Counterparts SACD: Anyone have it yet?

[Mika]

I just ordered this last night, as it's one of my very favourite Rush albums. I don't listen to much on the ol' cd player anymore, and don't have an awesome stereo rigout what with having to keep on the quiet side due to people living upstairs, but I'm down for a high-quality edition of this album.

 

And as for the Roll the Bones vs. Counterparts that has arisen here: I've listened to and loved Counterparts since it first came out, but have only really been introduced to Roll the Bones in the past year, since the album went on permanent shuffle rotation on my ipod. I'd heard others' opinions that it wasn't a favourite album, but my own opinion is that it's really not that bad! It's been growing on me as I've been getting better acquainted with it. A more pop-directed Rush, but it sounds good, and yes, I enjoy 'The Big Wheel' and 'You Bet Your Life'. I've enjoyed popping on the entire album whilst washing dishes.

 

And Counterparts is just such a good, solid album! It sounds really amazing, and I like all of the songs and the flow they're in, ending with 'Everyday Glory'. Geddy's singing is very good on this - I can close my eyes and get goosebumps at the beginning of 'Double Agent'.

 

BTW, I read last night, while looking to buy the SACD, that Geddy was using his Wal bass to record Counterparts - I'd thought he'd switched to the Fender jazz by this point. Anyone know?

[ak2112]

Got a question. When I play the SACD layer how should it read on my receiver? I have a pretty nice 7.2 setup and cant wait for this. Thanks for the help.

 

Depends on your receiver. It may read as almost anything. All the important info will be coming from your CD/SACD player.

[robertrobyn]

Got a question. When I play the SACD layer how should it read on my receiver? I have a pretty nice 7.2 setup and cant wait for this. Thanks for the help.

 

Depends on your receiver. It may read as almost anything. All the important info will be coming from your CD/SACD player.

 

It comes up as Dolby Pro logic when I do AFD

[Smegger68]

Well, my Amazon order status has finally changed to 'Dispatching Soon' so hopefully it wont get put back yet again. Excited now :-)

[ytserush]

Both Counterparts and Close to the Edge showed up on Monday. I haven't cracked them open yet.

 

I will this weekend when I can compare to the original and the remaster. I expect this will blow both of them away, but you never know until the test is done.

[calirush]

Both Counterparts and Close to the Edge showed up on Monday. I haven't cracked them open yet.

 

I will this weekend when I can compare to the original and the remaster. I expect this will blow both of them away, but you never know until the test is done.

 

 

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/geronimoag/well-we-re-waiting_o_GIFSoup_com_zpsc5d0fda3.gif

[ak2112]

My Counterparts SACD showed up today and I'm just now getting through my first listen. I only have the original 93 CD release to compare it to, but I can say without question that on my system, the SACD blows the original away. Geddy's bass has more balls, the overall soundstage is tighter, with greater separation between instruments. Vocals are also crystal clear and not buried in the mix. Most importantly, the SACD isnt brickwalled to all hell like the original CD is and you can crank the SACD with zero distortion. If you have SACD playback capability, I highly recommend this one. Another interesting aspect of the SACD is that Stick it Out is about 20 seconds longer and Nobody's Here is also longer than the original CD. Kind of neat!

[Smegger68]

Agree with what The Seeker said. It's a much better all round listen :-)

[Tony R]

Got a question. When I play the SACD layer how should it read on my receiver? I have a pretty nice 7.2 setup and cant wait for this. Thanks for the help.

 

Depends on your receiver. It may read as almost anything. All the important info will be coming from your CD/SACD player.

 

It comes up as Dolby Pro logic when I do AFD

 

Check your settings for what format you want the player to send to your amp. I don't have a standalone player but my Oppo Blu-Ray player plays them and DVD-A just fine.

 

My Oppo player suggests these settings:

 

SACD Priority: To select which audio layer to play for SACD (Super Audio CD). The options are:

• Multi-Channel – Play the multi-channel surround audio layer

• Stereo – Play the 2-channel stereo audio layer

• CD Mode – Play the CD layer of a hybrid SACD disc

 

 

If you use HDMI to connect audio to an HDMI A/V receiver or audio processor, it is important that you choose 720p or higher HDMI output resolution when playing high resolution audio content (DVD-Audio, SACD, Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio). According to the HDMI specification, the bandwidth available for audio is proportional to the total bandwidth used by video. At 480p/576p resolution, the HDMI specification can only support 2 channels of audio with high sample rate (up to 192kHz), or 8 channels of audio with standard sample rate (up to 48kHz). If you play high resolution audio content at the 480p/576p resolution, you may get reduced audio resolution, incomplete audio channels, or even no audio/video output at all. Choosing a higher output resolution such as 720p or above allows enough bandwidth for all high sample rate audio channels.

 

 

SACD Output: To select audio output format for SACD. The options are:

• PCM – SACD Direct Stream Digital (DSD) data is converted into multi-channel, high- resolution PCM data. The converted PCM data is then output through HDMI or the internal DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) for the analog audio output ports. If you use a receiver that supports HDMI v1.1 to listen to SACD, please select this option. You may also want to select this option if you prefer the sound quality of the DSD-to-PCM conversion.

• DSD – SACD DSD data is output over HDMI without any conversion. For the analog audio outputs, DSD data is converted into analog signal directly by the internal DAC. If you use a receiver that supports HDMI v1.2a with DSD over HDMI, or you prefer the sound quality of straight DSD to analog, please select this option.

 

Hope this helps.

 

 

 

 

 

[Tony R]

Remind me not to bother in future.

[greg2112]

Music is just anyone's opinion.

 

Of course, RTB went platinum and CP lost Rush hundreds and thousands of fans, so...

 

Atlantic Records claim's that CP went platinum as well as claiming that RTB went double platinum.

 

CP did not sell as high but had a higher debut and "Leave that thing alone" was nominated for a Grammy.

 

So an album not selling as well means that a band lost hundreds and thousands of fans? That's silly and makes no difference to me anyway. CP is a great album and one of my favorites.

 

Counterparts is their finest album since the golden age (which ended with Power Windows IMO). And yes, id say its better than Clockwork (which I also like).

[Del_Duio]

Interesting to hear everyones opinion on the album. I think Counterparts was the best album they had put out since Power Windows and is also right up there with Moving Pictures so I'm really looking forward to my SACD arriving! Definately going to compare it to my original 1993 CD.

 

Yeah, me too. Counterparts is awesome and one of their best. And probably their best SOUNDING album as well.

[Del_Duio]

BTW, I read last night, while looking to buy the SACD, that Geddy was using his Wal bass to record Counterparts - I'd thought he'd switched to the Fender jazz by this point. Anyone know?

 

That's news to me, I too thought he used his Fender Jazz for CP. And he's playing it on all the videos from that album as well. Hmmm?

[canadianice]

Just got it today, and is it sounds phenominal, if they would only do Vapor trails.

[Mika]

I got it a week or so ago, and treated myself to a listen (with headphones on) the next night. I think I was expecting to be sonically blown away, and I wasn't, though it's good - though I really need to point out that my cd player is about 12 years old (a 'gift' from my brother) and I haven't figured out the best settings with which to play anything on it. As pointed out already, 'Stick it Out' and 'Nobody's Hero' have a little bit extra in them [interesting to note that these seem to be the same cuts from the Vuja Dey bootleg album of Counterparts demos]. I hadn't noticed anything earth-shattering in the SACD, and was actually a bit disappointed in the final track (and probably my personal favourite) 'Everyday Glory' - it actually sounded a bit 'choppy' to me. But as I said, it's an old cd player and I don't know its best sound functions and it's probably not geared for something like this.

 

And I'll add that this is a fabulous album, and I'm glad it's gotten this audio upgrade (even if it seems to be wasted on me!). Also, even though I'd read about the Wal bass being played on this album, I think it's inaccurate, and the reviewer must have been thinking of 'Roll the Bones' or something. Oh, but wait - I've just pulled out the booklet from the Counterparts cd, and Wal basses is thanked in the liner notes! Huh. Well, I guess that solves that; Geddy must have made his switch right after recording this album, and lugged his Fender on tour.

[kooma]

Has anyone here on the forum got the Counterparts SACD yet? Just curious if anyone with SACD playback has had a chance to listen to it. I ordered it and the Close to the Edge SACD and they shipped on 3/1 but it takes a while to get stuff up here to Alaska. Really looking forward to this one since its the first Rush album to be released on the SACD format. Lots of potential here. Plus, its one of my top 5 Rush albums of all time!

Do I need it..... :drool:

[ytserush]

Both Counterparts and Close to the Edge showed up on Monday. I haven't cracked them open yet.

 

I will this weekend when I can compare to the original and the remaster. I expect this will blow both of them away, but you never know until the test is done.

 

 

http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n508/geronimoag/well-we-re-waiting_o_GIFSoup_com_zpsc5d0fda3.gif

 

.

 

Haven't road tested Close to The Edge yet, but I did check out Counterparts.

 

I was expecting great things, but I'm not sure what to think.

 

I listened to the Atlantic remaster first before putting on the gold disc and there are some things I like about it and other things I don't. It's cool that they extended Stick It Out a bit longer (like on the demo) and the low end is as sweet as I could ever imagine.

 

 

I'm not sure if bringing the vocals back in a little was a good idea though. There are parts where there is some mud that there wasn't before. There's improved separation which is always good, but it just isn't very sharp.

 

 

I'll probably need time to evaluate it more, but right now I'm not as impressed as I was hoping t be. I should probably dig out my original copy too and maybe that will sort things out a little.

 

I haven't heard too many reviews of this so I'm not sure if I missing something, but I only heard it three times.

 

I probably should have recorded it for the car.

[brunosamppa]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Heh9wBeoTNw

[LeaveMyThingAlone]

Bringing this thread back to the top as I just picked this up and love it. What has always been a top 5 album for me sounds better than ever. There are some small differences Stick it Out, but overall the heavy sound of the album remains but in a much more crystal clear listening experience. Truly worthy of the SACD format and can't wait for Hemispheres in August

 

Hope to start seeing some more Blu-Ray releases from Rush. That is truly an epic listening experience

[coventry]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Heh9wBeoTNw

 

Vinyl is where it's at when it comes to lossless sound reproduction. You'l need a good needle and balaned arm and turntable, but if you can afford it, invest in it. It'll be worth your time and aural pleasure.