Jimi Hendrix Electric Ladyland the ultimate matrix quad lp

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AFAIK, the original stereo master tape for LADYLAND was THE master, and no dedicated mono exists for the tracks beyond the previously released single "Burning of the Midnight Lamp" and "All Along the Watchtower." If a dedicated mono mix was made of EL, I haven't heard it.

ED :)
 
Quote from Discogs on EL: "The US issue, mastered by Reprise, has the Warner7Arts/Reprise roundel logo & 'Stereo' on the cover. The 'red/yellow' cover image of Hendrix is a photo by Karl Ferris, subsequently adopted as an 'official cover image' since the acquisition of the catalog by the Hendrix Family Trust. The logo was removed on later releases and the label went through visual changes during the emergence of 'Warner Bros.' and the Kinney National deals. The early US mastering does not capture the same 'hi-fidelity' qualities found on the UK issue. When 'remastering' is referred to on any subsequent issues the source is worth noting. "
 
While I was out perusing record stores the other day (looking for quad LPs, of course), I came across a first pressing of Electric Ladyland. The jacket looked like it went through a hurricane, but both LPs appeared to be in good shape and it was fairly cheap, so I grabbed it. Believe it or not, all three Experience LPs are kinda expensive lately.

As those who read my posts know, I have somewhat mixed feelings about Eddie Kramer's 5.1 mix of Electric Ladyland. Given that this LP is infamous for excellent decoding (due to the abundance of out-of-phase information, no doubt), I was curious how it would compare with the actual discrete 5.1 mix.

After cleaning both LPs, I tried a variety of matrix decoders using the opening of "House Burning Down" as a test for surround activity. The Sansui QSD-2 and Involve Surround Master surprisingly didn't do much with it: most sounds were isolated upfront with muted reflections in the rears.

Finally, I tried the "Surround" setting on my Fosgate Tate II decoder. WOW. Some intentionally matrix-encoded quad LPs don't pan out this well. Lead guitar intros on "Long Hot Summer Night" and "1983" are completely locked in right rear. Jimi's guitar frenetically bounces around the room on "Rainy Day, Dream Away" and "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)", evoking the quad mix of Santana's Abraxas. The opening drums to "Crosstown Traffic" do a nice around-the-room pan starting in left rear, and the backing vocals sling-shot from speaker-to-speaker. I could go on...

"Crosstown Traffic" (Discrete 5.1):
39028

"Crosstown Traffic" (Decoded 4.0):
39027

"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" (Discrete 5.1):
39029

"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" (Decoded 4.0):
39030

Anyway, I'm not about to tell you that a fifty year-old LP decoded by a forty year-old matrix decoder is a better listening experience than a discrete 5.1 mix from the master tapes by the original engineer. The fidelity certainly can't compare, but I felt that there are quite a few moments where the decoded LP demonstrates superior channel separation. The two four-track songs ("Crosstown Traffic" and "All Along The Watchtower") in particular came off much better here than on the 5.1 mix IMO.

Plus, I got a kick out of making the cover art for my conversion :)
39031
 
While I was out perusing record stores the other day (looking for quad LPs, of course), I came across a first pressing of Electric Ladyland. The jacket looked like it went through a hurricane, but both LPs appeared to be in good shape and it was fairly cheap, so I grabbed it. Believe it or not, all three Experience LPs are kinda expensive lately.

As those who read my posts know, I have somewhat mixed feelings about Eddie Kramer's 5.1 mix of Electric Ladyland. Given that this LP is infamous for excellent decoding (due to the abundance of out-of-phase information, no doubt), I was curious how it would compare with the actual discrete 5.1 mix.

After cleaning both LPs, I tried a variety of matrix decoders using the opening of "House Burning Down" as a test for surround activity. The Sansui QSD-2 and Involve Surround Master surprisingly didn't do much with it: most sounds were isolated upfront with muted reflections in the rears.

Finally, I tried the "Surround" setting on my Fosgate Tate II decoder. WOW. Some intentionally matrix-encoded quad LPs don't pan out this well. Lead guitar intros on "Long Hot Summer Night" and "1983" are completely locked in right rear. Jimi's guitar frenetically bounces around the room on "Rainy Day, Dream Away" and "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)", evoking the quad mix of Santana's Abraxas. The opening drums to "Crosstown Traffic" do a nice around-the-room pan starting in left rear, and the backing vocals sling-shot from speaker-to-speaker. I could go on...

"Crosstown Traffic" (Discrete 5.1):
View attachment 39028

"Crosstown Traffic" (Decoded 4.0):
View attachment 39027

"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" (Discrete 5.1):
View attachment 39029

"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" (Decoded 4.0):
View attachment 39030

Anyway, I'm not about to tell you that a fifty year-old LP decoded by a forty year-old matrix decoder is a better listening experience than a discrete 5.1 mix from the master tapes by the original engineer. The fidelity certainly can't compare, but I felt that there are quite a few moments where the decoded LP demonstrates superior channel separation. The two four-track songs ("Crosstown Traffic" and "All Along The Watchtower") in particular came off much better here than on the 5.1 mix IMO.

Plus, I got a kick out of making the cover art for my conversion :)
View attachment 39031
Hey a little crackle just gives it more of that “vintage” feel👍
 
While I was out perusing record stores the other day (looking for quad LPs, of course), I came across a first pressing of Electric Ladyland. The jacket looked like it went through a hurricane, but both LPs appeared to be in good shape and it was fairly cheap, so I grabbed it. Believe it or not, all three Experience LPs are kinda expensive lately.

As those who read my posts know, I have somewhat mixed feelings about Eddie Kramer's 5.1 mix of Electric Ladyland. Given that this LP is infamous for excellent decoding (due to the abundance of out-of-phase information, no doubt), I was curious how it would compare with the actual discrete 5.1 mix.

After cleaning both LPs, I tried a variety of matrix decoders using the opening of "House Burning Down" as a test for surround activity. The Sansui QSD-2 and Involve Surround Master surprisingly didn't do much with it: most sounds were isolated upfront with muted reflections in the rears.

Finally, I tried the "Surround" setting on my Fosgate Tate II decoder. WOW. Some intentionally matrix-encoded quad LPs don't pan out this well. Lead guitar intros on "Long Hot Summer Night" and "1983" are completely locked in right rear. Jimi's guitar frenetically bounces around the room on "Rainy Day, Dream Away" and "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)", evoking the quad mix of Santana's Abraxas. The opening drums to "Crosstown Traffic" do a nice around-the-room pan starting in left rear, and the backing vocals sling-shot from speaker-to-speaker. I could go on...

"Crosstown Traffic" (Discrete 5.1):
View attachment 39028

"Crosstown Traffic" (Decoded 4.0):
View attachment 39027

"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" (Discrete 5.1):
View attachment 39029

"Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" (Decoded 4.0):
View attachment 39030

Anyway, I'm not about to tell you that a fifty year-old LP decoded by a forty year-old matrix decoder is a better listening experience than a discrete 5.1 mix from the master tapes by the original engineer. The fidelity certainly can't compare, but I felt that there are quite a few moments where the decoded LP demonstrates superior channel separation. The two four-track songs ("Crosstown Traffic" and "All Along The Watchtower") in particular came off much better here than on the 5.1 mix IMO.

Plus, I got a kick out of making the cover art for my conversion :)
View attachment 39031
Makes you wonder what other classic gems exist that can decode that well. EL's stereo mix was highly adventurous for its time and the Tate was able to pick up on that. Awesome experiment, Jonathan!
 
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