HiRez Poll Beatles, The - LET IT BE [Blu-Ray Audio (Dolby Atmos)]

[key_wiz]

Preston's parts and the strings are pretty much always in the rears, but guitar panning does seem to vary a bit throughout the album. On "Get Back", I hear the rhythm guitar mostly through right rear and the lead maybe 75% in left front. Then on "I Me Mine", the lead fills during the chorus come entirely from the left rear and the acoustic is floating somewhere between the right channels.

I wonder if that’s at least partly because it’s John playing the leads on “Get Back” and George the rhythm?

and of course “I Me Mine” was recorded 14 months later with John not present. No surprise that one would have a different mix.

 

[Ephi82]

But sounds can be anchored to individual speakers, i.e heights on one side, or front heights.

Thats certainly true,,,,,,

 

[Ephi82]

no, actually that makes perfect sense. Thanks. On “Let It Be” in 5.1, I’m hearing the one guitar pretty solidly in right front and the electric piano pretty solidly from left rear. In Atmos they sound somewhat more in the middle of the space. Correct?

so where would I be hearing Billy’s piano if I had an Atmos setup?

Billy’s piano “appears” in the left rear space of the room, but it doesn’t sound like the pianos sound is coming directly out of the left rear surround speaker. Does that make any sense?

 

[key_wiz]

Billy’s piano “appears” in the left rear space of the room, but it doesn’t sound like the pianos sound is coming directly out of the left rear surround speaker. Does that make any sense?

Yes. Makes perfect sense. Thank you.

 

[Elad]

What to vote? 9? 10? One after 909? That's like... 910?
Life in Surround Review

now that is funny

 

[MidiMagic]

Billy’s piano “appears” in the left rear space of the room, but it doesn’t sound like the pianos sound is coming directly out of the left rear surround speaker. Does that make any sense?

That's what true quad is all about. We want a musical space, not just puddles of sound at the speakers.

 

[AYanguas]

But sounds can be anchored to individual speakers, i.e heights on one side, or front heights.

Yes, but I think this can reduce the potential of the format.

Some "fixed print" to 7.1.4 of some Disney film releases and other musical releases make unusable some speakers that people may have installed, like Top Middles or, in my case, the Wides (9.1.4).

First quick listen to "Let It Be" in Atmos shows me that the Wides are completely unused. I do enjoy some other Atmos albums with a great wide sound stage at the front (The Gordian Knot from Big Phat Band for instance), but this seems not to be the case for this Atmos "Let It Be".

Either way, this is a great mix improvement over the original album, even that I'm not a big Beatles fan, but a Surround-3D fan. (I have a friend, fully Beatles fan, that says that the best Beatles songs work best in "mono" ).

 

[BillSamm1]

Wonderful set, though I'm a bit annoyed at the continued inclusion of the throwaway tracks Maggie May and Dig It, and the absence of Don't Let Me Down on the album proper. Would also have been fun to have "You Know My Name..." included somewhere, as it was the B side of the Let It Be single. That aside, it's terrific overall, and the book is top shelf. Now I want a Blu-Ray of the whole 6 hour Jackson film.

 

[ar surround]

It's an 8 from me. The surround mix is definitely better than the John Lennon 5.1 mixes and better than the all things must pass. However the music is a band losing its soul and the passion isn't there. I believe this is probably the best surround mix possible for these songs.

You're breaking my heart Ranasakawa.

 

[Strilo]

This is the first Beatles SDE release where I just cannot give near full scores on everything. I voted a 7.

Surround Mix: 8 (it's very good, even great on some songs, but it's no Abbey Road mix)
Packaging: 9 (I love the size, the book and the tiny disc covers that look just like vinyl, especially the "Get Back" one.
Content: 5 (I just can't stand the Spector orchestra/choir overdubs. I can't listen to them, so I wind up skipping half the album, thus half the points.)

 

[Hamilton59]

Ahh, the good ole Beatles‘ Let It Be in Surround Sound! Here we lucky people are again getting to listen to some of the best music ever made … and now in surround! What a dream come true.

I think this is a fantastic surround mix of Let It Be. The feel of the original album has been retained, but now mixed into surround. A Perfect 10.

 

[califcab]

I gave it a 10 for a great surround mix, being the best Let it Be has ever sounded, and including a great selection of extras including the original Glyn Johns mix. It is very disappointing that they left Don't Let Me Down out of the surround mix just because Phil Spector inexplicably left it off his version of the album. There is a version on the Beatles 1+ Blu-Ray but would love to have it here.

 

[hipp]

Love the 5.1 mix. Warmer than the other Beatles remixes. probably the original recordings. Vocals well centred. The surround material is really well done,
and the cymbals are the crispest I’ve heard on these remixes.
Prefer the music on the other albums. However a solid 10.

 

[admsh]

This is the first Beatles SDE release where I just cannot give near full scores on everything. I voted a 7.

Surround Mix: 8 (it's very good, even great on some songs, but it's no Abbey Road mix)
Packaging: 9 (I love the size, the book and the tiny disc covers that look just like vinyl, especially the "Get Back" one.
Content: 5 (I just can't stand the Spector orchestra/choir overdubs. I can't listen to them, so I wind up skipping half the album, thus half the points.)

Fascinating how divisive this album is. Naked sounds totally unfinished to me. Love almost everything Spector did with this material, including Long and Winding Road. Paul's original idea aside, none of these songs sound like the Beatles' early days with the exception of 909, and really lend themselves to a more bombastic sound and production in my view. If Don't Let Me Down was included, it would be a masterpiece on par with all the other albums. My one issue with it used to be that it sounded muddy and messy, and that's now resolved.

Just read a very accurate review that stated that "a sub-standard Beatles record is better than almost any other group's best work", which is spot on. Makes me wonder if the divisiveness among fans here has more to do with a purist approach than the actual material. I'm thoroughly enjoying this and feel like the new mix really breathes new life into this album, but I do get the argument.

 

[MidiMagic]

Yes, but I think this can reduce the potential of the format.

Some "fixed print" to 7.1.4 of some Disney film releases and other musical releases make unusable some speakers that people may have installed, like Top Middles or, in my case, the Wides (9.1.4).

First quick listen to "Let It Be" in Atmos shows me that the Wides are completely unused. I do enjoy some other Atmos albums with a great wide sound stage at the front (The Gordian Knot from Big Phat Band for instance), but this seems not to be the case for this Atmos "Let It Be".

Either way, this is a great mix improvement over the original album, even that I'm not a big Beatles fan, but a Surround-3D fan. (I have a friend, fully Beatles fan, that says that the best Beatles songs work best in "mono" ).

All of the Beatles albums before Revolver sound better in mono because the stereo was all left and all right, with no other panning.

 

[MidiMagic]

Yes, but I think this can reduce the potential of the format.

Some "fixed print" to 7.1.4 of some Disney film releases and other musical releases make unusable some speakers that people may have installed, like Top Middles or, in my case, the Wides (9.1.4).

First quick listen to "Let It Be" in Atmos shows me that the Wides are completely unused. I do enjoy some other Atmos albums with a great wide sound stage at the front (The Gordian Knot from Big Phat Band for instance), but this seems not to be the case for this Atmos "Let It Be".

Either way, this is a great mix improvement over the original album, even that I'm not a big Beatles fan, but a Surround-3D fan. (I have a friend, fully Beatles fan, that says that the best Beatles songs work best in "mono" ).

That's what I like about matrix. Adding speakers just adds more decode angles. No wacky incompatibilities.

You put on the recording, and it plays.

 

[jimfisheye]

This album...
Timeless songs no matter what else. I don't like the Muzak style Spector overdubs. I really hate what he did to Across the Universe. Crude stuff next to the finesse the Martin and Co team had. The stereo album sounded more the fidelity of Revolver than in between the White album and Abbey Road. Which is still pretty darn good! In hindsight I think this is one of the best mixes Spector ever did. Not to give him props. What I'm saying is there's so much room for improvement or alternate mixes like what "Naked" tried to do. I still listen to the 1st two tracks off the vinyl often enough. There's still a lot to like and a lot of fidelity. It's only his mix of Universe I skip exclusively.

Listened to some of the 5.1 remix. I hear what actually sounds like tape drags or stretches or something. The fidelity is poor in general like the Naked release. Poor next to the original Spector mixes and that's an accomplishment! Or the tapes are just not there anymore which is probably what's going on. This release is silly. All the same Spector elements and moves are in this. Butchering Across the Universe the same way and everything.

The Glyn Johns mixes sound brightened and fatiguing. I liked the troubled minidisc "Nagra reels" better at first glance. At 2nd glance... well, the minidisc copies are a generational mess with severe loss! The mastering faux pas with the bright mid scooped sound could be eq'd and these new copies would be in so much better shape. Still not good to notice better midrange elements on a bootleg copy vs the official release.

Trying to listen past the fidelity to the mix. It feels like random isolated bits that happened to be possible to isolate in the surrounds more than something really intentional. That shouldn't be bad in itself. The stereo is goofy and blunt too but still sounds intentional. There's some effort in this and the mix isn't just some whack job like some weird remixes. The original Spector mix is more immersive and high fidelity to me though. There was so much room for doing stuff here. Of course the original had to be presented. Just seems like a big missed opportunity. Maybe the tapes are seriously not there anymore. The waveforms don't look like an upmix... The fronts sure look bricked wall limited a little though. Probably no more than 6db. Not totally flattened and honestly, probably transparent sounding and just a little louder. This is a little bright but not like the Nagra reels tracks.

 

[marcb]

All of the Beatles albums before Revolver sound better in mono because the stereo was all left and all right, with no panning.

It is incorrect everything before Revolver was all left and right. A Hard Day’s Night, Beatles For Sale and Help were not mixed all left and right.

[And FWIW all left and right is not “no panning”. If anything, summing the twin tracks to mono for the first two LPs would be no panning...]

And I disagree that all of the albums before Revolver sound better in mono, but that’s subjective. Beatles For Sale, for starters, is much better in stereo than mono, IMO.

 

[admsh]

All of the Beatles albums before Revolver sound better in mono because the stereo was all left and all right, with no panning.

The stereo mixes of Hard Day's Night, Beatles for Sale and Help are superior to the mono. But regardless, the nuances you can hear in the stereo mixes of all albums make them a better listen IMHO.

 

[sbrom]

This is the first Beatles SDE release where I just cannot give near full scores on everything. I voted a 7.
…

Apologies for my naïvete, what is SDE?