I can't even begin to count the number of times I have bought a hotly anticipated new re-issue or re-mastering and have been disappointed by the sound quality. While I would much rather have a great performance with bad sound than poor music with great sound, why can't I have BOTH? Doing some comparisons for visitors during RMAF, I was also surprised by how little shared knowledge is out there.
With the collected experience here, may be we can all share what we know to be the best sound in vinyl or digital formats for some great performances/albums that we have.
I'll start with the following:
1) One of my favorite live rock performances is Deep Purple's Smoke on the Water Live in Japan - one of the first few albums I bought. I used to be in a rock band when I was in high school (junior college) in Singapore, and Smoke on the Water was one of our signature pieces. I've got the first pressing of Live in Japan and a number of re-issues, but I've always been mildly disappointed with the sound. Some are better than others, but the absolute best sonically is on the Collectors Edition Deep Purple Mark 2 Purple Singles pressed on clear purple vinyl. The excitement of the audience is palpable, and I get goosebumps every time I listen to this LOUD.
2) That old warhorse Jazz at the Pawnshop. I have quite a number of copies, but none can match the Swedish first pressing - with the orangy-red label and black lettering. Someone who has only heard the re-issues with the white labels and black lettering, or even the Proprius 1/2-speed mastered version with the white/red labels and white/black lettering will wonder what all the hype is about. The original pressing has atmosphere, has life, and you can almost understand the background chatter even when it's in a foreign language. The closest digital version to the first pressing is Winston Ma's latest K2HD re-issue, mastered directly from the first generation analog tapes by JVC. On my system, I think that it is better than all the analog re-issues I have, but then again that's IMHO. YMMV depending on your system.
3) Fleetwood Mac's Rumours. I've never been able to find a digital copy I could listen to, until I got a "free" copy of The Very Best of Fleetwood Mac. I bought another CD off eBay and it came with three other free CDs. This redbook compilation CD sounds even better than the DVD-A, and far better than every other CD I have (and I have plenty).
4) Another old audiophile warhorse - the soundtrack to Casino Royale. In particular, Dusty Springfield singing The Look of Love. I have the original Colgems pressing, and the Classic Records 24bit/192Hz HDAD ripped to my music server. Playing these two at RMAF, the audience was pretty equally divided between digital and analog. Some preferred the warmth of the original, others preferred the transparency, detail, and clarity of the digital. Both had life and vitality, and Dusty Springfield in the room.
I'll post more as I remember/play more music.
Oh, also when I mention CD or DVD-A, it's ripped to my music server and played back via Firewire to a Weiss DAC.
With the collected experience here, may be we can all share what we know to be the best sound in vinyl or digital formats for some great performances/albums that we have.
I'll start with the following:
1) One of my favorite live rock performances is Deep Purple's Smoke on the Water Live in Japan - one of the first few albums I bought. I used to be in a rock band when I was in high school (junior college) in Singapore, and Smoke on the Water was one of our signature pieces. I've got the first pressing of Live in Japan and a number of re-issues, but I've always been mildly disappointed with the sound. Some are better than others, but the absolute best sonically is on the Collectors Edition Deep Purple Mark 2 Purple Singles pressed on clear purple vinyl. The excitement of the audience is palpable, and I get goosebumps every time I listen to this LOUD.
2) That old warhorse Jazz at the Pawnshop. I have quite a number of copies, but none can match the Swedish first pressing - with the orangy-red label and black lettering. Someone who has only heard the re-issues with the white labels and black lettering, or even the Proprius 1/2-speed mastered version with the white/red labels and white/black lettering will wonder what all the hype is about. The original pressing has atmosphere, has life, and you can almost understand the background chatter even when it's in a foreign language. The closest digital version to the first pressing is Winston Ma's latest K2HD re-issue, mastered directly from the first generation analog tapes by JVC. On my system, I think that it is better than all the analog re-issues I have, but then again that's IMHO. YMMV depending on your system.
3) Fleetwood Mac's Rumours. I've never been able to find a digital copy I could listen to, until I got a "free" copy of The Very Best of Fleetwood Mac. I bought another CD off eBay and it came with three other free CDs. This redbook compilation CD sounds even better than the DVD-A, and far better than every other CD I have (and I have plenty).
4) Another old audiophile warhorse - the soundtrack to Casino Royale. In particular, Dusty Springfield singing The Look of Love. I have the original Colgems pressing, and the Classic Records 24bit/192Hz HDAD ripped to my music server. Playing these two at RMAF, the audience was pretty equally divided between digital and analog. Some preferred the warmth of the original, others preferred the transparency, detail, and clarity of the digital. Both had life and vitality, and Dusty Springfield in the room.
I'll post more as I remember/play more music.
Oh, also when I mention CD or DVD-A, it's ripped to my music server and played back via Firewire to a Weiss DAC.