ak2112

QUOTE (drbirdsong @ Jan 17 2012, 12:16 AM) The Watchmaker analogy has been around a lot longer than Neil Peart. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watchmaker_analogy And its also been very well destroyed as a theory by several evolutionary biologists. Intelligent Design isnt science, just religion in a not very convincing costume.

Even though I'm not a person of faith, I will readily admit that it is almost de jour to attack people of religious faith in this country nowadays. That being said, there is a school of thought that says they kind of deserve it. For most of the history of the United States, religious faith has been the leading school of thought that has pretty much run this country. Ridiculous ideas like slavery, prohibition, the subjigation of women, and on and on were justified under the guise of "it's what the Lord would want". Now that those of no faith are no longer afraid to voice their opinions, everyone is saying there's a war on Christianity. How often during the holiday season do you hear about the same old tired mantra about "the War On Christmas". I personally feel that the agnostics/athiests in this country are one of the largest more or less "silent majorities" out there. Do you remember the flak that Obama got when he mentioned "peoplee of no faith" in his inagural address? I thought that was a huge moment in American history. If we're really going to live in a plural society where all views have an equal footing and where everyone gets to have a voice in the direction the U.S. should take, then ALL voices should get air time. I for one would vote for an athiest if he or she ever ran for President if I thought they were qualified. Sadly, most would not vote for them solely because they did not believe in God, which I find ridiculous. I think Neil finds this reality frustrating, more so now that he's living more or less on a permanent basis in the U.S.

QUOTE (circumstantial tree @ Jan 14 2012, 06:20 PM) I think everybody has their own definition of morals, including terrorists. But facts aren't always facts. Only recently there was an issue with DNA "evidence" that at one point cleared someone of a crime and then later it convicted him. Bizarre case proving that science is by no means perfect. And just because someone claims something to be fact doesn't necessarily make it fact. Case in point: God never claimed to be the "sky god". I have no issue with somebody choosing to be atheist. Freewill afterall. But it seems that many atheists (not all, of course) validate themselves strictly on the basis of pointing out what is wrong with everybody else's beliefs. That's the same kind of attitude you find in cults. Science is based on facts and evidence. Faith is the positive suspension of critical thinking. The belief in something for which there is zero proof/evidence. I think thats one aspect of faith that sticks in the craw of people like Neil....and myself.

QUOTE (fordgt99 @ Jan 13 2012, 11:21 PM) Regarding the shm discs, I assumed they were the same mastering as the 97 discs since the Kiss ones from what I've read are. Maybe, maybe not. I checked out a couple and the only big difference I saw was in the packaging. If you want to add another version into the mix, the great pbthal just posted a vinyl rip. The SHM's are not the same mastering as the 97 remasters. You can use a free software package like Exact Audio Copy that will show you the peak levels of each track for a CD. This will show you that these masterings are different from one another. I dont own all of the SHM's, but the ones that I do own (Hemispheres, Moving Pictures, Power Windows, and Hold Your Fire) are all different masterings from the 97's. They have more dynamic range and aren't nearly as loud. I prefer them to the 97's but I still tend to like the Japanese masterings of Rush's catelog to most of the remasters. The MFSL's for Signals, Moving Pictures, and Permanent Waves are also awesome, though the MFSL of 2112 is too loud and harsh for my tastes.

The MFSL and the Japanese 25.8P are the best sounding versions to me. The 97 remasters are garbage.

QUOTE (GeminiRising79 @ Jan 11 2012, 10:29 PM) Can't this guy for just one second quit forcing his personal beliefs on people? Has rhythmic drum-beating and writing fantasy/self-help short stories with great success given him the audacity to think he has the most remote idea about what the truth to life is? (I admit I don't, even still, after more than 17 years of intensive, scientific post-secondary study). Is Neil Peart really beyond (or far and away) from the realization of how foolish and naive he appears? The more and more I read his material, the more I realize what a gross imposter he is. How in the world is he naive? Looks to me as if he's invoking reason over myths and fairy tales. I wish more people would deal with the reality of life rather than looking for meaning in fantasy.

I always enjoy his updates and I thought this one was particularly nice. Seems as if he's aware of some of the irritation others have had about his alleged religion bashing, though I dont see it that way at all. All he's asking of all of us is the same he's asking of himself: to allow REASON to guide as all in this life rather than dogma. I would like to know him not because he's famous, but because he seems like he'd be a neat person to have a conversation with over a beer. Thanks Neil!

I kind of wish I had never posted the whole 20K system comment. I didnt intend for it to come across as pompous. It was merely a statement to indicate the amount of effort I've put into putting together a stereo system I was happy and content to have for the rest of my life. The downside to owning a better quality system is that it really brings out poor mastering and recording. The 97 remasters sound like absolute dog $hit on my system and the Sector CD's only marginally better. The MFSL of Signals and Moving Pictures, along with the Candian WANK of Hemispheres sound as close to perfect as any Rush album I have ever heard. They EASILY beat any subsequent releases, BUT that statement is only relevant to MY EARS AND ON MY SYSTEM. I would not want to imply that others might not enjoy the Sector CD's or the 97 remasters. As a matter of fact, I rather enjoyed the 97 remasters back before I got my good system and was listening to tunes on a jambox. On my system, nothing sounds better than an SACD or DVD-A from a properly recorded and mastered album. To each his or her own to be sure!

Hopefully 2012 will be the year these Sector CD's are finally exposed for the crap they are. Worse yet, is that Geddy, Alex and Neil allowed these remasters to be released as is. I know everyone on here loves this band as much as I do but make no mistake, they allowed this crap to be put out. I think they just want the money at this point and I'm saddened by this reality. The band needs tough love folks. DON'T BUY THESE REMASTERS!!

QUOTE (danielmclark @ Dec 27 2011, 11:19 PM) QUOTE (ak2112 @ Dec 27 2011, 07:28 PM)I don't just "say" the Sector CD's are brick walled, it's 100% fact they are. All you have to do is look at a waveform of any given song between them and an original master and see the proof with your own eyes. Here's The Analog Kid opened up in Adobe Audition. Some of the songs *are* brickwalled, yes. P/G is particularly bad, but that's because it's unchanged from the 97 remaster. Other songs on other albums fare better or worse, but the point is, they tried to make things as loud as they could get away without without creating a wall of green. They largely succeeded, IMO. http://qaqn.com/images/outbound/analog-kid.png Thanks for posting the waveform as it's a perfect example of the problem I'm talking about. Looks like there are several places where it is going to clipping. You said it looks like they made it "as loud as they could get away with" and my question to that statement is why?!! What is inherently good about making things louder and losing dynamic range? Can people not be bothered to use the volume knob? I find this maddening and the posted waveform looks terrible to me, yet is all too common in today's masterings. Very sad IMO.

QUOTE (WCFIELDS @ Dec 27 2011, 04:00 PM) QUOTE (Captain Avatar @ Dec 27 2011, 02:55 PM) QUOTE (third hand grace @ Dec 27 2011, 11:33 AM) I havent noticed too much of a difference, better bass MAYBE, after buying I'd say that except for the 3 dvds (which are reported to be flawed) you really arent getting anything thats gonna blow your mind compared to 97s. I'm still on my first listen though, putting on PeWright now. The DVDs are impressive to me, but w/out getting anything that special out of the cds, its probably not worth it to the average listener who owns 97s, unless you have the completist disease like me. That's the point...I don't own the 97 remasters, so I'm wondering if the sectors sound better than the original cds. I've heard that the 97 remasters weren't even that good, which is why I didn't buy them. I guess ak2112 is in the minority here? Anyway, thanks for the feedback. Maybe I'll purchase one of them and take it from there. Yes, they are better than the originals....a few of them are quite a bit better. Each album is slightly different in how it compares to the original.... The Sectors are nowhere near as good as the originals and the MFSL's. This of course my own opinion, but I doubt I'll be listening to my Sector 1 set again. Actually, I'm probably going to end up selling it. The MFSL of Signals blows anything since out of the water and the Canadian "WANK" CD of Hemispheres is the best the album has ever sounded. I prefer to have my albums with full dynamic range. If I want it loud, I'll turn up the volume!

QUOTE (drbirdsong @ Dec 27 2011, 09:26 AM) QUOTE (ak2112 @ Dec 25 2011, 08:06 PM) I listen to my music on a $20K system This statement is really bugging me. Do you really have a 20 THOUSAND DOLLAR system? Really? If you had said a 2 thousand dollar system my thoughts would be that that is a lot of money for a sound system, but understandable for a music lover. Just what does a 20 THOUSAND DOLLAR sound system consist of? Well, it took me almost 10 years to put my system together. I have a basic 5.1 setup with a top of the line receiver, a two channel amp to drive my mains, three mono amps for my center and surrounds, a universal player that plays cd's, sacd, DVD-A, etc., and high quality speaker cables and interconnects. What I've spent is nothing compared to what others put down. There are speakers out there that cost more than 250K!

QUOTE (danielmclark @ Dec 27 2011, 11:17 AM) QUOTE (drbirdsong @ Dec 27 2011, 08:32 AM) Bullcrap. I don't care what software program you put the music into. I think you are missing my point. I like the way the Sector versions sound. I don't care what argument you make and your "facts" are going up against my human ears and brain and they are the ultimate analog experience. Actually, he's right. Dynamic range is measurable - whether or not something is "better" or "worse" is subjective, but it is generally accepted that a brickwalled recording, lacking in dynamic range, is not as good as a properly mixed and mastered recording. What he said! You of cours can stil prefer the sound of a recording with less dynamic range, but that's not the point I was making. Dynamic range is easily measured and visually observable.

QUOTE (Captain Avatar @ Dec 26 2011, 09:00 PM) My question is this... Are they better than the original cds? I never bought the 97 remasters or any of the gold discs and I was thinking about upgrading my collection with the sector sets. Knowing that they didn't measure up to what you were expecting/hoping them to be, do you still nonetheless consider them to be better than the originals and worth the purchase for someone in my situation? Not even close to as good as the original Atomics or Japanese 1st pressings. They don't have the dynamic range or warmth of the originals. If you like loud, brick walled recordings suitable for iPods and earbuds, the Sector CD's and the 97 remaster are perfect. If you want true audio fidelity, stick with the originals.

QUOTE (laughedatbytime @ Dec 25 2011, 09:58 PM) So why exactly is anyone responding to this troll? Jeez, just let this stupid thread slide into the oblivion it richly deserves. (I know, I'm not helping...) Excellent point!

QUOTE (fordgt99 @ Dec 25 2011, 09:48 PM) QUOTE (danielmclark @ Dec 24 2011, 09:39 PM) The most interesting thing about Sectors isn't the music, the remastering, the packaging or anything else to do with the sets. It's that there are a few people that come in here claiming that they are a travesty, that the band sucks for going along with them, that the producers and engineers suck, that they are brickwalled so badly that you can barely hear certain instruments or that it's just garbage... ...and yet there are tons of people reporting exactly the opposite. That it's not brickwalled. That individual instruments have never been clearer. That they sound better than almost any previous release (except for certain foreign pressings, depending on who you ask). Yep... sure is interesting. There seems to be a very small group that are pro-original cd/anti-remasters cds. Read the same crap over on a Kiss forum that I hole up at. You'd have to be a little insane to think the original batch of Kiss cds sounded better than the remasters. Their catalog wasn't given the best care on the first batch of cd. Both Alive cds had spots of what I can best describe as a terrible screeching sound. But then you also have some who think a vinyl rip by someone who knows what they're doing can't sound better than a cd. Got a few rips that to me say otherwise. I just get tired of reading that the 97 Rush remasters are the worst as if it's fact. I havent heard the original Kiss CD's, although I do have the remastered Destroyer CD and the new Japanese SHM-SACD of Destroyer as well. I think both sound pretty good, especially the SACD. However, I've spent a LOT of time listening to all of the Rush remasters (both the 97's and the new Sector CD's). I'm not going to sit and state that its FACT that the originals sound better as that is a matter of personal taste. What I can say is that to my ears and on my system, they sound a world better than the remasters, especially the Japanese 1st pressings and the MFSL. Also, one thing that IS fact, is that the remasters are louder and have much less dynamic range than the original CD's. To me, that is a flaw of the remasters that cannot be overcome. You cannot crank the remasters like you can the original and MFSL CD's without creating distortion. The 97 remasters especially are brickwalled and are just too damn loud for me. They might sound great coming out of an ipod, but I do most of my listening on my home stereo system and the remasters sound like absolute crap.

QUOTE (danielmclark @ Dec 25 2011, 09:36 PM) QUOTE (ak2112 @ Dec 25 2011, 07:56 PM) Agree with you 1000% about the cost of some MFSL CD's. No way would I pay $600 for ANY CD. However, even though the Sector CD's may come out to $9 a disc, you still cant buy them individually. The only way to get them right now is to shell out $50 for the whole boxset. So...ny statement that better sounding CD's can be had for less money is true right now. The Steve Hoffman forum is where I've bought most of my 1st pressing or MFSL Rush CD's and they are usually in better condition and cheaper than any CD's that are being sold on ebay. I'm not sure why you dont like the original CD releases though. Is it becuase they are not as loud as later releases? Thats what the volume dial is for and you can crank most of the original pressings and still have crystal clear music. I would not try that with the 97 remasters unless you want to end up buying new tweeters for your speakers. I dont think the Sector remasters are as loud as the 97's but I think that has more to do with better mastering technology than was available in 1997 and not because of better mastering technique. I found the Moving Pictures 30th Anniversary DVD-Audio release to be pretty much a let down because it was clear that all they did was boost the mids and the overall volume and called it remastered....a missed opportunity IMO. I wish they would let Steven Wilson remaster their catalog. If you havent heard what he did with the King Crimson catalog, you should give it a listen. THAT is what a properly mastered album should sound like. I fear Rush's music is in poor hands. No... it's not because they're louder - although with everything being produced louder now, it would be a little annoying to adjust the volume with every disc. But that would be a trifle. I think the main reason I like Sectors more than the original CDs is because of the separation of sounds and the sonic adjustments that were made for this release. Power Windows and Hold Your Fire both have a better bottom end, the guitars were brought up in the mix on Signals, and ESL sounds practically like a whole new show, to a degree. All the discs* had some pretty significant work done. If all they did was raise the volume they wouldn't be worth a damn, but I like the subtle changes they made in the mix for this batch (*with a few exceptions, like P/G, which is the same as the 97 remaster because they couldn't salvage the source recordings). I would have loved to see what Wilson could do, but it wasn't to be... maybe they'll get him for a batch of remasters from Presto on up. We can hope. I see your point about having to buy all the discs in the set for $50, but there aren't any superior CD releases of the debut, Fly By Night, Caress of Steel, and most of the 80's stuff. Plus, this is the first time any of them have been in 5.1, so there's that... if 5.1 interests you. If not, then it's not a selling point. All excellent points by you for sure! Yes, for me the biggest draw would be to get the albums in 5.1 IF they were done correctly. I can only hope that the full Rush discography will be released in surround sound in DVD-A or SACD format. That would pretty much be the only thing that could get me to buy their albums again, as I have multiple versions of almost all of their work, especially the Mercury albums. For me, the Japanese and MFSL releases have yet to be bettered. I do hope that surround sound for everything is coming soon. I'm glad you like the Sectors though. Anything that keeps interest in the band going I'm all for; I just dont find the audio quality of these latest releases to be better than what I already have.

QUOTE (GoToMan @ Dec 25 2011, 09:07 PM) QUOTE (ak2112 @ Dec 25 2011, 08:41 PM) QUOTE (GoToMan @ Dec 25 2011, 08:27 PM) This is about what I expected from this post today. Certain Homo (Sapiens) thinking the only Christmas Post on Christmas Day should be moved to another sector because it is not Rush related. Oh, my acking ass. What a sick, pathetic, Adamic, 666, Anti-Christ, Synogogue of Satan, this place can be sometimes. Those of you that posted such darkness are Rebuked in the Mighty Name of Jesus Christ. Glory to the Lord, Let all the Nations rejoice that the Eternal Light is, has, and shall always be. The best there is , was, and forever more. Amen. Happy Birthday Jesus, even though you were born around September. It is the Spirit of the Season that counts. For someone that supposedly follows scripture, you sure do a lot of judging on here. Ever heard of Matthew 7:1? Judge not, lest ye be judged? Why dont you leave the judging up to the Lord and go somewhere else if you want to post about religion, OK? Those that quote 'judge not" typcially never quote the whole verse (you are typical) it says, First take the log out of your own eye, then you can take the speck out of your brothers eye. How about I Corinthians 2:15 A spiritual man judges ALL THINGS. Uh, Don't you have Good Judgement? Wake up numb nuts, We are all making judgments every second of the day. Next... Yes, I'm familiar with the whole passage...a result of 10 years of 3 days a week of forced scripture study. However, I am glad you finished the quote because its perfectly applicable to you. You come to a RUSH MUSIC FORUM and start laying on heavy with religion for no other reason than to be a shithead. There are several internet forums out there where you can spend endless hours talking about whatever form of mythology floats your boat, be it Christianity, Mormonism, Islam, Thor, Earth Mother...whatever. You come here just to be a rabble rouser. I would suggest that the log is not in your eye but stuck up your A$$. Go somewhere else

QUOTE (GoToMan @ Dec 25 2011, 08:27 PM) This is about what I expected from this post today. Certain Homo (Sapiens) thinking the only Christmas Post on Christmas Day should be moved to another sector because it is not Rush related. Oh, my acking ass. What a sick, pathetic, Adamic, 666, Anti-Christ, Synogogue of Satan, this place can be sometimes. Those of you that posted such darkness are Rebuked in the Mighty Name of Jesus Christ. Glory to the Lord, Let all the Nations rejoice that the Eternal Light is, has, and shall always be. The best there is , was, and forever more. Amen. Happy Birthday Jesus, even though you were born around September. It is the Spirit of the Season that counts. For someone that supposedly follows scripture, you sure do a lot of judging on here. Ever heard of Matthew 7:1? Judge not, lest ye be judged? Why dont you leave the judging up to the Lord and go somewhere else if you want to post about religion, OK?

QUOTE (danielmclark @ Dec 25 2011, 07:54 PM) QUOTE (ak2112 @ Dec 24 2011, 04:58 PM) You're kidding, right? These Sector boxsets are sonic abortions. To each their own I guess. You can find MUCH better sounding masterings for much less money. I'm calling BS on the "for much less money" part. The so-called superior recordings, good luck finding them, and if you hit eBay, be prepared to spend more for one release than you'll spend on an entire Sector set (or two... or three). I happen to like the Sector sets. They sound great to me. Sonic abortions... whatever. Oh yeah? I bought the 25.8P Hemispheres, the 32.8P Power Windows and the original Canadian Anthem Moving Pictures (ANC 11030) on either ebay or the Steve Hoffman forum for no more than $15 to $20 and they blow the Sector and 97 remasters out of the friggin water. If you like the Sector CD's great. All that matters is what sounds best to you on your system but the data doesnt lie. The original Canadian and Japanese releases of Rush's catalog have more warmth and dynamic range than any subsequent releases. CD's have just gotten louder and louder since then, which some equate as being better quality. This is simply not true.