Not labeled correctly. With many boxes stating "Master".
Tapes Used for Surround SACD Reissues
- Thread starter J. PUPSTER
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Depends on the arrangement with the record company and where the reissue company is located.
In some cases, a direct analog copy of analog master tapes are made and sent for remastering. In other cases, it can be a digital copy.
I did not think that the quad SACD of "All American Boy" sounded like a first generation master tape.
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If you really think about it quicksrt, the actual QUAD master is never the actual analogue master as it combines elements of the multitracks transferred to a second generation master. And unlike digital, analogue does suffer a bit from being transferred to another reel.
I'll have to listen to ALL American Boy again but if I recall, it really sounded great on my system and not having heard it in years, especially in QUAD....was a real treat 'n a half.
No, the mixdown from multitracks is the final mixed master tape. This goes from stereo or quad. The multitracks are not considered masters.
JediJoker
2K Club - QQ Super Nova
By that logic, any mix laid down to analog tape created from analog multitracks—regardless of format—isn't "the original master," but it is: it's the "mix master tape," as @quicksrt stated.
Actually, the multitracks are also "multitrack master tapes."
If a mix is mastered from the mix master tape for the first time to analog tape, the resulting tape is also a "master."
All of these can be considered "original masters," but the term most commonly refers to the original mix master tapes, and properly so.
Scott65
1K Club - QQ Shooting Star
Just for the record, Audio Fidelity was in fact very transparent about what analogue Master Tapes were utilized and where they were mastered and who mastered them, and who authored the darn SACD disc as well.. MFSL state Original Master Recordings (analogue) utilized unless otherwise stated. Analogue Productions, well... look at their name, it kinda says what they use. Most if not all labels who use original analog masters tend to shout it from the rooftops, as it's a big deal to audiophiles in general, that's why they are audiophiles.hi Ralph!DV state on the rear inlay of their Surround SACD releases that they are from the original analogue tapes.. doesn't say anything anywhere about them being from digital transfers.. who can say "what it's all about Ralphie".. in any event i doubt they're going to get more transparent on what and how they get their stuff sounding so good - and why should they? other labels that did/are doing surround music didn't/don't get into specifics on such matters, i guess its all part of the trade secret special sauce/source!
i'm sorry that when Dutton Vocalion say they are using "original analogue tapes" that is not good enough for you. tbh i don't remember DV touting their stuff as "Audiophile".. maybe you do. really, i wish we could get back on topic. this must be getting irksome for people getting alerts to this thread about suggestions for new DV titles and all they see is wittering on about provenance. here's a friendly suggestion in this suggestion thread; if you feel so strongly about DV's sources etc., why not start a separate thread.
In some cases it can be as simple as the catalog number being off by a digit or two.
That is why a bit of sleuthing is sometimes needed as part of a reissue program.
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In some cases it can be as simple as the catalog number being off by a digit or two.
That is why a bit of sleuthing is sometimes needed as part of a reissue program.
Brian, you'd think in the interest of "Good Housekeeping" and the fact that these legacy tapes could potentially be worth millions that the majors would hire some keen eared apprentices with a vast knowledge of music to sort through this quagmire of tape boxes and attempt to put them in some sort of order. Probably easier said than done but the real shame is the life expectancy of these tapes is hardly infinite and once they disintegrate .......
And the real shame ... if the majors have NO interest in releasing titles requested by the reissue companies ...... better deals should be formulated instead of gouging the reissue companies like they do. It certainly seems Dutton Vocalion has an exceptional sweetheart deal with the majors as their retail prices are positively incredible compared to U.S. ones [by a WIDE margin, it seems]. And with Acoustic Sounds practice of offering NO further discounts on 99% of their SACDs and charging $30 list, it is further denying incentives for the general public to be able to afford these discs. And vendors like ImportCD and Deep Discount which used to charge approximately $26 for MoFi SACDS are now charging $38 which is a cool $8 above LIST PRICE....so it's now better for the the consumer to buy directly from Music Direct and actually enjoy further discounts with their frequent 10~15% off sales [and FREE s/h].
Since the majors are gearing up to offer more and more downloads.......never has it been more imperative to put their scattered, mislabeled, decaying multitrack/master tapes in order. And in the interest of QUAD/SURROUND lovers everywhere, it would seem even more imperative to take advantage of this sudden interest in remixing classic albums into surround by finally clearing their vaults of their nascent QUAD masters. And think of how cheaply and efficiently the majors could accomplish this. Love the way Universal is releasing scads of Classical fare and including a Lossless BD~A which can hold 10-15 albums worth of RBCD material [think Solti's Ring]. 15 albums of Motown could easily fit in Lossless Stereo on a single BD~A.
I have a question Brian. Is UHD 4K geared toward releasing Lossless music only? One can only imagine the capacity of a 4K disc.
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The record companies, large and small, vary when it comes to the master tapes of their releases. Fantasy (now owned by Concord) was famous for having a timed system that sucked all of the oxygen out of their vault in case of a fire. Making a trip to their vaults potentially quite hazardous. (And leading to jokes by record industry pros about never stepping inside that space...)
As to the age of the tapes, yes they are getting older. Hence the desire to archive them to digital. Which led to the development of DSD, originally as a way for Sony to preserve its investment in the Sony Music catalog.
It was created to archive master tapes. After that process started, there was talk of how this could also be a way to release albums to the market.
So that was embraced as well through Super Audio CD discs, DSD File and then DSD Downloads.
Personally, I couldn't care less whether original tapes are used or mixdown masters or DSD or whatever... as long as I think it sounds good. Add to it that the DV discs are a complete BARGAIN and it's win win regardless. Add to that every disc I have received form DVD has sounded superb. So even if they used a 7 1/2 ips (which I have seen for sale other places - not DV) and they sound as good as they do and i still wouldn't care
JediJoker
2K Club - QQ Super Nova
Just to be clear, when most people say "original tapes" or "original masters," they're referring to the "mix(down) masters."
Really?
Yes really.
They are certainly not referring to the early demo tapes, or wildly out of control multitrack unmixed 2" tracking session tapes.
I was being facetious
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