HiRez Poll Jackson, Andy - SIGNAL TO NOISE [DVD-A]

[DuncanS]

HDMI. Thanks for the offer but all is good now as I mentioned above!

Glad you'll hear it now in its proper 4.0 format.

 

[LizardKing]

I figured out the problem. I have to go into the player's audio menu and manually select "DTS 2/2ch". For some reason selecting either choice on the disc menu defaults to LPCM 2 channel; don't know if that's a disc issue or my player but irrelevant at this point. Very nice in 4.0!

So I should be able to play most DVD-As in my player then as they are mostly hybrids? I've been reluctant to purchase any DVD-As up to this point, thinking Love was some kind of exception. Sorry for the thread drift.

Yes - most are hybrids which have either Dolby Digital or DTS for playback on a plain old DVD-Video player. There are very few exceptions - the only one I can think of is Roy Orbison - Black & White Night which has a DVD-A only disc, but comes with a (standalone) DVD-V anyway (with DTS).

 

[John Svensson]

I gave it a "9", like the music....a couple of songs more so ....., like the 4.0 mix, it gave me 70's flashbacks.

 

[GOS]

Listening to this disc again - and I'm reminded how very excellent the audio quality is...and honestly, the music is super. IMO, you can't go wrong if you like Floyd type vibes. This thing will crank....

Get it now, if you want something with great music and great surround.

 

[Hattipper]

Andy will we be seeing your new album soon? This was so good I can hardly wait!

 

[César]

Andy updated his Facebook with some info about his new record, progressing well and to be released next year.
Also some info about David's project, i guess about his new album.
Andy, are there any more news you can share here?

 

[fizzywiggs41]

Meant to post my review earlier. Sorry Andy.

For a Millenium Quad type disc this is outstanding.I gave it a "NINE".

I love the use of echo on the first track great use of the quadraphonic medium.

But my favourite track has to be "Herman at the fountain", very cool prog rock style song and I love the extra length of the tune.

The second song is strange .....almost sounds like Robbie Robertson.

Overall I definitely recommend this disc, hope there is more on the way. Thank you Andy. Stellar quad mix, stellar music.

 

[splinter7]

High marks on the sonics and 5.1 mix for this release.
I am sorry to say that I am just not connecting with the music but not sure why.
Maybe too trippy/trance sounding to my taste?
As others have noted, it is early Floydian / early Porcupine Tree sounding.

Glad though that I gave it a try.

 

[skherbeck]

Listened to this in stereo in my car for a couple weeks before trying out the quad... Really good Floydian music that doesn't have to be heard in surround to enjoy, but definitely benefits from the surround mix. The music is very mellow with tasty guitar solos throughout, my favorite being "Spray Paint". The songs are very detailed with subtle layers that reveal themselves with repeated listens. The surround mix isn't aggressive, but there's plenty of activity in the rear channels. I find myself craving this album when I'm in a mellow mood. I hope Mr. Jackson releases another album because I'll definitely look forward to it! I give this an 8. Does anyone know if Andy plays all the instruments?

 

[GOS]

So, my buddy came over the other night...he's a carpenter and he's gonna do some remodel for us...anyway, he's a huge music lover like I am. I put in Signal To Noise and within 5 minutes he asked if I could get him a copy....

So, I just placed an order for another copy and it's being shipped direct to him.

 

[edisonbaggins]

I went with "9" on this one. Great mix. Great sound.
It does what it does very well. Very interesting (for the most part), ambient music.
The vocal is well-done. What I wish is that there was a more engaging lead part - either vocal or instrument, occasionally, to renew my interest.
E.g. little bit more aggressive guitar, sax, 2nd guest singer or bgvs.
All in all, very good. It will go in the ambient pile, though I think it wanted to be a light rock record.

 

[Scott M4]

edisonbaggins If you think this is ambient, I'm curious to know what else is in that pile of yours. ???

 

[timothyemerson]

I'm late to the party but I just got this and listened to it twice in a couple of days.

It's awesome in every respect and I'm looking forward to giving it another spin soon.

If anyone's on the fence cos it's 4.0 and not 5.1, I'd recommend taking the plunge.

I haven't heard anything that's new and this good for ages.

 

[The56Kid]

This is a fantastic mix to say the least. Love the Floydian influence on the music. Would have gone with a “9” but for the bare-bones authoring at play here (my disc only shows a very basic listing of the songs while it plays), so it’s a very high “8” for me.

 

[fthesoundguy]

I never knew that Andy had some original music. Saw a post here that said the Esoteric label had a sale and mentioned his records were on it. Took a quick listen on spotify and immediately heard the Floyd similarities and ordered both of them right away! I’ve heard his Division Bell 5.1 mix and can happily say that I did not worry about the quality of these mixes one bit.

The Boy In The Forest: A great start to the album with that guitar sound alternating between all the speakers. When the band comes in, it really fills out the sound field nicely. Very nice when the acrostic comes in mostly in the rears. Everything really has a nice place to sit in this mix! Great separation for the vocal in the phantom center of this quad mix too. The back and forth between the two guitars in the fronts was a nice ear catching moment, and the guitar and its delay in the FL and SR to end the song! This song has the most creative mix of the whole thing. I was twisting back and forth just to see where things were coming from. This one might be demo worthy for testing a system out.

One More Push: The bells in the beginning were awesome, and when that synth pops up around the room was really ear catching. Lastly, loved when the drums came in as well. A really satisfying start to the song!

Invisible Colors: I’m hearing a bunch of Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun vibes on this one. It is very effective with the backing vocals and some delays coming out of the surrounds. Loved the guitar solo in the front and some soft of percussion and strings from the rears.

Spray Paint: The solo is very tasteful (And very Gilmour) and loved the supporting synths in the rears.

Herman at the Fountain: The sounds at the beginning going back and forth in the rears are wonderful. Loved the darker tone and instruments popping in and out of all the speakers! There’s two wonderful solos with synths supporting in the rears again. The ending one really had nice weight to the arrangement it and felt pretty epic overall.

It All Came Crashing Down: Great placement of everything. Water drops in the rears with the acoustic up front (Then later in the rears once the band comes in) and the guitar ‘piercing’ sounds moving around in all the speakers.

Brownian Motion: Well… the name of the track certainly was the correct title. Was not expecting those rumbling synths to open the track up! Loved the talk box (I think its partially that) in the beginning. The soaring guitar with those HEAVILY effected vocals in the rears was lovely as well. The guitar being in the rears at the end of the song was a nice change up from how it was elsewhere on the album. This really is a great song and a nice ending to the album.

This is not a very aggressive or pan heavy mix, which is fine because it is mixed so well. Lots of surround placement, which is just want we all want at the end of the day. Everything has a place and sits very nicely in his mixes. This will be a go to album whenever I need to cleanse my ears from a horrible 5.1 mix. The only thing that was a little iffy for me was that his vocal doesn’t really fit in with the music at all. Almost spoken word like instead of singing.

Value: You get a CD and DVD-A of the album for ~$15. Cannot get a much better deal for that kind of money.

I’m going to give this a 9. The only thing that doesn’t make it a 10 is that is doesn’t have any super memorable songs on it other than The Boy In The Forest. I will not be going back to this album because of the material on it, it’ll be because the mixes are amazing, its very well balanced and he has great tones for all his instruments. Go out and get this album if you have ANY interest in Pink Floyd-like sounds. You won’t be disappointed.

Highlights: The Boy In The Forest, Herman at the Fountain, Brownian Motion

 

[GOS]

To be honest, I'm totally shocked that more QQ'ers don't own this. (based on number of votes)