backward compatibility]] with existing [[DVD-Video]] players was desired, although not required. To address this, most DVD-Audio discs also contain DVD-Video compatible data to play the standard DVD-Video [[Dolby Digital]] 5.1-channel audio track on the disc<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.crutchfieldadvisor.com/iseo-rgbtcspd/learningcenter/home/cd_dvdsacd.html |title=SACD & DVD-Audio: Ultra-High-Resolution Music |publisher=Crutchfield Advisor |access-date=12 July 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070706022607/http://www.crutchfieldadvisor.com/iseo-rgbtcspd/learningcenter/home/cd_dvdsacd.html |archive-date=6 July 2007 }}</ref> (which can be downmixed to two channels for listeners with no surround sound setup). Many DVD-Video players also offer the option to create a Dolby MP matrix-encoded soundtrack for older surround sound systems lacking Dolby Digital or DTS decoding. Some discs also include a native Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo, and even a [[Digital Theater System|DTS]]&nbsp;96/24 5.1-channel, audio track.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.5dot1.com/articles/dvd_audio.html |title=What is DVD-Audio? |publisher=5dot1.com |access-date=12 July 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070703180538/http://www.5dot1.com/articles/dvd_audio.html |archive-date=3 July 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Since the DVD-Audio format is a member of the DVD family, a single disc can have multiple layers and even two sides that contain audio and video material. A common configuration is a single-sided DVD with content in both the DVD-Video (VIDEO_TS) and DVD-Audio (AUDIO_TS) directories. The high-resolution, Packed PCM audio encoded using MLP is only playable by DVD players containing DVD-Audio decoding capability. DVD-Video content, which can include LPCM, Dolby or DTS material, and even video, makes the disc compatible with all DVD players. Other disc configurations may consist of double-layer DVDs (DVD-9) or two-sided discs (DVD-10, DVD-14 or DVD-18). Some labels have released two-sided DVD titles that contain DVD-Audio content on one side and DVD-Video content on the other, the Classic Records HDAD being one such example.

Unofficial playback of DVD-Audio on a PC is possible through [[freeware]] [[audio player (software)|audio player]] [[foobar2000]] for [[Windows]] using an [[Open-source license|open source]] plug-in extension called DVDADecoder.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://dvdadecoder.sourceforge.net/ |title=DVD-Audio Decoder and Watermark Detector |author=Maxim V. Anisiutkin |publisher=SourceForge |access-date=19 October 2010}}</ref> [[VLC media player]] has DVD-Audio support<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.videolan.org/vlc/index.html|title=VideoLAN - Official page for VLC media player, the Open Source video framework!|last=VideoLAN}}</ref> Cyberlink's [[PowerDVD]] Version 8 provides an official method of playing DVD-Audio discs. This feature was dropped from version 9 onwards.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cyberlink.com/index_en_US.html?r=1|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200510114226/http://cyberlink.com/|url-status=dead|title=#1 Video Editing & Photo Editing Software + Media Player &#124; CyberLink|archive-date=10 May 2020|website=www.cyberlink.com}}</ref> Creative also provide a dedicated DVD-Audio player with some of its Soundblaster Audigy and X-Fi cards.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://uk.creative.com/|title=Creative Labs (United Kingdom) &#124; Sound Blaster, Gaming Headsets, Speakers, Headphones|website=uk.creative.com}}</ref>

==Preamplifier/surround-processor interface==
In order to play DVD-Audio, a preamplifier or surround controller with six analog inputs was originally required.<ref name="timefordvd-tutorial">{{cite web |url=http://www.timefordvd.com/tutorial/DVD-AudioTutorial.shtml |title=DVD-Audio Tutorial |publisher=TimeForDVD.com |access-date=2007-07-12 |date=2002-06-05 }}</ref> Whereas DVD-Video audio formats such as [[Dolby Digital]] and [[Digital Theater System|DTS]] can be sent via the player's digital output to a receiver for conversion to analog form and distribution to speakers, DVD-Audio is not allowed to be delivered via unencrypted digital audio link at sample rates higher than 48&nbsp;kHz (i.e., ordinary DVD-Video quality) due to concerns about digital copying.<ref name="timefordvd-tutorial" />

However, encrypted digital formats have now been approved by the DVD Forum, the first of which was Meridian Audio's MHR (Meridian High Resolution). The High Definition Multimedia Interface ([[HDMI]]&nbsp;1.1) also allows encrypted digital audio to be carried up to DVD-Audio specification (6 × 24-bit/96&nbsp;kHz channels or 2 × 24-bit/192&nbsp;kHz channels). The six channels of audio information can thus be sent to the amplifier by several different methods:
#The 6 audio channels can be decrypted and extracted in the player and sent to the amplifier along 6 standard analog cables.
#The 6 audio channels can be decrypted and then re-encrypted into an HDMI or [[IEEE 1394]] (FireWire) signal and sent to the amplifier, which will then decrypt the digital signal and then extract the 6 channels of audio. HDMI and IEEE 1394 encryption are different from the DVD-A encryption and were designed as a general standard for a high-quality digital interface. The amplifier has to be equipped with a valid decryption key or it will not play the disk.
#The third option is via the [[S/PDIF]] (or [[TOSLINK]]) digital interface. However, because of concerns over unauthorized copying, DVD-A players are required to handle this digital interface in one of the following ways:
#*Turn such an interface off completely. This option is preferred by music publishers.
#*Downconvert the audio to a 2-channel 16-bit/48&nbsp;kHz PCM signal. The music publishers are not enthusiastic about this because it permits the production of a CD-quality copy, something they still expect to sell, besides DVD-A.
#*Downconvert the audio to 2 channels, but keep the original sample size and bit rate if the producer sets a flag on the DVD-A disc telling the player to do so.
#A final option is to modify the player, capturing the high-resolution digital signals before they are fed to internal D/A converters and converting them to [[S/PDIF]], giving full-range digital sound. Do-it-yourself solutions exist for some players.{{cn|date=September 2025}}

==Sound quality==
Researchers in 2004 found that, amongst a selected group of listeners on a selected playback setup, no perceptible difference was reported in audio quality between DVD-A and SACD.<ref name="Blech">Blech, Dominikp; Yang, Min-Chi. [http://old.hfm-detmold.de/eti/projekte/diplomarbeiten/dsdvspcm/aes_paper_6086.pdf "DVD-Audio versus SACD: Perceptual Discrimination of Digital Audio Coding Formats."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160604081042/http://old.hfm-detmold.de/eti/projekte/diplomarbeiten/dsdvspcm/aes_paper_6086.pdf |date=4 June 2016 }} (PDF) Audio Engineering Society Convention Paper 6086, May 2004.</ref>

The claimed benefits of [[high-resolution audio]], such as that supported by DVD-A, are the subject of controversy (see {{slink|High-resolution audio|Controversy}}).

==Format variants==
Four of the major [[record label|music labels]], [[Universal Music]], [[EMI]], [[Warner Bros. Records]], [[Naxos Records]] and several smaller audiophile labels (such as [[AIX Records]], Claudio Records, DTS Entertainment, Silverline Records, OgreOgress Productions, Tacet and [[Teldec]]) have released albums on DVD-Audio, but the number is minimal compared to standard CDs. New high-definition titles have been released in standard DVD-Video format (which can contain two-channel Linear PCM audio data ranging from 48&nbsp;kHz/16-bit to 96&nbsp;kHz/24-bit), "HDAD",<ref>[http://surroundablog.blogs.com/surroundablog/definition_dad_hdad/index.html "HDAD"] at surroundablog.blogs.com</ref> which includes a DVD-Video format recording on one side and DVD-Audio on the other, CD/DVD packages, which can include the album on both CD and DVD-Audio, or [[DualDisc]], which can contain DVD-Audio content on the DVD side. In addition, some titles that had been initially released as a standalone DVD-Audio disc (such as The [[Grateful Dead]]'s ''[[American Beauty (album)|American Beauty]]'' and [[R.E.M.]]'s ''[[Automatic for the People]]'') were re-released as a CD/DVD package or as a DualDisc.

==Copy protection==
DVD-Audio discs may optionally employ a [[copy protection]] mechanism called [[Content Protection for Prerecorded Media]] (CPPM).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.extremetech.com/computing/51272-digital-content-protection-part-ii |title=Digital Content Protection, Part II |publisher=ExtremeTech |access-date=2007-07-12 |date=2003-08-25 |last=Labriola |first=Don }}</ref> CPPM, managed by the [[4C Entity]], was designed to prevent users from extracting audio to computers and portable media players. The 4C Entity also developed a similar specification, [[Content Protection for Recordable Media]] (CPRM), which is used on [[Secure Digital card]]s.

Because DVD-Video's [[Content Scramble System]] (CSS) was quickly broken, the proposed launch of DVD-Audio was postponed from Autumn 1999 and the music labels stalled software production while DVD-Audio's developers sought a better method of blocking unauthorized duplications.<ref name=hfc>{{cite magazine|magazine=Hi-Fi Choice|issue=209|page=10|title=DVD-Audio off the blocks|first=Tim|last=Bowern}}</ref> They developed CPPM, which uses a [[Media Key Block]] (MKB) to authenticate DVD-Audio players. In order to decrypt the audio, players must obtain a media key from the MKB, which also is encrypted. The player must use its own unique key to decrypt the MKB. If a DVD-Audio player's decryption key is compromised, that key can be rendered useless for decrypting future DVD-Audio discs.

DVD-Audio discs can also utilize [[audio watermark]]ing technology developed by the [[Verance Corporation]], typically embedded into the audio once every thirty seconds. If a DVD-Audio player encounters a watermark on a disc without a valid MKB, it will halt playback.<ref name="Robinson2005">{{cite web |url=http://www.highfidelityreview.com/dvd-audio-copy-protection-defeated-via-windvd-software-hack.html |title=DVD-Audio Copy Protection Defeated via WinDVD Software Hack |publisher=HighFidelityReview.com |access-date=2007-07-12 |date=2005-06-07 |last=Robinson |first=Stuart M |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070608032029/http://www.highfidelityreview.com/news/news.asp?newsnumber=14550899 |archive-date= 2007-06-08}}</ref>

DVD-Audio's copy protection was overcome in 2005<ref name="Robinson2005"/> by tools which allow data to be decrypted or converted to 6-channel [[.WAV]] files without going through lossy [[digital-to-analog]] conversion. Previously that conversion had required expensive equipment to retain all [[5.1|six]] channels of audio rather than having it downmixed to stereo. In the digital method, the decryption is done by a commercial software player that has been patched to allow access to the unprotected audio.

In <!-- Details are bit scetchy here, NO verified information could be found who is the original developer of the soft and where or even WHEN it was first released to public. -->2007 the encryption scheme was overcome with a tool called ''dvdcpxm''. On 12 February 2008 a program called DVD-Audio Explorer was released, containing the aforementioned libdvdcpxm coupled with an open-source MLP decoder.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?p=1099342#post1099342|title= DVD-Audio ripper|access-date=2008-04-09}}</ref>

Like DVD-Video decryption, such tools may be illegal to use in the [[United States]] under the [[Digital Millennium Copyright Act]]. While the [[Recording Industry Association of America]] has been successful in keeping these tools off Web sites, they are still distributed on [[P2P file sharing]] networks and newsgroups.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/07/06/1740206 |title= DVD-Audio's CPPM Circumvented |publisher=Slashdot.org |access-date=2007-07-12 |date=2005-07-06 }}</ref> Additionally, in 2007 the widely used commercial software [[DVDFab|DVDFab Platinum]] added DVD-Audio decryption, allowing users to back up a full DVD-A image to an [[ISO image|ISO image file]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://forum.doom9.org/showthread.php?t=127870|title= DVDFab updated to support DVD-Audio/CPPM|access-date=2008-04-15}}</ref>

==Authoring software==

===OS X===
*[[Sonic Solutions]] DVD Creator AV&nbsp;– The first DVD-Audio authoring solution available. A spin-off of the popular high-end DVD Video authoring package. It allows DVD-Audio authoring at the command line level only. No longer sold or supported by Sonic Solutions.
*Sonic Studio SonicStudio HD&nbsp;– Macintosh-based tool used for High Density audio mastering and to prepare audio for DVD-A authoring in One Click DVD.
*Sonic Studio OneClick DVD&nbsp;– Converts prepared Sonic Studio EDLs into binary MLP files to be used in the authoring tool. Also generates scriptFile information to be added to DVD Creator AV projects. This product is no longer available.
*DVD audio Tools&nbsp;– see Windows section below.
*[[Apple Logic Pro]] 8 and later&nbsp;– When bouncing, choose "Burn to CD/DVD" under destination, and then choose DVD-A for the destination format.
*Minnetonka discWelder&nbsp;– This product is no longer available.
*[[Steinberg]] Wavelab Pro&nbsp;– This product does not support MLP encoding or MLP-encoded files. It supports slideshows and DVD menus.
*Burn&nbsp;– General purpose CD and DVD burning utility that can write AUDIO_TS data. Select "Audio" tab then "DVD-Audio" from the drop-down menu.

===Windows===
*Minnetonka discWelder&nbsp;– This product is no longer available.
*Cirlinca HD-AUDIO Solo Ultra&nbsp;– This product does not support MLP encoding or MLP-encoded files. It has not been available online as of early 2019.
*DVD Audio Extractor&nbsp;– This product and others can extract audio from DVD-Audio discs, but does not author new DVD-Audio discs.
*[[Steinberg]] WaveLab Pro&nbsp;– This product does not support MLP encoding or MLP-encoded files. It supports slideshows and DVD menus.
*Gear Pro Mastering Edition&nbsp;– This product can burn DVD-Audio images, but does not author new DVD-Audio discs.
*DVD audio tools package&nbsp;– A project called [https://dvd-audio.sourceforge.net/ DVD audio Tools] provides a [[free software|free]]/[[Open-source software|open source]] console application and user interface. Supports menu editing and audio extraction from discs. Experimental support for MLP decoding. DVD-Audio/Video discs (aka Hybrid or Universal DVDs) can be authored.
*[[MAGIX Samplitude]]&nbsp;– Restricted DVD-Audio editing (no MLP, no menus, no slideshows)
*MAGIX Sequoia

===Linux/Apple/Windows===
* [https://dvd-audio.sourceforge.net/ DVD Audio Tools] provides [[free software|free]]/[[Open-source software|open source]] DVD-Audio authoring tools for Linux, macOS and Windows.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://archive.org/details/RobertNormandeauOnOutsightRadioHours Robert Normandeau Interview] Interview with [[Robert Normandeau]] On Outsight Radio Hours about using the format for the release of ''Puzzles'' (empreintes DIGITALes, IMED 0575, 2005)
*[https://obsoletemedia.org/dvd-audio/ DVD-Audio] at the Museum of Obsolete Media
{{Audio formats}}
{{High-definition}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dvd-Audio}}
[[Category:Digital audio storage]]
[[Category:DVD|Audio]]
[[Category:Audiovisual introductions in 2000]]