Who Believes In Angels? is a collaborative album by Elton John and Brandi Carlile, written and recorded in 20 days. The project features songs co-written by both artists, with long-time collaborator Bernie Taupin and Brandi both contributing lyrics. Production is handled by Andrew Watt, and supported by a world-class band of musicians including Chad Smith, Pino Palladino and Josh Klinghoffer…
Who Believes In Angels? is available in CD, vinyl, stereo and Dolby Atmos streaming formats, as well as a special limited edition Blu-ray from SDE, including stereo, 5.1 and Dolby Atmos versions for an immersive listening experience.

For this review, you will find 5 versions tested: Tidal MAX and Dolby Atmos, Blu-ray stereo, 5.1 and Dolby Atmos.

Below you will find the description of the different editions, as well as the measurements of each edition in the following chapters.

The album is composed of 10 tracks:

1. You Without Me
2. The Rose Of Laura Nyro
3. Little Richard’s Bible
4. Swing For The Fences
5. Never Too Late
6. Who Believes In Angels?
7. The River Man
8. A Little Light
9. Someone To Belong To
10. When This Old World Is Done With Me

Summary, scoring and Samples

Ed 1: Tidal MAX – 2025

Presentation

This is the Tidal MAX edition presented in FLAC 24 bits 96 kHz.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR6

Tidal Max s Flac waveform has a small dynamic range, with the use of a dynamic limiter, as confirmed by the DR6.

The spectrogram shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz (yellow arrow) with signal up to 30 kHz (white arrow), due to the 96 kHz sampling frequency used.

The graph below compares the spectrum of the Tidal MAX – 2025 (white curve) with the spectrum of the Blu-ray Stereo – 2025 (blue curve).The two curves overlap perfectly, confirming the use of the same original master. The spectrum shows that the signal rises above 22 kHz with no signal above this frequency due to the 96 kHz sampling frequency.

Synthesis and listening

The stereo version released in 2025 holds no surprises, despite using a high-resolution format at 24-bit / 96 kHz. It suffers from heavy dynamic compression, with an average DR of 6. This excessive compression negatively impacts the sound quality: the dynamic range is reduced, resulting in a loss of precision. Instrumental nuances and details are muted, diminishing the listening experience and preventing full use of current digital formats especially when compared to the Dolby Atmos version downmixed to stereo 2.0.

The samples demonstrate the impact of dynamic range reduction.
The first part of the sample is at a lower level, with little or no impact from the dynamic limiter, and the rendering is detailed and precise. As soon as you reach 21 seconds, the level increases, and the impact of the dynamic limiter is clearly visible (see the waveform of the sample below) and audible.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●oooo (1)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Restitution: ●●ooo (2.5)

Sample : “Who Believes In Angels?” 24 bits 96 kHz:

Ed 2: Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2025

Presentation

This is the Tidal Dolby Atmos edition presented in Dolby Digital Plus or AC-4 (link).

Below the spatialization for all tracks. Click on the images to zoom in.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR13

The waveform of the Tidal Atmos version downmixed in 7.1 shows good dynamics, as the graphs below confirm, with a dynamic range of at DR13.

The spectrogram of the Dolby Atmos track downmixed in 7.1 is limited to 20kHz. This limitation is due to Dolby Digital Plus encoding, which is a lossy encoder that limits bandwidth to optimize data size for a bit rate of 768 kbits/s.

The graph below represents the spectrum of the Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2025.
The spectrum of Tidal s Dolby Atmos version decoded in 7.1 shows that all channels are used. The LFE channel is used with a cutoff frequency of 120 Hz (green arrow). The white arrow indicates the high-frequency limit at 20 kHz due to Dolby Digital Plus encoding. The yellow arrow indicates the high-frequency limit at 24 kHz due to encoding at the 48 kHz sampling frequency used.

Synthesis and listening

The Dolby Atmos version in Dolby digital Plus streaming format is inferior in terms of rendering finesse and spatial precision to the Dolby Atmos version on Blu-ray, which is encoded in Lossless Dolby Digital TrueHD format.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●●●●●●ooo (6.7)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3.5)

Sample : “Who Believes In Angels?” Dolby Atmos :

Sample : “Who Believes In Angels?” Dolby Atmos (Downmixed 2.0) :

Ed 3: Blu-ray Stereo – 2025

Presentation

This is the PCM track of the orignal stereo mix of the bluray (ref: 602465958003).3 audio tracks are available on this blu-ray, stereo tracks, 5.1 track and Dolby Digital Atmos TrueHD track. This blu-ray is part of the SDE-exclusive blu-ray audio collection.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR6

The waveform of the Blu-ray stereo shows a low dynamic range confirmed with DR6. The sound level is lower than on the streaming version, to maintain consistency with the blu-ray’s 5.1 and Dolby Atmos tracks.

The spectrogram shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz (yellow arrow) with signal up to 30 kHz (white arrow) .

The graph below compares the spectrum of the Tidal MAX – 2025 (white curve) with the spectrum of the Blu-ray Stereo – 2025 (blue curve).The two curves overlap perfectly, confirming the use of the same original master. The spectrum shows that the signal rises above 22 kHz with no signal above this frequency due to the 96 kHz sampling frequency.

Synthesis and listening

The sound rendering is similar to the streaming version, but with a slightly lower sound level. The beginning of the extract is virtually uncompressed, showing off the capabilities of the high-resolution format, but this quality stops as soon as the sound level rises and the dynamic limiter flattens the signal.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●oooo (1)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Restitution: ●●ooo (2.5)

Sample : “Who Believes In Angels?” 24 bits 96 kHz:

Ed 4: Blu-ray 5.1 – 2025

Presentation

This is the new 5.1 mix track presented in DTS HDMA of the bluray (ref: 602465958003). 3 audio tracks are available on this blu-ray, stereo tracks, 5.1 track and Dolby Digital Atmos TrueHD track. This blu-ray is part of the SDE-exclusive blu-ray audio collection.

Below the spatialization for all tracks. Click on the images to zoom in.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR11

The waveform of the Blu-ray 5.1 mix shows a good dynamic range confirmed with DR13.

The spectrogram shows that the signal rises to 24 kHz (yellow arrow) with no signal above this frequency (white arrow) due to the 48 kHz sampling frequency. The LFE channel is filtered down to 120 Hz (as indicated by the green arrow).

The graph below represents the spectrum of the Blu-ray 5.1 – 2025.
The 5.1 remix is comparable to the balance of the Dolby Atmos version, with a sampling frequency of 48 kHz, limiting the bandwidth to 24 kHz (as indicated by the yellow arrow). The LFE channel is filtered down to 120 Hz (as indicated by the green arrow).

Synthesis and listening

The 5.1 version is mainly front-firing, and retains the mixing logic of the Dolby Atmos version. There’s a slight gain in space over the stereo version, but it’s better to listen in Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 to benefit from the wider soundstage created by the side speakers. We’d have hoped for a 5.1 version in 24-bit 96 kHz, given that Dolby now recommends mixing Dolby Atmos in 24-bit 96 kHz, even if it’s only used in 24-bit 48 kHz for broadcast at the moment.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●oo (3.5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●ooo (2.2)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3.5)

Sample : “Who Believes In Angels?” 16 bits 48 kHz:

Ed 5: Blu-ray Dolby Atmos – 2025

Presentation

This is the Dolby Atmos track presented in Dolby Digital TrueHD of the bluray (ref: 602465958003). 3 audio tracks are available on this blu-ray, stereo tracks, 5.1 track and Dolby Digital Atmos TrueHD track. This blu-ray is part of the SDE-exclusive blu-ray audio collection.

Below the spatialization for all tracks. Click on the images to zoom in.

Below the spatialization for all tracks decode in 9.1.6. Click on the images to zoom in.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR12

The waveform of the Blu-ray Atmos shows a high dynamic range confirmed with DR13.

The spectrogram of the Atmos downmixed in 7.1 version of blu-ray shows that the signal goes down to 24 kHz (yellow arrow) and that there is no signal above this frequency (white arrow), due to the 48 kHz sampling frequency used.

The graph below represents the spectrum of the Blu-ray Dolby Atmos – 2025.
The Dolby Atmos remix downmixed to 7.1 is comparable to the 5.1 mix (which is certainly a downmix of the Dolby Atmos version), with a sampling frequency of 48 kHz, limiting the bandwidth to 24 kHz (as indicated by the yellow arrow). The LFE channel is filtered down to 120 Hz (as indicated by the green arrow).The spectrum confirms the dominance of the front channels, followed by the side channels and then the rear surrounds.

Synthesis and listening

The Dolby Atmos Blu-ray version boasts a richer, more detailed sound reproduction than the streaming version in the same format. Sound textures are better defined, and clarity is enhanced. Compared to the stereo version, this edition – although not in high-resolution – offers significantly greater dynamics (see the waveform of the sample below), contributing to a more natural rendering of instruments, as well as a more nuanced and expressive reproduction of Elton John and Brandi Carlile’s voices.

In terms of spatialization, while there is a noticeable improvement over stereo, notably through an appreciable broadening of the lateral soundstage, the mix remains rather frontal.
We’re a long way from the three-dimensional scope and precision of reference productions such as “The overview” and “Le Grand Bleu“.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●oo (3.5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●●●●●oooo (6.6)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4)

Sample : “Who Believes In Angels?” Dolby Atmos :

Sample : “Who Believes In Angels?” Dolby Atmos (Downmixed 2.0) :

Elton John and Brandi Carlile’s latest album doesn’t escape the current production trends: it comes in a compressed stereo version with limited dynamic range (DR6), both on streaming platforms and on the Blu-ray release.
However, since the stereo track level is lowered on the Blu-ray, a more dynamic mastering could have been achieved making this choice all the more disappointing.
As a result, the Dolby Atmos version stands out as the most dynamic. Still, its spatialization remains mostly front- and side-oriented, underutilizing the immersive potential of the format.

Dynamic Range measurements are shown below.

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Measurements

Dynamic Range comparaisons

Dynamic represents the ability to reproduce a wide range of sounds from the softest to the loudest. The target is to compare the dynamics of the music and not of the media (CD, digital files or vinyl).

For our 5 editions reviewed have obtained the following Dynamic Range (DR) :

	Tidal MAX – 2025	Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2025	Blu-ray Stereo – 2025	Blu-ray 5.1 – 2025	Blu-ray Dolby Atmos – 2025
Global	DR6	DR13	DR6	DR11	DR12
Min	DR5	DR12	DR5	DR11	DR11
Max	DR9	DR13	DR9	DR12	DR12
You Without Me	DR9	DR13	DR9	DR11	DR12
The Rose Of Laura Nyro	DR5	DR13	DR5	DR11	DR12
Little Richard’s Bible	DR5	DR12	DR5	DR11	DR12
Swing For The Fences	DR5	DR13	DR5	DR11	DR11
Never Too Late	DR5	DR12	DR5	DR11	DR12
Who Believes In Angels?	DR5	DR13	DR5	DR11	DR11
The River Man	DR5	DR12	DR5	DR11	DR11
A Little Light	DR5	DR12	DR5	DR11	DR12
Someone To Belong To	DR5	DR13	DR5	DR11	DR12
When This Old World Is Done With Me	DR8	DR12	DR8	DR12	DR12

As a reminder, the scale goes from 0 to more 20, but the dynamics are considered good from 12, quite good between 10 and 11, and deteriorate below 10.

Detail of the ratings :

• Dynamic :
  1. Significant dynamic compression, DR less than 7
  2. Compression of the present dynamics, DR between 7 and 9.
  3. Correct piece DR >=10
  4. No dynamic compression (DR >12), dynamic rendering
  5. No dynamic compression, high DR and very dynamic sound rendering
• Spectrum :
  1. Spectrum cut and less than 15 khz
  2. Spectrum cut at 15 khz
  3. Spectrum not conforming to the original and cut (not HD) or original but limited bandwidth (but less than 20 kHz)
  4. Spectrum conforming to the original (but not HD)
  5. Spectrum conforming to the original with HD resolution (higher than 24kHz)
• Surface noise (only for vinyl):
  1. Continuous audible noise
  2. Audible surface noise except on passages with a high level of noise
  3. Reduced surface noise, barely audible on low level crossings
  4. Low surface noise, very good quality
  5. Very low surface noise, no defects, almost inaudible on the quiet passages (exceptional disc)
• Spatialization :
  • Between 0 and 5 for 5.1 or 7.1 channels configuration
  • Between 0 and 10 for Atmos configuration (7.1.4)
  • For more information on spatialization, you can read the article describing this parameter here.
• Restitution :
  1. Low quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  2. Average quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  3. Quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Good record.
  4. High quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Very high level disc.
  5. Maximum quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Exceptional disc.

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