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JAY'S MASTER FORMAT PRIMER
Of course masters need to be 44.1 kHz 16-bit if they are for CD. If it's for DVD-V, it's likely 48k, but can be 96, or even AC-3 for Dolby Digital. If it's a full DVD authoring job, then it's DLT (Digital Linear Tape). SACD can be a data file or an MO disc from a Genex. Anyway, I assume CD is the topic at hand, so...
Most common: red book compatible CDR. (Note "red book compatible" technically, because as a recordable CD, it starts life as an orange book disc, and the "finishing up" puts a TOC on there so it is compatible with red book players).
Next most common: DDPi which is a Disc Description Protocol image file set typically on a Yellow Book CD-ROM. DDP is a format from DCA, Doug Carson & Assoc., and putting the image set on yellow book and calling it DDPi was originally initiated by Universal Music Group. DDP sets can also be put on other data formats such as DVD-R or sent via ftp directly to the plant. There are DDP 1.0 and 2.0 specs for CD, and even a DDP 2.1 spec for DVD masters. DP 3.0 is for HD-DVDs, and they plan a DDP for blu-ray discs as well.
Old formats not in use anymore:
PMCD: even though some still call a red book compatible CD-R a PMCD when used as a master, it really is not. PMCD was a proprietary format from Sony and Sonic Solutions that actually included a little data file of the PQ information (subcode containing start ID, track pause, ISRC, UPC, TOC, emphasis, and copy prohibit status). At the time, the plant couldn't extract accurate PQ codes from a disc, so the little PQ file allowed a CD-R to be used as a master. The format is dead now. The drives and software to create true PMCDs no longer exist (except in legacy systems).
DDP's original media format was 8mm exabyte tape. The only time you'll see that anymore is if you are doing a compilation record and somebody sends you an old master. These drives are hard to find and maintain now, and DDP on Exabyte is essentially dead as well.
PCM-1630 and other flavors like PCM 1610 were the original CD master format with digital audio encoded to 3/4" Umatic video tape. As above, it's now a dead format with difficult to find and maintain machines and likely only to be seen when doing old compilations.
PCM-9000 was Sony's intended replacement for 1630, but it came at a time when DCC (Doug Carson & Associates) had introduced both equipment that allowed the plant to extract everything needed directly from a red book CD-R to use as a master, and DDP was gaining ground. PCM-9000 was too expensive by comparison and was essentially still-born. It recorded to MO (Magneto Optical) discs and supported 44.1 and 48k sample rates at 16, 20, and 24 bits. As above, we sometimes see PCM-9000 discs from archives when doing compilation, career retrospective, and and greatest hits albums.
DAT: Oh my goodness. I can't believe people used to use this as a master. There was even gear that allowed you to read the start IDs from the DAT tape over SPDIF and write them to a CDR to use for PQ codes. Yikes. Bad news.
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