BlueDude

That's really weird. Mine doesn't either. More specifically, the first layer plays fine, but it has the DVD-Audio information for the first 2 CDs. The third CD and all of the DVD-Video information is on the second layer, and won't even load. I didn't know DVDs could just "go bad" over time like that. Thankfully, I ripped the DVD-Audio tracks a number of years ago for convenience. I didn't realize at the time that it was for archival purposes also. I tried to find out how to exchange the disc for a usable copy from the publisher but couldn't find any information at all. (Yeah, like they have a stack of them in the office...)

Yeah, you can use it, but from a user interface standpoint, it's a real pain. The DVD-Video spec allows audio tracks to be attached to still frames, which is what this does, but as a consequence you can only play, pause, or skip chapters - fast forward and rewind within "tracks" aren't supported. The DVD-Audio spec allows it to act like a CD, even without a display device, so FF and REW are supported. You could use software tools to rip the DVD-Audio tracks losslessly, but then you'll need a suitable playback software or device to output the multi-channel files. The Blu-ray should solve all these issues.

The solo vocals are only in the center, but there's artificial reverb on those that is sent everywhere (notice the ping pong reverb in Gollum's song). Choir is miked and mixed like the orchestra: L/C/R with room reverb sent to the surrounds.

I don't know. The DVD-Video folder is Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby Digital Stereo, which are lossy. The DVD-Audio folder is Meridian Lossless Packing 5.1 and MLP stereo, which are lossless. It's like asking how a CD is any better than an mp3 rip of the same disc. It depends. I do know that the MLP content takes up most of the disc, meaning that the DD content may have been heavily compressed just to fit everything on the disc. Since MLP takes up a fixed amount of space after compression (you can only crunch lossless data so far), the only variable the mastering tech could use to fit everything was DD compression. This may - or may not - have compromised audio quality. I'm taking a look at the waveforms for comparing the lossy and the lossless versions right now. I'm curious to see what - if any - differences there are. Edit: OK, so I ripped the DD 5.1 track from the FOTR DVD and converted it to WAV for analysis. I cut the first 7 minutes of the track and compared it to the lossless MLP track. Both are sampled at 48k, though the MLP has 24 bit depth vs 16 on the DD track. This probably doesn't have an audible difference. However, the DD track is a little hotter than the MLP, by about 0.75dB. This is enough to possibly clip a few samples, but it likely isn't all that noticeable either most of the time. What *is* noticeable is what is left out of the DD track. I accounted for the sample offset between the two tracks (the DD has 625 more samples of silence at the start), cut the amplitude of the DD track by 0.75dB, then inverted and overlaid it on the MLP. This leaves the actual difference between the two tracks. What is left over is a sort of white noise that follows the dynamics of the music. Would you miss it? It's hard to say. If you were able to A/B the two tracks, once level matched, you may very well notice the difference, even though you wouldn't be able to describe the difference.

For what it's worth, I have all 3 DVD-Audio discs and the equipment and room to take advantage of them. The mix is the same as the CD's, meaning they were the same edit from the same takes, and there was no obvious attempt to change the balance between sections. The bit rate is functionally identical to CD - you can't perceive a difference between 44.1k/16 and 48k/24 given the same mix. The advantage is in the channel separation. The orchestra direct mikes are in L/C/R, the vocal soloists are in the center, and the very wet ambiance is in the L/R surrounds. I listen to music in my room in its original format, with no upmixing. If stereo, then only 2 speakers (and subs) are active. If 5.1, then 5 speakers (and subs) are active, and so on. High quality stereo mixes can be strangely holographic, but high quality multi-channel mixes are even more so. This 5.1 mix places me in a privileged seat in a vast concert hall, with the orchestra arrayed in front. It doesn't attempt to put me in the midst of the orchestra or play with discrete sounds in the surrounds. It's a completely natural experience. So the CDs and the DVDs are similar, but not the same. I find the stereo mix a little too wet, but the multi-channel mix opens up and lets it breathe. I used the physical discs for a while but I ended up ripping the lossless DVD-A tracks to multi-channel FLAC once the tools became available. They are bit for bit copies of the DVD-Audio. Now I simply listen from a music server. I fully expect the Blu-ray to have the same mix in the same format, just encoded differently. There's room to spare and there's no bit rate bottleneck (as can happen with DVD-Audio) so it'll probably be straight PCM, which is compatible with any HDMI receiver and any Blu-ray player.

Downloading now. The Flag parade can be a fine standalone, but it's not 100% necessary in the suite. And Escape From Naboo has been so overplayed now (4 times in 3 movies) that I don't care for its inclusion... anywhere.

I have a real soft spot for Padme's Ruminations. That sad, quiet quote from Across the Stars (the last time it's heard in the saga) right when Anakin takes the plunge just... works. You know he's just doomed himself and it's the music that sells it.

There's got to be a way to time-shift that...

I don't have the CD right with me so I can't check the time or track name, but there's a really, really bad edit in the ROTJ SE, in the track that covers Luke & Leia's good bye chat in the tree. It's right in the middle of a phrase, between the third and fourth notes of the Luke & Leia theme as Luke walks away. There's a jump in volume and ambient noise that is impossible to ignore.

How can that make a difference with a 16 bit source? Neil I didn't think it mattered either at first, and I went through the full edit in 16-bit. And then I discovered that for the actual "editing", i.e. cutting and pasting, it doesn't make a bit of difference vs. 32-bit. But as soon as you modify the source to any extent, such as apply a filter for reverb or EQ or declipping, it makes a huge difference in the outcome. Cool Edit works in 32-bit natively, so might as well take advantage of it. Bring it in as 32-bit, do all of the editing there, and then do a one-time dither back to 16-bit for the burn. I've attached my modified Elvisjones page. I used it as a log to keep track of the edit.

The UE had the living snot clipped out of it. The original source material was amplified, then hard limited just at the CD amplitude limit. This gives the sound more punch, but dynamic range is distorted. I corrected for this by reducing the amplitude a couple of dB, then using the Cool Edit clip restoration, then hard limiting it again to prevent the restored peaks from clipping. It's somewhat of a compromise, since it doesn't restore lost information, just estimates, but to my ear it produced a better result. It also had the advantage of matching amplitudes to the OST material. Oh, and one other thing about the OST material. It's 180 degrees out of phase with the UE material. Just invert the OST before you splice it to the UE stuff and you'll get cleaner edits. You'll do a LOT of editing at the sample level, and having the sources in phase makes it a lot easier. You'll be able to see exactly which sample to cut at. Also, consider judicious use of the full reverb filter if you want to separate out crossfaded tracks. (I hated the crossfaded "source" material in the UE). Sometimes you can create the illusion of a clean ending by reverbing the last second or two of a cut track, and letting the reverb play out into dead air for 5 to 10 seconds. This also works when splicing two tracks with different sonic characteristics (e.g. UE and TPM game). Reverb the end of the first section and mix paste the second onto the reverb. It greatly smoothes the transition. Do yourself a favor and edit everything in 32 bit. You wouldn't believe the difference it makes. Cool Edit totally rocks. Have fun!

I worked on this project about a year ago. http://jwfan.net/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&f...iewtopic&t=4696 I'm happy with how it turned out, but there were some compromises and some (still) missing sections. I'll post my final cue list later if you like. I've got it around here somewhere.

Aw, heck, I'm just going to post it. I modified EJ's cue page with my own notes to keep track of my progress. It has turned into a sort of log. Here it is, so far.

That's interesting. I found little difference between the two. I know there's some, but a little EQ took care of it - try bumping the midrange down a little on JPB. If I remember right, the JPB material was sampled at around 40k, requiring little upsampling. I had the hardest time fixing the other games, especially TPM, which were sampled at 22k. The quality difference there was truly jarring, requiring some serious dehissing. Even after filtering I can still hear the difference, but only if I'm really listening for it. The dehissing made the music go a little flat, but I found it more acceptable than the hiss. By the way, give all the JPB material a complete listen-through. There are several places where ElvisJones specified one of the other games, but the material was present in better quality in JPB. You'll need more than just tracks 4, 5 and 6. 2 and 3 also had sections that were useful. Nah, not much of a gamer. Just wanted the music! I didn't play the others either, for that matter.

I don't remember now where I found it but this looks promising: http://segu.psxemu.com/. BTW, I ended up acquiring Racer for the missing music tracks, then promptly got rid of it. Ah the sacrifices we must make.