At $169, this "Immersion"-style set is pricey, but it sure sounds interesting. It's only available through the Asia website: https://tinmanmerchandising.com/Asia/

If it was out now, and I could be guaranteed of one of those "Golden Ticket" meet and greets with the band for this coming Monday night, I might would have to go for it...

The details:
• 30TH ANNIVERSARY CD OF THE ICON ASIA DEBUT ALBUM- REMASTERED- Re-mastered version of the iconic first ASIA album. #1 on the Billboard chart for 9 weeks upon its release in 1982. All the big hits are here: Heat Of The Moment; Only Time Will Tell, Sole Survivor, Wildest Dreams, Time Again, Here Comes The Feeling and more!

• LIMITED EDITION ROGER DEAN “ ASIA SERPENT” 7" x 7" ART PRINT SIGNED BY ALL 4 ORIGINAL MEMBERS OF ASIA – STEVE HOWE, GEOFF DOWNES, CARL PALMER & JOHN WETTON

• ASIA- 30 YEARS ON. HI DEF DVD OF THE COMPELLING NEW ASIA DOCUMENTARY, The complete story behind the biggest super group of the 80s! Never before seen footage; rare archival films and photos; interviews with all 4 ASIA members and rare live performances.

• 45 RPM VINYL SINGLE RECORD An updated version of the original ASIA 45 rpm single. “Heat Of The Moment” backed with “Ride Easy.” These are new UNPLUGGED VERSIONS.

• RARITIES CD- THE UNPLUGGED GEMS ASIA CLASSICS, “Heat Of The Moment”, “My Own Time,” “The Smile Has Left Your Eyes” and others taken from rare appearances on VH1 and Sirius XM “Artist Confidential” broadcasts.

• ASIA Logo Holographic Image

• Extensive 30th Anniversary Box Set Booklet with rare photos and extensive liner notes.

• Authentic reproduction of original 1982 ASIA backstage pass!

• Vintage ASIA Logo T- Shirt

• Collectible ASIA pewter pin and pewter medallion created especially for ASIA’s 30th Anniversary Box set!

• THE GOLDEN TICKET - There will be a limited number of surprise GOLDEN TICKETS inserted in random box sets. If you are lucky enough to get a box set with the special Golden Ticket- you will be entitled to ONE meet and greet with ASIA for yourself and a guest. Golden Ticket can only be used once at any single ASIA show. If you receive a GOLDEN TICKET in your box set there will be instructions how to redeem your meet n greet access
done before the ASIA show you choose. (• Asia reserves the right to reschedule or cancel)

• HAVE YOUR NAME FOREVER INCLUDED INSIDE THE ASIA BOX SET! Every fan that orders this box before the ship date will have his or her name printed on a special folded poster that fits inside the ASIA 30th Anniversary Box Set. Limited time offer! ORDER TODAY AND BECOME PART OF ASIA’S RECORDED HISTORY! *Your name will appear on the poster, EXACTLY how you have it on the "Ship to" address on your order, PLEASE make sure you place your shipping name as you want it to read on the poster.

* BOX SETS WILL SHIP DEC. 20th, 2012. CUTOFF DATE TO GET YOUR ORDER IN AND TO GET YOUR NAME ADDED TO THE POSTER IS DEC. 12th, 2012. IF YOU PURCHASE THIS ITEM WITH ANY OTHER ITEMS, YOUR ENTIRE ORDER WILL NOT SHIP UNTIL DEC. 20th, 2012.

No disrepect to any fans of this album. In fact, I bought this album when first released and think it's a much better album than given credit for (I remember reviews at the time just absolutely butchered it).

That being said, is there enough of a market for this release in 2012 to justify a $170 box set? I just don't see it. But I do think this release was huge and is still very highly regarded in Japan, so maybe there is.

If anyone gets this, please come back after you get it and post the approximate number of names on the poster. I'm really curious to see what the interest in this set is.

Well, the signed print and rarities CD would be worth it alone.

I had heard there was a CD set out as well. Is that true?

One of my favorite bands and albums ever but are they serious with this crap?
Where's a live show from the tour?
The bonus cuts are recent unplugged versions-that's it? None of the demos from the original album or even putting on "Ride Easy"? Rarities my ass.
A 45 also containing a recent unplugged recording?
And a documentary I'd watch once which will end up on VH1 Classic 5,000 times anyway?
And, the usual crap I wouldn't need or want like a pewter medallion!
Unless there's a seperate CD release not a chance in hell I'd buy this.

My sentiments exactly. As I wrote in the Stones thread, just give me the damned music! I'm not 15 anymore. I don't need posters and stickers and whatever crap they put in these things. And vinyl? With all due respect to those who are collecting it, just because we like an older band doesn't mean we collect vinyl. Keep the vinyl for the people who want it.

Save your development costs of this garbage and just give us a disc of true rarities.

I'd definitely be in for an expanded/legacy 2-disc version of this LP with maybe an added DVD/blu-ray with videos and a show from the period. Wouldn't think twice about a little something like that in the $20-$35 range. Perhaps that (or similar) will follow in early 2013...

I'm in agreement with most everyone else here when it comes to posters, stickers, holograms, medallions and scarves: Why bother? [I must, however, admit great fondness for the Spinner car replica included in the Blade Runner Five-Disc Ultimate Collector's Edition Blu-ray Briefcase, but I didn't buy that just to get the little plastic car...]

If a CD box set includes a book that does a good job of illuminating the music or the recording thereof, I think that is a nice bonus, but it would not be the thing that would sway me to purchase one of these "ultimate" versions of a single album. To date, the only one-LP package I have bought is the Super Deluxe Edition of "Achtung Baby," which I'm happy with. One could also count the "Pet Sounds Sessions" box, I suppose, but at $50 in a geegaw-free longbox, I don't think there's much of a comparison to the boxes we are seeing today. The LP I'd most like to see given the mammoth reverential treatment is "Rumours"; I'd be powerless to resist that one if it was done well.

Seems like once the $100 price point was broken, record companies went all out. Christ.

I'm just stunned at the "rarities" disc being new unplugged bullshit. That's the most offensive thing of all.

Even I can live without this.

I have to wonder exactly who is buying stuff like this if, for the most part, it is not us here at IMWAN?

I guess there a few fanatical Asia fans out there.

HI DEF DVD is an oxymoron.

I had really high hopes for this one, but it looks like my hopes are now dashed. Like many others, I wish they would ditch the crap included with this set and give us some actual rarites instead, like a good quality live show from this tour.

As I recall they put out a whole series of live shows from '82-'83 as an "Official Bootleg" series many years ago, but since the sound quality was atrocious, this series was pretty much garbage. Do any well-recorded shows actually exist from this era of the band?

Yes-I have a few. They were very good audience recordings from 1982. Been a long time since I played them. One was from Italy and another was in San Francisco I think. They're on cassette and I don't know of a free program I can use to transfer those. If anyone does I'd like to know what it is-as long as it's not something illegal and something that would emss up my computer. I'd even pay for one if it was reasonable.

Audacity is a pretty good free editor. That's what I use on my Macbook.

Yes, I am well aware of the many audience recordings from this tour, I was just hoping there might be a professionally recorded show, and that the band might actually consider including it and other rarities from '82 in the set to justify the price.

This is apalling. I don't know which is more of a joke - this overpriced box set, or the John Payne version of the band saying for the last five years, "Yes, we have our new album done, it will be out any minute".

I'll stick with the original's new studio CD and their upcoming REASONABLY PRICED live CD recorded in 2010, thank you.

I'm sure there will be a much more reasonable release in 2013.

Nothing was pro-shot from the tour or a radio recording-hard to believe as they were the biggest band in the world that year with the album selling 10 million copies. Maybe there's something in the archives the band has.
I have a better comp I put together which has the Night Flight feature, the MTV Profiles In Rock and all the music videos.
This box is a real joke. I wouldn't even buy a 2CD version if the 2nd CD had the new unplugged versions-who gives a shit about that?

in short: i TOO was interested in a quality remaster, until i saw all the additional crap i'd have to pay for,
AND it doesn't come with the essential B-side "Ride Easy"... i'm out!

I bought the AF version and I'm content after seeing this big miss opportunity.

Rick A.