Remastered US CD from a few years back is good to average or above average depending on track as I recall.
Need not sound overtly "congested" though often does from what I have heard over the years. So devil is in the details as usual.
Not uncommon for many small ensemble jazz CDs to sound relatively uncongested more often on more typical rigs than for many progressive rock albums, like Fragile, which are typically more of a challenge for a rig to relate cleanly.
If you are able to get a mixed bag recording like Fragile (even the original CD master) to sound clean end to end, most everything else will as well, but not vice versa.
Relayer is another Yes album , TGOD in particular, that is very challenging. I've had it on vinyl and CD since it first came out on each pretty much and only recently was I able to squeeze everything out of one of the more recent CD remastered versions. THe original vinyl always sounded pretty decent but all CD versions I have heard are a real challenge to surmount! If you get to the point where TGOD on CD, the battle sequence in particular, does not sound overtly muddled and congested (it is doable) you are then sitting pretty for most anything to sound at least decent. It's a pretty telling acid test CD not as a reference recording by any stretch but as a test of your rigs ability to decipher and deliver the music in the recording coherently.
TGOD is a 20th century rock music masterpiece to me, a real spirit cleanser when needed, so getting it right finally has always been a priority for me.
Need not sound overtly "congested" though often does from what I have heard over the years. So devil is in the details as usual.
Not uncommon for many small ensemble jazz CDs to sound relatively uncongested more often on more typical rigs than for many progressive rock albums, like Fragile, which are typically more of a challenge for a rig to relate cleanly.
If you are able to get a mixed bag recording like Fragile (even the original CD master) to sound clean end to end, most everything else will as well, but not vice versa.
Relayer is another Yes album , TGOD in particular, that is very challenging. I've had it on vinyl and CD since it first came out on each pretty much and only recently was I able to squeeze everything out of one of the more recent CD remastered versions. THe original vinyl always sounded pretty decent but all CD versions I have heard are a real challenge to surmount! If you get to the point where TGOD on CD, the battle sequence in particular, does not sound overtly muddled and congested (it is doable) you are then sitting pretty for most anything to sound at least decent. It's a pretty telling acid test CD not as a reference recording by any stretch but as a test of your rigs ability to decipher and deliver the music in the recording coherently.
TGOD is a 20th century rock music masterpiece to me, a real spirit cleanser when needed, so getting it right finally has always been a priority for me.