The short story:
You can now own high resolution versions of most of our catalog in stereo 24 bit WAV files and higher resolution 256kbps MP3s or in 24 bit stereo and surround sound on standard DVDs.

And we're giving away a free sampler so you can see if hi-rez is right for you (trust us - it is!)


The long story:
We at Lowbudget have all been listening to our masters in 24-bit digital audio for quite a while now. By the time they make it to our blessed iPods, the 128 kbps MP3s have lost a great deal of detail. It's the difference between seeing a Sargeant painting at the MFA closeup and seeing a print of it in the Sunday paper.

The CD versions sound much better, of course. But even then, CDs contain only 16-bit audio, which was the absolute minimum called for in the late seventies when Sony and Phillips were conducting listener audio tests for the upcoming CD standards. People seemed to no longer notice the noise floor or graininess at 16 bits.

But that was in 1979; people have gotten used to digital audio and most listeners can hear when there's something wrong - and especially when something's right, like listening to music presented in higher sampling rates and bit depths. Audiophiles for years have been touting the praises of SACDs and DVD-audio discs, and they've recently been purchasing high-resolution downloads which can be played from a computer (or even a hard drive) connected to your stereo or home theater system. (We've been buying downloads from hdtracks.com and highly recommend them.)

We starting burning some of these hdtracks to DVDs to listen to them conveniently and then got the idea - wouldn't it be great to hear the Lowbudget Records catalog on these discs? The DVD standard includes 24-bit stereo PCM audio, just like our masters, as well as 24-bit DTS surround-sound. After we pulled out one set of multitracks from an earlier release, we were hooked. We've remastered 17 titles so far with more to come.



What you need to play hi-resolution music:
A DVD or Blu Ray player, hooked up to your stereo. That's all. Really. And if your player's not connected to your stereo, shame on you! Your movies and shows sound killer over a decent system! Go do it right now! We'll wait....

... ah, excellent, you're back! To continue, all DVD players are required to be able to play 24-bit stereo PCM tracks, so you don't need any special equipment. Just choose "24-bit stereo PCM" on the DVD menu and the music will start. if you want to hear the surround-sound audio on the DVD, you'll need a surround-sound system. Again, well worth it - you only go around life once, you know. All DVD players will play the Dolby Digital surround-sound audio on these discs; most DVD players will play the much higher-quality DTS surround sound audio, which we recommend.

How can I be sure it'll work? Get the FREE sampler! you can download it here or you can have us send you a physical disc for $3.99 to cover shipping and handling.

What you're buying when you buy hi-rez from us:
You can purchase a DVD directly from us; just click on the "buy a DVD-R" button and you'll be taken to Paypal to complete the purchase.

You can also purchase a download from us. The download includes the following in one .zip file:

- graphics in the .pdf format
- 256mps MP3s of the album for your portable music player
-24-bit 48 kHz stereo WAV files of the album, suitable for playing back in a computer, a standalone DAC or other file player such as a DVD player or home theater setup with a USB port.

To purchase any of our albums as downloads, just click on the "buy the download" button and you can pay via paypal. You'll then be directed to a page where you can download your package immediately. You'll also be sent an email with the link in case you want to download it later; please note that the link will expire in 48 hours.