kap'n krunch
2K Club - QQ Super Nova
(with rear action rating)
Rush- Grace under Pressure LP (US) 5/10
ELO-Secret Messages LP (Spanish Pressing) 9/10
Rush- Grace under Pressure LP (US) 5/10
ELO-Secret Messages LP (Spanish Pressing) 9/10
kapn, you could have put it more poetically, as in "Listening to Now, in Synthesized Surround."
.... in estereo.
Breakfast in America - Supertramp EU 2CD Deluxe Edition 10/10. If you don't have it, that's why you need it! - Yogi Berra
that DE gets a fairly bad rap on the SH forums and I've already got the first A&M cd of BiA, so haven't bothered yet but if the Deluxe Ed sounds so good "faked" or "synthesised" I'll have to grab a copy!
First, the surround effects on PLII on my B&K preamp didn't do anything astounding. It did sound pleasant. The percussion, finger snaps and some occasional brief piano and guitar passages came from the rears.
I read that SH Forum thread on the 2CD Deluxe edition. It was clear as mud. Few people commented at all on the fidelity. One seemed to allude to the 2002 remaster, which I don't own, being better. So much so that a couple people asked "is the 2002 remaster better" as late as 2011 with no response whatsoever. Clearly, they also though the comparison to the 2002 remaster was vague. A few said there are better pressings without mentioning which one(s.) Was that just conjecture, or did they actually do an A/B test? All the thread seemed to comment on was the second live disc and general comments about Supertramp pressings as a whole.
Here's my comment on the fidelity: I own a UK CD pressing from '83, which was part of a box set of all their CD's until that time. I also own the Mofi Gold CD. I had previously owned the A&M Canada Audiophile LP. That one might be the best, although it's entirely possible this is better. As far as CD's go, from the three I own, the Deluxe is head and shoulders better fidelity. It is approx 8db louder than the Gold CD. I compensated for that when A/B'ing. BTW: Gold CD sounds better than the '83 UK CD. What's better on the Deluxe is primarily the high end. The percussion was better, it was more open sounding, and decoded a bit better. Understanding that the higher the frequency, the higher the directionality may account for the better PLII decoding. Of the 3 pressings I compared, this is clearly the one. I would love to compare it to the 2002 remaster, although I suspect it's the same. Although I don't currently own the Audiophile LP, I would bet it sounds good, but not better than this issue. A&M Audiophile series is generally better than the equivalant standard LP. They're on better vinyl, but there was minimal remastering, if any, on most of them. Mofi or Nautilus 1/2 speed masters they're not.
Get the Deluxe!
Also listening to:
Giblet Gravy - George Benson Japan CD 2/10. Perhaps I'll like it better on subsuquent listens. This session has no life at all. DOA
Live in Poland - Emerson, Lake & Palmer UK CD 8/10. A winner!
well on that basis I shall have to get a DE BIA now! thank you so much for all the juicy info!
i've paid heed to SH forums over the years and found some really lovely sounding discs because of their discussions over "the best-sounding Steely Dan's Aja on CD" etc.. but the overwhelming "anti-remasters unless they're by SH" bias is now starting to grate a bit.
Also it occurred to me while reading your post that if the BIA DE has better fidelity than the original CD but is 8dB too loud, what's wrong with turning the volume down a bit and having the perfect CD of it!? Say lower it by 8dB or so!? Or am I being thick?
In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida. Back channel drum action on some tracks and it just makes this recording sound more like it's in a big auditorium which is how the title piece should always be heard.
Doug
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