DVD/DTS Poll Moody Blues, The - IN SEARCH OF THE LOST CHORD [DTS DVD]

[rtbluray]

Please post your thoughts and comments on this 2018 reissue of the classic Moody Blues album "In Search of the Lost Chord".
This 50th anniversary edition includes a brand new 5.1 surround mix which was 'mixed and manipulated' (whatever that means...) by King Crimson's Jakko Jakszyk.
The set also includes an entire DVD of footage from that period as well as three CDs containing the original stereo mix, a new stereo mix, and lots of bonus tracks.

 

[GOS]

1. Departure
Some nice discreet moments, short song, sounds great. (8 vote)

2. See Saw
Muffled to my ears....not a wide soundstage at all....very restricted.... (5 vote)

3. Dr. Livingstone, I presume
Fidelity is decent, much better than See Saw. (7 vote)

4. House Of Four Doors
Some nice tambourine panning. Fidelity pretty decent. Some very nice moments....though not very discreet. (8 vote)

5. Legend Of A Mind
Lots of echo, some nice surround stuff going on. Fidelity is good...considering all the reverb. Was going to vote 7, but flute at 4:00 takes to an 8 (8 vote)

6. House of Four Doors (part 2)
Again, some nice panning with tambourines.....otherwise, average. (7 vote)

7. Voices In The Sky
Excellent vocal. But, nothing else positive. No surround to speak of...boring. (5 vote)

8. The Best Way To Travel
Nice start with guitar in rears...drums muffled, as with most other tracks. Some amazing discreet panning at the 1:15 mark....awesome. Though, that can't fix the mostly muffled effort. (vote 6)

9. Visions Of Paradise
Sounds nice, but rather vanilla. Would have been nice to have the exotic instruments in the rear....missed opportunity. (vote 6)

10. The Actor
Nice fidelity. Otherwise, muffled drums again....just no clarity within instruments. (vote 7)

11. The Word
All vocal mostly, center soundstage. Not much you can do with this. (vote 7)

12. Om
Fidelity average....pretty narrow soundstage. Again, missed opportunity with the exotic instruments. (vote 7)

So.....what does all that mean?

That all averages to 6.75......so I guess I'll vote a 7.

 

[rtbluray]

Like @GOS I voted a '7' for this release, breaking my vote down this way:

Music content: 3/3
Surround mix: 1/3
Fidelity: 3/3
High-Res Disc: 0/1

There's a few good surround moments on this disc, but it's obvious they could not use whatever multitrack tapes they had at their disposal to create a discrete and immersive surround mix. However the music is fantastic (it's the Moody Blues after all) and the fidelity on this new mix is much better than the original stereo mix IMHO.

Get this set if you are a Moody Blues fan. Avoid this set if you are only in it for the surround mix, cause you will be disappointed.

 

[EHughes]

I love the music on this disc but, the surround mix is terrible. Really disappointed.

 

[ar surround]

I have been playing around with this set for a few days, including several rather successful attempts to remix the 5.1 debacle that is Ride My See-Saw. But I will leave any of my / other QQ'ers "manipulations" out of my review. Yes, the surround sound mix of much of the album is in the lower third of the normal distribution...most likely due to what Jakko had to work with...but Ride My See-Saw and Voices In The Sky are horrid. There can be no excuse for the lousy production on these two songs. These two cuts sound like something went very awry along the way and no one did QA/QC on the mix before this disc went into production. Lastly, the fidelity of this 5.1 is mid-fi. Maybe it's due to lossy DTS, but Steven Wilson seems to achieve better results with DTS.

Now here is my debacle: I also listened to Jakko's lossless 96/24 new stereo mix and compared it to the SACD. Listening was done for both using an Oppo 205 in 2-channel bypass. In comparison, the SACD sounds bloated, with a flat sound stage, albeit a tad smoother. The new stereo mix has better tonal balance, detail and a three dimensional sound stage that comes out from the speakers. I must say that Jakko's new stereo mix in high-res is the best I've ever heard this album. I got lost in the music.

The acid test was last night when my cousins, both classic Moody Blues aficionados, came over the house specifically to listen to music. I played the new stereo mix in faux 7.1 surround using Lexicon Logic7 Music Surround* as an upmixer. Their comments were nothing short of superlative..."Great!" "Terrific!" "Best I've ever heard that album." Using this upmixer on the high-res stereo layer, all the stuff that appears to come from the rear (i.e. birds chirping on Departure) in Jakko's 5.1 mix still comes from the rear, but everything is smoother, clearer with more depth and ambience than with the 5.1.

So, my rating which would be shitty (3) given the 5.1 must be offset by the redeeming qualities of the high-resolution new stereo mix. If you are a Moody Blues fan and like this album buy this set, because of the new stereo mix. Heck, I've dropped $50 on stereo SHM SACD's from CDJapan.


*From past posts, some of you know that I believe that the sun rises and sets on Lexicon Logic7. (The full version that came with Lexicon processors); and that I don't care much for DPLIIx; and that I don't have a Surround Master..yet. So take that into consideration.

 

[jefe1]

Thank you for your efforts. So I might end up keeping this when it arrives for the superior stereo mix. Maybe the key to happiness is to pretend there is no 5.1 mix and make your own.........although I am not a recording engineer and shouldn't have to be.

Although someone here made a very spirited defense of Jakko and that he is not responsible for errors that occur downline surely he is aware of prior complaints about other mixes he was involved in.....Brain salad surgery comes to mind. Meaning that since he is attaching his name to projects he should be concerned about quality assurance and double checking the results. I am planning to avoid ordering projects with his name associated with them until I read reviews about the results. Whatever his financial concerns he chooses to take on projects and work for his employers. I am free to choose not to spend my money on the results.

It certainly shows the low regard for surround mixes that the music companies have to release results like this and not care about what is ending up in their customers hands.
Someone surely listened to the new stereo mix and approved it....what happened to the 5.1 mix? No one cared.

 

[fredblue]

oh maaaaan... i'm humming and hawwing about this in a way i don't usually in a QQ Poll vote situation... i initially gave the '5.1 manipulation' a "4" (but thankfully at the new and improved/back from the dead/saved by the bell/rescued from the jaws of doom QQ, we can now amend our Poll Vote score after having a change of heart!) and so... i've had a wee rethink.. and unscientifically i'll give this weirdo another point just for trying to be in surround! so, right now its a "5".

 

[PK]

So, my rating which would be shitty (3) given the 5.1 must be offset by the redeeming qualities of the high-resolution new stereo mix. If you are a Moody Blues fan and like this album buy this set, because of the new stereo mix. Heck, I've dropped $50 on stereo SHM SACD's from CDJapan.

So what are chances the new hi-res stereo mix will be released as a download?

 

[4-earredwonder]

Perhaps Jon and rt should reinstate 'a waste of plastic' for the Polls to accommodate the poor showing for In Search of the Lost Chord.

IMO, instead of 'jiggling the joystick' [as Adam SO eloquently put it], Jakko should've run the superior Stereo Masters of ISotLC through Penteo and called it a day!

If I had known this 5.1 remix would be so LOUSY, I would've made a $100 donation towards Stem Cell Research.you still can, silly, by selling this atrocity on eBay!

 

[hirez]

I am a big MB fan but I hesitated about this disc and am so very glad I did. I have all the SACDs of their surround disc and still play TOCCC quite often.

 

[skherbeck]

Not a lot to say about this one... in terms of the surround mix (which is what we're voting on here), this kind of fits into the "waste of plastic" category, but here goes:

Fidelity: 1/3 (This just sounds bad to me... muffled)
Content: 2/3 (A couple of great songs, but not one of my favorite moody albums)
Surround Mix: 0/3 (I'll never listen to it again, so I guess it's worth nothing to me )
Bonus Point: 1/1 (lots of other stuff in the set and a good stereo mix)

Total=4.

 

[GOS]

After listening to The White album in 5.1.....which is nearly the exact same era, I had to change my vote. I knocked it down to a 5. The two are just so different in terms of quality all the way around. Surround, fidelity, content. No contest.

 

[H.A.L.]

I deliberately listened to this _after_ hearing the surround White Album, since I was already biased by reviews beforehand, and wanted to see if it was really that bad. It's a favorite MB album of mine -- positively drips psilocybin enough to induce flashbacks -- and all I asked was to recreate at least a bit of that.

Let's start with the box itself -- even more beautiful than the pics, and feels good in the hands like quality material. An actual score for "Ride My See-Saw" is on top, then a nice booklet, then the cds nestled inside a recess with a ribbon to bring them up. The package is a ten! Love how there are occasionally spots of light like traces in the screen menu <did I just see that? whoa, maybe it is inducing flashbacks>.

Played the now infamous surround first. If you are familiar with the album, yes, it sounds somewhat muddy (you can raise the volume a bit more, however) and definitely has some odd mix choices. However, I found a lot more separation in the instruments than on my MoFi stereo cd, and the bass is surprisingly lively! Don't think I ever paid much attention to it before. If you want things flying around the room, nope, not gonna happen, although you can tell at times it's not flat stereo. I really don't think it's the tapes that are degraded -- a brief listen to the new stereo mix proves that -- I just think it's a very idiosyncratic mix. Off-putting at first, but I do believe I'll grow to like it as an alternative to my MoFi and SACD versions. I'm willing to give it a chance. Haven't sampled any of the vids, etc., but there is one bonus surround. Overall, I (somewhat fearfully) declared it a 7, only to find out that others agreed with me! Who knows, over time people may warm a bit more to it.

 

[jefe1]

Well I came home from work today and unexpectedly in my mail is isotlc. Pretty quick getting here from across the pond. I already started the return process after reading the reviews above but the ones by Halbroome and AR surround have given me pause.....I'm expecting the worst but im probably going to open this up and listen. Dont have the white album to spoil me and Jimi comes tomorrow so maybe ill be a little open minded...........and listen.

Remember, every time a new surround sound mix is made an angel gets its wings......

 

[4-earredwonder]

Well I came home from work today and unexpectedly in my mail is isotlc. Pretty quick getting here from across the pond. I already started the return process after reading the reviews above but the ones by Halbroome and AR surround have given me pause.....I'm expecting the worst but im probably going to open this up and listen. Dont have the white album to spoil me and Jimi comes tomorrow so maybe ill be a little open minded...........and listen.

Remember, every time a new surround sound mix is made an angel gets its wings......

And every time a BAD surround mix gets made ....... a little devil gets its horns!

 

[atrocity]

Listening to it again right now. Still like it. Not the greatest ever by any means, but I find it genuinely enjoyable.

Had to interrupt it to answer the door because Amazon finally delivered my Samsung laserjet black toner cartridge. Oh yeah, and some stuff by Jethro Tull, Jimi Hendrix and the Beatles...

 

[jefe1]

I'm listening to this again......right after Jimi tonite. Departure starts all speakers are firing I'm thinking hey this isn't so bad then it goes right into the flaccid emaciated ballless Ride My See Saw. Wow what a buzz killer just destroys this for me. How could jakko do this? I wish I could switch the stereo version in just for that song

 

[jefe1]

I've just finished listening to the whole thing again and am liking it more. Once you get past the bad flaccid dissapointing ride my see saw you can enjoy the music again.....

 

[H.A.L.]

Yea, that famous Da DA! Da DA DA DA Da! guitar opening has been curiously limited to the front (almost center, it seems), I suspect because the vocals could be made more distinct (the lead Hayward vocal seems more separated from the backing vocals. Maybe Jakko thought the guitar too overwhelming and wanted to open up the vocals). At any rate, that one guitar riff is enough of a shock to put most people off, but there is more to the album than that one song.

I'll have to listen a few more times to know if I can get around it. In the meantime, just listen to that bass guitar bounce around at times. . . .

 

[lennon fan]

such a nice box set, too bad this mix is so weak...so much sounds bounced down, I'm surprised they couldn't get work tapes. but, it's better than nothing and at least makes it feel like all 7 of the classic run now have their surround. nice video stuff, nice outtakes as well. 6