David Bowie should I get the SACD's or Ryko's?

I want the classic Bowie albums on CD. Should I get the Ryko's or the SACD's. I haven't heard too much rave about the SACD's here and I know I already like how the Ryko's sound so what should I do??
If the SACD's are good I'd rather get those I guess.
Sorry I'm not spending $$ on the RCA's- too much and too high a generation of tape for me.

 

Hi Shawn,

You have a TT IIRC, why not track down original RCA LPs? They'll probably sound better than either.

Sean

 

I do but it's out of convience. Plus they aren't too cheap anyways.
I have Changesonebowie on LP.

 

Recently, I got the Ziggy SACD. The mastering is excellent . Great sound for stereo or 5.1. The 5.1 mix is cool, too. Have not listened to the redbook.

 

I usually find the Bowies for under $10 out here, and in good shape too.

I know what you mean about conveniece though. It's nice to have a CD to so you can play it in the car too.

Sean

 

Skip the SACDs unless you want Ziggy in surround, which I did. Scary Monsters and Let's Dance are not good on SACD. Up the Hill Backwards has a tape drag at the beginning of the song which is inexcusable on the SACD, which is the only format this tape drag appears. In addition, weird EQ on SM and LD. The Rykos aren't bad if you can deal with the EQ. At least they're not drowning in NR like the Virgin CDs.

 

I do like surround sound so maybe the SACD's then.

 

So far there are only three of the older Bowie titles on SACD (Scary Monsters, Ziggy Stardust, and Let's Dance), so if you are limiting your choice between the SACD and the Ryko's then your choice has been made for you for most of the titles. I haven't heard the SACD for SM or LD but I do have Ziggy, and I like it.

 

Of the older Bowie albums, only Ziggy was done in surround. Let's Dance and Scary Monsters are stereo only on SACD.

 

Alright so Ziggy for SACD. Let's Dance original Capitol/EMI version. SM Ryko & the rest for Ryko.
Jeez...this is almost as bad as the Lennon CD's.

 

Although there are no remixes to worry about!

Sean

 

I know. At least I can get Bowie CD's but I'll have to stick Lennon vinyl for his 70's work.

 

To be brutally honest, I really don't like the SACD mix of Ziggy. It seems like such a missed opportunity.
So much so that I took a stereo one and upmixed it myself, with - I believe - much better results.
Why is the SACD surround mix so poor? Was ir genuinely redone from the multitracks, or repurposed? Because to my ears it sounds as if whoever did it was thinking in stereo at best.

 

don't forget about all of the bonus cuts that only available on the ryko's.

renny

 

Now that's a really good point.
Got the Rykos of MWSTW, Hunky Dory, Ziggy, Aladdin Sane & Diamond Dogs - only Aladdin Sane has no extras.
It is worth getting them for those tracks, if nothing else.

 

Personally, I think the Scary Monsters, Ziggy, and Let's Dance SACDs sound fantastic. The Heathen disc, OTOH, doesn't seem to offer much that you can't do on a vanilla CD.

 

The Ryko's are great for the bonus tracks, no doubt about it. I especially like the sound of the Ryko Hunky Dory and Ziggy Stardust. The Ziggy Stardust SACD sounds fine, too, but I agree that the multi-channel mix is more than a little "understated."

Gary

 

As per an earlier thread on this, I think the Let's Dance SACD is WAYYY too bright; in fact, the brightest SACD I own. The Ziggy redbook and SACD stereo layers sound very good, and the surround mix is interesting, but not benchmark quality by any means. Haven't heard the SACD of Scary Monsters. I have the Ryko of Ziggy and may compare the three (Ryko redbook, SACD and it's redbook) tonight, now that you've asked.

 

In the UK we've been getting 2 CD 30th anniversary editions of Bowie titles with the original album and an extra disc of demos, etc:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos...3132/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_11_1/026-7360219-4446004

I'm a casual Bowie fan so I'm not sure I think they have short runs of availability -they started I think with Ziggy Stardust and that and Aladdin Sane have been deleted. I don't know if these editions would be any use to you.

 

The anniversary editions still show up at Best Buy. The current one is Diamond Dogs I believe.

Sean

 

The Let's Dance and Scary Monsters SACDs were mastered by the same person who did the Ziggy SACD. Seems like if you'd like the sound of one, you'd like the sound of the others, too.

I'd go so far as to say the above Bowie SACDs are among the best in my SACD collection. I've owned the late 90's remasters (don't recall what label or who mastered them), and I ended up selling them because I felt there was something *off* with the tone and timbre, they didn't sound "right". I haven't had them for a few years so I can't say specifically what it was but I do remember being pretty disappointed with them, to the point I didn't even want to listen to them. To me, these SACDs are leagues better.

 

I do not recommend the anniversary editions. I stopped after buying the first 2 (Ziggy and Alladin Sane). IMO they sound terribly bright (glad I kept the older CD's). I assume Diamond Dogs sounds the same?

 

Well put. There is little variation in the surround mix; the placement of vocals changes very little. I was expecting something a little more revealing/dramatic, but besides the increased clarity due to the 5.1 separation, this mix is very understated and almost superfluous. Nothing really new is revealed, and that was a disappointment considering that this is a classic album. "Ziggy" is a pretty no-frills recording to begin with.

 

I like the SCARY MONSTERS a lot, too.

HEATHEN on SACD offers an amazing surround mix and a ton of bonus tracks....

 

Buying Bowie on CD is pick-and-choose. For straight stereo, some are preferable on the original '80s RCA pressings; some listeners prefer later masterings, though I'm not one of them. The Ryko's are fine for the bonus material, though, no small consideration. I would guess the most recent remasters will fit most needs, though haven't sampled enough to offer an album-by-album opinion.