Some good news on Blu Ray Audio

Well, its d-day for Pure Audio, today is the launch day 21/10

I logged on Friday last week to check my status of my order, Exile on Main Street in BACKORDERED status. Mmmm, hope they are going to ship this today me-thinks.

But, log on today and the release date has now changed to 4/11.

Still, they got that ****ing Lionel Richie disk out the door eh!

 

My Van Morrison - Moondance deluxe edition arrived today. I couldn't give a toss about the alternative versions/outtakes included on the Redbook CDs although I will give them a listen at some stage. I bought the box set for the Blu-ray which has high-res versions of the album in stereo and surround.

These are both presented in Dolby TrueHD. I've only listened to the 5.1 version so far but it sounds excellent. A lovely mix (although I'm sure some will disagree - and Van himself opposed the project although I'm not sure whether that was because of the surround mix per se or the general idea of a reissue) and the whole record sounds warm, open and detailed to my untrained ears. I've listened to this album many times before on CD and the Blu-ray version takes the experience to another level of excellence.

Pity the same can't be said for the packaging of the box set, the extremely tightly bound spine of which fell apart as soon as I opened it to get at the first disc. I'm sending it back to Amazon for a replacement because mine was dented too. I wouldn't normally be so fussy but this set cost about £45 and I only really bought it for the Blu.

 

whats a bit sketchy since this is a big launch...information and pricing everywhere is different. as is what releases are available..back to black on amazon is import only? seems abit of a shambles since today is d-day.

 

hi john i like some of van morrisons stuff...is this a compilation album. or a standalone album. this isnt part of the new releases is it? ...under the high fidelity, pure audio banner i mean?

 

No, Moondance is a standalone album, although there are so many great songs on it that you could easily think you were listening to a 'best of' compilation at times.

I would say it's Morrison's most accessible (welcoming, even) album. Very soulful throughout and the warmth of the music really comes across beautifully in this 5.1 96/24 mix.

This release is not part of the HDPA campaign.

 

what discs have you been playing Shane? what bluray audio albums i mean?

 

Okay, this may sound a bit odd, or maybe others feel the same way.

I became disillusioned with the old formats because they were so patchy.

I appreciate that not every single one of my favourite albums will ever come out on a high res format, but I do expect fairly blanket coverage, as opposed to once in a blue moon.

It's good to see the majors (apparently) getting behind this.

Steve W

 

Not exactly. Blu ray Audio isn't new, discs have been out for a while, and this is a limited batch by a major in stereo only.

I 'hope' the sales will be high enough to prompt a major roll out, but don't hold your breath.

 

Don't go there Shane...

The French market for HiFi and audiophile recordings is much stronger (and I mean MUCH) than ours. When I still worked in the trade they published figures on household product 'desirability'. In France HiFi was 4th, the UK 21st. If anything I'd suspect that figure for the UK would be worse now.

The UK majority like junk food, junk music, and junk gear.

 

just ordered legend, i will share my thoughts...

 

Not a good album to really show off the medium tbh. No disrespect to Bob, but reggae is not music I would use to demonstrate a system, or, as in this case a mediums potential. It was intended to be basic, and that's what it is.

Not something then to stretch out musical nuances.

Having said that, it's a well recorded album and the difference between the Blu Ray and the CD is worth noting.

 

yeah be interesting to here nevermind, and amy winehouse..but legend seems to be one of the cheaper HFPA titles out there, and i do like bobs voice and music, so its a no-brainer..already got grrr.

 

The Winehouse album really interests me. Not a fan of Nirvana so that won't be bought.

Winehouses jazzy, soul influenced style should do well on Blu Ray.

 

Was very pleased with the Serge Gainsbourg Histoire de Melody Nelson BDA, so I've decided to sample a few more.

Just ordered

• Bob Marley: Legend
• Stevie Wonder: Songs In The Key of Life
• Oscar Peterson: Night Train
• Fitzgerald & Armstrong: Ella & Louis/Ella & Louis Again

The Peterson & F&A albums are terrific recordings that have always delivered the sonic goods, so I am keen to hear them on this format.

 

Please feed back on them, in particular on the latter two as I'd be interested in getting them if you think they are good.

 

Will do.

Decided to go for Exile On Main Street as well based on the above review and also spotted another of my favourites on Amazon France, Jacques Brel's Ne Me Quitte Pas.

That's the last tonight. What an expensive visit it was to this thread!

 

If anyone is after the "Queen - A Night At The Opera" disc, a third party seller (beaches_music_canada ) currently has it for £11.55 (£10.29 + £1.26 P&P) on Amazon.co.uk :
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00BSDTGAI/ref=ox_ya_os_product

It's shipped from Canada, so will take a few weeks to arrive, but at that price it's worth the wait.

 

Well, surprisingly Jacques Brel's 'Ne Me Quitte Pas' arrived from amazon France before the discs I ordered from Amazon UK and less than 36 hours after I placed the order!

Very pleased with this - sounds great!

 

Like many here, I'm unconvinced of the longevity of this idea. That said, I'm quite interested in Beck's 'Sea Change' album as it's the only Beck album I don't own and I still kick myself for not buying the SACD version back in the day. Have you seen how much Hi-res copies of that album fetch now?!

 

Yes 'Sea Change' is one on my list too. Love that album, but discovered it late in the day and the SACD passed me by.

 

where is the cheapest place to buy these bluray audio, is it cheaper to import?

 

wonder if the bluray audio of the velvet underground will increase in price due to the passing of lou reed? that was also on my list seems quite expensive at £18.99 at the mo on amazon/..

 

I'm still waiting on Sea Change to arrive but in the meantime, have just ordered Layla & Other Assorted Love Songs from Amazon for £13.41 delivered (the cheapest it's been @ Amazon and probably anywhere else). I actually bought this Blu ray album in August for £15.94 but sent it back for a refund because the case was cracked and Amazon never had stock to replace it. Thanks to that, I've just saved £2.53 lol. Fwiw, Universal sell it for £18.98 delivered!

 

Just received Bob Marley's 'Legend'. In a word - WOW!

Has Beck's 'Sea Change' been delayed or something? Showing as unavailable on UK and French Amazon.

 

A small concern has been flagged up elsewhere, some of these release have been dynamically compressed. My question would be why? Blu ray Audio is an audiophile product aimed at a niche market and the medium itself should be unlimited in it's potential (32 bit and up). So why? I can only conclude that they have decided that if they want to capture a bigger audience than previous hi res, the Audio must be able to be played on as many devices as possible. Otherwise I see no point...