Dire Straits Brothers in Arms

My CD and case arrived in excellent condition. Is also a great album / CD for listening to.

This is for the DVD-Audio version. Wow, really brings the album to life. The 5.1 surround sound remix highlight precision music, and it doesn't get any more precise than later Dire Straits.I've been on a dvd-audio buying spree lately, and Brothers In Arms is unquestionably the most outstanding surround sound remix I've come across.Highly recommended.

Got this yesterday & I'm happy to report this is the "180 GRAM High-Performance 2-Disc Vinyl Record, Half-Speed Mastered by Stan Ricker, Plating & Pressing at R.T.I. version ($30.29 as of this posting). As you might or might not know, this version has the complete, un-altered full length versions of all songs. On the original album songs were trimmed to fit on 2-sides.Haven't had a chance to do a full listen comparison to my 1st press of the album but I'm liking what I'm hearing! :)180 Gram Virgin Vinyl - 093624937715Half Speed Mastering by Stan Ricker - Limited Edition - Pressed at Plated at RTIWOW!!! The sound was excellent, deep bass, great depth of soundstage, smooth rich tone and great dynamics! There is a reason they cut this Album on four full sides!"Whatever you think of Knopler’s songwriting depth and the communicativeness of his delivery, there’s no denying the exquisite—though now sounding dated— mid-1980’s production quality. The sound quality of this album immediately attracted audiophiles back then and continues to do so today.Even on his worst day, I wouldn’t bet against Bob Ludwig cutting at the Masterdisk lathe and the “RL MASTERDISK” original is still a potent sounding record. Stan Ricker’s half-speed cut, spread out over four sides, doesn’t attempt to re-create the original’s brash, forward and echoey sound. It’s somewhat drier, less “tinkly” and definitely gives musical images greater weight and more body. For instance, “Walk of Life” comes off far less “carnival-like” and I think that makes it a much better song. Ricker gives the album a warmer, more mature feel, with the half-speed mastering trading some brashness and edginess for greater true transient detail and a more burnished overall presentation.. Dire Straits' biggest-selling album-in fact, one of the biggest-selling albums world-wide of all time-Brothers In Arms helped musically define a decade. This superb album spent the grand total of 203 weeks in the UK charts and a respectable 55 weeks in the US charts (where it sold 7 million copies alone)."Brothers In Arms" was pretty much the success story of the 80's and was primarily fuelled by a slate of huge hit singles like the classic "Money For Nothing" (No.1 US, No.4 UK '85), "Walk Of Life" (No.2 UK '86, No.7 US '85) and "So Far Away" (No.19 US '86, No.20 UK '85). "Money For Nothing," the song that helped immortalize the phrase “I want my MTV,” hit #1 and won the Grammy® for Best Rock Performance.Today, Brothers In Arms remains a rock essential - and now is offered as a completely uncompressed two-disc vinyl album for the ultimate in fidelity!The instruments are sharper and the whole soundstage is much more full than the studio pressing. It also seems as if there is more music. I do not remember the extended lead in for the first song on side two ("Walk Of Life") as well as the trailing notes for the last song on side 3 ("Ride Across The River"). I'm not a big fan of bloated bass, and even though the bass is considerably more full than the studio pressing, it was also more musical.1/2 Speed Mastered by Stan Ricker on High Performance 180 Gram Vinyl... Because Sound Matters! Plating and Pressing at R.T.I. Dire Straits'

This quite possibly is the best quality 5.1 surround sound mix I've ever heard. This is the import only SACD 5.1 CD, not to be confused with the DVD-Audio 5.1 edition available in the U.S. Actually one of the reviews posted here appears to be for the DVD-Audio version. Both versions are playable on standard CD players though the DVD-A is a 2 sided disk where you must flip it over to the other side for the standard CD mix. So, with both Hybrid SACD and DVD-A we now have CD's that can be played on any player though you really need to play them on surround sound systems to get the full appreciation of their sound. Otherwise, why buy it? I will say that most hybrid SACD's I've played on standard CD players (automobile) do sound better than their non-SACD versions.Well, I do have both the SACD and DVD-A versions (just to show my obsession/love for this CD). The first thing to make clear, the SACD version may or may not have used the same audio source mixes used for the DVD-A version, but they are by no means inferior. The 2 versions truly do sound different. Its hard to describe in words how much additional sonic details come out in the SACD version verses the DVD-A. I have an above average system (not top high end) and I'm able to hear sonic details including guitar passages I've never heard before. One listen to the final song, Brothers in Arms is all it takes though there is not a weak moment song-wise or sound-wise on this SACD. As for the DVD-A, it's still good, but on my system I can't draw out the same details that I'm able to on the SACD version. Maybe has something to do with my DVD player being a SONY SACD/DVD combo player? Or, maybe the SACD version is just that much better. I'll leave that for further debate.The fact that most people have a surround sound DVD system and not many people have a SACD player does mean the DVD-A will be the more popular version purchased. That is a shame as I just don't hear the same level of detail in the DVD-A 5.1 mix (at least on my system). From a playability perspective, I also prefer the SACD over the DVD-A. When you put the DVD-A in your player you will find it defaults to the standard 2 channel mix and requires you to go into the menu and select the 5.1 mix. With the SACD it will automatically detect the 5.1 mix if played in a SACD player. Also, if you have a multi-disc DVD player, once the DVD-A has finished playing it will not automatically move to the next disc in the changer as this SACD will.So, if you love this CD and have a SACD player, don't hesitate to purchase this one. As for the DVD-A, I've heard better than this one, but I still believe the DVD-A is a worthwhile purchase if you don't have a SACD player as long as you have surround sound stereo DVD system. It will still provide a new level of enjoyment for listening to this classic Dire Straits CD.

Great addition to my music, Great recording music. Thank You

Great disk however shipped in envelope, case broken. Disk ok so far. Great sound. This is a sacd disk. Must have 4k player to use.

This is not a review of the music, that is 5 stars anyway. This is a review of the SACD which is still available, including a 5.1 surround version of the album that won a grammy for best immersive recording.This is one of the 5 or 10 best sounding recordings I've ever heard. Hands down. If you have an SACD player get this before they run out and don't make anymore. It's wonderful. The surround puts you inside the music without being a distraction.