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Dark Side of the Moon 30th Anniv Album

I purchased two copies of the recently released Floyd "Dark Side of the Moon" 30th Anniversary album. According to the sticker on the album it is pressed in Holland. Our initial listening impressions are that it is lacking in "spaciousness" in the high end details and sounds boomy. Thinking it might simply be my system we put on a MFSL recording of Eric Clapton's first solo album; it sounded fine....crisp, clean bass, good soundstage. The Dark Side went back on; dull, boomy. We then tried some jazz albums like Coltrane and Modern Jazz Quartet with the same results.

Anybody else have a listen to this album yet?

Carl
c123666
cyclonicman
693 posts
 
If I live another 30 years, This album is going to be remastered, remixed, repackaged, repeated and repeated until it no longer sounds like the original released by Pink Floyd in 1973. I am Dark Sided out with way too many versions of this classic.
fromunda
148 posts
 
Find an early MFSL printing of Dark Side. Soundstage is Huuuuuge!
samuel
266 posts
 

I don't know much about the 30th Anniv. LP but I was lucky enough to hear the SACD-DSD Hybrid version in 5.1 at Phillips Crest National Studio in LA. They mass produced the DSOTM SACD's commercially. Crest's massive 5.1 Eggleston, Halcro, EMM system produced the best sounding multi-channel experience I have ever had and the sound was --flawless. Of course, the room itself was amazing and perfectly treated. That said, I also listened and compared the Anniversary SACD to several other copies I have on my two-channel home rig and clearly preferred the SACD 30th--especially for frequency extension, detail and imaging.

Regarding Parsons, the band chose James Guthrie with Doug Sax for the 30th re-master, feeling they would best preserve the original sound. The final re-master was done at Guthrie's Das Boot studio and by all accounts was extremely well received by Gilmour, the band and those at Astoria Studio --where the original recording was made.

Parsons was not happy about the decision reportedly, but the principles felt strongly about Guthrie's positive influence on the original master and so chose him for the SACD 30th master. In the end, the band themselves were the primary architects of the sound on DSOTM and felt Guthrie's lighter touch on the master would best preserve that. Based on what I hear I think they made the right choice.
audiofeil
4,011 posts
 
Having collected this album since release (15 on vinyl and 5 compact discs) the 30th anniversary is good but not extraordinary. Certainly, it's better than both MFSL releases but pales in comparison to these:

UK first pressing
US first pressing
Japan EMI EMS80324
UK Harvest Q4SHVL804
German Harvest 1C06205249Q
UK Harvest 8556731
Japan EMI EMLF97002

YMMV
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