Listening to Now (In Surround) - Volume 2

[quicksrt]

Split Coconut - Dave Mason (SQ LP thru the Surround Master)

I am just absolutely loving this guy's Quads (there are 3 in total.. another artist I knew nothing about before getting these old SQ records) and Side 2 of this album is an out and out beauty.. bluesy and breezy its a delight that makes me wish I was a beach bum on a sun kissed island with a pina colada in hand instead of in cold old grey London sipping tea and biscuits.. brr! Still this goes some way to transporting you to that desert island.. afaik this was the only one of his Quads not to receive Q8 release, so it would be most fitting if AF would consider this one above all for their Surround SACD programme.. but I'd be happy if they chose any one of them.. fingers crossed.. :upthumb

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I would think that "It's Like You Never Left" would be the choice for reissue if Dave Mason's album were considered. Isn't that the biggest hit out of these three?

 

[Jim the Oldbie]

...Maybe it's also that so many recordings from the 80's worked because of the many layers they had in the mix. I feel that even if the Multichannel mix is more open, it doesn't feel as cohesive and at times falls apart. That's my opinion, of course, based on one listening. It's also the first time that a mix gives me the impression that there is something wrong with my set-up. Every other disc I play, whether it be Quad or 5.1, the levels are perfect. With this one, I was getting a sense that my Center speaker was not loud enough and that at times the rears were either too loud or not loud enough. Again, I've heard once only. I'll get back to it at some point and see if I feel differently about it.

These remixes can be so enigmatic, not only musically but on a technical level as well.

We've grown so intimately familiar with these tunes over the years in their original (2-channel) form - every note and lyric, the exact blending of the instruments & voices, yes; but on a less conscious level, even every phase cancellation and intermodulation, and all that stuff. And it's all been locked together, frozen in time. And all these endless stereo remasters foisted upon us over the years have sounded a little different here or there, but these more fundamental sonic relationships have mostly remained undisturbed.

When we go back to the multitracks, of course all that goes right out the window. It becomes possible to re-think a whole laundry list of mostly subjective choices, for better or worse. The big problem of course is that we'll always be comparing it to the version that's by now imprinted on our DNA, so it's like tampering with the sacred scrolls. Or kinda like dating a girl who's had a nose job. If you meet her after the fact, you might think her nose looks just fine. But if you're already going out with her, and then she gets her nose "fixed," you may think, Hey, I kinda liked that little crooked part. (Of course you never, ever actually say this to her, but I digress.)

When we add another whole dimension with multichannel it gets even more nuts. I mean, left/right balance is pretty academic: Is the overall mix centered between the two speakers (assuming that's the goal) or not? But front/rear balance is so much more subjective. Even with calibration tones, it's gonna be waay more difficult to get a roomful of quaddites to agree on correct surround level for a given recording. And besides, as we all know, cal noises ain't music! I still use them initially to get in the ballpark, but I always end up tweaking over time with actual tunes.

Anyway - where was I? <ahem> Simon, I just realized I've basically gone on & on just to repeat everything you've already said. Sorry for the shoe-gazing. I guess I'm slowly coming to terms with the fact that many of these remixes just ain't gonna be second-guessed exactly the same way I would've done; so I'll try to appreciate them for what they are, which can be pretty doggone cool sometimes. And then again, other times the stereo mix will remain the best way to enjoy it. I won't name names... <cough> Quadrophenia <cough>

For my own example: I love Steve's 5.1 remix of Close to the Edge, even though I do wish he'd put just a little bit more in the treble on the title cut... But then that GIGANTIC PIPE ORGAN simply materializes right in the middle of my living room, sounding more utterly gobsmacking wonderful than I ever expected to hear it in this lifetime! So there's that, heh. Besides, in this case I can always load it into Audacity and get the top end exactly where I like it, which I do intend to try one of these rainy days.

-- Jim

 

[Simon A]

Well said Jim!

You know the reason I think I've reacted this way is actually simple. At least 70% of the Quad and 5.1 titles that I've added to my collection in the last 4 months (well, since I've joined this place really) have been albums that I had never heard before in my life. This means that I had no expectations on how the material should be presented. I could tell whether I thought the mix had been done to my liking, but never did I get shocked because an element was missing to the point where I thought it changed the song in a major way. I've also been extremely fortunate that most of the Multichannel versions of albums that were familiar to me (Depeche Mode, R.E.M.) that I had acquired before gearing up for 5.1 playback were really well mixed (at least, to my liking).

So this explains a bit where I'm coming from and why I reacted this way. I'll admit having been spoiled right from the start by starting my collection with the Pink Floyd Blu-Ray discs (Moon & Here), the Moody Blues SACDs, The Beatles' Love, the two first King Crimson albums, the whole Analogue Productions series of Nat King Cole SACDs, the aforementioned Depeche Mode and R.E.M. titles. Then I slowly acquired the Elton John SACDs, The Doors' SACDs & DVD-A, and on and on. I've been reading so many threads here that I've basically cherry picked all the top titles from the bands I like. I've also acquired a handful of the Audio Fidelity Quad & 5.1 SACDs which are absolutely astounding. I've also just started experimenting with groups I was not familiar with like Barclay James Harvest, Nektar, Ten Years After, and a few others I'm on the fence about. So I am extremely fortunate to have all these wonderful sounding mixes at my reach. So I got one that did not excite me as much as I thought it would. No big deal. I'm sure it's happened to many of you so many times, whether in the glory days of Quad, or when stuff was slowly being released in the early 2000's. Hey I'm thankful to have not been ripped off buying that Silverline scheiße.

Anyway. Short version is, I'll play the Tears For Fear again in the days to come and we'll probably have a drink or two together and become good friends.

 

[Clint Eastwood]

Well said Jim!

You know the reason I think I've reacted this way is actually simple. At least 70% of the Quad and 5.1 titles that I've added to my collection in the last 4 months (well, since I've joined this place really) have been albums that I had never heard before in my life. This means that I had no expectations on how the material should be presented. I could tell whether I thought the mix had been done to my liking, but never did I get shocked because an element was missing to the point where I thought it changed the song in a major way. I've also been extremely fortunate that most of the Multichannel versions of albums that were familiar to me (Depeche Mode, R.E.M.) that I had acquired before gearing up for 5.1 playback were really well mixed (at least, to my liking).

So this explains a bit where I'm coming from and why I reacted this way. I'll admit having been spoiled right from the start by starting my collection with the Pink Floyd Blu-Ray discs (Moon & Here), the Moody Blues SACDs, The Beatles' Love, the two first King Crimson albums, the whole Analogue Productions series of Nat King Cole SACDs, the aforementioned Depeche Mode and R.E.M. titles. Then I slowly acquired the Elton John SACDs, The Doors' SACDs & DVD-A, and on and on. I've been reading so many threads here that I've basically cherry picked all the top titles from the bands I like. I've also acquired a handful of the Audio Fidelity Quad & 5.1 SACDs which are absolutely astounding. I've also just started experimenting with groups I was not familiar with like Barclay James Harvest, Nektar, Ten Years After, and a few others I'm on the fence about. So I am extremely fortunate to have all these wonderful sounding mixes at my reach. So I got one that did not excite me as much as I thought it would. No big deal. I'm sure it's happened to many of you so many times, whether in the glory days of Quad, or when stuff was slowly being released in the early 2000's. Hey I'm thankful to have not been ripped off buying that Silverline scheiße.

Anyway. Short version is, I'll play the Tears For Fear again in the days to come and we'll probably have a drink or two together and become good friends.

Bottom line...I have gotten discs that people loved and wondered "what were they thinking, this is terrible"...it happens...and conversely I hear people complain about some discs and I'm shocked that they don't love them.....the hope is that collectively by using the resources here(posters input)we will obtain more that we like and less that we don't...I used to wonder if my equipment wasn't set up right ..or this..or that...but you know what...I don't do that anymore...if I don't like it...I get rid of it and move on...if I can't sell it...I set it aside and forget about it...I don't second guess myself...the only person you have to please is yourself...keep that in mind...

 

[quicksrt]

Some albums that I used to like a lot and heard many times, in fact maybe too many tines - I'm ready for the mix to do something different or do the same things in a much different way.

I like to be refreshed and startled by the difference of a quad mix (or 5.1) as compared to how it sounded in stereo.

I needle dropped some quad LPs over the years to CD-R to enjoy in stereo just for those odd remixes.

I had held off on doing 24/96kHz drops of these SQ and CD-4 LPs because I read so many reports of the M-Audio this or the Xoner that card not getting along with whatever software or OS. Conflicts and BS I did not need in my life. And 4 or 6 chan recording opened up other worm cans. I decided on the outboard digital recorder. I got a Tascam 680 multitrack recorder and bypassed all that conflict BS. It's been wonderful.

I've continued doing the quad LPs in 24/96 stereo files and they are coming out wonderful. The higher resolution is a noticeable improvement. It's just for stereo playback as I said. But I live the mix differences. Deep cleaned records, new stylus, and 24/96 with perfect levels and then ClickRepair used gently really results in some nice digital drops.

Just to think about how many decades it took to get this this point. It's a lifetime. But now we are cookin!

I'm listening to AF SACDs in surround right now!

 

[Which_One_Is_Pink]

Blue Öyster Cult - Tyranny And Mutation Quad conversion then Blue Öyster Cult - Secret Treaties Quad conversion.
Things for someone to do list: Surround treatment to the Cult catalog please. (I mean after all the way things are going on the surround front these days (Beatles, Tusk...) is it really to much to ask?

 

[skherbeck]

This just arrived and sounds fantastic... Metal ear candy with cool undersea trippy video throughout. Happy Halloween, too!

 

[skherbeck]

This just arrived and sounds fantastic... Metal ear candy with cool undersea trippy video throughout. Happy Halloween, too!

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Let me modify that..."cool undersea trippy video... And topless women swimming/ drowning"... Kind of an extended version of the opening credits of a 70s James Bond flick. Serene, heavy, sexy, and disturbing... Perfect for the music... More listening and viewing will be necessary...

 

[colsky]

Yes - Fragile bluray, it arrived earlier than I expected!

 

[fizzywiggs41]

I think I have OCD and of course "Quad Collectors Disorder"

For some reason I just had to have this because it's a 5.1 SACD available on Warner Bros. (Parlophone) now!!!

Listened to it last nite and sounds just fine.

 

[edisonbaggins]

The Flaming Lips - Zaireeka - Octophonic LP (requires 4 stereo turntables)

 

[IMachine]

XTC - Oranges & Lemons!
I love it to death

Happy Halloween!

 

[colsky]

Gentle Giant - Octopus. Wonderful!

 

[edisonbaggins]

Zaireeka Octophonic LP photo album:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10153377826073020.1073741874.570303019&type=1&l=4399f3bf57

 

[bossfan]

Selling England by the Pound dvd-dts 96/24

 

[colsky]

Opeth - Damnation. Excellent fidelity, and a really nice Sunday morning listen :sun. I chose that one as I thought Deliverance might scare the kids! And I still struggle to listen to the growling vocals without laughing! Although the music on Deliverance is very good, so I will persevere, but not with the kids around!

 

[leahypc]

Let me modify that..."cool undersea trippy video... And topless women swimming/ drowning"... Kind of an extended version of the opening credits of a 70s James Bond flick. Serene, heavy, sexy, and disturbing... Perfect for the music... More listening and viewing will be necessary...

Who did you order yours from? The Amazon listings don't give any detail except to say that it's a CD...

 

[leahypc]

.

 

[leahypc]

Opeth - Watershed (DTS DVD)

Nicely done 5.1, and very good DTS on this one...

 

[fredblue]

The Isley Brothers - Live It Up
(SQ LP decoded by the Involve Surround Master SQ Vinyl edition)