Special Section: Audiophile Discs

Billy Joel – The Stranger (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel - The Stranger (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel – The Stranger (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 446 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.14 GB (DSF) + 772 MB (FLAC) + 1.72 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2089 | Genre: Pop Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

An integral part of Mobile Fidelity’s Billy Joel catalog restoration series, The Stranger is mastered from the original master tapes and made available on transparent hybrid SACD. Far superior to previous reissues, this edition emphasizes the crucial touches and insightful techniques Ramone brought to a batch of material that ranks among Joel’s most clever, catchy, and sagacious. Continue reading “Billy Joel – The Stranger (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Billy Joel – 52nd Street (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel - 52nd Street (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel – 52nd Street (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 454 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.10 GB (DSF) + 751 MB (FLAC) + 1.64 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2090 | Genre: Pop Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

52nd Street is mastered from the original master tapes and made available on transparent hybrid SACD. The wider and deeper grooves – as well as the meticulous mastering process – yield resplendent dynamics, broad soundstages, three-dimensional perspectives, and tonal balances absent from prior editions. Indeed, Joel wouldn’t sound more realistic if were playing ten rows away from you onstage. Continue reading “Billy Joel – 52nd Street (1978) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Billy Joel – The Nylon Curtain (1982) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel - The Nylon Curtain (1982) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel – The Nylon Curtain (1982) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 451 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.12 GB (DSF) + 777 MB (FLAC) + 1.69 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2093 | Genre: Poop Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

The Nylon Curtain is mastered from the original master tapes and made available on fully transparent hybrid SACD. The myriad nuances amidst Phil Ramone’s crisp production assume greater tonality, texture, and detail. What was a very good-sounding album is now an audiophile-caliber favorite, with transparency, clarity, and microdynamics enhancing the poignant connection between Joel’s expressiveness and the listener’s emotions. Continue reading “Billy Joel – The Nylon Curtain (1982) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Billy Joel – An Innocent Man (1983) [2013, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel - An Innocent Man (1983) [2013, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel – An Innocent Man (1983) [2013, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 520 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.12 GB (DSF) + 797 MB (FLAC) + 1.65 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2094 | Genre: Pop Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

An essential title in our Billy Joel catalog restoration series, An Innocent Man is mastered from the original master tapes and pressed on 180g LP at RTI. The resulting presentation effortlessly outshines that heard on all previous editions of this 1983 set. Particularly, the effervescent harmonies now possess an airiness and extension that lends to realistic tonal decay. Instruments are balanced and placed on a wider Continue reading “Billy Joel – An Innocent Man (1983) [2013, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Billy Joel – Glass Houses (1980) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel - Glass Houses (1980) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Billy Joel – Glass Houses (1980)
[2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 433 MB (CD-Layer) + 980 MB (DSF) + 662 MB (FLAC) + 1.42 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2091 | Genre: Pop Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

Glass Houses is mastered from the original master tapes and made available on fully transparent hybrid SACD. Honing in on producer Phil Ramone’s radio-tailored albeit looser, straightforward production, this edition opens up the previously veiled soundstages, spotlights the clean yet raucous arrangements, and decongests the imaging so that every note comes to the fore. Continue reading “Billy Joel – Glass Houses (1980) [2012, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Lightnin’ Hopkins – Broken Hearted Blues (2003) [Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Lightnin' Hopkins - Broken Hearted Blues (2003) [Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Lightnin’ Hopkins – Broken Hearted Blues (2003)
[Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Scans Included
Total Size: 221 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.58 GB (DSF) + 964 MB (FLAC) + 2.43 GB (ISO)
Label: Audio Fidelity | US | Cat#: AFZ 010 | Genre: Blues
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

Sam “Lightnin’” Hopkins has been called – the last of the Great Blues Singers – a poetic, haunting and unforgettable country blues bard. Recorded at the peak of his career in 1950 and 1952. The 16 selections include his two biggest hits, Hello Central and Coffee Blues. Continue reading “Lightnin’ Hopkins – Broken Hearted Blues (2003) [Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Ry Cooder – Chicken Skin Music (1976) [2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Ry Cooder - Chicken Skin Music (1976) [2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Ry Cooder – Chicken Skin Music (1976) [2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF-Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 969 MB (DSF) + 737 MB (FLAC) + 1.63 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2161 | Genre: Country Rock, Folk Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

Ry Cooder has always believed in the “mutuality in music,” and this may be no more evident in his career than with his fifth album, Chicken Skin Music (a Hawaiian colloquialism, synonymous with goosebumps). Even more than usual, Cooder refuses to recognize borders — geographical or musical — presenting “Stand By Me” as a gospel song with a norteño arrangement, or giving the Jim Reeves country-pop classic, “He’ll Have to Go,” a bolero rhythm, featuring the interplay of Flaco Jimenez’s accordion and Pat Rizzo’s alto sax. Continue reading “Ry Cooder – Chicken Skin Music (1976) [2018, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

The Alan Parsons Project – I Robot (1977) [2016, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer & Hi-Res SACD Rip]

The Alan Parsons Project – I Robot (1977) [2016, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer & Hi-Res SACD Rip]

The Alan Parsons Project – I Robot (1977) [2016, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer & Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 413 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.00 GB (DSF) + 829 MB (FLAC) + 1.69 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2174 | Genre: Progressive Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

Audiophiles needn’t any introduction to the Alan Parsons Project’s I Robot. Engineered by Parsons after he performed the same duties on Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, the 1977 record reigns as a disc whose taut bass, crisp highs, clean production, and seemingly limitless dynamic range are matched only by the sensational prog-rock fare helmed by the keyboardist. Not surprisingly, it’s been issued myriad times. Continue reading “The Alan Parsons Project – I Robot (1977) [2016, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer & Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Grateful Dead – American Beauty (1970) [2014, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Grateful Dead - American Beauty (1970) [2014, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Grateful Dead – American Beauty (1970) [2014, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Tracks + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 270 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.17 GB (DSF) + 858 MB (FLAC) + 1.72 GB (ISO)
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2138 | Genre: Folk Rock, Country Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

American Beauty is a studio album by rock band the Grateful Dead. Released November 1, 1970, by Warner Bros. Records, the album continued the folk rock and country music style of their previous album Workingman’s Dead, issued earlier in the year. Though the Americana approach is still evident in the songwriting, comparatively the sound focused more on folk harmonies and major-key melodies, showing influence from Bob Dylan and Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young. Continue reading “Grateful Dead – American Beauty (1970) [2014, MFSL Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Blue Öyster Cult – Secret Treaties (1974) [2016, Audio Fidelity Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Blue Öyster Cult - Secret Treaties (1974) [2016, Audio Fidelity Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Blue Öyster Cult – Secret Treaties (1974) [2016, Audio Fidelity Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF-Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Stereo & Multichannel | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 2.86 GB (DSF) + 2.22 GB (FLAC) + 1.82 GB (ISO)
Label: Audio Fidelity | US | Cat#: AFZ5 246 | Genre: Hard Rock, Heavy Metal
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

While the speed-freak adrenaline heaviness and shrouded occult mystery of Tyranny and Mutation is the watermark for Blue Öyster Cult’s creative invention, it is Secret Treaties that is widely and critically regarded as the band’s classic. Issued in 1974, Secret Treaties is the purest distillation of all of BÖC’s strengths. Here the songs are expansive, and lush in their textures. Continue reading “Blue Öyster Cult – Secret Treaties (1974) [2016, Audio Fidelity Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Alice Cooper – Muscle of Love (1973) [2015, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Alice Cooper - Muscle of Love (1973) [2015, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Alice Cooper – Muscle of Love (1973)
[2015, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Stereo & Multichannel | Full Scans Included
Total Size: 372 MB (CD-Layer) + 2.88 GB (DSF) + 2.28 GB (FLAC) + 2.02 GB (ISO)
Label: Audio Fidelity | US | Cat#: AFZ5 229 | Genre: Glam Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

Coming off such conceptual, theatrical, sleazy hard rock records as the massively successful School’s Out (1972) and Billion Dollar Babies (1973), the Alice Cooper group decided that their next release would be more along the lines of their earlier, more straightforward work (à la Love It to Death). While Muscle of Love was a gold-certified Top Ten success, it performed below expectations (their previous two albums peaked at number two and number one, respectively) and would unfortunately prove to be the original Alice Cooper band’s last studio album together. Continue reading “Alice Cooper – Muscle of Love (1973) [2015, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Eagles – The Long Run (1979) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Eagles - The Long Run (1979) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Eagles – The Long Run (1979) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF-Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.78 GB (DSF) + 901 MB (FLAC) + 1.81 GB (ISO) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2234 | Genre: Country Rock

Akin to the audiophile label’s other Eagles SACDs, this collectible edition plays with organic richness, spectacular dynamics, and microscopic levels of detail. Songs come across with an epic sweep and feature front-to-back soundstages that give the music desirable air, roominess, and separation. Continue reading “Eagles – The Long Run (1979) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

The Zombies – Greatest Hits (2002) [Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

The Zombies - Greatest Hits (2002) [Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

The Zombies – Greatest Hits (2002) [Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Tracks + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 261 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.96 GB (DSF) + 919 MB (FLAC) + 2.03 GB (ISO) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Audio Fidelity | US | Cat#: AFZ 001 | Genre: Classic Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

This collection, remastered for SACD, covers the Zombies’ short and tasteful career, spanning their 1964-1967 years for Decca Records, and their single album, the classic Odessey & Oracle, for Epic Records in 1968. Two versions of “She’s Not There” are included here, one the so-called “stereo underdub” version that lacks the snappy drum overdub that gives the superior single version its crisp, edgy feel. There are also two mixes of “Time of the Season,” the familiar version and an alternate mix that features a little more organ in the verse sections. Continue reading “The Zombies – Greatest Hits (2002) [Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Eagles – Hotel California (1976) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Eagles - Hotel California (1976) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Eagles – Hotel California (1976) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF-Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 1.82 GB (DSF) + 884 MB (FLAC) + 1.85 GB (ISO) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab | US | Cat#: UDSACD 2233 | Genre: Country Rock

Recognizing the importance of presenting this oft-reissued longtime audiophile favorite in spectacular sound, this numbered-edition disc plays with alluring clarity, organic richness, tube-like warmth, massive dynamics, and copious detail. You’ll be able to almost smell the colitas and feel the breeze in your hair. Songs feature front-to-back soundstages that allow the music incredible air, roominess, and separation. Continue reading “Eagles – Hotel California (1976) [2023, MFSL Remastered, Hi-Res SACD Rip]”

Warren Zevon – Excitable Boy (1978) [2013, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Warren Zevon - Excitable Boy (1978) [2013, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]

Warren Zevon – Excitable Boy (1978) [2013, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]
SACD-ISO / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
DSF Tracks / DSD / 1bit / 2.8224MHz
FLAC Tracks / 24bit / 88.2kHz
CD-Layer / EAC Rip / FLAC Image + Cue + Log
Full Scans Included
Total Size: 233 MB (CD-Layer) + 1.29 GB (DSF) + 617 MB (FLAC) + 1.33 GB (ISO) | 3% RAR Recovery
Label: Audio Fidelity | US | Cat#: AFZ 166 | Genre: Pop Rock
Update: DSF Tracks have been added

Warren Zevon’s self-titled 1976 album announced he was one of the most striking talents to emerge from the Los Angeles soft rock singer/songwriter community, and Linda Ronstadt (a shrewd judge of talent if a sometimes questionable interpreter) recorded three of its songs on two of her biggest-selling albums, which doubtlessly earned Zevon bigger royalty checks than the album itself ever did. But if Warren Zevon was an impressive calling card, the follow-up, Excitable Boy, was Continue reading “Warren Zevon – Excitable Boy (1978) [2013, Audio Fidelity Remastered, CD-Layer + Hi-Res SACD Rip]”