Steely Dan UHQR

I ordered it last week; should be showing up any day. This is the kind of thing I've been wanting to hear since I upgraded my speakers a few months ago.

'Aja' was like an 'audiophile' recording when it came out. Another great audiophile-quality recording from a few years later I was listening to the other night was ABC's 'Lexicon of Love', with its epic production by Trevor Horn. I'd like to hear THAT on a double-45. I hope Chad gives it a listen some day.

@rbertalotto - do keep in mind that this has sold many millions of copies worldwide over the decades. 30,000 is a drop in the bucket compared to that. 

Sure are a lot of people who know how good this is or isn't who have never even heard it. 

I've had the OG AB-1006 since the day it came out in '77, and it is indeed an awesome sounding record - just listened to it last night, in fact.

Just received the UHQR today and gave it a listen. I find the UHQR to be superior sonically in every way, ultimately being so much more PRESENT in the listening space; the difference is not small or subtle, you don't have to 'listen for it'. 

I would say that if you love 'Aja', have good sound gear and don't mind shelling out the dough, it's a no brainer. It will sound like you've not heard it before. I just wish it was also available in a less fancy packaging for maybe $100, but I can understand Chad wanting this series to have a special presentation.

Also got the 2-45's of Jethro Tull's 'Stand Up' today, which is not UHQR, cost $65, and does not have fancy packaging (though the stand-up is there!) and sounds superb. 

@goodlistening64 - + 1; I am very happy with my UHQR of 'Aja', and I've already ordered some in the Atlantic Records 75th Anniversary series (and those are $60). What turntable Fremer uses doesn't bother me; it might make the UHQR sound better, but it would make the others sound better, too, and he also uses a Technics SL-1200G (like I've got). 'Aja' is probably the only one of the UHQR series I'll get, but it's nice to have something special in the collection....

BTW, I also just got a copy of Jethro Tull's 'Stand Up' in 45 rpm ($60); sounds awesome, except that both songs on side 2 have the vocal turned almost all the way to the left channel, not centered. I wrote to Acoustic Sounds a few days ago complaining about this, as this is obviously a mastering or pressing defect, and I'll wait to hear back.

@goodlistening64 - That's why I buy my new vinyl, if I can get the title I want through them, from Amazon. Returns are never a problem; I had to return my 'Who's Next' box set because there was so much surface noise on one side; I had a new one from them before I even sent back the first one, and the new one was fine. Unfortunately, I don't think I can get these 45rpm ones from Amazon.

I might also add that most of my 'legacy vinyl' from the 70's, even though the LPs themselves are a lot thinner than today's 180g ones, I find that they often (not always, of course) have less surface noise than new ones I get.