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Printablesaw all of them last night at HMV and enjoyed looking at them
the collector in me wanted them but my wallet just told me i would be wasting my money | |
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BanishedBrian said: I feel like I'm looking at an X-ray in a room full of doctors.
What I'm drawing from the discussion is that they CAN sound better, given the proper components to play them on. But that you'd probably not notice a difference listening to them on a CD Walkman. The "Blu-Ray" analogy really struck home with me. CinnamonBoy makes a strong argument, IMHO.  | |
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Graycap23 said: Se7en said: So applying ReplayGain to our current CDs and they'd sound the same? Even just in iTunes, I've adjust the volume preset to max and it sounds way better. That is what a lot of people do but I prefer cleaner detail. I use a BBE Sonic Maximizer and my cd's sounds way better than the original mixed material. Hello, a bit off-topic - BBE Sonic Maximer - I assume the software version - you use it to convert all your CDs for the computer? I do have a good stereo, and use a Mac with I-tunes - of course next to listening to the CDs in its CD-Form. Do you use BBE SM to also to compress files, or just in wav Form? Is it easy to use? Does it work on a Mac? ANY INFOR APPRECIATED... |
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christobole said: alright, i can't add anything new to the subject of audio quality. even though i'm slightly disappointed that the songs don't come close to sounding as brilliant as "the ultimate collection" tracks, i'm not surprised and in the end, having slightly improved (or louder sound) is good enough. and if his purple highness decides to not ever re-master any of these titles - at least i'll have the closest thing to his original vinyl vision on cd: the level of detail and accuracy on these mini-vinyl replicas is stunning.
Thanks for taking the time to do this. I want them anyway for the artwork but knowing that there is at least some difference in sound has sealed the deal. Much appreciated. |
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Everybody's entitled of course to their own opinion. The only thing I'm saying is here: please, if you got the chance to listen to them (with the proper equipment), you will certainly be able to hear the difference in comparison to the conventional releases (in detail certainly). In some releases this is more apparent (SOTT, LoveSexy) than others (1999). But don't go butchering them off just because you can't afford them - it's the wrong reason to judge these releases. Besides, if you order them from Japan directly as I did, they are affordable and much less expensive than buying them in the record-shop around the corner at whatver place one lives.
I have more SHM-releases in my pocession and I did a similar test with all the ABBA-SHM ones as well. Their catalogue was horribly re-mastered twice (1997 and 2005) by audiophile-standards. Again: with SHM, it all sounds quieter (the way one listens to the music is more at ease & pleasurable), more like the original warm sound of vinyl (although more details are to be discovered) and all those terrible re-adjustments (compromised dynamics, terrible equalisation, etc.) seem to be where they belong: not on the disc... [Edited 8/14/09 2:18am] | |
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PDogz said: BanishedBrian said: I feel like I'm looking at an X-ray in a room full of doctors.
What I'm drawing from the discussion is that they CAN sound better, given the proper components to play them on. But that you'd probably not notice a difference listening to them on a CD Walkman. The "Blu-Ray" analogy really struck home with me. CinnamonBoy makes a strong argument, IMHO. The problem with that argument is that Blu-ray was developed with a high-density packaging of audio and video in the first place - there's more room for the goods. Red Book CD (re-marketed here as SHM) is not going to ever offer an environment for bit-rates above and beyond what it is designed for. Those ones and zeros are set in stone. The only thing that can be done to enhance the sound on a CD is to fix the source material that goes into manufacturing the disc. That's what has been done with these SHMs, though only enough to bring a little heat to the sound, as remastering is out of the question per WB/Prince. Of course, someone can always EQ the data from their "standard" Prince CDs and approximate what these things are doing. Other companies are going to be coming to the table with this same "proprietary polycarbonate". The Blu-spec CD's claim to fame will be that it uses the same coating as that of Blu-ray discs. The problem again lies in the fact that they will be using the same Red Book CD data layer and any old red laser CD player will play them. Smoke and mirrors. If prince.org were to be made idiot proof, someone would just invent a better idiot. | |
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christobole said: squirrelgrease said: Prince is probably in possession of the tapes, even though WB has the rights to release the recordings. But, here's a theory as to why digital sources were used on Ultimate and (probably)Girl 6: Since the stereo mixed master analog tapes reached their half-life a decade ago, and have become unstable and most likely very brittle, Prince probably doesn't want them touched. There's usually only one chance to heat-set the tapes and re-archive them, as the process destroys the magnetic tape. I doubt that P wants to let WB have this opportunity. interesting and very sensible theory! maybe there's hope for deluxe re-masters after all. imagine, for example, a sign 'o the times set: original album on 2 cd + 3rd cd of extended versions and remixes + 4th cd of outtakes + 5th cd of live material. miles davis' back-catalogue has been given this kind of deluxe treatment for ages. i think we're either going to get something special like that or nothing at all. Oh, god, not sure I want to get involved, but... I can't stop myself from typing lol! Are master tapes not stored in kilns and baked so they last a lifetime? I would have thought this was normal procedure for any catalogue stuff owned by a big corp like WB? Anyway, I agree on ,most of the above who say they're louder and that's a bout it. Packaging is lovely though, and to be honest my hopes weren't high for anything more. If one day they get properly remastered, I'll be opening up that purple vein again and bleeding money... | |
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clbrooks said: christobole said: interesting and very sensible theory! maybe there's hope for deluxe re-masters after all. imagine, for example, a sign 'o the times set: original album on 2 cd + 3rd cd of extended versions and remixes + 4th cd of outtakes + 5th cd of live material. miles davis' back-catalogue has been given this kind of deluxe treatment for ages. i think we're either going to get something special like that or nothing at all. Oh, god, not sure I want to get involved, but... I can't stop myself from typing lol! Are master tapes not stored in kilns and baked so they last a lifetime? I would have thought this was normal procedure for any catalogue stuff owned by a big corp like WB? Anyway, I agree on ,most of the above who say they're louder and that's a bout it. Packaging is lovely though, and to be honest my hopes weren't high for anything more. If one day they get properly remastered, I'll be opening up that purple vein again and bleeding money... It's generally believed that Prince probably has the stereo master tapes in his possession. Also, some years ago there were stories coming out of Paisley Park that Prince was neglecting his Vault tapes to the degree that they were quite degraded. I hope it's not so. My understanding is that after they are baked, 1980s analog mag tapes become so brittle that they can't be run past the heads more than once or twice. Since Prince re-recorded his entire WB back catalog, presumably using the original multi-tracks, those tapes may be toast - but at least are now digitally archived. The original WB master stereo mix-downs are another matter. If prince.org were to be made idiot proof, someone would just invent a better idiot. | |
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squirrelgrease said: PDogz said:
What I'm drawing from the discussion is that they CAN sound better, given the proper components to play them on. But that you'd probably not notice a difference listening to them on a CD Walkman. The "Blu-Ray" analogy really struck home with me. CinnamonBoy makes a strong argument, IMHO. The problem with that argument is that Blu-ray was developed with a high-density packaging of audio and video in the first place - there's more room for the goods. Red Book CD (re-marketed here as SHM) is not going to ever offer an environment for bit-rates above and beyond what it is designed for. Those ones and zeros are set in stone. The only thing that can be done to enhance the sound on a CD is to fix the source material that goes into manufacturing the disc. That's what has been done with these SHMs, though only enough to bring a little heat to the sound, as remastering is out of the question per WB/Prince. Of course, someone can always EQ the data from their "standard" Prince CDs and approximate what these things are doing. Other companies are going to be coming to the table with this same "proprietary polycarbonate". The Blu-spec CD's claim to fame will be that it uses the same coating as that of Blu-ray discs. The problem again lies in the fact that they will be using the same Red Book CD data layer and any old red laser CD player will play them. Smoke and mirrors. Without a doubt, your argument is strong as well. I'm always impressed by your knowledge and presentation. | |
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squirrelgrease said: Since Prince re-recorded his entire WB back catalog, presumably using the original multi-tracks, those tapes may be toast - but at least are now digitally archived. As if he actually did this. No hard feelings. | |
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Wall said: squirrelgrease said: Since Prince re-recorded his entire WB back catalog, presumably using the original multi-tracks, those tapes may be toast - but at least are now digitally archived. As if he actually did this. I believe an insider has stated that he has indeed. For what that's worth. If prince.org were to be made idiot proof, someone would just invent a better idiot. | |
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