Bill Bruford Box Set: "Seems Like A Lifetime Ago 1977-1980"

I got my UK Box from Deep Discount, and it was significantly cheaper ($115) than anywhere else. It was de-listed from their site not long after I ordered it, so I never figured it would show up, but it did. I wasn't even going to bother getting one because of the whole soap opera/fiasco nature of the project, but when I saw their listing I figured what did I have to lose. I guess I lucked out.

I'm a big fan of Burning Shed.

 

Thanks for being reactive!
There was more than enough space on a DVD to put everything either in lossless Hi-Res or at least in better compression for the 5.1 and PCM for the stereo (see the Jethro Tull DVD-V or King Crimson DVD-A discs for good examples), which is why this "choice" of using Dullby-only is all the more puzzling.
I'm glad the remixes and remasters are great and at least available in lossless CD sound!

 

I'm still perplexed by the authoring choice on the DVDs... I mean, wouldn't it take more effort rather than less to offer a lossy option?

 

This usually isn't my thing, but if you don't mind my asking what low low price did you have?

 

It was just over $75 with free shipping, as opposed to the £75 -VAT+shipping that Burning Shed was asking.

 

Cool video from Bill Bruford about this set.

 

Never checked out Bruford's solo works, so like the recently purchased Allan Holdsworth 'The Man That Changed Guitar Forever,' I'll most likely check this out too.

 

I'm always surprised when a lossless hi-rez (stereo or 5.1) is just regarded as a nice improvement (or, for some, an unnecessary improvement).

I have over a 1,000 discs of blu-ray film and TV that has lossless hi-rez, and even for a low budget film this is regarded as standard quality. As a blu-ray buyer I'm upset at the few discs that only have DVD lossy quality, and I've even apologized to a friend when I played a blu-ray without hi-rez sound because to me the lack of audio quality was so apparent.

That some movie lovers would not mind just DVD quality audio wouldn't bother me. But for music lovers to accept this is a worry.

 

Yes, you have to convert the lossless stereo masters to DD. One more step.

 

I understand, Michael, believe me. I’ve got a high end setup (stereo only, no surround), and amongst the things that have happened since I finally got a really outstanding system in my home for the first time in my life three years ago (age 59!):

1. Speaking as a writer, at a time when more and more labels, artists and publicists prefer (understandably, for financial reasons) to send digital promos rather than hard media, i insist on CD quality (or better; you'd be surprised the number who will accommodate that if it‘s easy for them to do so). Labels like ECM and Cuneiform send digital promos in CD quality, with PDFs of the CD booklet, but you'd be surprised at the number of folks who still send our 192k mp3 files. Anyway, I flat out refuse that.
2. For my own buying, I try to obtain high resolution wherever possible...and assuming that the engineer doing the mastering has done a good job (this site has helped me immeasurably on that front, so thank you folks!).

However...as much as I am far more interested in high quality sound to match what consider high quality music, I’m still of the opinion that I’d rather listen to great music with less than ideal sound, than bad music with pristine sonics. I have met, over the years, audiophiles who would actually prefer the opposite, and it still has me scratching my head, with no disrespect intended to any who feel that way. And so, while the Bruford box would have been better had they gone with Blu Ray media and high res surround (and new stereo, for that matter) mixes, the improvement over previous CD versions (both the original EG releases and subsequent 2005 Winterfold remasters) are such that I’m perfectly happy with what I’ve got. Would I have preferred better? Of course. But with music this good and Jakko's great new stereo mixes, I can be happy that they still sound better than they ever have.

Just to explain. I get where you’re coming from; but I’m not quite as far down that particular line (yet, perhaps...who knows how I’ll feel in another few years of listening to music through what folks tell me is an audiophile rig - OPPO UDP-205 player (in a two bedroom condo, had to do away with vinyl 17 years ago); Leema Tucana II integrated amplifier; and Tetra 333 speaker stack).

So that's why, for me, better would be nice to have...but what the Bruford box already has is an improvement, and I’m very satisfied with that.

Cheers.
John
PS: the whole issue of what media to present music on is a challenge for labels and artists. I run into folks who bitch because, for example, a lot of the music in the upcoming King Crimson Sailor's Tales box is on Blu Ray. They want DVD or, even better, just CD. So in some ways, and I’ve seen this in personal experience with a label or two, they’re in a damned if they do, damned if they don't position. So they make choices that they think will satisfy the majority of the people who will buy their box sets...and learn to live with those who won't or will complain about it. For everyone Efe who would prefer high res audio on Blu Ray in the Bruford box, there are probably at least as many others, if not more, whose opinion is either that they’re upset because it's not on dvd or cd; or don't give a hoot about the blu ray, because they’ll mostly be playing the CDs anyway. So it's a tough thing, these days, to determine who you’re market is and where they are on the sound demand spectrum....just sayin'

 

As am I Dave, as am I

 

I appreciate when folks pull me up and make suggestions/corrections that make my work either more accurate or just plain better. So I was totally honest and heartfelt in my appreciation. I agree with you....but yes, the CDs sound great and since I don’t have surround, I’m ok with that. I made a mistake when looking at the files (clearly) on the DVDs, so again thanks for nicely pointing it out.

 

Makes sense to me! (Until I am asked to shell this kind of money - premium $$ in my mind equals premium quality) But of course to each its own.

 

I think the degree to which one will be bothered by the lack of proper hi-res here is going to be directly proportionate to how much they paid for the set to begin with.

Had I paid the $150 or so that I suspect a lot here did, I'd be very perturbed. However, I got in sub-$80, which makes a nice set of "just" CDs work on my value metric. At that price point, the hi-res would be a nice inclusion, but not a requirement.

Now, if we wanted to really break out the wishlists and calculators, what really would have set me alight would be the same attention to detail and options that the Tull reissues have gotten (hi-res stereo remixes, hi-res surround, hi-res flat transfers of original mixes, etc.). I can dream, right?

 

What would really set me alight (and have me buying the last few Tull boxes) is if they had included a blu ray so that we had lossless hi-rez 5.1. Unfortunately the 5.1 on the DVD is just lossy DTS.

 

My set arrived today and I'm just wondering if the Bill Bruford signature on the certificate is genuine or not. It looks almost too clean to be real. Then again, Bruford is a very precise drummer.

 

I skimmed all the discs and am now giving the Redbook ‘Feels Good...” a sit down listen.
First impressions: The CD stereo remixes are really good. Warm, balanced - nice.
The DVD ‘s are meh. The 5.1 mix is difficult to appreciate due to the low-fi sound coming from each channel. The original mixes sound very compressed.

The Venue is a notch above bootleg quality.

Back to the remixes of FgtM and One of a Kind. Jakko did an outstanding job, making the box worth it to me.

 

It also depends on what you already have. Feels Good to Me is already on my shelf along with a compilation (Master Strokes). So, the main attraction was the multichannel mixes. Still looking forward to having One of a Kind and Gradually Going Tornado, plus I'll listen to the rest of it at least once.

As to more general question of what's worth a sonic upgrade, it depends on the music itself, the recording quality, and the system you are going to play it on. For example, I don't need an SACD of Get the Knack, I really don't want to listen to a hires recording made with a Walkman, and mp3s sound OK in the car. Also, my stereo system is better than my multichannel system; I figure anything over 48K for the 5.1 version is just wasting hard drive space.

Steven Wilson seems to have a pretty good idea about what's worth messing with, which is why I buy just about everything he does.

 

I got an e-mail from Import CD's that the Bruford set shipped today and the price was $73.58. Delivery is slated for Wednesday via USPS.

 

My set arrived without the certificate, so Burning Shed is sending it to me, so I haven't seen the actual thing. But it seems they are genuine signatures, as they appear in various inks. I guess Bill changed pens a few times, maybe so it would hurt less signing so many autographs! Or maybe the ink ran out. Anyway, I've seen photos of a few different looking signatures on the certificates.

 

Thanks.

 

My set arrived today from Import CDs. However, not included in the (unshrinkwapped) box was the 16-page 12-inch booklet that's supposed to come with it. Anyone else?

 

I warned you guys about Import CD’s! They are NOT to be trusted. Do so at your own risk...
Buy the Bruford Box from Burning Shed and save yourself the hassle of having to fight to get your money back from Import CD’s.

 

My set wasn't shrink- wrapped either, but appears to be complete. A poster, two pictures of the band in different lineups, the book, and the signed certificate were all present and accounted for. The box it shipped in had a label designating the product with. I suspect that the label or whoever ditched the shrinkwrap and just shipped the boxes in larger boxes. Not so great if one of these ends up out in the rain on delivery, but not a problem for me.

Point being, I don't think that's an ImportCDs foul-up.

 

Thanks for the warnings...mine arrived as ordered and sounds great for the low price offered from ImportCDs.