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

Exactly, one can bet if the originals sounded good these will also, it also works the same way for the thin one's also, Asia-Alpha's a good example

 

No. I'll try to do that soon. The SHM-SACD is seriously amazing though.

 

I disagree.

Can we get Steve in here to assist? The notion that a mastering engineer isn't needed doesn't seem right to me. Is there truly a "flat transfer" button where any of us could simply hook up the source tape and then make a perfect copy in DSD? My view is that the mastering work performed in the US or the UK on these SHM SACDs is of Hoffman/Gray quality and I credit the engineers on these projects for doing fantastic work.

 

So why in the hell don't the labels do the same thing here in the US? Or at least release these domestically in the US? I smell a scam here by the record labels to just charge more since these are made in Japan and are imports.

 

The pricing (roughly $45) is insane. In fact, I'm not sure how Elusive Disc personnel sleep at night when they are listing these for $60. Quite a disgrace.

I have no idea why USM Japan has begun this remastering effort. Hopefully, their US or Euro counterparts will be able to use these DSD masterings for broader release.

 

Easy answer: they don't see a market for SACDs in the US or europe. There is not enough people that care for quality.

 

The notion that a mastering engineer isn't needed doesn't seem right to me, either - obviously mastering engineers perform a vital role or no one would ever hire them. However, what the Japanese mean when they talk about a flat transfer is that no EQ has been applied to the transfer - all the other necessary work has been done but the EQ is completely flat (unaltered), for better or worse. In many cases people find they prefer the result and in some cases they don't. I think it's a fair guess that if the original master tape sounded dreadful as a flat transfer, the Japanese wouldn't include it in this category and would instead offer a mastered version. But if they say it's a flat transfer, I've no reason to doubt them - it would make no sense at all to misrepresent this and they would soon get found out.

 

I'm excited to hear this. Mine shipped. Part of the reason I pre-ordered was that I'd given up hope of ever finding a black label first pressing LP, then I found a mint one last week for $3. First one I'd ever seen. I used to pray for the day that they'd release the whole catalog on SACD, but after owning the AZ Royal Scam, Kendun Katy Lied, RL Gaucho, and possibly an early ABC Pretzel Logic, I may not ever need those on SACD.

 

Got this on original vinyl sounds great.

 

Other than the speed issues, surface noise, clicks, pops, inner groove distortion, compression (particularly on the bottom end), reduced separation, pita handling and 40 db lower s/n ratio how does it compare to the SACD?

I agree with a previous poster, I'll wait until I can buy them both.

Anybody know why The Royal Scam was cancelled? That was a disappointment.

 

6" for the SHM-SACD. 4" for the Platinum SHM-CD.

 

It is because I am not on here much these days Keith and it gave Bill the opportunity to get back in touch if he wanted to.

 

If you listen to the new Asia SACD's then it's obvious they haven't stepped in and fixed them, and they do need fixing.

 

O.K. I hope to see you around here once in awhile.

 

I was expecting to see some graphs, oh well...

 

I have the original vinyl, too. No comparison...I'm listening right now to the SACD for the 3rd time. I cannot express enough how amazed I am by this disc. Perfect tonality...each instrumental solo breathes. Vocals sound great. Just buy this disc if it is a favorite...

 

I'd love this disc-looked at the cost from CD Japan to the UK and thought......what!!!!

Expensive? I'll say just stupid how much it costs to get them here and I should know having the SHM-SACD of Aja.....

 

Mine's here ...

 

You are going to love it!!!

 

And he orders it from Amazon UK......

 

Won't take you long to be impressed. Let us know!

 

That the SHM-SACD also easily betters the original vinyl too, that' pretty amazing consider that Mr Nichols 32 years back in time declared the masters to be in very bad shape.
Do Uni Japan perform some real magic here?
What sources did they use?

Mine is shipped from Japan

 

Interesting that the typical blurb about the DSD mastering was missing. Are we going to be able to reach out to someone for details? I'm curious about the source and I'd really love to know who the mastering engineer was.

I did place my pre-order for Pretzel. My expectations are now high, so they better come through! I also added Carpenters to that order, which has gotten good reviews here.

 

An excellent point: I don't do a lot of A/B testing, but when I do, I always try to start with the lowest fidelity version first and follow it with the (supposedly) better version.

 

It would be easy for Steve to find out. If Steve don't want to be an open source, he could plant a "rumor" to @Claus, and Claus could tell us what he heard from a credible source….