TheEnglishGent said:

Can't buy because not in the us . Can't find a torrent . Looking forward to listening to this.

It won't let you buy it with Paypal?

daPrettyman said:

TheEnglishGent said:

Can't buy because not in the us . Can't find a torrent . Looking forward to listening to this.

It won't let you buy it with Paypal?

It won't let me get that far!

To the people that have bought this release: could you please tell us about your experiences?

TheEnglishGent said:

daPrettyman said:

It won't let you buy it with Paypal?

It won't let me get that far!

Try a free proxy server perhaps?

So if I buy this, who is getting the money? HD-Tracks or WB/Rhino? Is Prince getting anything?

TheEnglishGent said:

daPrettyman said:

It won't let you buy it with Paypal?

It won't let me get that far!

Damn!

8up said:

So if I buy this, who is getting the money? HD-Tracks or WB/Rhino? Is Prince getting anything?

Since this is an official release, all parties are getting paid (I'm sure) whatever the terms of the contract is.

udo said:

8up said:

A remaster is fine. Man, you guys can be anal.

There is no remaster as we cannot (`legally`) download it due to the issues I mentioned.

Proper distribution, even in the internet age, is still oh so difficult.

Dude, I was able to download it just fine.

8up said:

Stop bickering about this. Who's ears are good enough to hear

Hi-Def audio anyways and what are you gonna play it through

to deliver it to those said ears? A remaster is fine. Man, you

guys can be anal.

Except there is some evidence to suggest that the stuff you aren't able to hear still influence the sound you actually percieve.

udo said:

Marrk said:

So anyone outside the States tried to buy this via a proxy? just curious.

I didn't as they require weird software to download their audio.

Maybe that software is an attempt to negate the proxy loophole?

And yet I was able to downlaod the files using that software without any hassle. Yes, it's stupid they have their own download manager. Then again, people actually needed a manual for downloading from 3rdeyegirl.com , so there's that.

BartVanHemelen said:

udo said:

I didn't as they require weird software to download their audio.

Maybe that software is an attempt to negate the proxy loophole?

And yet I was able to downlaod the files using that software without any hassle. Yes, it's stupid they have their own download manager. Then again, people actually needed a manual for downloading from 3rdeyegirl.com , so there's that.

So... Was it worth it?

Happy for a remaster, but high-resolution or no, official remaster or no, **none** of these '80s Prince albums will ever sound "good," much less "great." Remember: They were recorded quickly, and mixed even faster, so the original vinyl master is probably as good as they'll ever get.

In the words of Susan Rogers:

"People have assumed that because these records were successful that we took the same degree and care with the technique as we did with the art and that’s completely false. I mean, technically, sonically these records aren’t great. Many, many, many others in which care was actually put into the technique and the craft sound better. Our records sounded alright, their form served the function, but what was great about it and what people were buying was not the sonic qualities. People were buying the art, the musical attributes. In that sense, Prince didn’t care; and any of those old records, if you listen to Sly Stone or James Brown, you’ll hear distortion all over the place but it doesn’t affect the music at all."

revox said:

Happy for a remaster, but high-resolution or no, official remaster or no, **none** of these '80s Prince albums will ever sound "good," much less "great." Remember: They were recorded quickly, and mixed even faster, so the original vinyl master is probably as good as they'll ever get.

In the words of Susan Rogers:

"People have assumed that because these records were successful that we took the same degree and care with the technique as we did with the art and that’s completely false. I mean, technically, sonically these records aren’t great. Many, many, many others in which care was actually put into the technique and the craft sound better. Our records sounded alright, their form served the function, but what was great about it and what people were buying was not the sonic qualities. People were buying the art, the musical attributes. In that sense, Prince didn’t care; and any of those old records, if you listen to Sly Stone or James Brown, you’ll hear distortion all over the place but it doesn’t affect the music at all."

But I will admit that I do rather enjoy listening to things through a better set of cans or even just different buds and hearing things I've never heard before.

revox said:

Happy for a remaster, but high-resolution or no, official remaster or no, **none** of these '80s Prince albums will ever sound "good," much less "great." Remember: They were recorded quickly, and mixed even faster, so the original vinyl master is probably as good as they'll ever get.

In the words of Susan Rogers:

"People have assumed that because these records were successful that we took the same degree and care with the technique as we did with the art and that’s completely false. I mean, technically, sonically these records aren’t great. Many, many, many others in which care was actually put into the technique and the craft sound better. Our records sounded alright, their form served the function, but what was great about it and what people were buying was not the sonic qualities. People were buying the art, the musical attributes. In that sense, Prince didn’t care; and any of those old records, if you listen to Sly Stone or James Brown, you’ll hear distortion all over the place but it doesn’t affect the music at all."

That is very true.

I bought the HD tracks version and I can definitely hear subtle differences (most notable on "Automatic"). When I was listening to it, the distortion was more evident than what I remember.

revox said:

Happy for a remaster, but high-resolution or no, official remaster or no, **none** of these '80s Prince albums will ever sound "good," much less "great." Remember: They were recorded quickly, and mixed even faster, so the original vinyl master is probably as good as they'll ever get.

In the words of Susan Rogers:

"People have assumed that because these records were successful that we took the same degree and care with the technique as we did with the art and that’s completely false. I mean, technically, sonically these records aren’t great. Many, many, many others in which care was actually put into the technique and the craft sound better. Our records sounded alright, their form served the function, but what was great about it and what people were buying was not the sonic qualities. People were buying the art, the musical attributes. In that sense, Prince didn’t care; and any of those old records, if you listen to Sly Stone or James Brown, you’ll hear distortion all over the place but it doesn’t affect the music at all."

The main issue with a lot of the 80s stuff is volume (especially on SOTT, which is my favorite album).

.

I like the idea of HD downloads, which allow for a lot of enhancements without the physical limitation of CDs - so there should be no clipping/distortion/brickwalling. The file sizes just end up being larger, no biggie.

.

Still, at $20 for this download, it's a bit steep especially if they're this price for every album.

BartVanHemelen said:

udo said:

I didn't as they require weird software to download their audio.

Maybe that software is an attempt to negate the proxy loophole?

And yet I was able to downlaod the files using that software without any hassle. Yes, it's stupid they have their own download manager. Then again, people actually needed a manual for downloading from 3rdeyegirl.com , so there's that.

Bart, I'd appreciate hearing your review on how this HD version compares to the CD version (and also how some of the songs compare to those on Ultimate Prince).

Apparently Controversy is coming to HD Tracks this week.

Controversy is on HD Tracks!

So, can anybody tell us whether there'a a significative/interesting difference between the CD versions of "1999" / "Controversy" and the HDtracks / Qobuz versions?

Of course, volume normalization, for me, is not significative/interesting.

olb99 said:

So, can anybody tell us whether there'a a significative/interesting difference between the CD versions of "1999" / "Controversy" and the HDtracks / Qobuz versions?

Of course, volume normalization, for me, is not significative/interesting.

I'm no audio expert, but for me, I could hear the effects used more clearly that were used. Especially on tracks like "Automatic" and "Little Red Corvette." With the audio being so clear, you can really hear the distortion on the vocals. "DMSR" and "LRC" are pretty bad. I'm not sure if that is a remaster issue or if it was originally like that and I have never paid that close attention to it.

I haven't purchased the "Controversy" project yet, but I am pleased with the sound on 1999. To me, I don't think it's overly loud like a lot of newer projects.

ericschafer said:

Edit to say: this topic is also being covered at http://forums.stevehoffma...ks.313583/ and http://forums.stevehoffma...430/page-6

[Edited 3/26/13 13:33pm]

[Edited 3/26/13 13:46pm]

Gotta love that "hey let's discuss every frikking release from HDTRacks in one single thread" idea. Because what could be a better use of time than clicking page after page in the hope that someone somewhere has post something relevant to the release you're interested in.