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RUSH Counterparts SACD out soon.

post #1 of 12
1/21/13 at 6:59pm
Thread Starter 
Did not see any mention of this one but here it is. Solid rock album so I am not holding my breath for a 5.1 mix....

http://www.musicdirect.com/p-111031-rush-counterparts-numbered-limited-edition-hybrid-sacd.aspx

http://www.amazon.com/Counterparts-Rush/dp/B00A93ENX8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1358822729&sr=8-1&keywords=sacd+counterparts
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post #2 of 12
1/22/13 at 9:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gaugster View Post

Did not see any mention of this one but here it is. Solid rock album so I am not holding my breath for a 5.1 mix....

http://www.musicdirect.com/p-111031-rush-counterparts-numbered-limited-edition-hybrid-sacd.aspx

http://www.amazon.com/Counterparts-Rush/dp/B00A93ENX8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1358822729&sr=8-1&keywords=sacd+counterparts

It is mentioned here:

http://www.avsforum.com/t/1438896/new-audio-fidelity-sacds-of-yes-ctte-and-rush

But, most of the chatter is related to the Yes title. Kind if a shame, since Counterparts was the last great sounding Rush record and a real return to form. But, it is also a title that is very under appreciated by a lot of fans.

I am not expecting much of an improvement on this one. The non-RM CD and even the RM sound pretty good to my ears.

And I don't think there is any hope that AF will do a 5.1 on this one. Maybe the band will at some point go 5.1 to go along with 2112, FBN, AFTK, MP, and Signals. That would be cool.

Brian
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post #3 of 12
1/23/13 at 7:13am
Thread Starter 
I agree. The original album has a full sound and the recording technology is 'relatively' new compared to 2112 or Moving Pictures.

I just love the album as that was about the era where i stared going to see Rush live.
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post #4 of 12
1/26/13 at 9:38am
I just stumbled across this. So has there been any confirmation if it's just stereo or will it have a 5.1 track? I can't seem to find any info about that. I would be interested in buying if it's 5.1.
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post #5 of 12
1/26/13 at 10:37pm
Thread Starter 
I just assumed stereo as there is no mention surround mix. Would love to be surprised.
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post #6 of 12
1/27/13 at 1:19pm
Thanks

I e-mailed AF and they said no surround mix.
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post #7 of 12
3/4/13 at 6:55pm
Thread Starter 
My copy is due to arrive tommorow weather permitting.
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post #8 of 12
3/6/13 at 6:33am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gaugster View Post

My copy is due to arrive tommorow weather permitting.

Did you get your copy? If so how does it sound compared to the standard CD?
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post #9 of 12
3/6/13 at 8:37am
Thread Starter 
Listened last night. Very good and clean. Music and voice sound more transparent but could just be imagining things.

Need to do side by side teat to know for sure. Maybe tonight if u have time.
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post #10 of 12
3/6/13 at 9:55am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Gaugster View Post

Listened last night. Very good and clean. Music and voice sound more transparent but could just be imagining things.

Need to do side by side teat to know for sure. Maybe tonight if u have time.
(Bold emphasis mine)

I have no reply to this that won't somehow get me in trouble... eek.gif

So, in order to keep as straight a face as possible...if anyone can offer comparisons to the CD release(s), that would be appreciated - I like this album, but it isn't my favorite Rush album, and I'm not sure I would pay even $15 for a mildly improved sonic experience. On the other hand, if it is comparable to going from cassette tape to CD (for example), then I might be interested.

shinksma
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post #11 of 12
3/6/13 at 7:23pm
Thread Starter 
Like many redo's, it is a different mix of the album. Mostly subtle but sometimes an extra few bars of music.

Track, SACD Length, CD Length

1, 6:03, 6:03
2, 4:47, 4:30 (Ending is extended)
3, 4:49, 4:48
4, 5:05, 4:55 (Extra few bars after 4 minutes prior to the built up and then eventual fade.)
5, 4:39, 4:37
6, 5:47, 5:47
7, 5:02, 5:02
8, 4:52, 4:52
9, 4:07, 4:05
10, 4:26, 4:27 (SACD is shorter, bum deal HA!)
11, 5:15, 5:11

Overall sound quality is improved as follows (IMO)
Instruments are more distinct and detailed. Tend to hear more detail and crunch from guitars on the more heavier lead/bass guitar tracks. Backing synthesizers are more present.
Main vocals don't seem to have changed much. Backing vocal tracks are more intelligible.
Considerably more low end bass frequency. (This could just a decoding thing, OPPO BD-95, dedicated 2-Channel outputs)

Initial loudness of the SACD is less that the CD so I had to crank it up a bit to do a fair side by side.
Edited by Gaugster - 3/6/13 at 7:56pm
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post #12 of 12
3/7/13 at 5:53am
Gaugster, thanks for the detailed comments. My reaction to your comment about relative loudness of SACD vs CD gives me hope they have allowed the natural dynamic range on the disk, rather than the loudness wars compression...

Also curious about the enhanced low end content...gotta wonder whether that is a side-effect of the hypothesized increased dynamic range, or just a conscious effort to boost the low end.

shinksma
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