HiRez Poll Knopfler, Mark - ONE DEEP RIVER [Blu-ray Audio (Dolby Atmos)]

[himey]

There's an old adage in politics: "if you're explaining, you're losing" that I think applies here.

If some like the mix and find it satisfying and that it matches the music? That's fine. But if we are at the point of having to reach to graphs and screenshots and detailed explanations for why there is a lack of discreetness or use of the rears? That doesn't make the listening experience any better for those who don't enjoy it.

Sure. It may all have been intentional to create this exact result. So are live mixes with only audience and a bit of reverb in the rears. I get that this was probably exactly what the engineer wanted. Just don't call something "surround" or "immersive" when it really isn't. That's gonna piss a lot of people off.

Stuff will grow on you if you give it a chance, and this one certainly does. One listen with expectations doesn't do this one justice. It is very immersive but not very active. The dynamics are immersive as @LuvMyQuad suggested. Makes the 2 channel sound puny.

 

[AYanguas]

There's an old adage in politics: "if you're explaining, you're losing" that I think applies here.

If some like the mix and find it satisfying and that it matches the music? That's fine. But if we are at the point of having to reach to graphs and screenshots and detailed explanations for why there is a lack of discreetness or use of the rears? That doesn't make the listening experience any better for those who don't enjoy it.

Sure. It may all have been intentional to create this exact result. So are live mixes with only audience and a bit of reverb in the rears. I get that this was probably exactly what the engineer wanted. Just don't call something "surround" or "immersive" when it really isn't. That's gonna piss a lot of people off.

I understand your point of view. Should everything that is mixed in Atmos be called "immersive"?

What happens with this mix and some others is that I had a great expectation about how good it was going to sound and then, when I listen to it, I am greatly disappointed.

But I don't stop there and I wonder, how is this possible? What kind of mix have they made?

As a hobby, in addition to listening to music, I like to look at the VUMeters and take the waveforms of each channel to try to “understand” what mixing concept the mixing engineer wanted to create.

After this exercise of “analysis” of the mix, sometimes I come to understand something more about the concept of “mix” and I come to appreciate it more than I had felt on the first listen.

Then, if communicating the result of my “analysis” can help someone appreciate it more, it will be something I have achieved. And if not, I haven't lost anything. I don’t want to “sell” anything, so I feel the ‘old adage in politics” don’t apply to me. I don't know if anyone else will lose anything.


I remember another very big disappointment of mine, the Atmos mix of the Riverside ID.Entity album. Much worse than Mark Knopfler's when it comes to the supposedly “immersive” mix.

 

[SomethingAnything]

I understand your point of view. Should everything that is mixed in Atmos be called "immersive"?

What happens with this mix and some others is that I had a great expectation about how good it was going to sound and then, when I listen to it, I am greatly disappointed.

But I don't stop there and I wonder, how is this possible? What kind of mix have they made?

As a hobby, in addition to listening to music, I like to look at the VUMeters and take the waveforms of each channel to try to “understand” what mixing concept the mixing engineer wanted to create.

After this exercise of “analysis” of the mix, sometimes I come to understand something more about the concept of “mix” and I come to appreciate it more than I had felt on the first listen.

Then, if communicating the result of my “analysis” can help someone appreciate it more, it will be something I have achieved. And if not, I haven't lost anything. I don’t want to “sell” anything, so I feel the ‘old adage in politics” don’t apply to me. I don't know if anyone else will lose anything.


I remember another very big disappointment of mine, the Atmos mix of the Riverside ID.Entity album. Much worse than Mark Knopfler's when it comes to the supposedly “immersive” mix.

Two interesting and different perspectives on how we view an audio experience and then ultimately review it.

 

[Sal1950]

Unfortunate, it could have been so much better.
For me the Atmos mix misses the mark by not being discreet
enough. Songs are so-so, and it just doesn't really excite in any way.
Sorry Mark, an 8 from me.

 

[bluelightning]

Stuff will grow on you if you give it a chance, and this one certainly does. One listen with expectations doesn't do this one justice. It is very immersive but not very active. The dynamics are immersive as @LuvMyQuad suggested. Makes the 2 channel sound puny.

I am sorry, but I don't have the time to let stuff "grow on me". There is too much damn great music to listen and enjoy and not enough time as is. Besides, I have found over the years that if I dont like it the first time, I wont like after the 3rd or fifth or Nth listen either. Although, why would I want to waste my time listening to something I didnt like the first time to begin with? IMHO, this mix is no better than what DSU or Auro 3D can do and the music, to me, epitomizes the definition of somnolescent music.Of course, everyone's opinion will vary.

To me, our rating system is too heavily skewed towards the top, with older artists or recordings generally skewing higher. I think an average should be a 5. By that standard, this should be probably be a 2 or 3. Soporiferous music, barely existent (or poor excuse for) surround ( in all fairness not much to play with anyway).

 

[himey]

I am sorry, but I don't have the time to let stuff "grow on me". There is too much damn great music to listen and enjoy and not enough time as is. Besides, I have found over the years that if I dont like it the first time, I wont like after the 3rd or fifth or Nth listen either. Although, why would I want to waste my time listening to something I didnt like the first time to begin with? IMHO, this mix is no better than what DSU or Auro 3D can do and the music, to me, epitomizes the definition of somnolescent music.Of course, everyone's opinion will vary.

To me, our rating system is too heavily skewed towards the top, with older artists or recordings generally skewing higher. I think an average should be a 5. By that standard, this should be probably be a 2 or 3. Soporiferous music, barely existent (or poor excuse for) surround ( in all fairness not much to play with anyway).

I listened to a few songs tonight and I like it better each time, including the mix. Your loss.

 

[Thonolan]

I am sorry, but I don't have the time to let stuff "grow on me". There is too much damn great music to listen and enjoy and not enough time as is. Besides, I have found over the years that if I dont like it the first time, I wont like after the 3rd or fifth or Nth listen either. Although, why would I want to waste my time listening to something I didnt like the first time to begin with?

Interesting. Everyone is different and I've learned not to judge any album after the 1st listen (as long as it's in a genre I know I can potentially enjoy) and wait for a minimum of 3, preferably 4 listens in order to definitely say whether I like it or not. Among my 5 favorite albums of all time, I only enjoyed one of them the first time.

I just heard this album for the first time (in stereo) and my impression was positive. I didn't find it boring at all and thought it should please anyone who appreciates Knopfler's style. Again, subsequent spins can change it a lot for me and that can be for the good or for the bad, so let's see.

 

[Thonolan]

Unfortunate, it could have been so much better.
For me the Atmos mix misses the mark by not being discreet
enough. Songs are so-so, and it just doesn't really excite in any way.
Sorry Mark, an 8 from me.

8 is actually a really good rating, isn't it? Judging by what you wrote above, I thought you were going to say 5 or 6.

At least, I personally consider an 8 means something is just a tiny step below being excellent.

 

[JediJoker]

8 is actually a really good rating, isn't it? Judging by what you wrote above, I thought you were going to say 5 or 6.

At least, I personally consider an 8 means something is just a tiny step below being excellent.

An 8 should be considered high praise. Many needlessly inflate their ratings, and/or don't follow the rating guidelines. It's one of the most frustrating aspects of this forum.

 

[AYanguas]

Interesting. Everyone is different and I've learned not to judge any album after the 1st listen (as long as it's in a genre I know I can potentially enjoy) and wait for a minimum of 3, preferably 4 listens in order to definitely say whether I like it or not. Among my 5 favorite albums of all time, I only enjoyed one of them the first time.

I just heard this album for the first time (in stereo) and my impression was positive. I didn't find it boring at all and thought it should please anyone who appreciates Knopfler's style. Again, subsequent spins can change it a lot for me and that can be for the good or for the bad, so let's see.

I think people that come from 70's Prog Rock, like me, and other similar people that are used to listening to an album several times before judging it, may discover new things that didn't liked before or went unnoticed. Of course there is a limit that we cannot cross.

But not everyone is the same, and leaving aside that there is much more music waiting to be heard, not everyone has the patience or spirit to listen several times trying to discover new things.

The ways in which each one enjoys are different and all valid.

You may also have to take into account that the way people say something to you can make you defensive.
You may not perceive "Stuff will grow on you if you give it a chance,..." in the same way as "Stuff has grown on me, after giving it a chance,..."

 

[AYanguas]

An 8 should be considered high praise. Many needlessly inflate their ratings, and/or don't follow the rating guidelines. It's one of the most frustrating aspects of this forum.

May be, as this is my case, people tend to vote to the albums/artists they like. That's why the votes rate is generally high.
I usually don't vote for albums I dont like or listen only once.

I barely pay attention to the results of the votes, but rather the posts with enough analysis/review content to get a better idea.

 

[surroundsoundman]

The Atmos mix is a bit sedate, but IMHO it flows perfectly with this type of music. It has a presence as if you were in the room listening to a live performance. It is actually a very good Album by a person who is coming to terms with his experience and his age.

 

[splinter7]

The album can’t overcome the absence of Chuck Ainlay’s mixing talents.