Post by emaidel December 1, 2009 (1 of 27)
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When I first purchased a CD player in 1984, I was quite surprised when I played a Telarc CD of the same material I had on a Telarc LP, and found that the LP sounded significantly better. I never understood why this was so until several years ago when Telarc released DSD-remastered SACD's of these early works. All were recorded on the Soundstream digital tape recorder, whose 50KHZ sampling rate wasn't particularly compatible with the 44.1KHZ rate of the CD, and the downsampling, or "dumbing down" of the Soundstream original caused a degredation in the sound. Fortunately, Telarc used a number of better recording systems afterward, all of which were more compatible with the CD's standardized sampling rate. Best of all though was the introduction of the SACD format, capable of restoring the lost beauty of the older Soundstream recordings.
I've purchased quite a few of these Soundstream DSD remasters, and have uniformly liked each and every one. All of them sound significantly better than their CD counterparts, and one in particular, Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto, combined with Beethoven's 5th Symphony, both conducted by Sejii Ozawa (and highly recommended by both Stereophile and The Absolute Sound as "must-have SACD's), sound demonstrably superior to the LP I still have of those works. Frankly, I think some of thse remasters sound better than several newer Telarc SACD's that are "pure" DSD, but that's more the use of particular microphones than a fault of the recording medium.
Recently, I Googled "Telarc SACD's" and found a long list of them on amazon at some truly remarkable prices - some as low as $2.99!! I bought two: Telarc SACD 60655 (Bizet's "Carmen," and Grieg's "Peer Gynt"), and Telarc 60646 (Tchaikovsky's "1812," and Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue," and "American in Paris"). The former cost me a ridiculous $3.99, and the latter $6.99.
I have these recordings on CD, and to my surprise and delight, the Bizet/Grieg disc has a host of other music on it (with a total playing time of a staggering 79 minutes!) including one of my favorite's, Rimsky-Korsakov's "Russian Easter Overture." Either of these discs would be a super deal to begin with, as each is fully TWO separate recordings for the price of one, but at the prices I paid, they're some of the best bargains I've ever encountered.
Each disc is a huge improvement over the original CD, and readily demonstrates the sonic superiority of the SACD medium. Frankly, I had no interest in the remaster of Telarc's original version of the "1812," as I prefer their newer DSD version with the Kiev Chorus, but as Gershwin's two pieces are on that disc, I certainly couldn't complain about spending $6.99 for it. I can't recommend either of these discs highly enough, and at these prices, I would think serious SACD fans wouldn't waste another minute reading this thread, and would instantly order some.
There are plenty of other Telarc SACD's listed on amazon, at very, very low prices, most shipping from a place called "Newbury Comics." I tried Googling "Newbury Comics," but after finding their website, was unable to do a search for either Telarc SACD's, or any SACD's at all for that matter, so I guess one must go through amazon for this super deal, though, at least for me, that's not a problem.
So, that's my good news for today, and "Good News" it is indeed!
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emaidel said:
When I first purchased a CD player in 1984, I was quite surprised when I played a Telarc CD of the same material I had on a Telarc LP, and found that the LP sounded significantly better. I never understood why this was so until several years ago when Telarc released DSD-remastered SACD's of these early works. All were recorded on the Soundstream digital tape recorder, whose 50KHZ sampling rate wasn't particularly compatible with the 44.1KHZ rate of the CD, and the downsampling, or "dumbing down" of the Soundstream original caused a degredation in the sound. Fortunately, Telarc used a number of better recording systems afterward, all of which were more compatible with the CD's standardized sampling rate. Best of all though was the introduction of the SACD format, capable of restoring the lost beauty of the older Soundstream recordings.
I've purchased quite a few of these Soundstream DSD remasters, and have uniformly liked each and every one. All of them sound significantly better than their CD counterparts, and one in particular, Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto, combined with Beethoven's 5th Symphony, both conducted by Sejii Ozawa (and highly recommended by both Stereophile and The Absolute Sound as "must-have SACD's), sound demonstrably superior to the LP I still have of those works. Frankly, I think some of thse remasters sound better than several newer Telarc SACD's that are "pure" DSD, but that's more the use of particular microphones than a fault of the recording medium.
Recently, I Googled "Telarc SACD's" and found a long list of them on amazon at some truly remarkable prices - some as low as $2.99!! I bought two: Telarc SACD 60655 (Bizet's "Carmen," and Grieg's "Peer Gynt"), and Telarc 60646 (Tchaikovsky's "1812," and Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue," and "American in Paris"). The former cost me a ridiculous $3.99, and the latter $6.99.
I have these recordings on CD, and to my surprise and delight, the Bizet/Grieg disc has a host of other music on it (with a total playing time of a staggering 79 minutes!) including one of my favorite's, Rimsky-Korsakov's "Russian Easter Overture." Either of these discs would be a super deal to begin with, as each is fully TWO separate recordings for the price of one, but at the prices I paid, they're some of the best bargains I've ever encountered.
Each disc is a huge improvement over the original CD, and readily demonstrates the sonic superiority of the SACD medium. Frankly, I had no interest in the remaster of Telarc's original version of the "1812," as I prefer their newer DSD version with the Kiev Chorus, but as Gershwin's two pieces are on that disc, I certainly couldn't complain about spending $6.99 for it. I can't recommend either of these discs highly enough, and at these prices, I would think serious SACD fans wouldn't waste another minute reading this thread, and would instantly order some.
There are plenty of other Telarc SACD's listed on amazon, at very, very low prices, most shipping from a place called "Newbury Comics." I tried Googling "Newbury Comics," but after finding their website, was unable to do a search for either Telarc SACD's, or any SACD's at all for that matter, so I guess one must go through amazon for this super deal, though, at least for me, that's not a problem.
So, that's my good news for today, and "Good News" it is indeed!
I have tried but unable to access these Telarc bargains from Amazon, perhaps they are all sold out.
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Post by emaidel December 1, 2009 (3 of 27)
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If you Google "Telarc SACD's" a link will come up that says "Telarc SACD's at Amazon." Click onto that, and you're on your way!
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Post by jzpchen December 1, 2009 (4 of 27)
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emaidel said:
If you Google "Telarc SACD's" a link will come up that says "Telarc SACD's at Amazon." Click onto that, and you're on your way!
It is all in there even if you go to amazon directly. I think you need to select from marketplace vendors. Some of them has very low price. The shipping is per CD.
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As Teresa and I have posted before, Berkshire Record Outlet has approximately 125 SACDs at bargain prices (all NEW) from Telarc, Praga Digital, Hyperion, Bis, Brilliant Classics, Naxos and Membran. Just enter a seach for SACD. Some telarcs are between $3.99 and 4.99, shipping is super quick and reasonable. Happy shopping!
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jzpchen said:
It is all in there even if you go to amazon directly. I think you need to select from marketplace vendors. Some of them has very low price. The shipping is per CD.
Be careful
Amazon UK had the Genesis SACDs listed by an American Company called MovieMars and they are in South Carolina. They are at worst liars, at best do not know their inventory. These Genesis SACDs were blocked for release in the USA by either Rhino records or their distribution channels as they were in conflict with Charisma. At any rate, MovieMars never had, nor will they ever have, and Genesis SACDs, - but you could actually pay something for nothing on Amazon UK. To my knowledge, - Amazon UK still has not pulled them from their listings.
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Post by Claude December 1, 2009 (7 of 27)
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I haven't used them yet, but people on a jazz forum I visit have been very satisfied with the service from Newbury Comics.
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Post by Arthur December 1, 2009 (8 of 27)
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If you click on an item on this website available from Amazon (that way Zeus gets credit), you can then advance search "music" (or in my case "classical") for keyword "SACD", then sort by price "lowest to highest": you will get all the bargain basement SACDs. There are mostly Telarcs and a few BMGs and a few others.
Now that I've told you my little shopping secret, the bargain items will probably all disappear!
Bret
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emaidel said:
When I first purchased a CD player in 1984, I was quite surprised when I played a Telarc CD of the same material I had on a Telarc LP, and found that the LP sounded significantly better. I never understood why this was so until several years ago when Telarc released DSD-remastered SACD's of these early works. All were recorded on the Soundstream digital tape recorder, whose 50KHZ sampling rate wasn't particularly compatible with the 44.1KHZ rate of the CD, and the downsampling, or "dumbing down" of the Soundstream original caused a degredation in the sound. Fortunately, Telarc used a number of better recording systems afterward, all of which were more compatible with the CD's standardized sampling rate. Best of all though was the introduction of the SACD format, capable of restoring the lost beauty of the older Soundstream recordings.
I've purchased quite a few of these Soundstream DSD remasters, and have uniformly liked each and every one. All of them sound significantly better than their CD counterparts, and one in particular, Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto, combined with Beethoven's 5th Symphony, both conducted by Sejii Ozawa (and highly recommended by both Stereophile and The Absolute Sound as "must-have SACD's), sound demonstrably superior to the LP I still have of those works. Frankly, I think some of thse remasters sound better than several newer Telarc SACD's that are "pure" DSD, but that's more the use of particular microphones than a fault of the recording medium.
Recently, I Googled "Telarc SACD's" and found a long list of them on amazon at some truly remarkable prices - some as low as $2.99!! I bought two: Telarc SACD 60655 (Bizet's "Carmen," and Grieg's "Peer Gynt"), and Telarc 60646 (Tchaikovsky's "1812," and Gershwin's "Rhapsody in Blue," and "American in Paris"). The former cost me a ridiculous $3.99, and the latter $6.99.
I have these recordings on CD, and to my surprise and delight, the Bizet/Grieg disc has a host of other music on it (with a total playing time of a staggering 79 minutes!) including one of my favorite's, Rimsky-Korsakov's "Russian Easter Overture." Either of these discs would be a super deal to begin with, as each is fully TWO separate recordings for the price of one, but at the prices I paid, they're some of the best bargains I've ever encountered.
Each disc is a huge improvement over the original CD, and readily demonstrates the sonic superiority of the SACD medium. Frankly, I had no interest in the remaster of Telarc's original version of the "1812," as I prefer their newer DSD version with the Kiev Chorus, but as Gershwin's two pieces are on that disc, I certainly couldn't complain about spending $6.99 for it. I can't recommend either of these discs highly enough, and at these prices, I would think serious SACD fans wouldn't waste another minute reading this thread, and would instantly order some.
There are plenty of other Telarc SACD's listed on amazon, at very, very low prices, most shipping from a place called "Newbury Comics." I tried Googling "Newbury Comics," but after finding their website, was unable to do a search for either Telarc SACD's, or any SACD's at all for that matter, so I guess one must go through amazon for this super deal, though, at least for me, that's not a problem.
So, that's my good news for today, and "Good News" it is indeed!
I havent dealt with NEebury by mail onily in the stores themselves, but live in Massachusetts where they are based and love them. I recently bought a whole bunch of Fantasy Jazz stuff from them and have seen many of the Telarc titles mentioned as well.
I wonder where all of this back stock is coming from.
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Post by rammiepie December 1, 2009 (10 of 27)
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Kinsellajr wonders: Where is all the back stock coming from?
Probably from recently closed chains like Virgin and Tower Records and smaller Ma and Pa stores who were forced out of business. I have been searching my local FYE store for used SACDs that are OOP, but to no avail. Concord Music Group lists 172 SACDs under TELARC, but they have roughly 25 SACDs left (the rest are RBCDs and of course the ubiquitous MP3 downloads). Grab them while they're hot because I doubt whether they will ever be repressed as SACDs again.
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