HiRez Poll Pink Floyd - ANIMALS [Blu-Ray Audio/SACD]

[stoopid]

I like they included the printed lyrics with the bluray, otherwise was only buying this for the surround mix and it's fantastic. Perfect? No, very very few of my many surround recordings are, but still a 9.5 rounded up is a 10. The deep (sub) synth parts work well overall, but I'm wondering if my sub doesn't actually hit low enough for one of the notes on Dogs. The vocals are clear and synth work buried in the original mix is forward. Drums are punchy. Bass is present and has detailed tone. Every aspect of the mix is improved over the original.

 

[JohnA]

A 9 from me.
Bass is fine for my taste, LFE works as it should.
Don't care for lack of centre channel, as I haven't got one (hard to make it work with electrostatics)

Surround mix OK, not extremely aggressive - but would we want it to be on such a classic?
Sounds cleaner than any record or CD I've had.

First time I heard it was on a cassete player in my aunt's car in 77 or thereabouts. Didn't know that to make of it, unlike WYWH which captured me immediately.

I feel that something is missing from this mix to make it a perfect 10, but can't put my finger on it...

 

[James Jay]

Surround mix OK, not extremely aggressive - but would we want it to be on such a classic?

You mean like the Quad mix of Dark Side of the Moon? Hell Yeah I would like to hear an extremely agressive, discrete surround mix of Animals like that!

 

[Bill B]

You mean like the Quad mix of Dark Side of the Moon? Hell Yeah I would like to hear an extremely agressive, discrete surround mix of Animals like that!

I have only heard the pre-1990 quad mixes that have found their way to digital optical discs. The one observation that I have made (and it may be right or it maybe wrong) is that those original quad mixes tried to be adventurous with no worry of being labeled "gimmicky" (whatever that means). Now it seems like that is always a concern when producing a modern day mix. They actually wanted to "wow" you and make your head spin when Quad was originally marketed, that's the only way they could make people who were apt to buy the equipment feel they were really getting something special for the extra investment.

 

[LuvMyQuad]

You mean like the Quad mix of Dark Side of the Moon? Hell Yeah I would like to hear an extremely aggressive, discrete surround mix of Animals like that!

I think Pigs (3 different ones) approaches that type of discreetness on this release.

 

[LuvMyQuad]

I also think not enough has been said about the menu music. It is very cool and worthy of a listen in its own right. In surround as well. Do any of you Floydian historians know the lowdown on if those synth sounds originated with Rick or Roger?

 

[sjcorne]

This definitely isn't like the quad mix of DSOTM, but it's really tastefully done. I'm actually excited to hear what's been done with The Wall!

There’s plenty of activity in the rear speakers and even a few swirling passages, but - similar to the previous Guthrie Floyd 5.1's - little in the way of hard–panning or isolation of individual instruments. I’m not one who needs to hear everything pegged in the corners or lead vocals completely solo’d in the center channel, but a bit more separation would have been welcome. From the sweet spot, there are some great moments in "Pigs" where guitar and synth highlights appear mostly from the back corners.

Perhaps the best aspect of this release is the phenomenal sound quality, particularly the low-end and newfound clarity in the drums. I’d put this up there with Jethro Tull’s Aqualung in the category of “vintage rock album most enhanced sonically by a remix.”

 

[NYMo]

Played it three times today....clean and bright...didn't strike me emotionally once.
( Maybe I've heard it too many times since '77 ?)
I gave it an 8

 

[himey]

Played it three times today....clean and bright...didn't strike me emotionally once.
( Maybe I've heard it too many times since '77 ?)
I gave it an 8

Sorry for your loss I haven't been listening to a lot of multichannel lately because of the hot summers in Florida and how inefficient my CJ amps are. I listened to the new Speaking In Tongues mix, and Animals, back to back, and I was hanging on every note for both of them. The grin on my face was real! I've listened to both of them hundreds of times previously.

 

[stoopid]

I’d put this up there with Jethro Tull’s Aqualung in the category of “vintage rock album most enhanced sonically by a remix.”

Good example for comparison -- this is on that level improvement.

 

[ssully]

I did not know that.... don't want add anything further that might inflame the Gilmour v. Waters saga

The fretless on 'Hey You' is another one where Gilmour played bass, as is 'Fat Old Sun'. He's bass #1 of 2 on "One of These Days". And if you believe DG, he played bass on 'half the time' of 1970s PF tracks, though the only other that pops to my ears as sounding like DG is 'Have a Cigar'.

The "Sheep" bass part was written by Waters (very obvious, as it's mainly just octaves and a shuffle) , and he played it live on "Raving and Drooling", the precursor to Sheep. Gilmour played it in the studio because Waters wanted to do a guitar part. When they played Sheep live in 1977, Snowy White played the bass part, and RW and DG both played guitars. I remember being puzzled and disappointed by this. ;>

The "Pigs' bass part was conceived and played by Gilmour, and is much more musical.

 

[fetchmybeer]

The fretless on 'Hey You' is another one where Gilmour played bass, as is 'Fat Old Sun'. He's bass #1 of 2 on "One of These Days". And if you believe DG, he played bass on 'half the time' of 1970s PF tracks, though the only other that pops to my ears as sounding like DG is 'Have a Cigar'.

The "Sheep" bass part was written by Waters (very obvious, as it's mainly just octaves and triplets) , and he played it live on "Raving and Drooling", the precursor to Sheep. Gilmour played it in the studio because Waters wanted to do a guitar part. When they played Sheep live in 1977, Snowy White played the bass part, and RW and DG both played guitars. I remember being puzzled and disappointed by this. ;>

The "Pigs' bass part was conceived and played by Gilmour, and is much more musical.

I'm not sure either of them should be taking ownership of that disco bass line (octaves) that was thrown in at the end of Pigs. Very "of the time" (and in spite of being disco-ish, it sounds great on the remix).

 

[fizzywiggs41]

Not my fave Floyd album ,but I always wanted to hear it in Quad !!

And guess what , James Guthrie does just that.

So you must forgive me if I'm puzzled that this album is presented with little or no center, and some people on here are complaining about lack of center. (for a 5.1).
There are many surround recordings that supply much and too much to the center , delineating the entire soundfield.
This is deserving of an eight , but I'll give it a nine ,because the mix concentrates on the quadrant speakers. So what's not to love ? I get to hear the surround mix in quad . I call that a big plus.

Quadraphonic sound is reborn , and A very big thankyou to James Guthrie and Pink Floyd.

 

[kap'n krunch]

I give it a generous 10 just cause it's 180º from the DSOTM SACD fiasco (which I did not even bother to listen to in its entirety before I sold it online) and it's really freakin' good...
BTW, it seems that I got the Japan release according to Discogs because of the UPC 1 90758 77319 3...


stoooone...stoooone....stoooonee

 

[mandrix]

Well, son, have I got a little story for you...what you thought was a nine, was indeed a ten, too! (see what I did there?)
Let me explain.
I originally voted a 9. I was actually a little reluctant with that, I will tell you all now.
But something happened in between.

You ever heard someone remark to someone else in frustration they must need their freaking ears cleaned out?
Indeed that was the case for me.
Without going into gross detail, I finally, really and for sure, got my ears cleaned out, Been an ongoing thing for weeks, but I did not believe my hearing was compromised so badly.
Wow! What a difference in my hearing! (I blame it on the earplugs I use for mowing. "This bus be packed up tight").

I changed my nine vote to a ten. Not sure I've ever done that before.
The detail I'm hearing now has me wondering why I even gave it a nine in the first place, based on how much my hearing has improved. All instruments sound much better than I previously thought, the mix comes out clean and clear, and it's wildly apparent to me now I was not picking up on the Rears that well.

Ah, the things that trip you up, well, me in this case anyway. A lesson learned.

Thanks QQ'rs for indulging my mea culpa.

I have no intentions of influencing anyone's vote, I respect them all. I can only speak for myself.

 

[JohnN]

I find the surround sound to be addictive. The guitar playing shines. Must be a 10.

another changed vote
cheers

 

[ngv99]

It was absolutely worth the (very long) wait. I feel that the biggest revelation from this mix is Nick - his drums sound larger than life here. Only two, albeit small, issues with this release - one, the packaging is atrocious for the standalone BD and it deserves a little better. Two, as at least someone else said, I didn't like how the "prayer" in the middle of Sheep sounded. It's not that it didn't work in this mix (it kind of did.....actually made me jump in my seat a little), I just didn't care for it.

A release delayed this long would have disappointed if it was just "good". It far exceeded my expectations. Guthrie pretty much nailed this one. I'm giving it a 9. Better packaging and maybe some bonus content would have pushed it to a 10.

 

[Mesozoic Mike]

Animals was never my favorite Floyd LP. I always felt the fidelity was not on a par with DSOTM or WYWH, but this mix blew me away. It's really a rockin' album now that I can hear it in full definition.
This album is now my second favorite Floyd after Dark Side, and with more listens that may change. Thanks to all who pressured for this release. I am in hog's heaven with this release. Oink Oink. 10 for me and highly recommended.

 

[NYMo]

It was absolutely worth the (very long) wait. I feel that the biggest revelation from this mix is Nick - his drums sound larger than life here. Only two, albeit small, issues with this release - one, the packaging is atrocious for the standalone BD and it deserves a little better. Two, as at least someone else said, I didn't like how the "prayer" in the middle of Sheep sounded. It's not that it didn't work in this mix (it kind of did.....actually made me jump in my seat a little), I just didn't care for it.

A release delayed this long would have disappointed if it was just "good". It far exceeded my expectations. Guthrie pretty much nailed this one. I'm giving it a 9. Better packaging and maybe some bonus content would have pushed it to a 10.

When it was originally recorded, a "normal voice" was used to trigger the vocoder. On the original mix the "normal voice " was mixed out and only the vocoder was heard.
In the new mix, the "normal voice " is now blended into the vocoder voice so you hear both.
Guthrie / Waters et al obviously decided that the vocoder voice by itself was a bit passé...hence the new mix.
The " normal voice " doesn't sound like anyone from PF ( to my ears anyway...I may be wrong ) so it could have been voice talent/ engineer/ roadie or whoever !
EDIT Also look out for the Vocoder Dogs on Dogs after the stone bit !

 

[TiberiusSpock]

Got it yesterday. Outstanding. I can’t believe some folks don’t like surround sound. Totally awesome.