HiRez Poll Iron Maiden - DANCE OF DEATH [DVD-A]

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Rate the DVD-A of Iron Maiden - DANCE OF DEATH

  • 10: Great Surround, Great Fidelity, Great Content

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 8:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 4:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 2:

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 1: Poor Surround, Poor Fidelity, Poor Content

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    13

JonUrban

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Please post your thoughts and comments on this 2004 EMI DVD-A release from Iron Maiden - DANCE OF DEATH
(n):phones(y)


iron maiden dvd-a.jpg
 
So, what happens when you take Iron Maiden's least creative, most compressed/muddy sounding album and mix it for 5.1? In this case, not much. Kevin Shirley has handled production on all of Maiden's albums since Brave New World with generally very good results (IMHO), but something went very wrong on this one (Kevin also did the 5.1 mix). There's really only a few good songs on the album to start with, but the poor fidelity makes them difficult to enjoy. Unfortunately, that's still the case with the surround mix. Fidelity is poor, no dynamics, audio sounds compressed, surround mix is not discrete at all. A waste of $45 on ebay. I give it a 5.
 
I'm not a huge Iron Maiden fan, but I got this a few years ago after passing on it when it was initially released.

As stated above, not the best fidelity, content or mix.... pretty crap actually.

The Dickinson Balls to Picasso release is much better.

I give it a 3.
 
I went with a 7 here, but could have gone 8.
I'm listening to a different album, apparently! Parts are generally very well separated:
Vocal - center only
Lead guitar - center only
Bass/Acoustic bass - center, mostly
Harmony guitars - surrounds, mostly
Extra rhythm guitars - surrounds
Symphony - surrounds
Acoustics - surrounds, mostly
Drums/rhythm guitars - FL/FR

I think the big problems with this album are 1) the content and 2) the drums

The drums are very lacking in soundstage and in umph - the snare is very quiet and feels rooted off to the left somewhere - the toms have no panning - it's like the drums are in mono and buried, for the most part

As for the content, there are some weak songs here, but very few terribad ones - highlights, for me, are: Rainmaker, Montsegur, Dance of Death, Paschendale and Journeyman

If you can find a deal on this, pick it up
 
No longer a metalhead, but I'd really love me some Irons in surround! However, I can't headbang to this one.

No, it's not a lame effort by a long shot. Just, for some reason, it seems exceptionally rare when heavy guitars translate well into surround. And this is not the case.
Yes, there is a lot of fine discrete placement, but it just doesn't gel, work or even rock. I'll probably use Rainmaker, Face In The Sand and/or Journeyman for a 5.1 hard'n'heavy playlist, but that'd be it. Hey, give me a fine mix of Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son or Somewhere In Time and I'll gallop merrily down the memory lane, first in line.

For now, I can't go higher than 6,66 - sorry, Eddie.
 
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