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I've only heard the redbook layer, and I'm not really impressed. The bonus tracks are a major letdown. The acoustic version of "Psycho Killer" is pretty good, but everything that wasn't on SAND IN THE VASELINE feels like table scraps.

As for the mastering, there's a little bit of limiting and a few clipped peaks (not really audible, at least not on a computer speaker). I don't think they're an enormous improvement over the older CD's. Maybe the DVD-A side is but not the redbook layer. The older CD of '77 seems to have been thinned out a tiny bit, a little more in the upper, upper frequencies. REMAIN IN LIGHT and FEAR OF MUSIC are okay, could use some more clarity or definition. LITTLE CREATURES and SPEAKING IN TONGUES sound 'fine' even though LITTLE CREATURES sounds pretty hard and sharp (I think that's how it was recorded). Those are the old CD's.

The new remasters sound a tad hard in general. More definition and a bit more clear but harder and colder. The bass may have had something done to it, like a dB or two taken out of the upper bass frequencies. Ted Jensen supposedly mastered these and if you liked his Bob Marley remasters, you might like this, but I'm not really impressed.

Anybody try the hi-res layer? You can't really compare the 5.1, there's nothing to compare it too so I guess if you have a 5.1 setup, you can knock yourself out with these.

I downloaded the whole Brick at Pedro's and I'm favorably impressed. In particular, I think the remaster of Remain in Light sounds much better than the old CD. Of course, I'm a fan of the Rhino house sound.

Although I'm not a huge fan of 5.1 music, I downloaded a dts "best of" comp that someone created from the Dual Discs and I think the mixes are actually kinda cool.

I took the same route as EssAy, and I was impressed with some and not so impressed with others. I second his approval of "Remain In Light," and I thought "Naked" was also improved upon.

"Little Creatures" on the other hand, comes across to me like a 50 Cent record, it seems somewhat heavy handed on the compression. I always thought the record was kind of thin sounding, but Christ, you didn't have to go balls to the wall with it.

I'll probably pick up a few of the individual dual discs when they come out (though I hear the UK has CD + DVD-A sets) just to hear some of the 5.1 mixes.