Universal Music Japan's possible return to single-layer SACD (with Steely Dan's Aja)
Comments
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I just ordered the Dire Straits release.-Kevin
HT: Philips 52PFL7432D 52" LCD 1080p / Onkyo TX-SR 606 / Oppo BDP-83 SE / Comcast cable. (all HDMI)B&W 801 - Front, Polk CS350 LS - Center, Polk LS90 - Rear
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So anticipating my copy of Aja.
Well if any of you want to trade your Aja SACD for my 30th anniversary 180g LP of Aja (purchased new about 6 months ago, only played twice), let me know
While the sound quality of the 180g LP is great, the surface noise sucks. I imagine one of you with the zillion dollar record cleaners could easily turn it into a gem, but I was unable to get rid of the surface noise with a manual brush and fluid. -
CDBANQ sent me an e-mail today saying my order for the AJA SHM-SACD has been fullfilled and will ship shortly.
The 2nd copy I ordered from CDJAPAN and is making better progress:
Class: Express Mail International®
Status: Inbound Out of Customs
"Your item cleared United States Customs at 11:27 AM on June 30, 2010. Information, if available, is updated periodically throughout the day. Please check again later. "
I should see it soon....
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I don't like you anymore, Mike.
Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Not a peep yet from CDJapan for my Aja CD. The status in my account shows as "On Hand", whatever that means.Parasound P5 Pre
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Oppo BDP-103 -
Any news on whether the Scorpions SACD will ever be re-released???
BTW, somebody earlier had asked about jpc. They are European company (I believe German), and they do delivery fairly promptly and give updates on order status, etc. Have bought a couple of SACDs from them.
Also, first impressions on the SACD from the guys who have got it? Sounds superior to previous presentations or not that much better? -
Just got my shipped email a minute ago. Life is good again...LOL
I hope you get it today, Mike. Did you know that the discs are green?Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
It's here.....And it is green - on top at least
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I haven't even gotten my ship notice.
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music. -
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Things like that are one of the main reasons that SACD was a huge commercial failure.
The main reason that SACD was a commercial failure is the fact that the original developers(Sony and Philips) did not promote it very vigorously.Yet,Sony continues to produce great sounding SACD players,go figure.BTW my SHM-SACD copy of "Aja" is on the plane as we speak.If you can't hear a difference, don't waste your money. -
The SACD of "Aja" is basically out-of-print. If anyone is interested in this title and was "on the fence", I'd suggest you look for any available copy and order it.
My order of the "Aja" SHM-SACD at HMV Jp was held up by the delay release of the "Who's Next" SHM-SACD. I've since changed my order and "Aja" should be on its way soon.
I think I should pull the trigger on the Dire Straits SHM-SACD before it's too late. -
Yes, very clear, very detailed.
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Of course they do,what's wrong with saying it?KISS sucks!If you can't hear a difference, don't waste your money. -
KISS on SACD is just a stupid Idea and a Waste.....Polk Audio SDA 2.3tl Fully Hot Rodded. 😎
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MIT Shotgun 3 cables throughout / Except TT, and PC’s -
Second batch of Japan Universal Music SHM-SACDs officially announced....
http://www.universal-music.co.jp/u-pop/special/sacd/02.html
OK, I'm quite sure I will get Dire Straits..... -
OMG! :eek: I was just checking out cdjapan, Danny. Kiss-Destroyer SHM SACD 4500 yen. What a waste of Super Audio material.
KISS sucks!
Ya! I said it. :rolleyes:
Ok, I like you again.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
The SACD of "Aja" is basically out-of-print. If anyone is interested in this title and was "on the fence", I'd suggest you look for any available copy and order it.
And they say SACD is dead......:rolleyes:My order of the "Aja" SHM-SACD at HMV Jp was held up by the delay release of the "Who's Next" SHM-SACD. I've since changed my order and "Aja" should be on its way soon.
I think I should pull the trigger on the Dire Straits SHM-SACD before it's too late.
That's why my order from CD Japan was held up. I changed the order and bam, they shipped the rest.
I also ordered Blind Faith and Dire Straits.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Mine touched down at JFK and are on the move, should be here Tuesday.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
I would love to get at least one SACD copy of Aja as I have a dozen copies on vinyl, different weights, remastered, MFSL, Aniversary issues etc etc. I even have the old CD of it. The SACD would complete my collection but it ain't happening. Perhaps when things get better in the future I'll be able to get one online but I'm sure I'll have to pay through the nose. . . Did I hear someone say SACD was dead!?!:rolleyes:
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Mine touched down at JFK and are on the move, should be here Tuesday.
My "Aja" SACD is on the move as well....finally received e-mail from HMV Jp.hearingimpared wrote: »Did I hear someone say SACD was dead!?!:rolleyes:
Based on the numbers of new SACD titles added at sa-cd.net for the first 6 months of 2009 and 2010, they're roughly equal. We're looking at over 500 new SACD titles this year, based on current projection.
After all, sa-cd.net has yet to add the new announced Pretenders SACD from Mofi nor the new Nat "King" Cole Spanish hits compilation SACD from Top Music of Hong Kong. -
Have you heard any recent news about Floyd's, Wish You Were Here, Danny?
No news of the WYWH SACD, but I think management of Pink Floyd is watching the sale of these SHM-SACDs. I'd think a WYWH SACD release may eclipse the release of these SHM-SACDs. -
And they say SACD is dead......:rolleyes:
Well round here mostly just DangerBoy likes to say that, of course he has been caught in the eternal rainstorm known as Seattle and his brain is so water-logged it floats like a bar of iivory soap.:p
RT1 -
My copies of Aja and Layla just arrived, the gear is warming up.
I have to say the packaging is top notch, although I wish I could read Japanese. The clear plastic resealable (is that a word?) pouch is made from heavy material, so it should last. It also has the SACD/SHM symbols and words printed on the lower right corner. There is the usual Obi strip, but it also covers the entire back. The cover, back and inside panels have a flat sheen with high quality artwork. The whole thing opens up into 4 panels with the disc tucked into one of the panels. The disc is in a plastic sleeve, which is inside a white paper sleeve with the SACD/SHM symbols and words embossed in one side. The only downside is trying to get the white paper sleeve out of the panel is a bit tricky. As noted the disc is green on the top side and silver on the other. I inspected the disc, it is well made with very smooth edges and a thick center ring.
Sound review to come.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Folks, we have a winner!
Aja sounds fantastic. There is more air and much more decay. The horns are exquisite and the cymbals simply shimmer. The sound stage is huge and just floats out in space. Where the bass on the CD's sounds slightly muffled, it is clean, clear and growls on the SACD. In fact, all of it sounds clean and clear...you really get to hear into the music. No matter the volume level, the music remains silky smooth......so nice!
I've read a few reviews where the person liked the original CD better saying the SACD sounded flat. I honestly don't know what they are talking about because it is the exact opposite.
On another note, it's over 100 outside today and the AC is working its butt off. Cranking up the big rig has not helped matters, but I couldn't wait.
I'll get to Layla later. I'm not expecting a big difference between the new SACD-SHM and the original SACD as they used the same master. We'll see.
Mike, that's a good idea.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
F1, re: "I'm not expecting a big difference between the new SACD-SHM and the original SACD as they used the same master."
Interesting. I read somewhere that the Layla SHM-SACD used a 2010 DSD remaster (as opposed to the 2004 Polydor DSD version) whereas the Aja SHM-SACD is using a 2003 DSD remaster. Was Aja released before on SACD? (though I suppose they could have decided not to produce it, and just held it for all these years) -
No, that is wrong. Noted in Aja, "DSD Transferred from analogue master tapes by Hitoshi Takiguchi (Universal Mastering Studios)" and it's noted on the Obi strip as a 2010 DSD master. Aja has never been released on SACD before now.
Layla uses the same mastering credit (Bob Ludwig) as the 2004 SACD and the Obi notes it as a 2004 DSD master.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
I've been going back and forth between the new SACD-SHM and the original SACD of Layla for awhile now and it's kind of driving me crazy. To keep my sanity, I quit listening for the night. That said, right now I think they are so close that if you have the original there's no point, sonics wise, in buying the new one.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
I've been going back and forth between the new SACD-SHM and the original SACD of Layla for awhile now and it's kind of driving me crazy. To keep my sanity, I quit listening for the night. That said, right now I think they are so close that if you have the original there's no point, sonics wise, in buying the new one.
Awesome on the AJA SACD.
I have the Layla SACD and was expecting to hear better reviews of the SHMSACD despite the same mastering due to this quote from PF Audio Discourse;SHM-CD, or Super High Material CD, is an improved version of the Compact Disc material that uses super quality, enhanced transparency polycarbonate material developed for use in LCD screens. They will play in any CD player. Universal Music Japan and JVC co-developed the SHM-CD. They report that the new material allows the pits to be formed more precisely plus eliminates laser splatter. The signal characteristics are improved as a result with overall lower distortion and better musicality. Universal Japan is reissuing a ton of albums in their catalog in all genres as SHM-CDs and this is the first report of their CDs to reach these shores!
Maybe this quote only applies to CDs and not SACD!?! What do you think Jess?
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Got my copy of "Aja" today.I'm gonna give it a listen and will comment afterwards.I still can't believe I paid that much for a CD,if ain't up to snuff,I'm gonna commit hara-kiri!!!If you can't hear a difference, don't waste your money.
