| Review by indigo66 September 26, 2014 (5 of 7 found this review helpful)
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Performance:  Sonics:  |
I grew up listening to this on LP and loved it from the day it was first released. I always felt that the LP and even the subsequent CD reissues, all of them, never sounded right to my ears. The highs always sounded like someone rolled off the high end frequencies. I always listen to all of my LP's and CD's flat with no EQ so I know that it was not my gear.
I purchased the SACD/Hybrid version of "90125" a few weeks ago from CD Japan and could not wait to pop this into my Oppo BDP-95 player.
The SACD sounds amazing and is light years beyond any previous edition of this album on LP, CD or whatever format. The highs have been restored and this is like hearing this album for the first time!! I can hear very specific details on instruments and voices that were before not noticeable such as the reverb and echo tails on the instruments.
If anything, my only complaint is that the highs are perhaps a bit too much now but I still think this sounds vastly better than all of the past CD reissues.
Based on how good this SACD sounds I decided to order "90125's" little brother, "Big Generator", another Yes album that I've always enjoyed and played the hell out of back in my college days.
I highly recommend that anyone who is a fan of the Trevor Rabin period Yes material buy this on SACD before it goes OOP!
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| Review by wolffman3 October 2, 2014 (0 of 2 found this review helpful)
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Performance: |
Indgo66, I am with you i will never forget when i first heard the single "Owner Of A Lonely Heart"
and the rest of the record is a classic, i see there is a hybrid sa-cd version at which you are reviewing, last year i decided to buy the latest Oppo player and gee aren't they a great. In regards to Yes's 90125 the sound quality would be amazing, i guess the only disappointing aspect the remastered album has an extra 6 tracks, i must admit it would have been great if they were included
on the sa-cd format.
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| Review by analogue October 2, 2014 (7 of 9 found this review helpful)
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Performance:  Sonics:  |
With all due respect to the previous reviewers....stay the hell away from this release. I was extremely let down by the mastering of this new sacd. This is a separate release from the box set where the titles were separated and resold.
I was very excited to have a listen but I couldn't get through the entire disc before I almost had to stop. Even with the volume set low..........its like pulling teeth...............boring and a grating treble that will not let up for the life of the disc.
This is a 24/96 pcm transfer from the original tapes but you wouldn't know it. I have Dvd Audio discs that sound hi rez.....this disc does not. I struggled to find any indication that there was a difference between this disc and the previous cd's with regards to resolution .....and nary a hint was revealed. Stick with the previous cd's............which I really like.
This new disc is awash in extremely high treble which contaminated the entire sound spectrum. Sure the bass is taut and deep but the mastering is anemic and flat. Rabins awesome guitar work might be ever so slightly focused and sharp but again..........where is the hirez sound??? Where is the sound stage??? Also its impossible to crank the volume loudly and actually get through the entire sacd. its COMPRESSED way to much.
Like the previous reviewers.......I too am a huge fan of this album and I enjoy the entire album from start to finish.
Putting the analogue releases aside I own the first cd release, the remastered Rhino and the Steve Hoffman cd's of this album. The first cd needs to be put away and not listened to. It keeps the original vinyl mix but is rather flat and lacks detail. The remastered Rhino is a tad loud, etched and has reverb added but..........its very addictive and a great listen. The Rhino sounds more like hirez that this new pcm mastered sacd. The Rhino is mastering that has all the stops put into it........its the goosed up mastering.
The Steve Hoffman cd is the polar opposite in feel to the Rhino............its warm, has that nice analogue tone to it and needs to be cranked very loud. The Rhino and the Hoffman cd;s are much preferable to this new sacd. It is very rare for me to prefer a cd over any hirez releases............but its easy for me to make that decision here.
Save your money.......if this new sacd is any indication as to the sound quality of the entire box set..............stay the hell away and save your money.
Lets all hope that new remasterings are done. The older Fragile Dvd Audio is awesome and true Hirez.
Not recommened.
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| Review by Solo man October 3, 2014 (1 of 3 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics:  |
I am a huge fan of Yes and grew up with this particular album. I have the Redbook CD and it sounds better and is definitely recorded at a lower volume. I used to have the SACD "High Vibration" boxed set and couldn't refuse an offer so I sold it. If you are like me and are interested in a neutral recording with great dynamics, this SACD is not for you. I bought this hoping I would love this because it's the album that has sentimental value for me.
I have to agree with Analogue above and say that this definitely sounds compressed. Also, sounds the same to the recording in the "High Vibration" boxed set which IMO sounds COMPRESSED! In the track "Owner of a lonely heart" it is overly loud and where is the smoothness of this song. I was looking for a natural sounding track that was better than my cd and am dissappointed.
The positive side is the packaging is sweet and the size is similar to a 45 vinyl and the inside sleeve is pretty cool. The SACD also can be placed on a graphic of a vinyl record that fits inside the inner sleeve. Right now, my redbook cd is in the packaging and paid too much just for the packaging.
The master engineer is Isao Kikuchi and you can make your own judgments to stuff from him.
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| Review by Lost in the Music October 23, 2014 (1 of 1 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics: |
I was pleasantly surprised when I first played this.
It's all there. It's really clear. It's really in your face.
So initially quite impressive.
After a while (few tracks) it starts to get very fatiguing.
The loudness just keeps going. It really is relentless.
If somebody was using a drill and you wanted to drown it out, this would be perfect.
So, for dipping in and just playing one track, this is actually quite awesome (IMHO).
But listen to the whole thing, and you're a brave person (and probably deaf now).
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