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marpow

2K Club - QQ Super Nova
QQ Supporter
Joined
Jul 9, 2015
Messages
7,806
Location
San Mateo CA
I am a low tier knowledge audio collector. There are many on QQ that are top tier, who have vast experience in different recording versions, whom I am very interested in.
I know this can be a rabbit hole discussion and rabbit hole money spending, but the subject, I find fascinating.
I came into this thought process from the Steely Dan thread about the recent Analog Productions Steely Dan SACD's.
I read all the pages with great fascination as to peoples wealth of knowledge on just one musical group.
I hope to read your experience both negative and positive, including your agreement or disagreement with others.
I believe the bulk of most will be CD's as they are the most popular.
I have come to believe the first generation of CD's to be the best sounding in general, not always.
When chasing/buying a better/earlier version, I look at Discogs first and see if that same is available on Amazon.
Of course we are subject to misinterpretation by sellers, websites etc., so not always, but mistakes can be made.
Also I have found that if the version I want comes from Europe or Japan, the shipping price (California) can be greater than the disc price.
Finally, do we even care? We can all hear the music, regardless of year and format of release.
I have many favorite desert island bands, but when asked the question, my first thought always goes to Ten Years After and The Marshall Tucker Band.
I looked for early CD's of TYA, and most sellers from Germany make it cost prohibitive.
I looked for MTB and that was productive finding the early K-Tel CD's shipping from USA. To my happiness, the early K-Tel CD's do sound better than the later remasters with extra tracks.

This thread will likely peter out, but maybe add your input, either by overall discussion, or best a musical group of yours that you have strong opinion as to what you think is better.
First CD 1989.
R-21462631-1640292756-1488.jpg

First CD 1988
R-2430476-1379873389-6846.jpg
 
hey Markie
great thread

Lately ( last year ) I've been into finding - typically - first generation Japanese made and sold in Japan CDs. There is some absolutely incredible stuff out there if you do the Discogs homework. Sounds are incredible thru my Luxie spinner ( you have the same spinner I believe )

the MQA shit is in a field all it own as the CDs are high quality and the full unfold is another dimension

Ill be contributing to this thread over time.
 
Rush Moving Pictures
Elton John Madman Across The Water

bought both of these CDs when they first came out. 1984 or 1985 ? ( prolly made In West Germany or Japan ).. NOTHING - no versions - have been able to come close since. Not SACD SHM CD DVD Audio

I cherish these 2 CDs for their sound
 
DITTO. GREAT THREAD, MARKIE ......

Although I do own a great share of Japanese RBCD Imports [SHM...Blu Spec....UHQ] although, admittedtly, not as many as cbmmm3. I still concur that the choice of masters is tantamount to producing a stellar RBCD.

I am also a HUGE proponent of JVC's XRCD 24/32 bit remasters! They can turn almost any system into a killing machine. Even rival a LOT of bona fide Stereo SACDs, IMO.

Also agree with Ricko [cbmmm3] that all the MQA CDs I own are exceptional. They usually begin with the finest master tapes, utilize UHQ and green ink overlays for replication and when decoded [unfolded] give you 24 bit resolution from a CD! Disbelievers can read all they want about the CONS but unless you've experienced them first hand ..... they are definitely a cut above the rest! MQA CDs from labels BMG Management [the LIVE @ Montreux series] and Hong Kong's EVOSOUND which are very competitively priced are SUPERB!

I'm also a fan of Rubellan Remasters which again are carefully chosen for maximum fidelity, add copious bonus tracks and are competively priced as well.

I also try to read reviews before purchasing domestic RBCDs to avoid compression or shoddy remastering. Pays to read and evaluate!

Jazz and Classical RBCDs are usually FREE of compression and to my ears sound the best!
 
A lot of Sony SACDs, especially in Japan, have a crippled CD layer, making the best version the SACD layer. There are also some Japanese SACDs released after the original album release that are significantly better than the CD, such as the Misia Greatest Hits SACD I recently purchased.
 
Rush Moving Pictures
Elton John Madman Across The Water

bought both of these CDs when they first came out. 1984 or 1985 ? ( prolly made In West Germany or Japan ).. NOTHING - no versions - have been able to come close since. Not SACD SHM CD DVD Audio

I cherish these 2 CDs for their sound
Have you heard the 2019 Japanese SHM-CD versions of Elton's albums? Best available anywhere, in any format, IMO.
 
I have 4 versions of Jeff Beck's-Truth. All stereo.
HDTracks 24/96
SHM CD 16/44.1
Audio Fidelity DSD64
Mobile Fidelity DSD64
All very similar with Dynamic Range, 8's, 9's, 10's, 11's, 12's.
Very hard to pick a favorite, as each one has it's strengths.
Maybe what I will do over time is just rotate and listen to each and not have a favorite?
Listening now to Mobile Fidelity Hybrid SACD #895. This version of the 4 has a better bass response.
R-18327139-1618599388-2423.jpg
 
I am a low tier knowledge audio collector. There are many on QQ that are top tier, who have vast experience in different recording versions, whom I am very interested in.
I know this can be a rabbit hole discussion and rabbit hole money spending, but the subject, I find fascinating.
I came into this thought process from the Steely Dan thread about the recent Analog Productions Steely Dan SACD's.
I read all the pages with great fascination as to peoples wealth of knowledge on just one musical group.
I hope to read your experience both negative and positive, including your agreement or disagreement with others.
I believe the bulk of most will be CD's as they are the most popular.
I have come to believe the first generation of CD's to be the best sounding in general, not always.
When chasing/buying a better/earlier version, I look at Discogs first and see if that same is available on Amazon.
Of course we are subject to misinterpretation by sellers, websites etc., so not always, but mistakes can be made.
Also I have found that if the version I want comes from Europe or Japan, the shipping price (California) can be greater than the disc price.
Finally, do we even care? We can all hear the music, regardless of year and format of release.
I have many favorite desert island bands, but when asked the question, my first thought always goes to Ten Years After and The Marshall Tucker Band.
I looked for early CD's of TYA, and most sellers from Germany make it cost prohibitive.
I looked for MTB and that was productive finding the early K-Tel CD's shipping from USA. To my happiness, the early K-Tel CD's do sound better than the later remasters with extra tracks.

This thread will likely peter out, but maybe add your input, either by overall discussion, or best a musical group of yours that you have strong opinion as to what you think is better.
First CD 1989.
View attachment 96341
First CD 1988
View attachment 96343
Bring back memories, early 70's, when I attended University of Minnesota for college, we saw Marshall Tucker playing concerts at the lakes in Minneapolis for free!
 
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