Argh - Analogue Productions RCA LPs pushed out again
- Thread starter MadFloyd
- Start date
Easy fix for this problem....go to ebay or your local record store ( assuming such an establishment still exists) and search for the original pressings. Many can be had for not much money and we already know how great they sound.
I'm not a fan of the original pressings. I have several. I also have various Classic Records pressings. I just want to hear the new mastering real bad - might be all hype but until I learn otherwise...
I don't expect these new RCA reissues to better my Classic RCA 33's (let alone my Classic 45's).....but.....I know I need to keep my mind and ears open until a hear a few of them. I prefer most of my jazz Classic reissues to the AP versions I've tried.
all these reissues sound good, the Classics better.....more alive....to my ears in my particular system. it's not a good and bad thing.....it's more a very very good, and even a little better 'thing'.
I bought one of the first 200 numbered sets subscription. I have most if not all the classic records 33 and 45's. I am not expecting them to be as dynamic as the 45's. I do expect a lower noise floor as they will be QRP pressed. It should be interesting.
Guess I beg to differ as I feel the original RCAs with the exception of the following (and of course vinyl and surface noise) were still better than the Classics. I also didn't care for the change of "presentation" of the Classic RCA where some of the recordings sounded more like a close up Mercury (the choice of the middle channel level) than the original, natural hall presentation of the original releases.
I expect the one area where the new RCA classical releases will better the originals is in the lows (hopefully however, not boosted as it seemed on some of the Classic RCAs such as Witches Brew). The original RCA releases were somewhat weak in the low end; just listen to something like the otherwise wonderful sounding French Touch as an example. Or the mono vs. stereo LSC 1806. The stereo sounds like a Casio organ compared to the mono.
The deciding and make or break area, as with all releases, will be the issue of spatiality and harmonic content. Is that quality forever gone from the tapes, a creation of the original recording team or just lost in the re-mastering process?
The bass is the area where I feel they can most benefit (along with pressing quality). Jonathin Valin was pretty impressed by the new masterings and well, he wrote the book on RCA recordings so that's what really has me interested.
+1
Plus, it is well known that depending on the pressing number ( earlier being generally better) that the sound could be variable. For instance, if one listened to a 15s 15s or lower pressing of Pines/Fountain and compared that to a 1s1s pressing...BIG difference.
My Classic reissues are generally only a shadow of my original low number pressings.
Davey have you heard the Everest Classic Records Pines of Rome? It is one of the best sounding classical records I own: http://store.acousticsounds.com/d/3...ines__Fountains_of_Rome-200_Gram_Vinyl_Record
Looks like the first three are shipping. Scheherazade, Pines of Rome and Pictures at an Exhibition. Will be interesting to see how well they captured the seductive violin tone in opening movement of Scheherazade and the dynamics of the closing movement of the Pines.
In my experience, most of Chad's RCA reissues are pretty pricey in their original shaded dog 1S or similarly low stamper. Of course, the 1S LSC2436 (Reiner Pines/Fountains) is a prime example. I have seen them go for as low as $400 in nm condition, usually higher. I got mine for about $50 but it is pretty scruffy. Similarly 1806 (Also Sprach I have the 1S), 1817 (Gaite P - I have the 10S) cost me an arm (but not a leg) - over $100 many years ago. There are some, like the Stokowski Rhapsody and the Reiner Festivals that can be found in nm for around the same price as Chad's reissues, but many cannot. Even the later Heifetz recordings are not cheap when I last looked.
An important note - from what I have seen of the 25 RCA's on the reissue list, only the Heifetz Bruch/Vieutemps is one of the famed Decca engineered RCA's. My understanding is that the licensing agreement with Decca (for 'Witches Brew' and 'Venice' for example) was that RCA didn't own them, but only had sole marketing rights for 10 years. After that they went back to Decca who reissued most of them on their bargain or mid-priced labels. Only the Heifetz recordings remained the property of RCA. Not sure how Classic got the rights to release their Brit Box RCA's which contain some of the best RCA's ever made (not saying the Classic Reissues are the best ever, but the originals are.)
Here is a story that came out of the interviews I did in June for the Decca book I am writing with Winston Ma. One of the engineers told me when he was recording the famous Roberto Gerhard's "The Plague" with Dorati and the National SO (in DC) on Argo, one of Decca's labels, one of the symphony members told him that he thought that some of the RCA recordings were as good or better than the famous Decca's. He mentioned several including "Witches Brew" and a few others. The engineer smiled and told him that the recordings he mentioned were all produced and engineered by Decca.
Larry
Myles, I heartily agree about the lack of bass in 1806, especially the low organ pedal at the beginning. Some of the best bargains can be found in some early mono pressings of RCA's and especially London/Decca's from the mid-50's which are often in the $1 bargain bin. For Decca's the top engineer (normally 'Wilkie') was assigned to the mono recording, with a more junior person doing the separately recorded and edited stereo version. The best example is the Argenta "Espana" which is quite cheap in mono and extremely expensive in stereo. 'Wilkie' was the mono engineer, not the stereo, which was done by Gordon Parry who was still quite new and several years from doing the Solti Ring. One must remember that when these were first issued, the mono was the one that came out first - not until 1958 for Decca did stereo releases come out. Even then, few people had stereo systems to play them. So the money to be made was in the monos.
Also I and many others find the 33RPM Classic releases of Also Sprach and Venice to have overemphasized highs - some call it "ear bleeding". To me the 45RPMs are much better in this regard, though Venice never came out as a 45RPM. The Decca bargain reissue of Venice (Solti at the Opera Decca SPA347) is much better. The original is fine.
Larry
Larry, I have multiple copies of 1817. I have several 10s, a 5s, a 1s, a 15s and a 3s...all of which sound great, BUT the lower pressings do sound better. None of them, IMHO, is worse than my classic reissue!
I also have a Milhaud LDS 2625 in a 1s 2s pressing, ( much better than the later pressings I have heard) this would make a great re-issue; are they making of re-issue of this?
Anyone have an original LSC 2449 Gounod...it's getting VERY hard to source right now. BTW,I hear the re-issue is also excellent. ( I have NOT heard it).
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