Pink Floyd - "Animals" 5.1 Surround Sound Mix (Blu-Ray & SACD editions out in September 2022!)

[Muppet69]

I ordered my Animals box set from Amazon.ca way way back on 9th July. It’s still never been sent despite being in stock for the last 3 plus weeks. My order qualified for the lowest price guarantee and when the price dropped to $90.13 cdn I was quite happy. It’s on Amazon for $129.00 now and has been for quite a while now so I’d be getting a $40 discount….. but after contacting Amazon and spending an hour going round in circles with 4 customer service agents it’s still not being shipped to me. They said it was on a stop order and that I need to cancel my order and re order and it would be sent out immediately then and as a “special exception” they would credit me with the price difference! I kept asking why don’t you just send it to me at my guaranteed price because it’s in stock and I’ve had it on order for 3 plus months and I’m a prime member (not that that’s made a single bit of difference with any of my orders or deliveries) and they just wouldn’t give me an answer except that I have to cancel my order. I said I’m not doing that and I’m still waiting.
Should I just say screw it and cancel it altogether (I have the BluRay already and plan to get the SACD soon). Or cancel and reorder in the hopes that they reimburse me for the price difference (don’t really trust them on that). Or just leave it and see if it comes eventually. I’m beginning to wonder if I “need” this in my Floyd collection or not, to be honest. Is the box set any good? I could just get the vinyl copy and be done with it and save even more money. See below for my order (description says vinyl too but it’s a box set, they never get it right).

 

[splinter7]

@Muppet69 That price point looks like the going NA price for the deluxe edition with vinyl.

Is it worth the wait or effort - that’s entirely up to you. Unless you are a completist, you are only missing out on a few pages + larger format of the booklet along with a vinyl, red book CD, and DVD copy of the contents. There isn’t any exclusive audio to just this set.

I have the Blu-ray and the SACD. Probably in my head but I think the SACD sounds warmer.

By the way, I think the reason you are having issues with it being dispatched is that your original order looks to be “sold and fulfilled” directly from Amazon and they have not received their stock or where shorted on an allotment.

Looking at the “in stock” listing today on Amazon.ca it shows that the listing is being “sold & fulfilled” by a third party, not Amazon. Amazon is just the ordering device to the marketplace vendor.

I think Amazon gets a little sneaky there putting it only in the fine print that you may not actually be buying something that is 100% in the Amazon distribution system.

Similarly, I ordered 2 copies of the new “Rage in Eden” Ultravox release through Amazon US. The first was sold and fulfilled by Amazon - that was still awaiting a shipping date by Amazon.
The second (purchased on October 5) was sold and fulfilled by Movie Mars - that one has just arrived.

I wouldn’t know the difference if I didn’t know to look. I will say that I have had lots of issues with Amazon (we buy a lot from them) but they have always followed through on what they have promised via customer service.

 

[ssully]

For the SACD to sound intrinsically 'warmer' than the BluRay, it would have to have different EQ. That doesn't seem likely.

(That said, the Dark Side of the Moon SACD is infamous for having different EQ -- compression -- on the CD layer versus the DSD layer. Hopefully no such infamy pertains to SACD vs BluRay of Animals. It can be proved or disproved by comparing rips of each)

 

[JediJoker]

For the SACD to sound intrinsically 'warmer' than the BluRay, it would have to have different EQ.

Or it's treated differently by one's playback chain. That'll do it.

 

[warp2600]

I ordered my Animals box set from Amazon.ca way way back on 9th July. It’s still never been sent despite being in stock for the last 3 plus weeks. My order qualified for the lowest price guarantee and when the price dropped to $90.13 cdn I was quite happy. It’s on Amazon for $129.00 now and has been for quite a while now so I’d be getting a $40 discount….. but after contacting Amazon and spending an hour going round in circles with 4 customer service agents it’s still not being shipped to me. They said it was on a stop order and that I need to cancel my order and re order and it would be sent out immediately then and as a “special exception” they would credit me with the price difference! I kept asking why don’t you just send it to me at my guaranteed price because it’s in stock and I’ve had it on order for 3 plus months and I’m a prime member (not that that’s made a single bit of difference with any of my orders or deliveries) and they just wouldn’t give me an answer except that I have to cancel my order. I said I’m not doing that and I’m still waiting.
Should I just say screw it and cancel it altogether (I have the BluRay already and plan to get the SACD soon). Or cancel and reorder in the hopes that they reimburse me for the price difference (don’t really trust them on that). Or just leave it and see if it comes eventually. I’m beginning to wonder if I “need” this in my Floyd collection or not, to be honest. Is the box set any good? I could just get the vinyl copy and be done with it and save even more money. See below for my order (description says vinyl too but it’s a box set, they never get it right).View attachment 84785

Exactly the same thing happened to me when I ordered the Amused To Death SACD thru Amazon.ca
Eventually, I did what CS told me i.e. cancel and reorder, and in the end they not only granted the minimum price but even upgraded the shipping mode to expedited for free. I was happy.

 

[Muppet69]

@Muppet69 That price point looks like the going NA price for the deluxe edition with vinyl.

Is it worth the wait or effort - that’s entirely up to you. Unless you are a completist, you are only missing out on a few pages + larger format of the booklet along with a vinyl, red book CD, and DVD copy of the contents. There isn’t any exclusive audio to just this set.

I have the Blu-ray and the SACD. Probably in my head but I think the SACD sounds warmer.

By the way, I think the reason you are having issues with it being dispatched is that your original order looks to be “sold and fulfilled” directly from Amazon and they have not received their stock or where shorted on an allotment.

Looking at the “in stock” listing today on Amazon.ca it shows that the listing is being “sold & fulfilled” by a third party, not Amazon. Amazon is just the ordering device to the marketplace vendor.

I think Amazon gets a little sneaky there putting it only in the fine print that you may not actually be buying something that is 100% in the Amazon distribution system.

Similarly, I ordered 2 copies of the new “Rage in Eden” Ultravox release through Amazon US. The first was sold and fulfilled by Amazon - that was still awaiting a shipping date by Amazon.
The second (purchased on October 5) was sold and fulfilled by Movie Mars - that one has just arrived.

I wouldn’t know the difference if I didn’t know to look. I will say that I have had lots of issues with Amazon (we buy a lot from them) but they have always followed through on what they have promised via customer service.

Thanks for your reply, makes a lot of sense out of the nonsense. You’re right, do I need it? No I don’t, do I want it? Sort of, but the more I think about it the more I don’t. It just annoys the crap out of me that I ordered it so long ago and they just couldn’t get it together to order stock to actually cover the preorders in the first place. I’m going to cancel it and save the money for the SACD as that’s what I actually prefer format wise, especially in this case because it’s got no actual bonus content whatsoever and who really needs a DVD of it too nowadays. I like the vinyl especially when it’s got different artwork and I’ve been collecting Floyd vinyl ever since I got a gramophone when I was 9 years old! Thanks for the insight and advice. Cheers

 

[Muppet69]

Exactly the same thing happened to me when I ordered the Amused To Death SACD thru Amazon.ca
Eventually, I did what CS told me i.e. cancel and reorder, and in the end they not only granted the minimum price but even upgraded the shipping mode to expedited for free. I was happy.

Now you mentioned it, that’s exactly what happened with me for that SACD release. I’d forgotten about that. I’m still canceling the deluxe set though, I’d probably never open it and it’d just sit on the shelf anyway so bollocks to it. Thanks for your comment too. I love this forum.

 

[Jeffrey Michael]

Thanks for your reply, makes a lot of sense out of the nonsense. You’re right, do I need it? No I don’t, do I want it? Sort of, but the more I think about it the more I don’t. It just annoys the crap out of me that I ordered it so long ago and they just couldn’t get it together to order stock to actually cover the preorders in the first place. I’m going to cancel it and save the money for the SACD as that’s what I actually prefer format wise, especially in this case because it’s got no actual bonus content whatsoever and who really needs a DVD of it too nowadays. I like the vinyl especially when it’s got different artwork and I’ve been collecting Floyd vinyl ever since I got a gramophone when I was 9 years old! Thanks for the insight and advice. Cheers

For me, here in the US, the deluxe set was priced good, but I didn’t get the deluxe set because I didn’t want the CD or DVD and just went ahead and purchased the BD and Vinyl LP separately which cost almost as much as the deluxe set. Apparently, the single Vinyl LP comes with the same similar booklet that is included in the deluxe box. So, I didn’t feel like I was missing anything.

 

[ssully]

Or it's treated differently by one's playback chain. That'll do it.

That too...but *warmer*? How would it do that?

I could see (verifiable) differences in LFE/subwoofer output possibly happening due to *encoded* differences, but beyond that. ....I don't know of AVR/prepro that literally applies different EQ to different formats.

 

[JediJoker]

That too...but *warmer*? How would it do that?

I could see (verifiable) differences in LFE/subwoofer output possibly happening due to *encoded* differences, but beyond that. ....I don't know of AVR/prepro that literally applies different EQ to different formats.

Proper DSD playback requires a different low pass filter than the standard PCM reconstruction filter. If it's gentle enough, and starting at a low enough frequency, there's your "warmth."

 

[ssully]

Those SACD playback hardware lowpass filters -- which are technically not required, they are recommended in Scarlet Book spec -- are at 50 or 100kHz. Even if they were at 30Hz, it'd be really unlikely to make anything 'warmer', except to bats. In a pathological case the ultrasonic noise could cause audible distortion in a system. But what's far more likely? Simple playback level difference, or the usual sighted comparison flaws.

 

[FrankieZappa]

Finally,after a month of waiting... 41€ shipped...I could have gone with the Blu-ray but honestly I have DSOTM and WYWH on SACD and the BR packaging sucked big time.

 

[etzeppy]

I have no issue with the modest packaging. I got the Blu-ray version for $19.99. That beats the heck out of the expensive Immersion set with a BD that doesn't work anymore. At least I have a scarf.

 

[MyCuff]

19.09 at Amazon right now from moviemars. Plus shipping and a 2 week wait. Best price I found for the Blu-ray.

 

[Scottie-boy]

I voted 10.
I have purchased the 3 versions, stand alone Blu Ray and SACD, the Deluxe Set with LP, Blu Ray and DVD.
My review is of the 5.1 but all stereos sound better than my prior Japanese stereo version. The key to all of this is the 2018 remix, which blows away prior versions.
I ripped all three and Dynamic Range is as follows:
SACD- 10, 13, 13, 13, 14.
Blu Ray-14, 13, 13, 12, 15.
DVD- 13, 13, 13, 12, 14.
Listening back and forth between the 3 after ripped, I think my preference is the SACD.
It has a little less brightness compared to the Blu Ray. My ears are very sensitive to brightness in music, I believe because of the slight tinitis I have.
The lossy DVD, probably is my second choice.
Would I come up with the same preference if I did a blind test? Chances are I might not even be able to tell the difference?
My reason for voting 10 is it (all versions) are very good in the world of surround music and for me I love how track 1 starts in stereo and track 5 ends in stereo, I think that is cool.
I also like that when track 2 starts it's all rears and fades to fronts, and now the listener is listening to the balanced 5.1 per the remix author.
So, when you listen you get like a mini experience of all stereo and surround capabilities within the first 4 minutes.
Of course from a packaging point of you the larger set is the best, because of size, pictures, etc.
Others have commented, and I agree, the BD and DVD have that special song within the menu which is cool unto itself.
Glad I have it and will listen again, probably SACD, but if a freind comes over will be cool to show them the differences, albeit slight.
Keep poll threads pure, no off topic and shipping chatter.

I'd love to hear different, but I don't think there is any scientific argument that the SACD is any different than the Blu-Ray. They are simply 2 storage mediums both with ample amount of space for the same data - unless it is known that the two have been mixed differently - in which case, I'm buying the SACD immediately. Does anyone have knowledge of these being different?

 

[mrcond]

I'd love to hear different, but I don't think there is any scientific argument that the SACD is any different than the Blu-Ray. They are simply 2 storage mediums both with ample amount of space for the same data - unless it is known that the two have been mixed differently - in which case, I'm buying the SACD immediately. Does anyone have knowledge of these being different?

It’s the same mix.

 

[edisonbaggins]

Even with the same mix, mastering can differ.
And the way your system processes PCM vs DSD can too.
It's great that choices are available.

 

[etzeppy]

Even with the same mix, mastering can differ.
And the way your system processes PCM vs DSD can too.
It's great that choices are available.

I agree with you that the processing and decoding of PCM vs. DSD could produce audio differences. I suspect that would vary from system to system.

 

[Scottie-boy]

I agree with you that the processing and decoding of PCM vs. DSD could produce audio differences. I suspect that would vary from system to system.

That's hilarious. It's not like it's analog PCM. It's DTS MA. It's a digital codec. There is zero scientific argument there would ever be differences with a system equally capable on both with the same mix. It's similar to the old "monster cables are superior argument".

 

[etzeppy]

That's hilarious. It's not like it's analog PCM. It's DTS MA. It's a digital codec. There is zero scientific argument there would ever be differences with a system equally capable on both with the same mix. It's similar to the old "monster cables are superior argument".

Dude, chill. This isn't Twitter. Was looking for a reason why someone might hear a difference. Nothing more.