Pink Floyd Discovery Box is here...

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by TONEPUB, Sep 16, 2011.

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  1. stricee

    stricee Forum Resident

    i agree with the consensus on the discovery box....all except AMLOR something went wrong there
     
  2. LeeS

    LeeS Music Fan

    Location:
    Atlanta
    For guitar sound that sounds as clear and smooth as some of Steve's recent work, check out Wot's...Uh The Deal.
     
  3. Myke

    Myke Trying Not To Spook The Horse

    You're determined to make me buy the other 8 catalog titles, aren't you ?

    :rant: ;)


    The Blu Ray of DSOTM is on it's third go round since Tuesday...
     
  4. rontoon

    rontoon Animaniac

    Location:
    Highland Park, USA
    I finally had the chance to start digging into the remasters. Please keep in mind that I'm 52 and 5 decades of going to concerts and cranking albums has made a dent in my hearing. Having said that...

    I really couldn't wait to get into Animals and I compared the Doug Sax and 2011 remasters by playing them simultaneously, both feeding into by brand new Yamaha RX-A700 via HDMI.

    After a few minutes into Dogs the differences, as subtle as some may be, seemed obvious (subtly obvious?... is this an oxymoron?). IMO, the Doug Sax remaster sounds "beefier" but on all levels. The mid-range and high end also sound meatier than the 2011 remaster. That's why I feel that the 2011 remasters have a cleaner sound w/o sacrificing the punch of the low end. Perhaps that's why the bass seems more pronounced on these remasters? Because it's isolated better.

    For lack of a better word, the Sax remaster seems a bit mushier while the 2011 version is pretty nicely defined. Also, some of the "crunch" (harshness) of the top end has now been removed. I have to admit that by the time I got to Sheep I just wanted to listen to the 2011 remaster. And that was w/o knowing which was which (I put each disc into a paper sleeve, shuffled them behind my back, and shut my eyes when loading them carefully into the trays).

    From what I've been reading lately it appears that Guthrie has tried to stay as true to the sound of the original the master tapes (that he was using as his source) as possible rather than having the goal of trying to "enhance" them as much as possible. Of course w/o being able to hear the original source we can only base this on the faith of knowing his 30+ year reputation and collaboration with the band. I have little doubt that, at this point in time, he'd be more familiar with their catalog than they are. Guthrie isn't only an expert in his field, he's a leader. And while many have been critical of his work I've always been a big fan, even the few times when he's fallen short.

    What I hear with this release (and also The Wall which I also A/B'ed) is more laid back and natural sounding with a nice punch limited to the low end. Many have compared these remasters to the Beatles remasters and I can see why now. They both sound great. I have a feeling that I'm going to like all of these new Floyd remasters. Two years of work well done James.:righton:

    Next up, getting Immersed. :goodie:

    Thanks for reading. :wave:
     
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  5. Rich Malloy

    Rich Malloy Forum Resident

    So, I grabbed Animals yesterday sorta on a lark. I've only ever had the ancient CBS/Columbia CK-whatever, having practically spun the bits off it (thanks Leigh for that cool locution!) - and um WOW!

    This morning I jogged back over to Newbury Comics, toting my old Animals disc to sell for whatever odd pennies they'd gimme for it, and picked up a smattering: Piper, Obscured, Atom Heart, and Final Cut. Maybe a tad concerned that I too rashly sold and bought, I came here for either confirmation or consolation and am real happy to find the former!

    A special thanks to Leigh for bringing his ears and expertise to bear - I'm loving the album-by-album scorecard! Now, I'm off to hear Piper. Or maybe Atom Heart...
     
  6. rontoon

    rontoon Animaniac

    Location:
    Highland Park, USA
    My arm being twisted, I just can't resist. Gonna spin the 2 soundtracks before digging into the box (I'll wait until it gets dark out). Nothing like dedicating a beautiful fall Saturday afternoon in Chicago locked away in the FloydCave listening to albums all the way through.
     
  7. LeeS

    LeeS Music Fan

    Location:
    Atlanta
    Pretty much. :D

    The two channel SACD beats the two channel Bluray which is another reason I returned the Immersion box.
     
  8. Myke

    Myke Trying Not To Spook The Horse

    Opinions are like Ferraris...there are plenty of both related to this forum.
     
  9. LeeS

    LeeS Music Fan

    Location:
    Atlanta
    I'm not saying the bluray 2 channel is bad, it's quite good! It's just not quite at SACD level.

    :cheers:
     
  10. rontoon

    rontoon Animaniac

    Location:
    Highland Park, USA
    With respect for your opinion I beg to differ... and am surprised by my preference being a huge SACD fan. That's one of the reasons I bought the WYWH SACD in addition to the Immersion box. But now I'm second guessing myself. Perhaps it's my new amp but in any case I prefer the Blu-ray over the SACD of DSOTM.
     
  11. LeeS

    LeeS Music Fan

    Location:
    Atlanta
    Ron, what playback gear do you have?

    P.S. TommyTunes posted the same opinion.
     
  12. surfingelectrode

    surfingelectrode Active Member

    Location:
    Lutz, FL
    I don't have anything to say about the music, but am I the only person who doesn't really like the new artwork?

    I think Storm's work has been getting progressively worse...
     
  13. Doctor Flang

    Doctor Flang Forum Resident

    Location:
    Helsinki, Finland
    The artwork of what? I quite like the approach to combine the artwork of original vinyls and remastered CD's. I've been long missing the original artwork of Dark Side, Obscured By Clouds and the b&w backcover photo of More.
     
  14. surfingelectrode

    surfingelectrode Active Member

    Location:
    Lutz, FL
    The new artwork created for the box set. The new logos and all of the stuff in the booklets.
     
  15. eelkiller

    eelkiller One of the great unwashed

    Location:
    Northern Ontario
    Check out the OBTW versions, you will get the "same look" from pictures with a totally different mastering.

    In other words this "look" is nothing new for this release
     
  16. Masza

    Masza Forum Resident

    Location:
    Finland
    Yes, I have already checked it out, it looks almost the same, just couple of dBs louder
     
  17. Davidmk5

    Davidmk5 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Marlboro , ma. usa
    It's funny if you go to newbury in another week they will have Boatloads of the older one's , that happened when the new Beatles stuff hit .
    what do they pay out for used floyd cd's ? $3 -ish ?

    Tried buying Momentary at newbury's store in Marlboro last night , they had none :shake: alos tried bestbuy , says they have them but nowhere to be found & target had none ...
     
  18. Leigh

    Leigh https://orf.media

    The Wall

    So I took a break from listening while my wife took a nap (she's getting over a cold) and later on she made a little fun of me for listening to Another Brick In The Wall (since higher ed is my gig). The Wall is the one album which I just overdid in the 90s and even today I find it difficult to listen to some of it.

    So, anyway, in addition to this mini-review of The Wall I will say that I just went back and read this entire thread. It seems my opinions are not all that out there, with much of the disagreement being over minor sound differences with the Sax remasters (or none - I am confused a bit by Jeff's review which I also just read). I guess those Columbia / CBS late 80s US CDs really do sound bad, and they are all I have to compare to. Then again, being a music nut, I have listened to a lot of well recorded stuff and I can say with certainty that these are some frickin' sweet sounding recordings.

    So anyway, with The Wall. I was listening to Comfortably Numb or Hey You and I kept getting spooked out by what sounded like my wife yelling down the stairs about something. I pause it, and nothing. I then listen a bit more and I think it's some detail I just wasn't used to hearing. I think there is a part of Mason's kit - the thing that looks like a tiny row of wind chimes... that is in there in the left channel that was giving me fits. Anyway, man, the Wall has some big bass on it. It's almost overwhelming in parts. But as I listen, and I can't be sure of course, but it sounds like it was recorded that way rather than EQed post-production (I am probably giving my own ears more credit than they deserve). Anyway, another big thumbs up for The Wall - the sound of it anyway, no longer does the "story" do much for me. The 2011 remaster is full, clear, and powerful.

    I just have to say, I absolutely love Gilmour's guitar tone on this album, from the clear as a ringing bell sound on ABITWP1 to the playing-over-a-smoking-ruin-with-rivers-of-blood sound in Comfortably Numb, probably one of the best Gilmour solos ever. It's all here with the dynamics, clarity, and tone that you could want. I think The Wall is probably the best recorded of all the PF albums (even Dark Side) and the 2011 is just a treat to the ears.

    Somebody should have gotten Roger a teddy bear to cuddle or something when he was in his teens, then again we probably wouldn't have gotten some of these Floyd classics...

    Sorry I can't be more helpful for those wishing to compare these to the other box sets and the Sax remasters. As I said earlier I only have the early American CDs to compare to. There is simply no comparison with those (as Jeff said in his review). Concerning "loudness" and "limiting" just forget about it. These have all dynamics intact - I would say even slightly more than the Beatles remasters (oh no! A clipped peak lasting 4 microseconds! AIEE! ;)).

    I say again, these are audiophile recordings, pure and simple.
     
  19. Nothing is ever pure and simple regarding sound quality from what I have experienced reading opinions on this site for years;).

    I picked up 2011 remasters of Atom Heart Mother, Meddle,Obscured and the Wall to fill-out my collection. The price at Newbury Comics was just too good. $9.99 each, except for the Wall at $15.99 (tax free in Nashua, NH). These were cheaper than the used copies they had in stock. I have been living a couple of days with AHM and though I don't rate the sound superior to the Sax remasters, they are still very good.
     
  20. Rich Malloy

    Rich Malloy Forum Resident

    I sold it along with 8 or 9 other CDs and didn't get a per disc breakdown. Given the paltry sum I walked out with, $3-ish might be a tad high!

    Atom Heart Mother sounds great, and I also sorta regret only having the original US to compare. I didn't even A:B Animals the difference was so readily apparent. Based on the two I've so far heard, I'd only echo Leigh. These are lovely, very detailed, transferred with a light hand, less-modern-than-Beatles-remasters. Going on where my volume knob sits and my impulse to push it higher and higher, these are not volume-maximized, ear offenders in the slightest.

    On to, hmmm, Piper...?
     
  21. LeeS

    LeeS Music Fan

    Location:
    Atlanta
    Yes, I really like how they did Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast!
     
  22. rontoon

    rontoon Animaniac

    Location:
    Highland Park, USA
    I really do need to update my profile (EDIT: Just did). I don't have anything high end really but it sounds great in my basement music room. I have a Yamaha RX-A700 two days outta the box. I have a set of Klipsch speakers that I bought about 15 years ago that sound just about as good as the day I bought 'em. KSB 1.1 front and rear, KV-1 center, and KSW 50 subwoofer. With my old Denon it was packaged as a home theater set up but I usually use it only for my music. My Sony Blu-ray player is no big deal either... BDP S560. I figure that if I need to spend over $1,000 for a player that will make a difference then I may as well use a dependable one that received good reviews.

    Tell me about it. The Happiest Days Of Our Lives is a knockout.
     
  23. Jerry Horne

    Jerry Horne WYWH (1975-2025)

    Location:
    NW
    Let's get that Atom Heart Mother quad mix out on Blu please!!
     
  24. LeeS

    LeeS Music Fan

    Location:
    Atlanta
    Cool, did not know about the Atom Heart quad mix.
     
  25. Norm Apter

    Norm Apter Well-Known Member In Memoriam

    Location:
    Worcester, MA
    You haven't given me a bum steer so far so I made it back to Best Buy this afternoon and picked up Meddle.

    Aside from WYWH (I've got the Immersion on pre-order), that really only leaves Piper (which I doubt I'll get because I'm very satisfied with the 2007 40th anniversary 3-disc set also done by Guthrie), A Momentary Lapse of Reason, and Ummagumma.

    Maybe I should have just bought the Discovery Box, but oh well, this week has been a lot of fun.
     
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