Author Topic: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE  (Read 5458 times)

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Offline Danger Zone

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Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« on: September 30, 2014, 07:18:07 AM »
I tore into the package I received from Roadrunner Records yesterday because I knew what it would be: my Breaking the Fourth Wall BD/CD set. I anxiously fed the BD into my home theater and went right for "Illumination Theory," my favorite DT song ever (this from a 20+ year fan).

Then my heart sank and I shook my head in disgust. This concert sounds dreadful. There are two audio options: PCM Stereo and Dolby TrueHD 5.1 (surprisingly, no DTS-HD MA). Both tracks sound anemic, compressed and have their midranges blown out. After I went all the way through "Illumination Theory," I started hop-scotching around to other tracks ("Lifting Shadows," "Along for the Ride," "Overture 1928," "Breaking All Illusions") to see if the whole thing was this terrible. It was.

The orchestra sounds great, especially during "Illumination Theory's" interlude, but the band's portion of the track is mixed so poorly that it's shocking. Petrucci's playing is all midrange and no balls, and some of his solos sound muddy and get lost in the mix. Myung sounds like he's playing a $199 bass and amp starter set bought at Kmart, and not a Music Man Bongo, one of the most aggressive bass guitars made today. His strings sound like floppy dental floss. It was especially heart breaking to hear him on "Illumination Theory" when he intros the post-orchestra movement. Rudess sounds okay, but mostly because his portion of the mix does not have much low end. He's mixed better than the guitars. Mangini's thunderous drum work is relegated to kitten status... again, no low end. LaBrie's vocals are blown out in the mix, and are particularly bad when he lets loose. Overall, everyone in the mix, from the orchestra to the band sound like they have a palpable veil of compression spread over everything. I have heard MP3 tracks sound better than this.

I don't know what in the sweet hell happened here, but this release is inexcusably bad. It could be that the Boston Opera House's acoustics are not ideal for rock music and it was very difficult to compensate in the mix. If that was the case, they should have recorded this elsewhere, Berklee participation be damned. I would rather the recording sound amazing.

I would like Roadrunner to fix this release and reissue something worthy of the money.

Offline Ad134

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #1 on: September 30, 2014, 07:21:07 AM »
I found that the DVD sounded horrible on my TV, but it sounded great on my computer. I don't know what it was, but SOMETHING was compressing the audio enormously and I don't think it was the DVD.

Offline The Curious Orange

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #2 on: September 30, 2014, 07:24:51 AM »
I thought the audio sounded fantastic - one of the best live mixes I've heard. Perhaps you guys need to upgrade your hardware??
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Offline Danger Zone

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #3 on: September 30, 2014, 07:26:51 AM »
My hardware is perfectly fine (and also calibrated). Live at Luna Park sounds miles away better than this.

Offline hefdaddy42

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #4 on: September 30, 2014, 07:36:24 AM »
Not sure what to tell you, I've heard nothing but great things about the audio until this thread (I won't have my copy until later this week).  Maybe you got a defective copy?
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Offline Pettor

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #5 on: September 30, 2014, 07:40:08 AM »
Haha, no no no no no Live At Luna Park sounds a lot worse than this ... actually it is close to unlistenable at several occasions.

This is the best sounding recording since Score! I have been listening to this the whole day and been very satisfied with the sound. Biggest surprise is how good the drums sounds!

Either you are searching for a mix that would be the complete opposite to what I would want or your hardware is configured wrong or bad.

Offline DT_1928

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #6 on: September 30, 2014, 07:40:31 AM »
I've watched all but the encore and thought it sounded great ... played the blu-ray through my xbox with a turtle beach headset and i was mighty impressed. Thought the sound was spot on, although i haven't watched Luna Park this way so can't really compare.

Offline BlobVanDam

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #7 on: September 30, 2014, 07:44:57 AM »
I don't have the DVD/BR, but from the samples I've heard, it sounds pretty good, a definite improvement on any other release of the MM era. LALP had dead drums, overly loud guitar, and low keys, and this release has improved on all of that.

That's not to say the criticisms in the OP are completely unfounded, as I agree the guitars are too trebley, and the bass could sit a little lower in range, but otherwise I have no major complaints for the two songs I've heard. MM's drumkit sounds great for the first time in DT, a lot more dynamic, natural, and big.
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Online Podaar

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #8 on: September 30, 2014, 08:01:11 AM »
Mine sounded terrific, but I had to make sure my Onkyo receiver was set to receive the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 properly. I don't know if your receiver is like mine but it wants to apply it's own (unfathomable) settings unless I force it to accept the format my BR player is sending it. You'd think these manufacturers would get auto-switching perfected. Sheesh.
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Offline Danger Zone

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #9 on: September 30, 2014, 08:44:15 AM »
Haha, no no no no no Live At Luna Park sounds a lot worse than this ... actually it is close to unlistenable at several occasions.

This is the best sounding recording since Score! I have been listening to this the whole day and been very satisfied with the sound. Biggest surprise is how good the drums sounds!

Either you are searching for a mix that would be the complete opposite to what I would want or your hardware is configured wrong or bad.

Are you listening to the CDs or the video? Are you listening through headphones? Those things make a difference.

Offline rumborak

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #10 on: September 30, 2014, 08:52:37 AM »
I'm just now listening to the Spotify stream, and hmm, I find the sound to be pretty messy. JP's sound is indeed something else.
« Last Edit: September 30, 2014, 09:02:18 AM by rumborak »
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Offline Kotowboy

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #11 on: September 30, 2014, 09:04:52 AM »
I'm watching on my iMac and monitor speakers and it sounds fine to me.

Offline DarkLord_Lalinc

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #12 on: September 30, 2014, 09:07:40 AM »
The thing I like the most about this mix is that it feels live. It feels like, you know, a recording from the stage; unlike Luna Park that had an extremely dry quality to it.

That being said, it times John Petrucci's tone lacks a little clarity. I can live with that, though. I'm a fan of how the band sounds collectively.
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Offline Xenon

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #13 on: September 30, 2014, 09:32:30 AM »
I couldn't agree less. Anyway, there's another thread where this is being discussed. It's imposible to miss, it has a giant title saying "BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL". No need to open a new one just for attention whoring, I think.

Offline Mebert78

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #14 on: September 30, 2014, 09:37:02 AM »
I noticed that I had o turn the TV volume down really low to watch it.  Not sure what that means.  Usually, I watch TV with the volume on 25.  For the DVD, I lowered the volume all the way to 9.  I thought that was weird.  I loved the DVD though.  Great performance.
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Offline bosk1

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Re: Breaking the Fourth Wall sounds TERRIBLE
« Reply #15 on: September 30, 2014, 09:43:01 AM »
I couldn't agree less. Anyway, there's another thread where this is being discussed. It's imposible to miss, it has a giant title saying "BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL". No need to open a new one just for attention whoring, I think.

Although you are correct, there is similarly no need to insult other users and to act like a junior moderator when you are not.  This is not the first time you have been rude or insulting to others, but if it continues, you will be asked to leave.
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