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What are your most recent Surround Format purchases?

938K views 16K replies 605 participants last post by  M4BGRINGO 
#1 ·
I just got:


Eric Clapton - Slowhand

David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust


Waiting for delivery of:


NIN - downward spiral

Dylan - Blonde on Blonde

Clapton - Ocean Blvd

John Hiatt - Master of Disaster

Dire Straits - Brothers in arms

Bryan Ferry - boys and girls


I've been on a SACD buying frenzy for the past few months, but now it's finally slowing down as there don't seem to be many more albums that I want that are available.
 
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#5,122 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Djoel /forum/post/21711868


I gotta tell you I was on a Mark Knopfler listening mood over the weekend, that Sailing To Philadelphia is such a good listen, just magical and for that price you got a real bargain.

Dan,


I agree that Sailing To Philadelphia is an excellent sounding DVD-A especially the 5.1 layer. I might give it a spin today if I have the time
.


Quote:
Originally Posted by USAFChief /forum/post/21712203


I believe with this one it's simply more about the performance which is considered an all time classic. I guess if the presentation becomes too distracting, then the performance can be lost. I've only listened to my copy a couple of times, but in my case I didn't become distracted...of couse once it's in your head, hard to ignore...thanks for planting that seed Bill

Martin,


Sorry about that
. I'm going to give Moanin' another listen after I finish listening to Lee Morgan's Sidewinder SACD. I'll post what my impressions of Moanin' are if they are any different than my first listen. I agree with you that maybe one should wait to post impressions for a specific title till it has been listened to a few times.

Quote:
Originally Posted by JJHXBR /forum/post/21712581


Jay,

I have all the "Dire Straits" titles: Brother In Arms, Dire Straits Self Titled, Communique, Making Movies, & Love Over Gold. Also have Mark Knopfler - Shangri-La as well.

I recommend getting "Love Over Gold"

Jeffrey,


Definitely a great collection of Dire Straits SACDs
! I have BIA on both SACD and DualDisc as well as the S/T SHM-SACD. Love Over Gold is one of my all time favorite albums without a doubt. I just have been hesitant to buy the SHM-SACD due to some mixed reviews I have read. I just wish the prices of the SHM-SACDs were not so high
. I have Shangri-La on DVD-A and SACD, another excellent Mark Knopfler album for sure.


Bill
 
#5,124 ·
EDIT: 5150...the eagle has landed; i.e. the seed was fruitful.. You get the occasional "muttered scat", verbal sound effects in the background...more on some tracks than others. More like a whisper at times. You may want to stay clear. Doesn't bother or distract me, but now hearing it, I can see how some may be bothered by it. To me it does not take away from the performance...it has/shows feeling. There's a singer in him trying to get out.[/quote]


Martin:


Thank you for taking the time to re-listen to this. It 'seems' that OP does the scatting on the more high energy songs and 'We Get Requests' is a bit more subdued (except the last song), so perhaps it's not as bad as other discs I've heard. Also, after having acquired many Ray Brown discs over the last few weeks, I've noticed he does it as well on rare occasions. The main reason I'm interested in this disc is Ray Brown and his bass! Just listening to the MP3 :30 second clips on Amazon, Ray's bass sounds phenomenal on We Get Requests. I'm guessing the SACD brings his bass to another level?


George
 
#5,128 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by 5150zx /forum/post/21713834

EDIT: 5150...the eagle has landed; i.e. the seed was fruitful.. You get the occasional "muttered scat", verbal sound effects in the background...more on some tracks than others. More like a whisper at times. You may want to stay clear. Doesn't bother or distract me, but now hearing it, I can see how some may be bothered by it. To me it does not take away from the performance...it has/shows feeling. There's a singer in him trying to get out.

Martin:


Thank you for taking the time to re-listen to this. It 'seems' that OP does the scatting on the more high energy songs and 'We Get Requests' is a bit more subdued (except the last song), so perhaps it's not as bad as other discs I've heard. Also, after having acquired many Ray Brown discs over the last few weeks, I've noticed he does it as well on rare occasions. The main reason I'm interested in this disc is Ray Brown and his bass! Just listening to the MP3 :30 second clips on Amazon, Ray's bass sounds phenomenal on We Get Requests. I'm guessing the SACD brings his bass to another level?


George[/quote]


George...it was my pleasure to re-listen
.


You're absolutely spot on...they behave during the more subdued/quite passages and they seem to get caught up when they get rolling. Actually I was wondering if some of it was coming from Brown...coming from the same location as the bass, not just centered on piano.


By the time this was released the trio had been together 5 years and to be honest, the performance/collection of songs are terrific. I'm a brass guy and I didn't miss the horns on this one. I'm somewhat new to the jazz scene, but it's quite obvious Bay Brown is the man on bass and this remaster is well done and he's well represented. Again, the AQ is right in line with most of the AP SACD stuff with this one getting the bonus of having the MCH (L, C, R) option.


For less than $25 to the door, it's highly recommended with an * for the occasional "tourrettes" outbreak
 
#5,129 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Djoel /forum/post/21713146


Don't know Foghat, never heard of them before. Dan

Dan,


You may not remember "Foghat", but I bet you remember these tracks:


1. Fool For The City

3. Slow Ride
 
#5,130 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by MickB /forum/post/21715670


Rolling Stones- It's Only Rock and Roll

Dire Straits- Communique and Making Moves

Queen - A Day At The Races

Mick,


I hope you enjoy these, but I've made a habit to wait till the reviews flow on the SHM SACDs...really a mixed bag with these.


The early comments on the Queen releases...same mastering as the 2011 catalogue release...which are compressed. Your satisfaction may depend on your tastes/sensitivity to brightness.


The Feb 12 Dire Straits releases have been tarred and feathered as well. Those with multiple copies almost unanimously prefer the blue/orange swirl redbooks.


Hope your mileage differs, but I'm going to hold off on these and I really wanted the DS stuff to be good. I have the S/T and Love Over Gold SHMs, which I enjoy a lot.
 
#5,131 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill Mac /forum/post/21709262


I received a few SACDs yesterday with Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Moanin' among them. I have to admit on the first listen today I'm somewhat disappointed by this title. This album was recorded in 1958 and it does not have much in way of music centered between my speakers. In other words this was recorded (early stereo?) with each instrument being located in either the right or left speaker. Not much center fill which is what I like to see in the music I buy...

Got Neo:6?
 
#5,132 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by USAFChief /forum/post/21716098


Mick,


I hope you enjoy these, but I've made a habit to wait till the reviews flow on the SHM SACDs...really a mixed bag with these.


The early comments on the Queen releases...same mastering as the 2011 catalogue release...which are compressed. Your satisfaction may depend on your tastes/sensitivity to brightness.


The Feb 12 Dire Straits releases have been tarred and feathered as well. Those with multiple copies almost unanimously prefer the blue/orange swirl redbooks.


Hope your mileage differs, but I'm going to hold off on these and I really wanted the DS stuff to be good. I have the S/T and Love Over Gold SHMs, which I enjoy a lot.

As long as people buy unquestioningly, "they" will keep delivering marginally better sound quality.



INSIST on a multichannel mix as that assures that they had to go back to the multitrack masters and go "forward" from there digitally with today's gear.


Jeff
 
#5,133 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by USAFChief /forum/post/21716022


Dan,


You may not remember "Foghat", but I bet you remember these tracks:


1. Fool For The City

3. Slow Ride

Slow ride take it easy!!!


Yup,
I have listen to them back when they're use to be a Classic Rock station here in NYC..They might be one still but I stop listening to radio for almost 10 years now..Anyway I like the first link too, very bluesy!


Awesome stuff.


Thanks


Dan
 
#5,134 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by USAFChief /forum/post/21716098


Mick,


I hope you enjoy these, but I've made a habit to wait till the reviews flow on the SHM SACDs...really a mixed bag with these.


The early comments on the Queen releases...same mastering as the 2011 catalogue release...which are compressed. Your satisfaction may depend on your tastes/sensitivity to brightness.


The Feb 12 Dire Straits releases have been tarred and feathered as well. Those with multiple copies almost unanimously prefer the blue/orange swirl redbooks.


Hope your mileage differs, but I'm going to hold off on these and I really wanted the DS stuff to be good. I have the S/T and Love Over Gold SHMs, which I enjoy a lot.

I was disappointed in the Queen SACD, it is compressed. I was happy with the Dire Straits albums. I will have to take your advise and wait for the reviews next time.
 
#5,135 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill Mac /forum/post/21713409





Jeffrey,


Definitely a great collection of Dire Straits SACDs
! I have BIA on both SACD and DualDisc as well as the S/T SHM-SACD. Love Over Gold is one of my all time favorite albums without a doubt. I just have been hesitant to buy the SHM-SACD due to some mixed reviews I have read. I just wish the prices of the SHM-SACDs were not so high.


Bill


Bill,


Thanks!

You can tell I like my "Dire Straits"


I certainly can identify with your hesitation about NOT wanting to buy some of the SHM-SACD's.

The mixed reviews and steep prices are certainly some the biggest reasons for not wanting to pull the trigger. The entire SHM-SACD catalog is a real mixed bag, IMO. You have some real stand outs and others that are mediocre at best. There is no doubt in my mind that SHM could have done a better job with some of these SACD's, but I'm pretty sure it's all boils down to money.

Personally I could handle the steep SHM-SACD prices much better if these were M-CH instead of stereo, but can look past that if it's a stellar recording and mastering.

Bottom line: One needs to do there homework before forking over their hard earned cash.



Latest additions :

R.E.M. - Monster - DVD-A 5.1

R.E.M - Green - DVD-A 5.1

R.E.M. - New Adventures In Hi Fi -DVD-A 5.1

R.E.M. - Reveal - DVD-A 5.1

R.E.M - Up - DVD-A 5.1

R.E.M. - Around The Sun - DVD-A 5.1


Already have: In Time: The Best of R.E.M. 1988-2003 DVD-A 5.1

R.E.M. - Automatic For The People DVD-A 5.1

R.E.M - Out Of Time DVD-A 5.1
 
#5,136 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by SoundofMind /forum/post/21716290


Got Neo:6?

SoM,


I sure do but I prefer to listen to 2CH music through my Parasound 2100
.

Quote:
Originally Posted by pepar /forum/post/21716308


As long as people buy unquestioningly, "they" will keep delivering marginally better sound quality.



INSIST on a multichannel mix as that assures that they had to go back to the multitrack masters and go "forward" from there digitally with today's gear.


Jeff

Jeff,


I know we have debated this in the past, in a good way
. But just because a SACD has a MCH layer does not guarantee that it will be a quality mix or mastering. I have bought MCH SACDs that I did not care for the MCH mix. So just as one can buy a 2CH SACD that is not stellar in SQ the same can happen with a MCH SACD as well IMO. If one limits oneself to only MCH SACDs then they are missing some excellent 2CH SACDs again IMO
.


Bill
 
#5,137 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by JJHXBR /forum/post/21717125


I certainly can identify with your hesitation about NOT wanting to buy some of the SHM-SACD's.

The mixed reviews and steep prices are certainly some the biggest reasons for not wanting to pull the trigger. The entire SHM-SACD catalog is a real mixed bag, IMO. You have some real stand outs and others that are mediocre at best. There is no doubt in my mind that SHM could have done a better job with some of these SACD's, but I'm pretty sure it's all boils down to money.

Personally I could handle the steep SHM-SACD prices much better if these were M-CH instead of stereo, but can look past that if it's a stellar recording and mastering.

Bottom line: One needs to do there homework before forking over their hard earned cash.

Jeffrey,


I listened to the Dire Straits S/T SHM-SACD today. Then I decided to do a informal totally unscientific comparison to the West German Vertigo (orange swirl) CD that I have. After going back and forth between discs I found I preferred the WG Vertigo CD to the SHM-SACD. I found the the WG Vertigo to be smoother (not as bright) and it seemed to have better dynamics. I listened to the Love Over Gold WG Vertigo after listening to the S/T version and it sounds excellent as well. I do not have the SHM-SACD version to compare it to but I'm quite happy with these versions of both discs.


If you visit the Steve Hoffman forum do a search for "Dire Straits" in the Music Corner sub forum. You will find quite a bit of discussion about different titles and what some think are the best versions. Both Communique and Making Movies SHM-SACDs are not getting very good reviews over at the SH forum.


Bill
 
#5,138 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by pepar /forum/post/21716308


As long as people buy unquestioningly, "they" will keep delivering marginally better sound quality.



INSIST on a multichannel mix as that assures that they had to go back to the multitrack masters and go "forward" from there digitally with today's gear.


Jeff

Nice sentiment, but I don't see how we (those desiring the best possible SQ in a multi-channel format) can insist on a whole lot of anything. Where is the incentive?


We are a niche market at best, realistically I don't see anyone catering to meet our needs other than those that do it out of love for the music like Steve Wilson. The audiophile market continues to shrink, those of us posting in these types of threads are an endangered species.


As much as I would surely LIKE to agree with you, the stone cold realities aren't looking favorable to me. I've got quite a few MoFi titles (they're of course all stereo) SQ is very good, and I know you'd have to pry my Patricia Barber MoFis from my cold dead fingers to get them from me
.
 
#5,139 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill Mac /forum/post/21717367


Jeffrey,


If you visit the Steve Hoffman forum do a search for "Dire Straits" in the Music Corner sub forum. You will find quite a bit of discussion about different titles and what some think are the best versions. Both Communique and Making Movies SHM-SACDs are not getting very good reviews over at the SH forum.


Bill

Bill,


I'm a member at the SH forum and do read most of the music reviews.

Regarding the SHM-SACD's, there is definitely quite a bit of criticism.

Some of it's completely valid IMO, and some of it's just outright bashing.

Like with almost anything, it's mostly in the eyes or (in this case:ears) of the beholder.


Bottom Line: If YOU like it, that's all that really matters.
 
#5,140 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by USAFChief /forum/post/21716007


Martin:


Thank you for taking the time to re-listen to this. It 'seems' that OP does the scatting on the more high energy songs and 'We Get Requests' is a bit more subdued (except the last song), so perhaps it's not as bad as other discs I've heard. Also, after having acquired many Ray Brown discs over the last few weeks, I've noticed he does it as well on rare occasions. The main reason I'm interested in this disc is Ray Brown and his bass! Just listening to the MP3 :30 second clips on Amazon, Ray's bass sounds phenomenal on We Get Requests. I'm guessing the SACD brings his bass to another level?


George

George...it was my pleasure to re-listen
.


You're absolutely spot on...they behave during the more subdued/quite passages and they seem to get caught up when they get rolling. Actually I was wondering if some of it was coming from Brown...coming from the same location as the bass, not just centered on piano.


By the time this was released the trio had been together 5 years and to be honest, the performance/collection of songs are terrific. I'm a brass guy and I didn't miss the horns on this one. I'm somewhat new to the jazz scene, but it's quite obvious Bay Brown is the man on bass and this remaster is well done and he's well represented. Again, the AQ is right in line with most of the AP SACD stuff with this one getting the bonus of having the MCH (L, C, R) option.


For less than $25 to the door, it's highly recommended with an * for the occasional "tourrettes" outbreak
[/quote]


Martin:


On that recommendation, me thinks it's time to add another SACD to my collection!
 
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