Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon

 

Hi-Fi News Album Choice for March 2022!

A multitrack masterpiece. Mixed for 5.1 surround sound and stereo from the original analog master tapes by Pink Floyd Producer/Engineer James Guthrie

Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums List — Rated 43/500

"You might wonder why 1) I'm giving this our Album Choice, and 2) the ace score of 95% if, like me, you'd rather pass a kidney stone than listen to Pink Floyd, and I've done both. But I rate it without contradiction because this page is focused as much on sound quality as content. So while not to my tastes, it's still sold over 45 million copies and is regarded as one of the greatest ever, permanently sited near the top of any polls. What Chad Kassem's crew delivers here is arguably the best-sounding digital transfer yet — in both stereo and 5.1 surround — even matching MoFi's 1981 UHQR LP for richness. Seconds into 'Money' or 'Time' and you'll click 'Buy Now,' whatever your preferred supplier. Astonishing, especially in 5.1" — Sound Quality: 95% — Ken Kessler, Hi Fi News, March 2022

Another classic Pink Floyd title receives the multichannel reissue treatment and Acoustic Sounds and Analogue Productions is once again proud to handle exclusive distribution of this monumental SACD. How lucky we all are to hear this legendary studio recording realize its full potential. The SACD also of course includes a stunning stereo mix. And as this is a hybrid disc, the album is of course also playable on a standard CD player.

This is Pink Floyd at its collective finest, with everyone contributing. David Gilmour took a huge chunk of the music — writing, laying down the chord progressions on "Breathe," "Time," and "Any Colour You Like," plus the singing on the album's best songs, Water conceeding to David's far superior voice. Gilmour also pumped out what would later be hailed as some of rock's most influential lead-guitar riffs on "Money" and "Brain Damage."

By all industry standards, The Dark Side Of The Moon is a phenomenon. Known for its complex instrumental textures, the album firmly established Pink Floyd as one of the most innovative bands in rock history. A concept album, its themes explore conflict, greed, time, and mental illness, the latter partly inspired by the deteriorating health of founding member Syd Barrett, who left in 1968.

The Dark Side of the Moon produced two singles: "Money" and "Us and Them." The album topped the Billboard chart for a week, and remained on the chart for 741 weeks from 1973 to 1988. Following a change in how Billboard counts sales in 2009, it re-entered the chart and has since appeared for over 900 weeks. With estimated sales of more than 45 million, it is Pink Floyd's bestselling album and one of the bestselling worldwide.

 

1. Speak To Me

2. Breathe (In The Air)

3. On The Run

4. Time

5. The Great Gig In The Sky

6. Money

7. Us And Them

8. Any Colour You Like

9. Brain Damage

10. Eclipse

Customer Reviews (4.72 Stars) 18 person(s) rated this product.

Surround sound version is amazing posted on 11/12/2022 5 Stars Reviewer: Bill Brekke I have not been the biggest fan of this album in the past, but the surround sound SACD version played in my small, listening room with subwoofer is crazy good. The quality of the sounds and the placement of the music in the speakers is incredible. If you don’t have a good set up, you may not be able to tell the difference. Long live SACD and little audio rooms.

There are better posted on 08/13/2022 3 Stars Reviewer: MunkyHut I was excited to get my hands on this one, as I had heard good things about it. I have several masterings in my collection as this is one of my all time favorite Pink Floyd albums. However, I'm disappointed. This is probably one of the most lifeless and hollow copies out there. It's almost muddy, with little separation between lows and highs. There are better out there, not worth the price IMO.

Splendid ! posted on 07/10/2022 5 Stars Reviewer: RJC I own the 2003 and 2021 versions of this SACD. Comparison of DSD layers (2.0 and 5.1) of both versions. My player is plugged into a Denon AVR A110 anniversary and I use the Audyssey MultEQ XT32 audio setting. It provides three offsets from the film level reference : Dynamic EQ (5 dB, 10 dB and 15 dB) to choose from depending on the compression of the dynamic range of content. Well, the 2021 version is so well recorded that it does NOT need offset correction (0dB). You can really enjoy the rich and beautiful dynamic range of this recording. No compression. Not quite the case with the previous version.

Fantastic posted on 09/14/2021 5 Stars I own the 2003 EMI SACD so this rating is for that version which I can see from the other reviews is identical. I came across this archived article a while back and thought I would share it. It talks about the beginning of Mobile Fidelity and what happened to the original DSOTM master tape. http://web.archive.org/web/20041016145233/www.aurealm.com/violet.htm

Absolutely STUNNING !! posted on 08/20/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: Adam It's like listening to the album for the first time all over again. Sound placement is incredible. If you're a 2 channel purist I urge you to give this 5.1 mix a chance. You'll never go back.

Very nicely issued, but 3-star sound. posted on 08/20/2021 4 Stars Reviewer: Wiesiek Very nicely issued, but 3-star sound (I listen to stereo). I have several dozen AP SACDs, almost all of them sound great. Instruments sound dynamic, voices crystal. I waited 2 years hoping that The Dark Side of the Moon would sound similar to other AP albums, unfortunately it is not. Probably, the much praised Alan Parsons exaggerated with the number of soundtracks and their copying, which killed the dynamics of the sound. Voices are muffled, treble without sparkle, drums and bass lacking attack.

SACD Stereo Mix - Excellent posted on 08/11/2021 5 Stars I don't have a 5.1 setup, so I can't speak to that. I will say that the stereo mix is outstanding. Great instrument separation and incredible detail. This sounds a smidge better than my 2016 Vinyl Re-Issue of DOSTM, which itself sounds incredible.

Love this record/cd/SACD. posted on 08/06/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: Jacob Brodbeck Dark Side came out when I was thirteen. It took me over three years to actually enjoy the lp. I just was into jamming it out. But at the age of seventeen all that changed when Us and Them became a repeating pattern in my real life. The pain in life captured in what can only be described as top shelf poetry put down with maybe the most creative and imaginative music of its or any other time. On a strictly melancholic note, I appreciate the photo of the bands iconic posters. This SACD successfully recaptures all the nuances of vinyl. And because I own better equipment, I actually hear more than I ever did.

Same sound, nice suit. posted on 08/05/2021 3 Stars This SACD stereo mix sounds like the 2003 Capital release. The tape hiss at the beginning is still there too, so don't turn it up.

Outstanding Mix posted on 08/02/2021 5 Stars Just received and listened to this 5.1 mix. It was like hearing this album for the first time again. The clarity, the placement of sounds, all excellent. I definitely recommend this release!

Amazing posted on 08/01/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: JC This is my first SACD. I’m an audio enthusiast and lover music. I have to say the 5.1 is very rich and textural and really shows off the musicianship of Pink Floyd. The surround really pulls you into the atmosphere of the recording HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Great Gig in My Living Room posted on 07/30/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: Terry Franklin The primal scream in The Great Gig is absolutely unreal. By the time I got to Any Color You Like, I was sharing it with the neighborhood.

How is this different from the 30th anniversary release in 2003 posted on 07/30/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: Bubba I can't really detect any differences in this release and the 2003 30th anniversary release from EMI. All the liner notes indicate they are the same and this is just a reissue of the 30th anniversary remastering effort.

Best digital version posted on 07/29/2021 5 Stars Worth the wait. They completely hit it out of the park with this one. Don’t miss out on this one..Best $35 you will spend...

absolutely stunning. posted on 07/29/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: terence peddle. this is outstanding the quality is absolutely stunning. this is why people have a sacd player...wonderful.

Same? posted on 07/26/2021 5 Stars So everything but is the same as the 2003 version except packaging?

When will this be available for delivery? posted on 01/14/2021 5 Stars Reviewer: Clint I know there is a pandemic, but I've been waiting 13 months.

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