Which King Crimson surround album should I get?

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If I had to choose only one KC disc I would go with Discipline.
Yes, it is no classic, but the surround mix is stellar and I
like every song on it. :)

I totally disagree. Discipline is bona fide classic King Crimson
 
My only suggestion is to NOT start with Islands. That's KC's weakest album
 
I totally disagree. Discipline is bona fide classic King Crimson

It was my gateway album. Studying one night in a coffee shop I gave it a chance, maybe due to the cover art and was HOOKED.
I really haven't liked their other albums quite as much, right off the bat. Since then I've grown to like Red and Thrak about as much.
Lizard is my favorite earlier record.
 
...the CD/DVD releases are DVD-A.
I think they all feature some kind of 5.1 mix accessible to normal DVD players though. Like DTS...
...If you want an affordable SACD/DVD-A player, check out older OPPO DVD players...

To my aging ears, I don't feel like I'm "losing" much perceptible, limited to "lossy" 48/24 DTS 5.1.
It's so glorious to hear these in surround, I'm just as happy as if I had good sense. ;)

No reason not to start enjoying them now in 5.1 on whatever you've got.
As Mr Baggins points out, one can keep an eye out for a DVD-A deck.
Some inexpensive blu-ray players are SACD compatible.
 
'Thrak' and 'Larks Tongues..' for me then 'Lizard' and 'Court'

Have yet to start on last years box yet though I have had the 'Discipline' DVDA since release and that much better than I was expecting given my aversion to most things Eighties

They are all pretty good in different ways
 
Well, LTiA arrived today, but I didn't realize it was DVD. I guess the Blu-ray is only available as part of a large box set?
 
Ugh... well now I know that it wasn't just the Zappa Quadiophiliac DTS DVD that confused my Xbox One S - this LTiA disc does the same thing. The Xbox won't play the surround mix at all. I've been posting about this in various "Xbox as Blu-ray player" forums, but nobody has provided any info.
 
Ugh... well now I know that it wasn't just the Zappa Quadiophiliac DTS DVD that confused my Xbox One S - this LTiA disc does the same thing. The Xbox won't play the surround mix at all. I've been posting about this in various "Xbox as Blu-ray player" forums, but nobody has provided any info.

Time to find a cheap OPPO!

Here is one, for example:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oppo-DV-981...316010&hash=item3f83b10357:g:8bgAAOSw2RdZhgQD

$74 currently. Looks like it has HDMI out to me. Just do a little research. Like I wrote before, I got one for my mom (similar model) for $60. They aren't hard to find and it's an AWESOME value. Not sure what country you're in though. Good luck!
 
Time to find a cheap OPPO!

Here is one, for example:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oppo-DV-981...316010&hash=item3f83b10357:g:8bgAAOSw2RdZhgQD

$74 currently. Looks like it has HDMI out to me. Just do a little research. Like I wrote before, I got one for my mom (similar model) for $60. They aren't hard to find and it's an AWESOME value. Not sure what country you're in though. Good luck!

I've been keeping an eye out, but didn't notice that one. Seems like a decent deal, but it looks like it doesn't send out DSD. I read that it converts it to PCM first - not sure if that's just as good in this case.
 
I've been keeping an eye out, but didn't notice that one. Seems like a decent deal, but it looks like it doesn't send out DSD. I read that it converts it to PCM first - not sure if that's just as good in this case.

Hmmm, that's an interesting point, I guess. I know my OPPO BDP-103 does send DSD. However, and this is blasphemy to some, I have it convert it to PCM anyway.
I have A/B'ed and I can not hear a difference.
 
My only suggestion is to NOT start with Islands. That's KC's weakest album

As someone who puts LTIA first -- especially the amazing surround!! -- I have a special spot for ISLANDS. The whole first side on a rainy day rocks. Just like LTIA, there's nothing else in the rock cannon that is quite like it.

Sure, most KC albums have "dull spots," but they vary from person to person what they are. ItWoP was my first KC album, so in many ways I prefer it to ItCotCK.

I'll take the first seven studio KC albums over the rest of their output any day. That said, I'm coming around by listening to the new box sets. . . .
 
In terms of accessibility, I'd recommend Discipline followed by Red. Both are short and to the point, and caught my interest immediately.

In terms of OW WOW I'd go for Starless and Bible Black followed by Larks.

In terms of understanding the first "eras" of Crim, I'd follow this order: Court of the Crimson King, Islands, Lizard, and In the Wake of Poseidon.

Court comes out of the gate swinging. I agree that Islands is a rainy day record.
 
Non-surround, but a note that although Burning Shed has it still listed as a "pre-order," BS sent me an email that they have shipped out the King Crimson "Live in Chicago, June 28th, 2017" cd pair. :banana:

Wouldn't be surprised if it appears in multi on a forthcoming big box in the far future . . . still miffed that Fripp chose stereo for USA and said he preferred live shows in that format :rolleyes:
Bet the tapes weren't up to par. . . .
 
In terms of the mix quality, you should consider:
1) Lizard (the title track is exceptional, that's how I started with surround sound. In the Bolero part, you'll hear a jazz band playing around you, it's simply amazing! Keith Tippett, Robin Miller, Mark Charig, Nick Evans... there wasn't enough breath on the stereo mix for these guys...);
2) Larks's tongues in aspic (when the guitar kicks in, after the first couple of minutes you'll understand you are going to experience something magic. This is a great surround mix of an album that wasn't originally recorded so well);
3) Thrak (what's better than two drums, two guitars and two bass players for experimenting with surround sound? One drum on the rear speakers, the second drum in the front speakers - both in stereo - and that's the logic of this mix. There's a bit of revisionism on Walking on Air and an alternate vocal take on Inner Garden, not enough to be picky. I love it).
 
The only one I have is Court and it's phenomenal...based on what I've read here either Larks' Tongues or Discipline will be ordered next.
 
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