Tears for Fears-Songs From The Big Chair - HiRez 5.1!

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I bought my TFF disc on ebay. It surprisingly does not sound as good as the reviews I have read. Usually when I load a Blu Ray in my player in the Video menu it shows the Artists name and the Title of the disc, with BD-ROM under it. When I load Songs From the Big Chair it gives no info on the Artist or Title, just say BD-ROM. I select it and it takes me to a list of the songs which are in very small print and at the bottom are the audio choices also in a very small font. Is this normal with other Blu Ray discs? Just wondering if I received a bogus copy passed off as new. As I said the sound is not impressive, almost "Silverlineish". I have played the DTS and PCM 5.1 versions. Any comments?

It definitely does not sound "Silverlineish"! Something must be wrong with your setup, or you did indeed get a bogus copy. The first track "Shout" does not sound as good as the others, IMO, so be sure you aren't judging by that track alone.

Can you upload a picture of the menu as you are seeing it?
 
It definitely does not sound "Silverlineish"! Something must be wrong with your setup, or you did indeed get a bogus copy. The first track "Shout" does not sound as good as the others, IMO, so be sure you aren't judging by that track alone.

Can you upload a picture of the menu as you are seeing it?

I will take a crack at uploading the menu a little later. Thanks for the response, I was really bummed after hearing all the good reviews and then I played the Blu Ray and it sounded so bad. Like I said the title is not present when I load the disc, just says BD-Rom. Quadrophenia and Aqualung sound fine so I don't think its my setup.
 
I will take a crack at uploading the menu a little later. Thanks for the response, I was really bummed after hearing all the good reviews and then I played the Blu Ray and it sounded so bad. Like I said the title is not present when I load the disc, just says BD-Rom. Quadrophenia and Aqualung sound fine so I don't think its my setup.

I don't recall seeing BD-Rom when loading it in my Oppo BDP83SE. What player are you using?

I think the reviews over-hyped the sound quality a bit too, but it still sounds very good IMO. "The Working Hour" in particular sounds great, especially in contract to the poor sounding "Shout". Does "The Working Hour" sound better in your system?

If you read the Poll thread, there are a few others who have been disappointed by the fidelity, just like you. This release has been quite polarizing, which is strange.
 
Having removed the Blu-ray players and TV set from my audio room I don't know how I will play this now. I guess it stays sealed for the time being.
 
Having removed the Blu-ray players and TV set from my audio room I don't know how I will play this now. I guess it stays sealed for the time being.

Hmm . . . so much for selling you my extra copy! I'm still unhappy that the incorrect download is on the HPFA site; hopefully they will correct that at some point.
 
An AMAZING interview from Mike Mettler with Roland and Curt discussing all things High-Res and 5.1 surround.

Here are some highlights:

Mettler: To me, the best thing is being able to hear Big Chair in a high-res surround-sound mix by Steven Wilson, which just gives the original deeply layered mix an added dimension.

Orzabal: Yeah, he’s amazing. He had to create the new mixes before we put it into 5.1, and after he sent them to me, it was like, “Wow!”

Smith: Yeah, he did a fantastic job.

Mettler: How did Steven get involved in the process? Who approached who?

Orzabal: It was the record company. He’s done a few for them, and he’s quite well known as being one of the best. And he’s a Tears for Fears fan, so that all made sense.

Smith: We had heard of him, obviously. The record company had suggested some people, but he was at the top of the list. And listening to his work helped. We all basically chatted over the phone — Steven, Roland, and me — and everything he said pushed the right buttons.

Mettler: Big Chair is in 96/24, and in 2013, The Hurting was also released that way on Blu-ray in the High Fidelity Pure Audio format, though only as a stereo mix. Do you think high-res 5.1 is the best way to hear your work?

Orzabal: Yeah, I do. I do. I think it’s really good.

Smith: I love 5.1 mixes; I have for a long time. I don’t know how practical it is other than for audiophiles — although it could be done in the car, and you’d have to fiddle with balances and things like that. But yeah, I like it.

Smith: I think the best thing about “Shout” in 5.1 is the ability we had to separate things more. Given with the two speakers left and right, you could move things behind, and especially for things like you say, where percussion no longer gets lost in the track. With surround, you get a far greater spectrum of sound, and the low end is definitely improved.

Smith: “Mother’s Talk” was probably the track for us that was the most difficult to do. We did it a few times, and there are different versions of it, which tells you in the end it wasn’t as synched as some of the other songs, because we had to find a way to make it feel like it’s in a pocket. It’s a track that has a lot on it, and the 5.1 mix just makes it sound a lot more open.

Smith: My favorite track, I think, has to be “The Working Hour.” It was a striking track in stereo, and in 5.1, even more so.

Mettler: I vote for you keeping it in the live set. I also love having all the demos and bonus material in this box set, which really shows us what I call the Big Chair sketchpad. Could we expect something similar for the next album in your catalog, which has such an incredible level of depth to it, The Seeds of Love (1989)? Are you thinking about that already?

Orzabal: I think we know where the tapes are, so that’s a start. (MM laughs) It was recorded on an early digital machine, a a 32-track Mitsubishi digital recorder. In fact, we had two of them at one point, when we were trying to bounce about the drums. We spent years on that and months mixing it, so good luck to anyone who has to recreate it. But what is on tape does sound great.

Mettler: Well, you’ve already got a built-in mixing man in Mr. Wilson, who probably would love to get his hands on that one. Would you vote for having Steven do it in high-res?

Orzabal: Absolutely. Yeah, definitely. I think it won’t be so difficult once he’s got all the parts.

Smith: Oh, yes, absolutely! Steven should do it.

Mettler: I’ll have to let him know! So if Steven does get to do Seeds in high-res, do you see listeners getting something even more out of an album people already feel is a sonic benchmark?

Orzabal: I think so. In the early days, we started mixing to DAT, and then things still had to be cut, and it still had to end up on CD. Hopefully, it should be better.

Smith: Oh, without question, yeah. To hear the depth in the production on “Sowing the Seeds of Love” — just that one song — would be great in surround, and so would “Woman in Chains.” Most records, to me, that are perfect for surround are ones that are that layered, the ones that have so much information on them that it’s sometimes hard to mix them, and sometimes hard to get the separation. And obviously, that’s easier with surround.

Having said that, “Woman in Chains” is a bit more similar to “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” in the sense that there’s not a lot on that song, believe it or not, but I know that you would get a bunch more out of it — you’d hear more of the guitars and different things doubled and separated. It would be so great. Once you start separating them more, you get to play with them more.


Mettler: In terms of equipment, what do you listen to at home?

Smith: I do have a Bose 5.1 setup in my den, but a lot of the time kids are listening to stuff, so we actually also have the Sonos system. They’re great-sounding speakers, with low maintenance.

http://www.soundbard.com/soundbard/...their-seats-in-the-high-resolution-big-chair/ :)
 
I don't recall seeing BD-Rom when loading it in my Oppo BDP83SE. What player are you using?

I think the reviews over-hyped the sound quality a bit too, but it still sounds very good IMO. "The Working Hour" in particular sounds great, especially in contract to the poor sounding "Shout". Does "The Working Hour" sound better in your system?

If you read the Poll thread, there are a few others who have been disappointed by the fidelity, just like you. This release has been quite polarizing, which is strange.

SMS-
Sorry in the delay in getting back to you. I played the TFF SFTBC disc and Bryan Adams Reckless in another Blu Ray connected to a LCD monitor and the video interface was excellent. No problem reading the list of songs. My TV is an old front projection Pioneer Elite 510 and does not support HDMI. I am running composite cables to the 510 TV from the video out of a Sony S590 BDC and HDMI to my Pioneer SC-37 receiver. The video is poor at best. Also I am told I can only get DTS not DTS HDMA because I am not using HDMI to the TV. Anyway I believe my issues are not with the Tears for Fears disc but is with my legacy setup. I will not be able to fully appreciate music on Blu Rays until I change out the monitor. Since I have ~200 SACD's and DVD-A's I still have plenty of 5.1 listening material I can play on my Integra 6 disc DVD carousel player. Thanks for your help!
 
I had a quick look at the manuals. Have you tried one of these options to get DTS MA?

1. connect the Oppo via analog out for audio to your receiver and component out for video to the TV?

2. Connect the Oppo via HDMI to the receiver for audio and video, and use the component out on the receiver to the TV?

Perhaps there is a conflict too, but if might be worth a try.
 
Did anybody feel they could hear a clear edit - including tone - on the transistion into Listen?
 
I listened to some of Head Over Heels last night and the vocals were way, way too low.
 
Well yes I could, but I shouldn't have to. Hadn't played this mix in a while. Maybe it's a mastering or file transfer thing (again). I'm glad I didn't get the box solely for the mix.
 
I like the Alternate cover art they used on the cassette tape release...

thumb.t4f.jpg
 
Hey guys, is it just me or does "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" skip at 2:49 in LPCM 5.1?

I have all my 5.1 discs as files on my PC, and today, I noticed the skip in the FLAC file I had. So I re-ripped the Blu-Ray, thinking perhaps something had screwed up my file (I never heard the skip before), but it was still there even after re-ripping twice. Only when I ripped from DTS did it go away.

Obviously, it doesn't really bother me, since the file generated from the DTS track is fine. But I'm curious if I'm the only one who has this issue in the LPCM 5.1 track? I might have a faulty disc, or it might be because of the ripping - perhaps it plays fine in a proper Blu-Ray player, but I don't have one, so I can't check. :)
 
Hey guys, is it just me or does "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" skip at 2:49 in LPCM 5.1?

I listen to all my 5.1 discs as FLAC, and today, I noticed the skip. So I re-ripped the Blu-Ray, thinking perhaps something had screwed up my file, but the skip was still there even after re-ripping twice. Only when I ripped the DTS did it go away.

Obviously, it doesn't really bother me, but I'm curious if I'm the only one who has this issue in the LPCM 5.1 track? It might also be because of the ripping - perhaps it plays fine in a proper BluRay player, but I don't have one. :)

I can check my disc when I have the time. I play the LPCM 5.1 track the vast majority of the time, and I have never noticed any such skip, and I have played this disc a LOT! :)
 
Hey guys, is it just me or does "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" skip at 2:49 in LPCM 5.1?

I have all my 5.1 discs as files on my PC, and today, I noticed the skip in the FLAC file I had. So I re-ripped the Blu-Ray, thinking perhaps something had screwed up my file (I never heard the skip before), but it was still there even after re-ripping twice. Only when I ripped from DTS did it go away.

Obviously, it doesn't really bother me, since the file generated from the DTS track is fine. But I'm curious if I'm the only one who has this issue in the LPCM 5.1 track? I might have a faulty disc, or it might be because of the ripping - perhaps it plays fine in a proper Blu-Ray player, but I don't have one, so I can't check. :)

Just tried mine, doesn't skip before/at/or just past that time code on all 3 audio codecs via my Oppo. I was thinking I had a skip at a different location on this disc, you have me curious now, I'll have to see if I can find it ;)
 
I just played the song as well on the LPCM 5.1 setting on my disc, and I heard no such skip on the disc. It did remind me however what an amazing surround mix this is that Steven Wilson was able to create. It's still I think my favorite surround remix that Steven Wilson has mixed so far, and it makes me even more excited for "The Seeds of Love". :)
 
It's still I think my favorite surround remix that Steven Wilson has mixed so far...

This does not fill me with optimism! I was disappointed with this mix. The policy of precise matching the left right placement - albeit spread front to rear - of the original stereo mix is boring for me as I find it adds little to the listening experience. I barely play it.
 
This does not fill me with optimism! I was disappointed with this mix. The policy of precise matching the left right placement - albeit spread front to rear - of the original stereo mix is boring for me as I find it adds little to the listening experience. I barely play it.

Everyone's mileage varies, but apart from "Broken" (which is an upmix) I think this is one stellar surround mix from start to finish, and there's very little I would change about it. Maybe some level adjustments here and there, but that's really about it. And really, I would just want more surround mixes of albums like this one. Some of these 80s albums have a lot of untapped potential for surround I think, so if SW gets to work with more artists like Tears for Fears, that will make me one happy panda! :)
 
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