HiRez Poll Doobie Brothers, The - QUADIO [Blu-ray Audio]

[jimfisheye]

I have to agree... I made adjustments to multiple song levels as well as certain parts within songs; that being said, once I got the levels adjusted to my liking, this is a fantastic sounding set! (Although Scheiner’s mix is still my preferred version of “Captain”)

I'll suggest that the mid scoop eq in the mastering here alters the mixes a little. The drum transients and cymbals come forward and the "meat" in the instruments gets pushed back.

I'll follow that comment with noting that a listener could tweak or remaster this and it would come back. The mid scooped mastering doesn't cross the line of genuine destruction. The original balance could be restored with nothing lost. Nothing is distorted or dynamically crushed. This could be pulled and tugged into a different eq profile with no loss. The original sound is still in there and with the pristine HD delivery it could be moved around some with no damage.

It's all fun in theory! I don't have the master tapes in front of me and thus I'm speculating. That's what I think I hear. I'm more of a "work the volume control as needed" kind of guy vs being enamored by a bright flashy loud surface layer. YMMV

 

[sjcorne]

How did you accomplish changing levels of parts within songs?

I've got "Jesus Is Just Alright" open in Audacity right now. If wanted to boost just the middle section (with the vocals in the rears) by 2 dB, I could highlight that area and go to effect->amplify. You can even boost, cut, or apply EQ to specific sections of individual channels if you feel it's necessary.

 

[ar surround]

I'll suggest that the mid scoop eq in the mastering here alters the mixes a little. The drum transients and cymbals come forward and the "meat" in the instruments gets pushed back.

I'll follow that comment with noting that a listener could tweak or remaster this and it would come back. The mid scooped mastering doesn't cross the line of genuine destruction. The original balance could be restored with nothing lost. Nothing is distorted or dynamically crushed. This could be pulled and tugged into a different eq profile with no loss. The original sound is still in there and with the pristine HD delivery it could be moved around some with no damage.

It's all fun in theory! I don't have the master tapes in front of me and thus I'm speculating. That's what I think I hear. I'm more of a "work the volume control as needed" kind of guy vs being enamored by a bright flashy loud surface layer. YMMV

So Jim, do you have any suggestions that we could try using Audacity to compensate for the mid scoop EQ? Would the compensation be a nice bell shaped curve...say with a peak of 2db at 1000Hz? Just guessing...

 

[tarkusnj]

You don't even answer other peoples questions that asked nicely.......STOP YOUR BICKERING!!!!

Anger management dude...

 

[perzon57]

My ignore list is getting longer....

 

[jimfisheye]

So Jim, do you have any suggestions that we could try using Audacity to compensate for the mid scoop EQ? Would the compensation be a nice bell shaped curve...say with a peak of 2db at 1000Hz? Just guessing...

I can't really guess off the top of my head. I noted this but I also just listened to it rather than making this one an interactive listening project and studying it. My comment stands but this is also still in nicer shape then a lot of things we listen to after all.

However the eq'ing that I disagree with was done, I'd keep any rework strictly to cuts only. (We don't need eq distortion here!) Listen and try to identify the high shelf (or band) to pull back. Same for the low end. Then makeup gain. I'm a parallel processing addict these days. I'd probably try to isolate the mid band that I believe has been reduced with crossover style linear phase eq and then mix it back into the full program. There should be headroom there to add the mids back in without reducing the level of the master as is. (Or at least close.)

 

[par4ken]

Just have to say again that I think that these mixes are fantastic just the way they are. I especially like "The Captain and Me". I would not change a thing. That being said it's nice that with modern digital techniques we can rip the disc and edit it with programs such as Audition or Audacity to suit our individual preferences or tastes. I'm a big fan of most Quad mixes but lukewarm to most modern 5.1 mixes. Often with the 5.1 mix I like to bring up the rear levels by 1-3 dB, and mix in the sub bass as well, just to suit my own taste!

 

[fredblue]

while i'm not a megafan of the "smiley face" EQ used on these, its not a major hurdle and easily overcome if i just shut off Audyssey so all the bass and treble compensation that the AVR does in my current less than ideal coronabollocks enforced listening space (open plan, tiled floors, few soft furnishings, one entire side wall's a set of french windows) gets sucked out of the room and the sound flattens down somewhat, otherwise i find the low end's a tad overcooked.

the transfers themselves are pristine, the mixes are still some of the best Quad had to offer and the set's clearly been put together with real TLC.

for all the overwhelmingly good things i feel this release represents, to me its a "10".

 

[Kevan Llama]

My copy arrived last week.
I'm in Australia and the easiest option was to order it from Warner Brothers here it cost $A130 plus $A9.95 postage and took about 10 days

I have a reasonable surround system, Oppo UDP 203, Yamaha amp, Wharfdale mains and older Jamo mains for rear speakers.

Like the Chicago Quadio (except the 2 discs that had mono instead of stereo tracks - email Dr Rhino they will replace disks 2 and 9) Doobie Brothers Quadio is excellent, being in 24/192 quad.

The quality is excellent as is the discreteness in the quad mixes and use of the rear speakers.

I really hope more Quadio 24/192 releases happen

 

[mixfo]

I don't normally purchase music by bands I don't know well, but I decided to take a gamble on this because of the outstanding reviews of this surround release on this forum. I'll be the first to admit that the music doesn't do much for me at the moment, but the sound quality and quad mix are truly outstanding.

I would normally deduct a point if the music is not entirely to my taste, but I'm making an exception in this case because these discs are so thoroughly enjoyable to listen to. I awarded a 10, and hopefully over time the music will grow on me too.

 

[musicmemorabiliashoppellc]

Hi Everyone, I am in US and ordered from Rhino on 10/5 and it still hasn’t shipped. Is this normal?

They take their time

 

[fizzywiggs41]

I know I'll be happy with my box set. Small miracle the shop even had this.

Picked it up Friday , Nov 06 (retail sales day).
Listened so far to my 2 favorite quad albums of this 4 album set ....."Vices" , and" Toulouse" .

Pleased with both and do not mind the teeny gap in Black Water on Vices, kinda brings me back to when I listened to this track many times in CD-4 .

The mixes in quad are true to their discreet counterparts , and very worthwhile for any fan of quad. I'm guessing the quad mixing is courtesy Don Landee with Templeman Supervising production. A little booklet with the credits regarding quad would be nice though. (just a little pet peeve I have)

I used to have all 4 of these in CD-4 so I know what to expect , and love the fact there is no CD-4 breakup occuring as you would have with the vinyl.

So far it's a ten and I'll post that score now , kinda doubt I'll change my mind after listening to the other 2.(Captain,and Stampede)

Thankyou Rhino and hope more quads will be considered.

 

[Ninecats]

Wow, there really is something about well made quad mixes from back in the day, this one can hardly be beat not even by todays standards. Discreetness perfection! I haven’t been through it all, the very first track I played was I Cheat the Hangman and it was exactly as magical as I imagined it.

 

[perzon57]

I waited a long time to receive this from Rhino so I received it between the Santanas.Had good time to read all the praise for it.Played all four through once,the only one I had not heard before in stereo was Vices,and for me that's the weakest musically.This set left me a little cold compared to the two Santanas.I have not played anything from the set again,gave it 8.Maybe I will revisit at a later time and find more joy in it.

 

[CRWSurround]

My Doobies Quadio set just arrived yesterday and I am not yet ready to enter a rating until I have critically listened to all four (4) discs. Toulouse Street is one of my favorite albums from "back in the day" so I could not resist listening first to a few of my favorite tracks. Last night I did listen to all of "What Were Once Vices, etc." and the sound of everything I have heard thus far is exceptional. Here is the strange thing that I want to mention. I have a 6.1 set up. I fully expected the front center channel speaker to be silent - as these are Quad recordings - and as expected nothing comes out of it. The imaging of these recordings is so well done that a center channel is not necessary - because it is already there! The odd thing is that there is plenty of output from the rear center channel!! What is that? This is Quad!! I like it - but it does not seem to fit the Quad format and this does not happen with the Quad SACD's I have. Any ideas? I will provide my score and comments after I have completed all of my listening.

Appreciate the responses from those who tried to assist me. The Rear Channel Center content actually sounded pretty good in the mix of the other four speakers - but I knew it was not supposed to be there. Quite frankly I have forgotten that there was a button on my AVR remote that enables me to toggle between ES and normal DTS - ES adds the Rear Center channel. That solved the problem and got me back to straight 4.0.

So - to finally add my review and rating. So much has been written that I am not sure I can add insight - just some personal reflections. First - this really is an outstanding set that is so reasonably priced. It gets so frustrating to find example after example of new surround mixes on DVD or BR that are ONLY available as part of some high priced box set, etc, - - when all we really want is the surround mix!! So, here we get 4 BR surround discs for $60!! Second - agree there is some uneveness across the entire set with sound levels and even "warm" vs. "shrill". But one must consider these are 4 DIFFERENT albums produced over a considerable time period - so lots of variables that will understandably prevent "total package consistency". Third - I was much less familiar with Stampede and Vices than the other two albums - so getting acquainted with these two completely from the Quadio versions has been a terrific introduction. Toulouse Street is my sentimental favorite of the set and hearing in the surround version is so satisfying. This is the warmest sound of the four albums and Stampede is the most shrill IMHO. Fourth - Following the vocals is an interesting and varied experience. The imaging of the vocals on some tracks is fascinating - as it just seems to hover in the room - and its very effective. In other cases it seems the vocals are overwhelmed by the instruments and could have been made more prominent in the final mix. Finally - as others have said - the use of the 4 channels is outstanding - especially when considering how long ago these recordings were made. All four of these albums were carefully mixed into Quad in a way that not only demonstrates what Quad/Surround can do - but more importantly it adds to and enhances the music such that you would not want to hear it any other way. Many of today's surround discs are not nearly as effective and compelling as provided in this package. Sorry I did not make specific track references to illustrate my musings above. If you have listened to the whole set - you'll know what I am referring to. So much fun to put any of these 4 albums on. Sure wish more sets like this were forthcoming. My rating is 9 but I am entering 10 because it reflects my enthusiasm for this release.

 

[Matt Wilson]

Geez, I've been locked out of this forum for months now. Something about my email address... which there was nothing wrong with, so I just re-logged in with another email address. Anyway. I went with a 10. I now have all of these albums in quad, the Mobile Fidelity SACDs, and the old Captain and Me DVD-A. I guess you could say I'm covered.

EDIT: Oops, just realized I'd already voted in this thread months ago!

 

[Ranasakawa]

Very impressive
I found these a bit louder than the Chicago box but overall the sound is stunning

 

[MrSmithers]

Might be a daft question, and apologies if it's bit answered before? But were these excellent quad mixes done by Ted Templeman? They're not listed in the Surround Engineers thread... He seems to be the Doobies go to engineer in regard to these titles...

 

[fredblue]

Might be a daft question, and apologies if it's bit answered before? But were these excellent quad mixes done by Ted Templeman? They're not listed in the Surround Engineers thread... He seems to be the Doobies go to engineer in regard to these titles...

we don't know who mixed them, the old CD-4 Quad LPs didn't have any Quad credits and there was no specific information held by Warner either.

if Templeman and Landee did remix them they should've done more Quad they were good at it!

 

[quicksrt]

I took the discs out of their plastic inner sleeves, they were already starting to fog the discs. They wiped clean with a soft cotton cloth. Nice idea, but they needed to use rice paper like Japanese imports and not a poly plastic type inner here in the Doobies boxes.