HiRez Poll R.E.M. - AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE (25TH ANNIVERSARY DOLBY ATMOS MIX) [Blu-Ray Audio]

[Scott65]

I would like to give this a 9 but.....I'm only listening to it on downmixed PCM 5.1 so perhaps best not to vote.

 

[mandrix]

I'm with the folks that don't have the Atmos speaker setup....I'm afraid to give a rating. My receiver is capable, but I need to add 2 speakers. I only have some Polk bookshelf at my pc sound system I could try....wonder if that would be sufficient? I mean it's not like my 5.1 speakers were super expensive (nope, no sir, no $20K speakers here!).
Oh BTW, if you have the speaker setup at your pc, (or HTPC) there is a software player available for Atmos that dts350z turned me on to; https://www.fmod.com/download

 

[fac23]

Finally decided to vote 9, now listening on a 4.0 setup. Before, when listening on a different set of speakers (5.0) and different amp, the mix didn't really work for me. Judging by my impressions of a few other Atmos mixes, a) my old amp didn't do a good job at downmixing Atmos b) a center with a narrower frequency spectrum than the other speakers was terribly distracting for music and I should have gotten rid of it sooner.
Of course, I am aware that I'm listening with less than half the speakers this mix was optimized for, but still... even on this setup the mix is simply beautiful, for lack of a better word. Careful, airy instrument placement, while still sounding full and warm. No flashy surround effects, but active surrounds nonetheless at all times. My favorite version of this album, no question.

 

[MrSmithers]

This is such a great album. And listening to this Atmos version is truly spectacular!

It's quite a subtle, softer, immersive surround effect vs the 5.1 DVDA. (I've only compared the hits from In Time). Whilst there's not a night and day difference - say a stereo mix > surround, I definitely prefer the atmos mix. No doubt about that. It's kinda not trying too hard - you can just sit back, relax and listen to a really well put together album. Right at the end you hear 'Find The River' and just think wow - what an album!

I doubt I'll have much use for the book or other stuff but the blu ray has me not thinking about it...

Slam dunk 10...

 

[edisonbaggins]

Listening on my Denon x6400H 7.2.4 Atmos system.
At times, this is pretty awesome.
There are elements emerging I didn't even hear in Scheiner's mix.
GIANT organ in several songs. Mile-high atmosphere in New Orleans Instrumental.
Revealed percussion in Everybody Hurts.
While every second of this might not be a slam dunk, it's definitely a cool, worthwhile Atmos experience.

 

[Goona]

Just arrived today REM Automatic For The People Atmos Box Set. First of all have to say the Box presentation and Booklet are superb. I have an Atmos set up 7:2:4 and wow this is superb sound. Why oh why are there not more Atmos mixes , we need some Clapton, Rolling Stones, Doors . Giving this a 10+

 

[Franklin]

I've been giving this a play today, and started off with comparing Find The River with the ES mix, playing the latter first. I was surprised how much I liked ES' version. Next came the Atmos mix (this was downmixing to 5.0) and it started nicely, but the vocals were *so* loud! Maybe it's my amp not dealing with the Atmos downmix well, I don't know, but I found the vocals were something like 5.0 dB too loud on the album and I couldn't get them to sit in the mix comfortably. I switched off the centre speaker to route the vocals to the front pair but it still didn't quite sit within the mix. I like hearing elements in the mix that I hadn't heard in the other mixes, but I've got to say my current feeling is disappointment. I haven't found any Atmos downmixing parameters in the amp so I may have a look in the player's set up.

 

[edisonbaggins]

I'm not shocked that downmixing Atmos to 5.1 wouldn't work well, thought it'd be wonderful if it did.
Or are you saying there is a 7.1 option on the disc? I'd think that would downmix better.
Either way, hope you sort it out!

 

[Franklin]

I was getting confused with 7.1 and Atmos terminology. Neither the player nor the AV deliver Atmos so it may not be as easily backwards compatible as it could have been. Ah well...

 

[edisonbaggins]

I was getting confused with 7.1 and Atmos terminology. Neither the player nor the AV deliver Atmos so it may not be as easily backwards compatible as it could have been. Ah well...

Are your player and AVR compatible with 7.1? Seems that Atmos should play back as 7.1 if an Atmos capability isn't detected.
https://bobpariseau.com/blog/2018/6...-or-wait-ive-got-the-wrong-number-of-speakers

 

[salsdali]

no player plays atmos, it's all in the avr like Mike said

 

[Franklin]

Are your player and AVR compatible with 7.1? Seems that Atmos should play back as 7.1 if an Atmos capability isn't detected.

No, it turns out it's only 5.1. It has no problems with 7.1 to 5.1 that I can tell, but I guess that's one step too few.

 

[edisonbaggins]

No, it turns out it's only 5.1. It has no problems with 7.1 to 5.1 that I can tell, but I guess that's one step too few.

Damn. So sorry to hear that. Does it do Dolby True HD? Otherwise, that might be the key. Atmos is "True HD, plus extra info."

 

[Perp]

It should play in Dolby True-HD automatically. If the AVR isn’t Atmos capable or the speaker layout for Atmos isn’t configured in the avr, the flag will not be detected. Something like that.

 

[edisonbaggins]

Not all AVRs do True HD though.

 

[Franklin]

It claims to do TrueHD.

 

[edisonbaggins]

It claims to do TrueHD.

When you play the Atmos mix, does your AVR indicate True HD? If not, did you try selecting True HD? Sorry if you already said that.

 

[Franklin]

Hey Mike, I've had a look and yes, it is indicating TrueHD to seven channels, and output to five. I am getting music in the rears, but maybe the vocals are just mixed too loud for my tastes. Would you be able to try out Find The River and then play some of the stereo mix and see if the vocals seem much relatively higher in the Atmos mix?

 

[edisonbaggins]

Hey Mike, I've had a look and yes, it is indicating TrueHD to seven channels, and output to five. I am getting music in the rears, but maybe the vocals are just mixed too loud for my tastes. Would you be able to try out Find The River and then play some of the stereo mix and see if the vocals seem much relatively higher in the Atmos mix?

Sure thing, my man. I'll A/B and let you know. What I can tell you right now is, the Atmos mix played on a 7.2.4 system, sounds super-good. Not always preferred to the Scheiner mix, but really cool in it's own right. Vocals balanced, etc.

 

[salsdali]

this was mixed in Atmos. A downmix is never going to sound proper, how could it? It's like forcing the avr to try and reverse engineer the intentions of the mixer.