HiRez Poll Grateful Dead - AMERICAN BEAUTY [DVD-A/DualDisc]

Great album, great sound. This DVD-A supplants all previous versions and, indeed, makes it hard to hear the album in any other format. Thumbs up to Mickey. Killer stuff.

And the bass is particularly good on this disc.

Turn down the mains and turn up the rears and then turn down the rears and turn up the mains and so forth. The signal is pretty much the same throughout. Guess it's (2x2).1

Oh this sounds GORGEOUS in every way imaginable!

I'm probably the only person in the whole world.. but I prefer their Workingman's Dead album, just a bit.

A "9".

fredblue said:

Oh this sounds GORGEOUS in every way imaginable!

I'm probably the only person in the whole world.. but I prefer their Workingman's Dead album, just a bit.

A "9".

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Hell, I prefer just about any other Dead album than these two. Just too commercial and stripped of the improvisational nature of the music which makes them so special. Very good mixes, just not the albums I run to when I want some Dead.

I, too, believe Workingmans Dead, is a trifle better; especially, New Speedway Boogie, & Black Peter
The DVD/A fidelity is superb on both
Gave American Beauty, an 8; Workingmans Dead a 9

CPR said:

I, too, believe Workingmans Dead, is a trifle better; especially, New Speedway Boogie, & Black Peter
The DVD/A fidelity is superb on both
Gave American Beauty, an 8; Workingmans Dead a 9

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Ah! At least one person agrees with me! I can't be totally crazy! Thank you, CPR!

What would be your go-to Grateful Dead album, DKA?

fredblue said:

Ah! At least one person agrees with me! I can't be totally crazy! Thank you, CPR!

What would be your go-to Grateful Dead album, DKA?

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Studio album? Blues For Allah. Without a doubt. One of the best one/two punches to start an album in history. I love "Anthem of the Sun" and "Aoxomoxoa" as well.

As far as live material goes, I love the mid-70's when the band expanded and indulged their jazz inclinations further, but there's joy to be found in any era. Really.

Obviously, I was way late to this game and only got to see them once in, perhaps, '93 or so. Don't remember, but Jerry was still alive.

DKA said:

. I love "Anthem of the Sun" and "Aoxomoxoa" as well.

.

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Now those i would buy in an instant in surround

For those interested, the Grateful Dead Movie is out on Blu-Ray and I ran this in a theater years ago.
It had a 4-track mag strip on it so it was surround but the Blu-Ray states the audio options include a 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio
presentation of the original theatrical audio mix, a DTS 5.1 audio mix, mixed from the master multitrack tapes,
and a PCM 2.0 audio mix, also mixed from the master multitrack tapes. So....
I'm not a huge Dead fan but enjoyed some of the stuff over the years, but the movie is really cool.
I just got the BD for $15.99 new... not bad!
I'll let you know how the sound is!

Excellent album. Interesting to note how much more intricate and refined the instrumentation is on AB to Workingman's. I'm not saying that is better, but considering they recorded both about a year's apart it is surprising. GD become more comfortable in the studio.
Mix/Sonics.: 9
Music: 9

A strong 9. Great memories when listening to this and it sounds great. I consider this a must have even if you don't like the Dead just for the quality of the mixing and sound.

10. I guess they can't revoke your soul...


also available as a Dual Disc DVD-A/CD:

I rate this a 10. I am a fan of the Grateful Dead, so the music is already a winner for me. Soncially it sounds as clean as a whistle to me, and the surround mix is discrete and adventuresome without being gimmicky. For instance, check out Friend of the Devil with acoustic guitars biased to the rears and David Grisman's mandolin isolated in the center channel. Mix wise I am not sure what else could have been done. I suppose one could mix instruments with more isolation - less bleed - but I think having some of that gives a very full and enveloping sound.

I just listened to the DualDisc and the DVD-A. The mix, volume level, sonics, and the menus are identical. Both appear to have the same bonus features. On Amazon the DVD-A is currently listed used for $45 and the DualDisc is listed used for $11, so this title can be acquired for a very reasonable price thanks to the unpopularity of the DualDisc format.

Addressing an earlier comment in the thread, if one wanted to combine the acoustic sensibilities of Workingmans Dead and American Beauty with the improvisational flavor that made the Dead famous, look to Reckoning, the double live set recorded in the fall of 1980 and released in 1981. I would love to hear a surround mix of that record, and you can be sure that multitracks exist!

It was a shame that they did not release the Europe 72 box set in surround. In fact it is a shame that Mickey Hart did not continue to mix studio albums, or maybe some compilations of the best tracks.

For a studio record I love Mars Hotel and would LOVE that one in surround.

For more on the Grateful Dead in surround check here:
https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/fo...ad-in-Surround&p=234203&viewfull=1#post234203

Fourplay said:

I rate this a 10. I am a fan of the Grateful Dead, so the music is already a winner for me. Soncially it sounds as clean as a whistle to me, and the surround mix is discrete and adventuresome without being gimmicky. For instance, check out Friend of the Devil with acoustic guitars biased to the rears and David Grisman's mandolin isolated in the center channel. Mix wise I am not sure what else could have been done. I suppose one could mix instruments with more isolation - less bleed - but I think having some of that gives a very full and enveloping sound.

I just listened to the DualDisc and the DVD-A. The mix, volume level, sonics, and the menus are identical. Both appear to have the same bonus features. On Amazon the DVD-A is currently listed used for $45 and the DualDisc is listed used for $11, so this title can be acquired for a very reasonable price thanks to the unpopularity of the DualDisc format.

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This was a pleasant surprise for me. Got the DualDisc a couple of years ago and wasn't sure what to expect having limited exposure to the GD. Now it risks being overplayed along with America because the wife frequently requests both. Recently picked up the straight DVD-A as a back up.

My exposure to the band was marginal over the years. This album is a treasure and the mix is nice indeed.


From QQ Happy New Year

I’m not a huge Dead fan but have always liked this album. The sound is terrific and the mix is good although I feel there’s definitely room for improvement regarding placement and balance of instruments/vocals. An 8 for me.

fzappa said:

This thread is labeled with "Here is where you can vote or research HiRez music titles available on SACD and DVD-Audio discs". Anyone thinking about buying this title based on the "numbers" shown on the case, be advised, they are misleading.
I've researched removing my profile from this forum and haven't found that option. Jon, or whomever has that ability, feel free to remove my access, I'm done.

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This disc is thuh shit. Absolut 10er.

edisonbaggins said:

This disc is thuh shit. Absolut 10er.

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You bet it is...and so is Workingman's Dead...when you hear Casey Jones in surround you have arrived!

9. a must have for the heads. My wife commented favorably on the vocals and she's not a huge fan of the band. It's also fun to hear the extended versions revealed when Hart removed the fadeouts.

Got the dvda. Never had any dead on cd or lp dont know exactly why...i like their music...just too many bands out there to get them all. This was my first dvda...a friend has this one on cd. Definite difference in superior sq.
Giving it a 10