Who do you prefer James Guthrie, Andy Jackson or Alan Parsons for Pink Floyd surround mixes?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Bill Mac, Jan 11, 2019.

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  1. Bill Mac

    Bill Mac Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    I thought I would start this thread with a poll on who does one prefer in regard to surround mixes of Pink Floyd albums. I always enjoyed the 5.1 mix by James Guthrie on DSOTM. But when the WYWH SACD was released I was a bit disappointed by the 5.1 mix by James Guthrie. When I got the DVD-V and then the Blu-ray (20th Anniversary set) of The Division Bell I was very impressed with the 5.1 mix by Andy Jackson.

    I also find I'm listening to the 4.0 quad mixes off of the DSOTM and WYWH Immersion set Blu-ray discs over the 5.1 mixes.

    So which surround mixes are the preferred ones here on SH? The ones by James Guthrie or Andy Jackson? I would say I prefer Andy Jackson's work as The Division Bell 5.1 mix has more separation, clarity, bass and is more immersive IMO.

    I'm listening to The Division Bell Blu-ray as I type. Wearing the Inside Out is now playing which is my favorite track on the album. Always think of Richard Wright and how he passed way to young.
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2019
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  2. Audiowannabee

    Audiowannabee Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florida
    Alan parsons quad of dsotm & wywh :D
     
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  3. tlake6659

    tlake6659 Senior Member

    Location:
    NJ
    Don't think Parsons did the quad mix for WYWH.
     
  4. Audiowannabee

    Audiowannabee Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florida
    Who mixed that one???

    I find myself listening / enjoying the 4.0 quad mixes off the bluray more so than the 5.1
     
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  5. Thievius

    Thievius Blue Oyster Cult-ist

    Location:
    Syracuse, NY
    I have not heard many of the surround mixes, so take my comments with a grain of salt, but having heard Jackson's work on The Endless River blu and Guthrie's on Gilmour's solo effort Rattle That Lock blu, I find both masters extremely well done and think both are highly capable, fantastic engineers. So I did not vote.
     
  6. Bill Mac

    Bill Mac Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
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    I should have included Alan Parsons in the poll! What a dope! I contacted a Gort to see if they could add Alan Parsons name to the thread title and to the poll.
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2019
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  7. Sevoflurane

    Sevoflurane Forum Resident

    Brian Humphries did the quad WYWH.

    Jackson’s Division Bell and Meddle 5.1s are very nice.
     
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  8. Myke

    Myke Trying Not To Spook The Horse

    Equally enjoy the efforts of both.
     
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  9. Bill Mac

    Bill Mac Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    You are correct. On Discogs it shows that the WYWH 4.0 quad mix was done by Brian Humphries and assisted by Peter James.

    Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here - Immersion Box Set
    Andy Jackson did the 5.1 mix for Rattle That Lock not James Guthrie.

    David Gilmour - Rattle That Lock
     
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  10. HiResGeek

    HiResGeek Seer of visions

    Location:
    Boston
    The nice thing about both of those quad mixes is the more discrete channel usage. I find the Guthrie remixes are more designed to put you in the middle of the music. Parson's DSOTM mix, for example, makes much more imaginative use of the channels with regards to various sounds.

    Actually, the quad mixes are one of my favorite features of the Immersion set. The SACD doesn't have them, the only other way to hear these for a while (short of owning the original quad vinyl) was to "find" some bootlegged DVD-A converted rips of the original quad vinyl. Getting a nice clean version on the BD audio was a welcome QOL improvement.
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2019
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  11. Audiowannabee

    Audiowannabee Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florida

    :hide:It would appear they can be found on bluray from some European countries

    Ymmv
     
  12. tlake6659

    tlake6659 Senior Member

    Location:
    NJ
    I voted Jackson. His mixes are more discreet. I do like Guthrie's surround mix of WYWH better than the quad mix. I definitely prefer the quad mix on Dark Side though.

    Are these all of Jackson's surround mixes?

    Meddle
    Division Bell
    Rattle that Lock
    On An Island
    The Endless River
    Live at Pompeii

    Unreleased: Obscured by Clouds

    Guthrie has only done:

    Wish You Were Here
    Dark Side of the Moon
    Amused to Death

    Upcoming: Animals

    Correct?
     
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  13. Bill Mac

    Bill Mac Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    Excellent! Thanks for posting the break down of the specific surround titles that both have done. David Gilmour's Remember That Night - Live at Royal Albert Hall is another 5.1 mix that Andy Jackson was part of.

    David Gilmour - Remember That Night (Live At The Royal Albert Hall)

    I wish On An Island would be released on Blu-ray. The Live in Gdańsk 2 CD/2DVD set that includes the 5.1 mix of On An Island is great but a Blu-ray would be much better.

    David Gilmour - Live In Gdańsk
     
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  14. tlake6659

    tlake6659 Senior Member

    Location:
    NJ
    Any idea who did the surround mixes for:

    Pulse
    David Gilmour In Concert
    Live in Gdansk
    Roger Waters In the Flesh
     
  15. Bill Mac

    Bill Mac Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    In the Flesh - James Guthrie
    Live in Gdansk - in part by Andy Jackson
    Pulse - Joel Plante
    David Gilmour Remember That Night - in part by Andy Jackson
     
  16. mark winstanley

    mark winstanley Certified dinosaur, who likes physical product

    From the things I have heard



    meddle - like a lot
    Division - i like it a lot
    Rattle - i like it a lot
    Endless River - haven't listened enough

    Dark Side - liked quite a bit
    Wish - liked a bit
    Amused to Death - Really disappointed

    It feels like Guthrie is afraid to use the space. Moon was pretty good, but he seems to have pulled further and further away from doing a good mix as he has gone on. Amused to death should be awesome in surround but it is terribly done and a bore

    So I would say Jackson because he doesn't actually seem to be afraid to use the channels
     
  17. canonlon

    canonlon Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario, CANADA
    Alan Parson quad is my fav 'surround of DSOTM
     
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  18. aphexj

    aphexj Sound mind & body

    Assisting James Guthrie. Both of them worked on the 5.1

    I don't enjoy PULSE very much in stereo but the 5.1 on the DVD is nice, as are the Floydian SACDs he worked on, so James gets my vote

    "Can't hear any click track in the cans, James!"
     
  19. Tristero

    Tristero In possession of the future tense

    Location:
    MI
    Who did the quad mixes for Atom Heart Mother and "Echoes"?

    The only 5.1 mix of Jackson's that I've heard is Pompeii, which I wasn't overly impressed with, so I'd probably lean towards Guthrie, but I do love the quad mix for DSOTM. I may have to break that one out tonight. . .
     
  20. aphexj

    aphexj Sound mind & body

    Not sure about "Echoes" but I believe Atom Heart Mother in Quad was mixed by Alan Parsons
     
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  21. HiResGeek

    HiResGeek Seer of visions

    Location:
    Boston
    Dammit, this forum should just take my wallet already; I've come to the realization that it's a rabbit hole disguised as a message board.

    On a totally unrelated note, are the Surround mixes on the Early Years box set good enough to warrant paying massive $$$ for a 27-disc set?
     
  22. aphexj

    aphexj Sound mind & body

    It depends on how badly you need Meddle in 5.1, the rest can be had more cheaply
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2019
  23. HiResGeek

    HiResGeek Seer of visions

    Location:
    Boston
    I guess I'm specifically asking about the Meddle 5.1 mix then. Is it THAT good? Sure, AHM (and OBC to a lesser extent) also appeals to me, but it seems the "hidden" Meddle mix is only available on the mega-box.

    I guess no matter what you tell me, I don't think Meddle in surround alone warrants that price tag for me...
     
  24. aphexj

    aphexj Sound mind & body

    It's good but not the best of the lot, IMO. Plus you're paying for a physical copy of the data but you'll still need to rip it with a BD-ROM drive in order to play it back

    If you want the Quad of AHM just buy the standalone Devi/ation set, it's similar to the stereo mix only with a more discrete/aggressive sound field placement

    And the rest of the material on that volume is also great — Zabriskie outtakes, the John Peel show, KQED, St. Tropez festival, the Pink room....
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2019
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  25. pinkrudy

    pinkrudy Senior Member

    andy jackson
     
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