Listening to Now In SACD Stereo (or Mono)

[bmoura]

When the word gets out about this SACD, I think Audio Fidelity will have another hit on their hands. It features several classics by Peter, Paul & Mary
(500 Miles, Where Have All the Flowers Gone, Lemon Tree and If I Had a Hammer).

The stereo separation, detail and quality of the mastering by Steve Hoffman from a quality tape is very much in evidence here.
My favorite track is the hit "Lemon Tree" but there are several others that fare very well on SACD - worth many future listens !



Peter, Paul & Mary - Peter, Paul & Mary (Hybrid Stereo SACD, Audio Fidelity AFZ 161)
http://www.audiofidelity.net/content/peter-paul-and-mary

 

[bmoura]

An excellent collection of hits by The Who. Pinball Wizard, My Generation, Squeeze Box, You Better You Bet, Who Are You. They are all here, in many cases in Stereo.
A must have for fans of the band !


The Singles SACD - The Who (Single Layer Mono/Stereo SHM-SACD, Polydor/Universal Music Japan UIGY-9057)

 

[bmoura]

A classic by Jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery. Includes arrangements by Don Sebesky and an all star band (Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter, Grady Tate) and orchestration. Produced by Creed Taylor of CTI fame.
Recommended on Stereo SHM-SACD!



A Day In The Life - Wes Montgomery (Single Layer Stereo SHM-SACD, A&M/Universal Music Japan UCGU-9025)

 

[bmoura]

Jimmy Smith's "The Cat" - this one features his amazing Jazzy Organ playing plus arrangements and music by famed composer Lalo Shafrin.
An unbeatable combination - Not to be missed. Easily one of the best SHM-SACDs released by Universal Japan.

It's out of print. But there are a few copies still floating around out there on eBay and Amazon.



The Cat - Jimmy Smith with Music Arranged & Coducted by Lalo Schifrin (Single Layer Stereo SHM-SACD, Universal Japan UCGU-9016)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B004EVW4NM/ref=dp_olp_0?ie=UTF8&condition=all

 

[cupboy]

I'm playing this right now: The Who Sell Out SHM SACD

For those of you who don't have it, too bad it's out of print. My favorite Who album easily.

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/UIGY-9092

 

[wheeler98]

Caravan - Girls who grow plump in the night - shm sacd. This one is particularly lively without that brash treble that's typical of the 80's album releases on the same format.

 

[leahypc]

Some favorites that I've picked up in the last few months:


Warren Zevon - Excitable Boy (Audio Fidelity) (Steve Hoffman)

Heart - Magazine (Audio Fidelity) (Steve Hoffman)

Rush - Hemispheres (Audio Fidelity) (Kevin Gray)

Shelby Lynne - Just a Little Lovin' (Analogue Productions) (Doug Sax and Robert Hadley)

Carpenters - The Singles 1969-1973 (SHM-SACD.jp) (Richard Carpenter and Bernie Grundman - 2014)


To me, the winners here are the Carpenters disc, and close behind, the Shelby Lynne disc. The Carpenters disc really has the WOW factor for me. I'm kind of at a loss to think of another one that has such a golden sound - truly amazing. The Shelby Lynne album is pretty damn close in my opinion. If you've never caught on to her music and that great voice, you're missing out. This one is a bit of a different approach for her, more mellow, but this SACD particularly accentuates how great she sounds.
I think Steve Hoffman did a really nice job on the Zevon album, and the Heart album - I like those both a lot. The Kevin Gray treatment of Rush's Hemispheres struck me differently somehow; I think the mastering is probably a little heavy-handed on that one. When listening to the song Circumstances, it didn't seem to handle high volume very well.

Thoughts on any of these, anyone?

 

[wheeler98]

Camel - Moonmadness shm-sacd.....great synthesizer fun with soaring guitar solos...

 

[wheeler98]

Some favorites that I've picked up in the last few months:

I think Steve Hoffman did a really nice job on the Zevon album, and the Heart album - I like those both a lot.

Thoughts on any of these, anyone?

SH said the master tape for the Zevon release was pristine and was simply in the best condition that he'd come across in ages...(I dig Excitable Boy)

 

[DuncanS]

Camel - Moonmadness shm-sacd.....great synthesizer fun with soaring guitar solos...

One of my favourite albums, another one I've bought loads of times, lastly as the SACD, and glad to see there are more Camel fans out there!

 

[blue.monk]

One of my favourite albums, another one I've bought loads of times, lastly as the SACD, and glad to see there are more Camel fans out there!

Yeah, I've been eyeing those Camel SACDs. Glad they've been getting good reviews here and on the SH forum.

 

[bmoura]

Some rock music on a Hybrid Stereo SACD from Audio Fidelity - with the Wilson Sisters and Heart.
Mastered by Steve Hoffman. Includes "Heartless" and a nice bass line to kick off "I've Got The Music In Me".
Along with pictures of the original green album labels in the liner notes - back from the album's LP edition on Mushroom Records.



Heart - Magazine (Hybrid Stereo SACD, Audio Fidelity AFZ 171)
http://www.audiofidelity.net/content/heart-magazine

 

[wheeler98]

Yeah, I've been eyeing those Camel SACDs. Glad they've been getting good reviews here and on the SH forum.

Camel - Rain Dances shm-sacd....Nicely detailed in it's reproduction...

 

[bmoura]

The SHM-SACD edition of The Singles: 1969-1973 by the Carpenters. Just excellent. Kudos to the Universal Music Japan team on this one.
Recommended !



The Singles: 1969-1973 (SHM-SACD) - the Carpenters (A&M/Universal Japan UIGY-9542)
http://www.elusivedisc.com/The-Carp...anese-Import-SHM-SACD/productinfo/UNISAI9542/

 

[leahypc]

:kitty: stevens...tea for the tillerman .sacd 2 chnl technically. but listening in faux surround PL II

Kitty Stevens? Never heard of her. A tribute act?

 

[corneredcat]

albert king...i'll play the blues for you .sacd 2 chnl

 

[corneredcat]

Kitty Stevens? Never heard of her. A tribute act?

sounds astonishingly like CAT!

 

[fredblue]

queen...greatest hits .sacd 2 chnl. again..pseudo surround!

I'm super tempted to get some of the Queen SACDs... hmm.. how are you enjoying the sound?

 

[corneredcat]

I'm super tempted to get some of the Queen SACDs... hmm.. how are you enjoying the sound?

for the most part i love it! except one of my favs..Fat Bottom Girls...veiled is perhaps the word?? weakest track on the disc. AQ is somewhat inconsistent across the board. Another One Bites the Dust..Crazy Little Thing Called Love..We Will Rock You..Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)....awesome. BUT i don't think it's worth the going expensive $80 price tag...i don't own this one..it's on loan to me from a friend..and won't be shelling out that kind of cash to buy it.

 

[fredblue]

for the most part i love it! except one of my favs..Fat Bottom Girls...veiled is perhaps the word?? weakest track on the disc. AQ is somewhat inconsistent across the board. Another One Bites the Dust..Crazy Little Thing Called Love..We Will Rock You..Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)....awesome. BUT i don't think it's worth the going expensive $80 price tag...i don't own this one..it's on loan to me from a friend..and won't be shelling out that kind of cash to buy it.

thank you for the great info!

v.interesting that We Will Rock You & Teo Torriate sound good (not so surprised by "The Game" album tracks, they have pretty much always sounded great) but the various/numerous (!) CD
masterings of News Of The World and A Day At The Races are themselves a mixed bag so I might just have to pick those two up on SACD first.. currently EMI Swindon pressing of NOTW and WG Sonopress of ADATR are my go to's for those albums on CD.. Jazz isn't a very well put together album in the first place (imho.. though about a third of the albums some of my all-time fave Queen) but again the original 80's EMI CD is my goto and makes the best of a mediocre job (the 1991 Hollywood Records, 1994 Digital Master Series & Japanese 2001 papersleeve all v.poor).