Steely Dan - Countdown to Ecstasy SHM-SACD on 7/30/2014

Amen. Ditto squared to the power of 10!

 

Thanks for that, and I appreciate you stacking it up against the vinyl as well as noting your use of different amps. It is starting to shake out to me that this may have been set up to sound more like the vinyl than any pre-remaster cd, given the eq choices and the dose of compression. Maybe I am relying on an earlier review saying this was close to the vinyl, or that IMO this is closer to the ’98— which the Dan/Nichols oversaw— in style if not execution. It would also surprise me if the Dan just said hey it is 2014, just do it how you want we don’t care what it sounds like; so we get this somehow now instead of the much flatter transfer in ’85. I guess only the vinyl folks can really help in this regard unless others have thoughts.

 

I'm not sure if that was directed at me or not, but just in case...

My review of the SACD was *solely* based on listening trials. I'll repeat that - SOLELY based on listening and comparison to all my other digital versions. The graphs and numbers, etc. only came into play post listening to make sense of what I was hearing.

My bias is my familiarity with the 84 master, and my two years experience recoding and mixing on that exact console. YMMV.

Cheers,
Paul

 

So....

To be honest, the thing that drove me to buy this release was that mini lp packaging - the new mastering was a big plus though. For me, this is the only way i want to buy old reissues. I was very pleased to learn that they are still being made and can be bought new. When i first discovered the 'mini lp', i figured these were all long gone and i would never see one unless i paid a premium price on ebay - i am quite happy to have been wrong.

I was a little disappointed -- a very very little amount mind you - that this release did not come with a replica inner sleeve. i believe it has more to do with copyright than anything else since the inner sleeve has the ABC logo that is still in use today by ABC television. i am guessing this could not be included for that reason since the abc logo was also left off the cover. So, i decided to make my own! Since i feel certain that there are members here who enjoy the details of a record sleeve replica as much as i do, i have decided to share these files with the community.

Below you will find links to the 2 inner sleeves i have recreated and instructions for cutting and assembly- one is the ABC Dunhill amber colored sleeve which is appropriate for CTE. This is the stock sleeve issued on the early 70's ABC Records pressings. The second file is the dark green mid 70's stock inner sleeve - appropriate for releases with the rainbow label. These were created with illustrator.

Amber sleeve
http://www61.zippyshare.com/v/71868566/file.html

Green sleeve
http://www61.zippyshare.com/v/58550450/file.html

Instructions
http://www56.zippyshare.com/v/34962736/file.html

 

I personally see no need for you to be concerned with any of this. You a/b’d things thoughtfully and let us know. You win in my book.

I hope no one feels I am trying to win or have someone lose an argument about these things. I have benefited tremendously over the years by improving my copies of albums using the work done by folks on this forum. I may advocate hard for a position, but that is only to help someone down the line make a determination about a potential purchase. Once that is done I will be glad to clarify my comments, but I am not going to dissuade you from yours. If someone wants to use numbers, charts and others’ posts to make that determination that also works for me; especially given the bite these shm-sacds take, on top of the fact that it was pretty apparent to people early on this was not sounding like the ’85.

Anyone picking the ’85 also wins in my book. I played that this week on my portable rig and grados and it sounded great. Without the room and air getting in the way the speed was there, the decay lengthened, kick drum opened up. Although I can’t try it out, I doubt the shm-sacd is going perform as well with headphones without feeling a bit jarring. Heck it has to be said the ’98 ain’t all that horrible either. Perhaps everything was so well done on that tape in the beginning—storing the sucker aside!—that these differences are for the most part within small degrees.

 

Yeah, I added it to a CD Japan order I already had that was shipping 8/27, the system took it, but when the order shipped 8/27 it was gone!

 

BACK IN STOCK at CDJapan. 26 copies at the time of writing.

Please all form an orderly queue

 

YES! Just ordered and on the way! Thank you for the info - i had given up hope......

 

I wish that this had happened a couple of days earlier. I just received my copy from Acoustic Sounds which I ordered on Sunday. They were the only place which reported it as in stock.

It blows my mind that this release appears to have all-but sold-out even faster than did the Supertramp SACD.

 

I agree. But I think you made the wise move especially if the CtE SHM-SACD was actually OOP. I went crazy a few years ago trying to find the NKC "After Midnight" APO SACD as it appeared it was going to be OOP. I had all the other NKC APO SACDs so I wanted to have the complete set. Thanks to a friend out in CA he was able to grab a copy for me. Then the SACD became easy to buy and still is. You never know .

Bill

 

So, the panic is over? Buy two.

 

The Japan for US first pressing is good, but just too thin compared to the later (pre-Nichols) remaster.

 

Apologies if this has already been answered, but has there been any consensus about how the standard SHM CD version of CTE sounds, in comparison to the '99 remaster? I don't have a SACD player, otherwise would have jumped on that version, along with the upcoming Pretzel SACD.

 

Most people around here dislike the '99 remasters, so I guess the SHM-CD would be preferable to that, if you prefer a darker sound.

 

Thanks Lucidae. Yes, I gather that the '99 remasters are possibly the worst digital versions. I am interested in collecting these SHM CD's if they are significantly better sounding, but at £20 a pop it will be an expensive upgrade. Also, I think someone posted that the SHM CD of Aja used the '99 mastering so isn't much of an improvement anyway. I have all SD albums on vinyl so perhaps I should stick with those.

 

Grab the SHM-CD version (same release date) when you can afford it, same mastering used as the SACD. Same goes with Pretzel Logic.

 

Very nice review. I agree with your comments about the SHM-SACD versus the original MCA CD. The MCA CD sounds veiled compared to the SACD. The reverb at the opening of the album is very good on the SHM-SACD. Good point.

 

You just cost me £40!

 

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/UICY-76524

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/product/UICY-40080

I could not find a 2014 Countdown "non platinum version" on that site. The platinum may be a good option.

 

Trouble is, if I buy CTE then I will surely buy Pretzel, then Aja and all the rest....it will be more like £140!

 

Another possibly cheaper option might be to grab the original MCA CD's, practically everyone seems to like these.

 

I hear ya, the platinums work out to around $40 US each shipped at CD Japan but I assume you get hit hard with customs?

 

That is my biggest worry. It is one thing paying £20 for a CD, but then paying £12 on top for customs

 

Yup. But be careful which ones you find. They're not all the same and the matrix info is the only way to be sure.

 

Matrix info + EAC peak comparisons. Search/check the forums here - we've detailed all of this in various threads.

Cheers,
Paul