Music DVD Poll Temptations - Get Ready (1965-1972)

I was in Best Buy tonight and picked this DVD up. I was hoping that they would give the Temps the same treatment that they gave Marvin Gaye a few months ago. They went back to the multis for the MG DVD and came up with some really nice 5.1 mixes. That ain't hapenning here with the Temps.

If the performance is a lipsync, they go back and retrack it with the original stereo master. If it a live performance, which many of these are, the original audio is sweetened.

You have two choices for audio. 5.1 DTS or Dolby Digital 2.0. The rears in the DTS track are nothing but ambience.

In between each video is an interview segment with Otis Williams.

The cool feature is acapellas for 15 of their biggest tracks.

Luckily, it was on sale for $9.99 and I had a $5 reward coupon.

The Performances are great, the audio is lacking. Buyer beware.

Thanks Bob,

I too have a $5 coupon burning a hole in my pocket!
I was wondering about this one and now I may use my coupon on another selection.

It's all about the sound to me.

Frantic said:

Thanks Bob,

I too have a $5 coupon burning a hole in my pocket!
I was wondering about this one and now I may use my coupon on another selection.

It's all about the sound to me.

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I quite like the 5.1 For an ambience mix, it's very warm. On Get Ready and later tracks, even those derived from mono, it sounds quite enveloping. Well worth getting!

Bob Romano said:

The cool feature is acapellas for 15 of their biggest tracks.

Click to expand...

Are these a capellas from the original studio versions?
If so, that would be enough for me to bite.

eggplant said:

Are these a capellas from the original studio versions?
If so, that would be enough for me to bite.

Click to expand...

Yes they are!!

Joel63 said:

I quite like the 5.1 For an ambience mix, it's very warm. On Get Ready and later tracks, even those derived from mono, it sounds quite enveloping. Well worth getting!

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Haven't heard this one yet(will track it down, though), so I have to ask: what is derived from a mono source? Because stereo(and presumably, multitracks)exist for all the major Tempts hits with the lone exception of "Since I Lost My Baby." A stereo alt. take surfaced years ago, but it's not the hit version.

ED

Many of the tracks are live performances. Those are mono. Anything that was lipsynched was retracked with the stereo version.

This one arrived yesterday, have played it quite a bit. From a historical standpoint, essential: the videos, though variable in quality, are all exceptional. These guys were very entertaining(Cholly Atkins taught them well!), and they work as well live as in the studio(though musically, the latter are far superior to the sometimes wonky live arrangements they were stuck with). And the isolated vocal tracks from the studio tapes are a fun novelty, interesting to hear.

But those isolated vocal tracks pretty much sum up what's wrong here. For while it was a good idea(for consistency's sake)to make up a 5.1 mono setup for the live stuff, it seems to me a bit lazy to have multitracks to work with for the studio stuff, and then NOT use them. Had the producers/label taken the time to properly remix in 5.1, these could have been a genuine treat. As it is, as noted, we get the basic stereo mixes(though, seemingly, NOT the original '60s stereo mixes)with back ambience for a faux-5.1 soundfield--which, while not awful, seems like more trouble than it was worth. At times, I was wishing for the original mono sound of the broadcasts, since these, while limited sonically, would have matched the images better(some of the color clips, however, are very vivid).

Not a lot of extras, and it's too bad some docu material explaining the lives and deaths of the members wasn't explored for those less familiar with their history. Overall, satisfying as history, but not as 5.1, to say the least.

ED

...seven years pass...

I'm just watching this now. Yes, it's a shame they didn't work to discrete 5.1, but I wonder if this was down to the bouncing down that I believe was done to the multis at various stages. As far as upmixing does, at times it's barely detectable but at least it's tasteful. Quite shocking seeing the signs for segregation for the theatre(s).