HiRez Poll Yes - THE YES ALBUM [DVD-A/BDA]

rtbluray said:

Well, this was well worth the wait!......."Yours Is No Disgrace" to me is THE highlight......
"I've Seen All Good People" didn't impress me as much as the others........

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This is exactly how I feel. When I got my first test copy of the DVD-A, as I always do, I took it into the car for a "Yes Day" of travelling. For some reason, I really had an excitement within to hear "I've Seen All Good People" coming at me from all around the car. I had expectations of the same feeling I got listening to "And You and I" from CTTE for the first time. However, that did not happen. Oh, it was good, but it wasn't "blow me away" good. I listened again and it rocked and all, but it just didn't grab me the way CTTE did. I was a little bummed, only because my expectations were so high.

Then I started the whole disc from the start , which I should have done in the first place, and there is was: BLOWN AWAY!
"Yours Is No Disgrace" could be one of the most 'surround' SW mix ever released! Wow, that was killer. On the merit of that track alone, it's a '10'.

As always, your results may vary. With this release, SW may have surpassed the great Elliot Scheiner as the premier 5.1 audio mixer of all time.

Third LP I ever bought way back in the day (after Zep 4 and Ash's Argus). Loved it from the first needle drop - and ever since. A very special album for me. My initial reaction to the Blu-ray was 'hmmm...?'. A bit trebly and center channelish. And I missed the usual full stereo separation at key moments like the start of YIND and at the final climax of ST. And the Hammond sounded a bit recessed when it first comes in on YIND. Actually found myself enjoying needle drop version on the Blu-ray more - to begin with. Then messed with my settings - a bit more bass, turned the center down a bit, and it all fell more into place. And I had another couple of fantastic listens this morning - and, leaving aside some niggles about instrument placement, I loved it hugely. I keep coming back to A Venture - wow, what a brilliant mix, just stunning really, with all the voices separate, clear and together. And the instruments too. So my 8 has risen to 9, and now to 10 after immersion over several full listens. What an exceptional album - and how wonderful to have this Blu-ray to get lost in on a wet Saturday morning in 2014!! Thank you to everyone involved.

I was knocked out by this album right away during the testing, it was like meeting an old close friend for the first time. Unlike the more complicated serious CTTE that I will always love, this is more of a "FUN" Yes album with so many instant classic songs I will likely revisit more often. The clarity is delicious and the spread of instruments and interplay between channels one would hope for.

This really is our year for the getting the goods!

JonUrban said:

This is exactly how I feel. When I got my first test copy of the DVD-A, as I always do, I took it into the car for a "Yes Day" of travelling. For some reason, I really had an excitement within to hear "I've Seen All Good People" coming at me from all around the car. I had expectations of the same feeling I got listening to "And You and I" from CTTE for the first time. However, that did not happen. Oh, it was good, but it wasn't "blow me away" good. I listened again and it rocked and all, but it just didn't grab me the way CTTE did. I was a little bummed, only because my expectations were so high.

Then I started the whole disc from the start , which I should have done in the first place, and there is was: BLOWN AWAY!
"Yours Is No Disgrace" could be one of the most 'surround' SW mix ever released! Wow, that was killer. On the merit of that track alone, it's a '10'.

As always, your results may vary. With this release, SW may have surpassed the great Elliot Scheiner as the premier 5.1 audio mixer of all time.

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Nice to see we agree, Jon!

Here's a close up, albeit blurry, look at the audio details on the back of the DVD-A slipcase, for those only getting the BluRay:

timbre4 said:

This really is our year for the getting the goods!

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I'm only a little over a year into this scene. So...it's not like this all the time?

Just arrived today from Burning Shed. Played the 5.1 bluray twice and really enjoying it. In some ways more subtle than CTTE (I.e. All Good People); but in others (Yours is no disgrace) great separation - especially on the guitar break. Loving it!

DennisMoore Jr. said:

Nothing like a delivery from the Queen!

Here's my copy which came last Wednesday(yes, I had my mom help me take and post the pix. )

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Originally I was kinda looking past TYA to get to the next YES 5.1 release, but I am really enjoying this one. Starship Trooper is magic. This just proves further that YES like some other groups were made for 5.1. I love the live bonus tracks as well. All the lads did a superb job with this. We now have the 1st three classic YeS in 5.1. That is a true gift.

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Wow. What a day. After listening to it the first time really enjoying it, my wife sat to me (we just arrived from the farm) that she doesn't love me anymore.
Now it's 5 o'clock in the morning and my first impression is totally weird.
I cannot vote now.
I'm smashed down to earth.

Definitely the best first listen I've had since I started buying surround discs. I want to give it a few more plays before voting, but unless the disc self destructs and burns my house down I can't see it being any less than a 10.

The quality of this mix is a game changer. Other surround mixers better watch out, because Mr. Wilson has thrown down the gauntlet. A very active and enveloping mix. If the next title improves as much as from CTTE to TYA, we're in for a real treat!

The whole package is well done. Everything you want in music content without all the junk you don't need at a reasonable price.

proufo said:

Not if you ask Jon Anderson: "This is a song called The Clap".

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IMO, Jon pronounced the word "called" with a strong emphasis on the "d" making it sound like a two-syllable word.

"Yesterday a package came, a smile upon my face..."

Guys, PLEASE, keep the "funny stuff" in the forum and out of the poll threads. These threads are for people looking for info on a title, not for chuckles or funny jpgs.

PLEASE

Packaging is very different between the BluRay and the DVD-A. The DVD-A packaging is similar to some of the King Crimson releases, with the hard slip cover and the standard CD jewel box sized case. The BluRay is a bit larger than CD jewelbox sized, and has no slipcase, with the discs in paper slipcovers in the cardboard gatefold housing.

JonUrban said:

Packaging is very different between the BluRay and the DVD-A. The DVD-A packaging is similar to some of the King Crimson releases, with the hard slip cover and the standard CD jewel box sized case. The BluRay is a bit larger than CD jewelbox sized, and has no slipcase, with the discs in paper slipcovers in the cardboard gatefold housing.

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If there is one complaint, I can make about the Yes reissue series so far, it is the difference in packaging between the DVD-A and Blu-Ray versions.
I would MUCH prefer if both formats had the same packaging, similar to what they did for XTC's "Nonsuch".
It protects the discs more, it fits better on my shelf, and it matches the King Crimson releases I have that aren't box sets.

I have ended up buying both formats for "Close to the Edge" and "The Yes Album" so I can use the DVD-A in an Acura and I take the Blu-Ray set discs and put them in the DVD-A packaging.

JonUrban said:

The BluRay is a bit larger than CD jewelbox sized, and has no slipcase, with the discs in paper slipcovers in the cardboard gatefold housing.

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That is just down-right abusive in my books. I usually grab the case from an old Xbox game and use that.

Gotta go a 10. Balanced, the rears are subtle when they need to be, great bass punch. On my system anyway. PCM sounds cleaner to me than the DTS-Master HD. YMMV...

Thanks to Mr. Wilson and Neil, who made the BD interface scores better than CTTE.

Enjoy all you crazy folks who support the best sound you can get.

B

DennisMoore Jr. said:

@wavelength: What do you mean by abusive? On the count of it being made of paper?

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Yes, exactly. And it's not always easy to get out. I have to fight the natural instinct to grab the disc with my fingers.

wavelength said:

Yes, exactly. And it's not always easy to get out. I have to fight the natural instinct to grab the disc with my fingers.

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Ok, now I understand. Me, having LP records and watching the paper jackets deteriorate, I am especially gentle with my paper sleeve optical discs.
TYA BluRay seems to have bigger sleeves so the black paper & disc come out easier. Having SACDs, DVD-A's BluRays, Import CDs, I'd say no packaging is as cool as LP records were. The new Transatlantic 5.1 set came out in full size LP cardboard style with the discs tucked in pockets inside. I'd like to see that for future releases. Plastic cases are too trashy ad the paper sleeve issues are too small. The only complaint I have about TYA is that I can't read the letters in the booklet, they look to be 4pt or 6pt text. But I won't drop my vote of 10 for that!

A 10 from me, audio clarity as clear and distinct as expressed above, what I like best is that it seems a bit more adventurous in the mix compared to CTTE.

Don't know what it is but at least on my system it sounds worse than the other TYA original mixes/needledrops.

skindzier said:

Pretty sure colsky nailed it - 'Original Mix (archived master)'. I popped in the Blu Ray this morning before work & fiddled around a bit. That menu item is in the Blu Ray, but not on the packaging or advertisement material I saw online. So the next question is, what exactly is:
'Original Mix (archived master)'




- from the little bit I listened to, it is "punchier" than the 24/192 Original mix, but that impression is truly from only a couple minutes comparison. Hoping to get time this weekend to listen in detail...

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