Music - Shit remastering

[mjmooney]

[leviramsey]

I agree. I think they do it for radio. So the songs sound "punchy" on the radio and it stands out.

Trouble is, they're all at it, and it overpowers everything.

It's as annoying as autotune.

And the irony is that the radio stations, in all probability are running Orban or similar processors to brickwall it, so the record labels don't even have to brickwall at the mastering stage.

Myself, I don't have much of a problem with modern mastering: two of the more reviled mastering jobs (the aforementioned Death Magnetic and also Vapor Trails) sound all right to me.

In the case of Vapor Trails, held up for a number of years as the greatest casualty of the loudness wars, a couple of tracks were released a few years later with alternative mixing and mastering. I prefer the poorly mastered versions, to be fair.

One Little Victory loudnessed

One Little Victory de-loudnessed

[Juju]

Well, I may be "talking shite", but I still don't hear any of these differences. I'm not saying I can't hear them, but I don't. Subtle difference.

Can I ask, and it's not a leading question, but do you ever listen to music for the simple pleasure of it, rather than as an accompanyment to somehting else, like doing dishes, reading a book or having a bath. Have you in the last few years, picked up an album you like/love, and pressed play on what ever kit you posess, and then just sat back and "listened".

Secondly, what's the best kit you ever heard that album on? In broad terms of value, or just by brand/naim? (Did anyone see what I did there?).

Because, its often that people who profess to have "cloth ears", often never actually sat back and relaxed, and listened to their music in a way that isn't "distracted", nor have they had the benefits of really good hi-fi demonstrated to them.

I think my hi-fi is pretty poor, I know what it "could" sound like, (its an LP12, IttokII and Linn k9, with Audiolab8000a and Castle Durhams, (all about 20 years old) but I reckon even Mike would be convinced if he came round mine for a coffee - Even my Dad, who would be of the same view as Mike, conceeded that my turntable just sounded more "natural" - the sound stage was far clearer, better defined, deeper, and somehow more "rythmical", even listening to the fairly poor "Stone Roses" album on LP and CD back to back.

Hi fi is a bit like fine wine. A glass of wine might be good, a good glass even better. But when you had one glass, thought it was good, and THEN opened the next one, and really could compare the 2, then thats when it hits you.

[chrisp65]

Well, I may be "talking shite", but I still don't hear any of these differences. I'm not saying I can't hear them, but I don't. Subtle difference.

Can I ask, and it's not a leading question, but do you ever listen to music for the simple pleasure of it, rather than as an accompanyment to somehting else, like doing dishes, reading a book or having a bath. Have you in the last few years, picked up an album you like/love, and pressed play on what ever kit you posess, and then just sat back and "listened".

Secondly, what's the best kit you ever heard that album on? In broad terms of value, or just by brand/naim? (Did anyone see what I did there?).

Because, its often that people who profess to have "cloth ears", often never actually sat back and relaxed, and listened to their music in a way that isn't "distracted", nor have they had the benefits of really good hi-fi demonstrated to them.

I think my hi-fi is pretty poor, I know what it "could" sound like, (its an LP12, IttokII and Linn k9, with Audiolab8000a and Castle Durhams, (all about 20 years old) but I reckon even Mike would be convinced if he came round mine for a coffee - Even my Dad, who would be of the same view as Mike, conceeded that my turntable just sounded more "natural" - the sound stage was far clearer, better defined, deeper, and somehow more "rythmical", even listening to the fairly poor "Stone Roses" album on LP and CD back to back.

Hi fi is a bit like fine wine. A glass of wine might be good, a good glass even better. But when you had one glass, thought it was good, and THEN opened the next one, and really could compare the 2, then thats when it hits you.

ahh beat me to it, but my analogy was beans.

Sometimes you get home, you've got stuff to do, so you chuck some Morrisons beans in a medium white sliced sandwich and scoff it watching Flog It. Lovely. Spot on.

Sometimes, you need to make sure it's Branstons beans, the bread must be hand cut and toasted, the toast has to be cooled so the butter doesn't completely melt, and you eat it slowly, listening to Radio 4.

Surely you get excited when a Small Faces track you've already got on 8 cd's pops up on another cd .... but with some previously unheard little sound in there?

Surely you've gone over and over the Beatles roof top stuff listening for police knocking the door?

For what it's worth, I've had a new digital radio for Christmas. Radio 6 is simply transformed compared with the previous laptop experience. God bless decent kit, people who care and late stuff from the Small Faces.

[mjmooney]

Surely you get excited when a Small Faces track you've already got on 8 cd's pops up on another cd .... but with some previously unheard little sound in there?

Surely you've gone over and over the Beatles roof top stuff listening for police knocking the door?

Yes, and I'm not entirely sure I like it. I got used to hearing the Beatles singles on transistor radios and jukeboxes and mono Dansette record players. So I never really noticed stuff like the fluffed vocal on "Please Please Me" until I heard it on CD (first generation CD that is, the ones that were subsequently vilified by those demanding re-remastering). I remember the magazine reviews at the time getting excited about the CDs, one reviewer pointing out that you could actually hear fingers sliding up and down wound guitar strings. But I don't WANT to hear fingers sliding up and down wound guitar strings! I LIKE lo-fi!

There's something similar on Neil Young's "Harvest", where you can hear a guitar falling off a stand in the background. I never noticed it on my old record player, now I hear it every time - and it annoys me!

As to sitting down and just listening, well, not very often these days, I'll admit. That doesn't mean I think of my favourite albums in the same way as elevator muzak - I don't. But the thought of listening to "Dark Side of the Moon" in a reverential hush (or through headphones) on a top-end hi-fi bores me to tears. I want to drink and shout along - even if it's Nick Drake!

Currently playing: Israel Nash Gripka - "Barn Doors and Concrete Floors" (the title says it all).

[tonyh29]

So I never really noticed stuff like the fluffed vocal on "Please Please Me" until I heard it on CD

I went through a phase of listening to the Beatles recordings in "oops" effect to hear those very quirks .. ..but it was as a novelty rather than something I'd want to hear during general playback

I still can't hear JL say "f**k" on hey Jude as per the legend \myth \truth .. even though I listen out for it whenever I hear the song

[mjmooney]

So I never really noticed stuff like the fluffed vocal on "Please Please Me" until I heard it on CD

I went through a phase of listening to the Beatles recordings in "oops" effect to hear those very quirks .. ..but it was as a novelty rather than something I'd want to hear during general playback

I still can't hear JL say "f**k" on hey Jude as per the legend \myth \truth .. even though I listen out for it whenever I hear the song

I think he says "Bloody 'ell".

[MrDuck]

It's the f-word that's said, but it's actually Paul that says it.

[tonyh29]

but it's actually Paul that says it.

I'd always heard it was John .. the story being his headphones slipped off his head

then after seeing your post I looked it up on google and there are many sources saying it was Paul as he hit a bum note

:confused:

on the plus side i heard it on a clip on you tube and it is quite easy to hear now

[chrisp65]

I can't remember off the top of my head (and I'm not going to bother googling it), but the old ska bands from the 60's used to have enough money for a single take (hence the raw appeal of that genre!). Anyway, whoever it was that recorded Skinhead Moonstomp clearly cocks up the lyric, using the word foor not feet - but then corrects himself. Makes me chuckle everytime. I have diverted well off topic.

[bickster]

... and there are many sources saying it was Paul as he hit a bum note

It's a wonder he doesn't have tourrettes.

[MrDuck]

but it's actually Paul that says it.

I'd always heard it was John .. the story being his headphones slipped off his head

then after seeing your post I looked it up on google and there are many sources saying it was Paul as he hit a bum note

:confused:

on the plus side i heard it on a clip on you tube and it is quite easy to hear now

I think the engineer on the recording session claimed it was Paul hitting a duff note, and JL insisted it was left in the final mix.

[chrisp65]

By strange coincidence, radio 4 tonight had a short article about the 'fact' that Steve Jobs told Neil Young he listened to his fave music on vinyl as the compression of an mp3 spoiled some music.

They than played two twiddly bits of Neil Young and asked a wheeled in expert to spot the difference - which he failed to do. I got it right, but then it was a fifty fifty test of limited scientific credibility. Being neil Young, both version sounded equally boring.

[bickster]

Being neil Young, both version sounded equally boring.

Heathen!

The MP3 debate is rather a silly one, there are many different ways of ripping an mp3. LAME encoded variable bit rate mp3's are very good quality, bog standard 192k bit rate ones are just about acceptable, any bit rate lower than that and they are usual shite.

Most people who listen to mp3's don't have an igloo about the quality of the rips they are listening to.