Yes - Close To The Edge -2013- -flac 24-192- Review

The reception to this release was overwhelmingly positive. Mark Smotroff of Audiophile Review famously declared, "This is an essential release. Get it! It's great!". He went on to state that the 5.1 mix was so immersive that it might compel fans to upgrade their systems to a Blu-ray player and surround setup. Other listeners praised its "startlingly good" clarity and noted that the 45RPM vinyl pressing, mastered from the same flat transfers, was "absolutely stunningly beautiful". The combination of Wilson’s production skills and Yes’s timeless music was seen as an obvious and perfect match, finally giving the album the definitive sonic treatment it had always deserved.

This track highlights the immense dynamic range of the 24-bit format. Steve Howe’s opening 12-string acoustic guitar chords ring out with pristine clarity. You can hear the slide of his fingers across the frets and the crisp attack of the pick on the strings. When the Moog synthesizer enters to carry the main theme, it sounds incredibly lush, round, and unmistakably analog. 3. "Siberian Khatru"

High-Fidelity Masterpiece: Yes – Close To The Edge (2013, FLAC 24-bit/192kHz) Review

Before analyzing the format, one must respect the source. Released in September 1972, Close To The Edge was Yes’s fifth studio album and their creative zenith. The album consists of only three tracks, but the 18-minute title suite takes up the entire first side of the original vinyl.

Listening to the 2013 FLAC 24-192 release reveals details previously masked by lower-resolution formats.

This article dives deep into why this particular high-resolution release is considered a landmark for collectors, the technical magic behind the 24-bit/192kHz FLAC encoding, and how it transforms one of the most complex albums ever recorded.

Before dissecting the bits and samples, we must acknowledge the source. Close to the Edge is not background music. It is a singular, 38-minute suite split into three movements: The Solid Time of Change , Total Mass Retain , and I Get Up, I Get Down . The 1972 recording was famously complex—Eddy Offord’s production involved punching in tape edits so intricate that the master reels looked like a jigsaw puzzle.

Eddie Offord’s original 1972 production was a miracle of analog tape-bouncing, but it suffered from heavy tape hiss and compressed frequencies due to generational loss. Wilson bypassed decades of degradation by transferring each individual instrument line cleanly to a digital workflow. He rebuilt the stereo field from scratch, focusing on . Track-by-Track High-Resolution Audition 1. "Close to the Edge" (18:41)

The soaring Minimoog synthesizers cut through the mix like laser beams, smooth and devoid of the digital harshness common in 1980s CD transfers. 3. "Siberian Khatru" (8:55)

This version is widely considered the definitive way to listen to the album due to its use of high-resolution digital transfers from analogue sources and the meticulous remixing by Steven Wilson. You can find these high-resolution downloads on sites like ProStudioMasters to the more recent 2025 Super Deluxe Edition

Download it, light a candle, and get up, get down—all the way to the solid time of change.