DVD/DTS Poll Bowie, David - Young Americans [DTS/DD DVD]

[neil wilkes]

Please post your thoughts, comments & observations on this release.
PCM Stereo 24/48
Dolby Digital 24/48
DTS 24/96

 

[rusinurbe]

Ill not vote yet as i still have not had time to really crank this up yet.

What i have heard is great much better than i expected from this period (plastic soul) David Bowie.

There is some very good uses of the surround speakers and teh misic is not that bad either.

Only wish it had been a full DVDA release.

 

[neil wilkes]

I got this one today, and have run through it all 3 times, so feel ready to vote.
It gets an 8 from me, and was getting close to a 10.
Dropped Marks?
Lose 2 points for not being a DVD-A, and making it a complete PAIN to navigate without using a monitor:
Load disc.
Wait until Audio starts, press "Down" button 3 times, Enter.
Press "Down" button as follows:
None & Enter - LPCM Stereo
Once & Enter - DD 5.1
Twice & Enter - DTS 24/96 5.1
Wait - then press ENTER again to start playback.
It nearly got a point back again for including the seriously funny Dick Cavett Show interview - once you have seen this one you'll know what I mean! Basically, this is what happens if you ram too much Peruvian Marching Powder up yer Schnozz! But, because they have - for some inexplicable reason - dropped the best of the 3 tracks played that show (footstompin') it doesn't get the mark back again.
Moans out of the way - lets get to the good points.
Finally in the grumpiness department, if you have a slow DTS decoder, then you will lose the drums at the start of "Young Americans" as the recommended 2 seconds Audioblack is just not there. So a slow decoder will lose you music.

This is a seriously good mix. Seriously good.
When you consider that this was recorded way back in '74 in a 6 week period at the legendary Sigma Sound in New York during a break mid-tour in the Diamond Dogs period, it stands up really well.
Another worry - fortunately unfounded - was the new mix may have been either a disappointment, or else just not worked. After all, we all know & love these songs.
Visconti has done a seriously good job. He's kept the period feel perfectly & resisted the temptation to pump up the low end & overcompress to "modern" standards. It still sounds 70's, but in a good way.
Some great use of old gags like reverse reverb, and the BV's are more often than not in the rears with Bowie's vocals across all 3 front channels & not isolated in the centre.
Talking of the BV's, this album was the first break for the now legendary Luther Vandross. Look out for him & Robin Clark in the Dick Cavett footage too. Wow - dig those flares!

There is some wonderful stuff here (Tablas in the right rear on the title track, for example) that must have been either left off the stereo original, or else buried so deeply they couldn't really be heard properly. This is a pattern across every song - you constantly keep hearing sections & parts that you had no idea even existed. I'm reminded very much of the remix into 5.1 of "Hotel California" in this respect.

And to end this, all I can do is echo Rusinurbe's comment - Shame it's not a DVD-A. A real shame.
Maybe it will be later - could be a licensing issue for all we know that stopped it.

All in all, highly recommended.
Now - bring on Diamond Dogs.

 

[Manmc]

" Only wish it had been a full DVDA release "

Couldn't agree more. When Neil lists all the gremlins like that it reminds of the upcoming Porcupine tree release too. Its always disappointing when some of the music is thrown away.

However, what's left does sound very good IMO . Always loved this album. It was a real grower and has never sounded better than this. I gave it a 9. Maybe I'll have to start deducting 2 for not being Dvd-A too


~M~

 

[JonUrban]

Sounds like a great "make your own DVD-A" project.

 

[rusinurbe]

It gets better and better with every listen. I am exceedingly happy with this in every respect apart from one its not a DVDA.

I shall follow Neils example and deduct 2 points for non DVDA everything else fantastic.

 

[zabble]

I just listened to this last night for the first time. Let me preface this by saying that I never owned this album in any form. When it first came out, my sister bought the 8-track version and played it over and over. So my jump in sonics from stereo 8-track tape to 5.1 dts was huge. Oddly, I didn't remember a couple of the songs (maybe my sister didn't like them and switched to one of the other three programs whenever these songs came on...?).

Great mix (I could only listen at a low volume last night, but I know what my system sounds like playing a good mix at this volume). Interesting use of the center speaker for the title track; it seems like it is dedicated to the vocal slapback effect, but it works.

I should stop here as I only heard it once and will refrain from voting until I hear it a few more times. I'm sure I will be deducting points for reasons listed by others, but from what I heard, I was impressed mix-wise. I do find it irritating when you put in the disc, and it plays a portion of one of the songs automatically (as is the case with the Talking Heads discs). I too would prefer to not have to turn on the TV monitor if at all possible.

Ditto on the Dick Cavett Show interview Neil, though I've only heard of it referred to as "Bolivian" Marching Powder. Whichever, there's no doubt Bowie partook in it. It's especially noticeable at the very beginning of the interview. Lots of nose fidgeting and sniffing.

Incidentally, my version from CD WOW is the PAL version. My Pioneer DV-563A plays everything without a hitch. No problem with the picture quality on the video portion whatsoever.

 

[neil wilkes]

I do find it irritating when you put in the disc, and it plays a portion of one of the songs automatically (as is the case with the Talking Heads discs). I too would prefer to not have to turn on the TV monitor if at all possible.

Truly! Music in Menus should be banned.
There is a way to do this without the monitor although I had to work it out with a monitor. One of the great things about DVD-A (apart from the lossless audio,. of course) is the easy way you can always access directly without needing a screen.
Anyway, this is how to access what you need without the monitor.

Load Disc.
Wait for "Young Americans" to start apparently playing (This is the menu)
Press "Down" arrow on remote 3 times, then "Enter".
Press Down arrow twice & Enter for DTS, Once & Enter for DD
When "Young Americans" starts up again (We're then back on the main menu) Press ENTER & you have it.
(The confirmation is the reverb on those drums)

This just gets better ever time I hear it.
A DVD-A would without a doubt have been a Perfect 10.

 

[filper]

Now - bring on Diamond Dogs.

Amen.

 

[cupboy]

Not a SACD as advertised. I am returning the waste of a piece of plastic.

 

[cupboy]

What are the specs for the LPCM track on the DVD? It must be something better than 16bit/48khz since my old Wadia unit won't recognize it.

 

[neil wilkes]

What are the specs for the LPCM track on the DVD? It must be something better than 16bit/48khz since my old Wadia unit won't recognize it.

It's 24/48 for the LPCM.
As far as "Waste of Plastic" goes, I would personally disagree - but given that advert states SACD, especially from Amazon, I would be well aggrieved as well. Strange - when I bought mine from Amazon, it stated it was - correctly - CD/DVD package.

 

[zabble]

Listening to the 5.1 mix of "Fame", I just noticed near the end of the song after Bowie does his repeated singing of the word "fame" descending from high to low, there should be one more "fame" sung before the words "What's your name?". This last "fame" is missing. I wonder what happened?

 

[Ge Someone]

I shall follow Neils example and deduct 2 points for non DVDA everything else fantastic.

Come on guys, you're voting in the DVD-V section here
I think you should only deduct points if it wouldn't sound as good as DVD-A . If it is DTS with high bit rate (1536kps) the difference could be a very small. So when it's good ... it's good.
BTW the -2 points from Neil was also because of sub-optimal navigation.

Just my thought, feel free to vote like you feel free to.

 

[daved64]

Listening to the 5.1 mix of "Fame", I just noticed near the end of the song after Bowie does his repeated singing of the word "fame" descending from high to low, there should be one more "fame" sung before the words "What's your name?". This last "fame" is missing. I wonder what happened?

No way! That's Lennon doing that! It's not there?

 

[bugdaddy]

I was a High School senior when this album came out, and I remember hating Bowie with a passion for “going disco” (and hating my girlfriend’s little sister for playing it every time I came over just to tick me off). As such, I didn’t really start appreciating it until the mid-80’s after “Let’s Dance” caused me to go back and give this one another shot. Been a fan ever since.

I think the material’s stood the test of time quite well, and still easily passes the “will it cause the wife to get up and dance” test. The surround mix is a solid winner; active and discreet just the way I like it. Nice job, Tony Visconti! The three bonus tracks, added to CD around fifteen years ago I think, are also given surround treatment. The detailed liner notes and chronology round out the package nicely.

The Cavett interview/performance is hereby one of all-time favorite special features. It’s such a great time capsule (check out the male backup singer in the brown jumpsuit - - who dressed that guy? ). Bowie’s obvious case of the “sniffles” is a riot; so utterly symptomatic of the rock-star-living-in-excess 70’s. Even at that, I thought he comes across well in the interview as intelligent and thoughtful.

Given a choice, I certainly would’ve preferred hi-rez like everyone else, but I think of it like last year’s Fly Like An Eagle - - the sound is pretty darn good as is. And considering that until recently I was unsure this was going to be a multichannel release at all, I prefer to be glad for what it is, rather than dwell on what it isn’t.

P.S. Wondering why this poll is in the video section. Isn’t this similar in format to the Bjork and Steve Miller discs from last year found in the DTS &DD Surround Spotlight Discs section?

 

[bugdaddy]

Listening to the 5.1 mix of "Fame", I just noticed near the end of the song after Bowie does his repeated singing of the word "fame" descending from high to low, there should be one more "fame" sung before the words "What's your name?". This last "fame" is missing. I wonder what happened?

good catch zabble. that really is a glaring a omission when compared with the cd. wonder if tony visconti is still answering questions over at sh.

 

[sacd user]

This release shows that DTS can deliver good sound, I just wonder how many times I will execute the start procedure. But the video is very good to remind you of the seventies. 8 from me.

 

[cupboy]

If it is DTS with high bit rate (1536kps) the difference could be a very small.

How is the bit rate determined?

 

[daved64]

This release shows that DTS can deliver good sound, I just wonder how many times I will execute the start procedure. But the video is very good to remind you of the seventies. 8 from me.

Many releases show that DTS can be good. The Kraftwerk DVD in DTS is stunning.