Describes reality better? Is reality charicterized by an ever-present backgroudnd of pops and crackles?
This is independt of the medium's condition. Theoretically and practically, analog is not superior to digital.
We are not talking about individual masterings, quality of equipment, room acoustics or "golden ears," we are talking about mediums. | |
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but some people don't want a sound close to the vinyl sound, but close to the sound recorded in the studio that appears on the master tapes
cd has a greater frequency range than vinyl, so technically speaking, a properly mastered CD can sound better than a properly mastered record. in other words, a CD has a greater resolution than a record
the reason some people prefer the sound of vinyl is because of what some may describe as a "wamer sound", but that is basically a result of the issues that vinly has, such as muddy bass and rolled off top end
the older generation would have grown up with AM radio and cassettes and records, and used to a sound that had more mid and bottom range than top end. as with many things in life, what people get used and accustomed too, they will often like and prefer. it sets a psychological association
so when CD came along with a clearer top and end tighter bottom end, with more noticable resoluton in the upper range in particular, to some as it sounded less familiar, being closer to the actual studio master recording than the sound they were used to on a record, they were unused to that sound and preferred the sound they were more used to
also consider the equipment used in the 60s, 70s and early 80s compared to the equipment in the 80s and onwards, many people will have grown up with dansettes and portable radios and all sorts of "non hifi" type playback devices, which made ears accustomed to a particular type of sound, so being used to that and coming across something different, had a psychological effect
what you are hearing with a record, asides from the pops and clicks, hissing and possible rumble and hum, is a more compressed sound. not to be confused with the compression used over the past few years on CD which is commonly known as brickwalling, where sounds are compressed so most frequencies are pushed to the same higher levels in order to sound "louder" so when ripped to portable mp3 players tracks have a more consistent volume level, particularly on random play. but the downside of this is a loss of dynamic range. when comparing a CD that's masted in such a way to a record that is not, such as a new remaster of a classic album compared to a 70s issue, it's the mastering that causes the effects that some listeners don't like, not the medium itself. you can master both formats to show the full dynamic range, which would result in a lower level on the medium, or you could effectively brickwall on both, so the record sounds louder too
if you take 24k needle drops that some people make, some people prefer this even though it's now a digital recording, as it includes the same compression and rolled highes and muddy bass that some consider a richer sound. that's just personal preference. you aren't hearing a recording closer to the original sound
you could effectively master a CD using similar compression techniques to resemble a vinly recording, but then the recording sounds less like the original recording | |
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Any chance the other Rhino releases will be avaialble? | |
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Word. How does it compare to the original vinyl? "He's a musician's musician..." | |
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Yes it certainly is true. The faster the sampling rate, the closer it gets to representing an analog sound wave.
With your second claim, it really depends on the material and the ears involved.
With any compressed electronic music, one is not likely to hear the difference between 44.1KHz/16bit vs. 96KHz or 192KHz at 24bit.
With any acoustic instruments, percussion, live drum cymbals, and also vocals, one can clearly hear the difference, as long as they have well trained, sensitive ears.
Granted, my hearing is a bit over sensitive but very accurate.
. [Edited 3/27/13 13:46pm] "He's a musician's musician..." | |
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I found that the linn sounded particularly punchy and alot of detail in the mix became apparent. I think if you listen on a crappy system or laptop speakers you probably won't hear a differance.
I will say out of the three reissues on 180gram Dirty Mind had the biggest improvement (should I say improvement, Well to be democratic it showed the most marked diffrence. It felt like a far more detailed record while still sounding sparse.... I really had new appretiation for that album after listening to that album.
I might have a listening party for all three round mine with some friends when I get a new needle (mines a bit old at the mo) | |
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Placebo, confimation bias and post-purchase rationalization are stronger than you or I. But science is stronger. And the wealth of scientific evidence does not agree you. | |
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I'm aware of what you're saying, including the "evidence" you refer to. The only problem there, is that these claims are usually based on what frequencies the human ear is capable of, both on the low Hz side, and upper frequency KHz range.
The fact that you aren't admitting to, is that the faster the sampling rate, the closer to resembling an actual analog sound wave.
Truly, bit depth is far more noticable than sampling rate... the difference between 16bit and 24bit is quite obvious. In recording music, I'll usually select 88.2KHz rate, and always 24bit.
By the way, I've done blind hearing tests. "He's a musician's musician..." | |
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hey there, a true researcher ! "Climb in my fur." | |
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I fail to see why that is a problem? Also the "evidence" I refer to is numerous double-blind tests performed that failed to demonstrate the ability of participants (even self-proclaimed audiophiles and well-respected sound engineer participants) to distinguish between redbook CD resolution and Hi-Rez.
I am not failing to admit to such a fact. I am simply disregarding its importance in this matter.
Oh, have you? Was it double-blinded? If so and you were still able to distinguish between the two samples more than let's say at least 60% of the time, in 20 or more tries, then maybe you should contact the Journal of Audio Engineering Society. I'm sure they'd love to talk to you. | |
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I guess I will rephrase what I said about it sounding as close to the vinyl as possible. What I meant was that I believe this is probably as close as we are going to get sound quality wise to master tapes. There is little to no hiss or any pops that I have noticed on these transfers. The reason I said as close to the vinyls as possible is because when these songs were written they were mastered to sound good on the best possible consumer medium of the time which was vinyl. Sorry for the confusion. | |
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This debate has been going on since the invention of digital music. Nobody is going to change anyone's mind, so allow me to reframe it differently. Neither vinyl nor digital is an accurate accounting of the original; they are each inaccurate in their own ways. My choice of which format to listen to is dictated by "which is more engaging to listen to".
To me, vinyl through a tube amp is often *more* inaccurate but in a *more* pleasant way for active listening. To me, hi-res recordings are a more dynamic and engaging listen than Redbook standard recordings, although they really have come a long way in what can be represented in 16/44.1k (ironically via the use of the counterintuitive process of adding deliberate distortion for better fidelity, aka dithering).
Whatever floats your boat, folks. Aren't there enough religious wars on the planet already? | |
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I'm not sure of this tit-for-tat convo regarding audio clarity is sexy or frustrating.
Can it be both? "Climb in my fur." | |
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Your attempt to "reframe" this debate was unnecessary and frivolous. Essentially, you agree with Giovanni777. Great. But this discussion conerns itself with what is demonstrably better, not what one prefers.
Science is not a religion. | |
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Thank you for sharing your opinions. | |
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Ok..its def sexy "Climb in my fur." | |
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no problem, but when proper remasters come out, like the ones prince says he's done, then they should sound considerably better as they are going back to the actual master tape instead of a copy of it that was used to master the vinly or cd. you won't get pops or clicks on the HD downloads though, as they won't be taken from records | |
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If you doubt that the exact same master would sound better in 24 bit 96hz or better than a normal 16 bit 44.1hz version, just buy the Beatles "Love" DVD-audio from years ago, compare the same tracks from the same master in the three different formats they are releases in: CD stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 AC3, and the Surround sound 24 bit 96 hz version.
Of course the same could be done with a blu ray audio release like this:http://www.blu-ray.com/movies/Pink-Floyd-The-Dark-Side-Of-The-Moon-Blu-ray/23971/
the difference is dramatic.
And the area of a song that 24 bitmakes a difference is in the quiet moments. The bits can be likened to a stack that defines the amplitude of a wave. On CD's during quiet passages and fade outs, you your amplitude is diminshing down to be defined by fewer and fewer bits.
If you are at 24 bits, you have twice the definition on those same lower volume sections.
The area of sound that the higher frequency fidelity will make is in the mix or clarity of instruments together. you can easily experiment with this by making a multitrack mix an audio program like Protools and then bouncing that down to a 44.1 hz mix or a 96hz mix, and then listenining in high quality headphones for clarity and depth in the mix.
And those of you who think vinyl has any kind of fidelity compared to the master tape are CRAZY.
Vinyl sound quality is quite a distorted version of the sound that gets poorer in fidelity each time ytou listen to it because of the microscopic wear.
The only true holy perfect audio quality on analog recordings is to roll the master tape.
My art book: http://www.lulu.com/spotl...ecomicskid
VIDEO WORK: http://sharadkantpatel.com MUSIC: https://soundcloud.com/ufoclub1977 | |
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Except the three format versions available for The Beatles Love album all had significantly different dynamic range values, so, your example is not valid. Regardless, I would not consider you, or any naysayers of audio science, "CRAZY." Misguided and ignorant? Yes, but not "CRAZY." | |
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Are you are unwittingly confirming what I'm saying? "all had significantly different dynamic range". Because that is exactly what I'm saying. 16-bit CD has a theoretical dynamic range of about 96 dB, 24-bit digital audio calculates to 144 dB dynamic range.
My art book: http://www.lulu.com/spotl...ecomicskid
VIDEO WORK: http://sharadkantpatel.com MUSIC: https://soundcloud.com/ufoclub1977 | |
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Clever, but no. Try again.
We are not talking about the 16bit version having a dynamic range vaule of 20, and the 24bit version having a dynamic range value of 30, more like the difference between 9 and 11. Considering many 16bit CDs have measured with a dynamic range exceeding 20, you might want to rethink this one. | |
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HE has remastered them???
| |
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I am with those that claim to be able to hear the difference. No matter what science says. Good for those who don't hear the difference, will save you lots of money!
I am very happy Prince's work will become available as HR Audio. Unfortunately I have recently purchased the new 180 gr vinyl of 1999, so I think I will pass for now, but I can't wait for some other ones (like SOTT!!) to be released in this format! RIP Prince: thank U 4 a funky Time... | |
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Well put. "He's a musician's musician..." | |
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All spot on points. Looks like we both have had a career in audio!
"He's a musician's musician..." | |
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Both. Yeah, I said it. "He's a musician's musician..." | |
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rdhull said: I'm not sure of this tit-for-tat convo regarding audio clarity is sexy or frustrating.
Can it be both? How about excruciatingly annoying and full of super human hearing narcissistic bullshit? | |
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unique said:
but some people don't want a sound close to the vinyl sound, but close to the sound recorded in the studio that appears on the master tapes
cd has a greater frequency range than vinyl, so technically speaking, a properly mastered CD can sound better than a properly mastered record. in other words, a CD has a greater resolution than a record
the reason some people prefer the sound of vinyl is because of what some may describe as a "wamer sound", but that is basically a result of the issues that vinly has, such as muddy bass and rolled off top end
the older generation would have grown up with AM radio and cassettes and records, and used to a sound that had more mid and bottom range than top end. as with many things in life, what people get used and accustomed too, they will often like and prefer. it sets a psychological association
so when CD came along with a clearer top and end tighter bottom end, with more noticable resoluton in the upper range in particular, to some as it sounded less familiar, being closer to the actual studio master recording than the sound they were used to on a record, they were unused to that sound and preferred the sound they were more used to
also consider the equipment used in the 60s, 70s and early 80s compared to the equipment in the 80s and onwards, many people will have grown up with dansettes and portable radios and all sorts of "non hifi" type playback devices, which made ears accustomed to a particular type of sound, so being used to that and coming across something different, had a psychological effect
what you are hearing with a record, asides from the pops and clicks, hissing and possible rumble and hum, is a more compressed sound. not to be confused with the compression used over the past few years on CD which is commonly known as brickwalling, where sounds are compressed so most frequencies are pushed to the same higher levels in order to sound "louder" so when ripped to portable mp3 players tracks have a more consistent volume level, particularly on random play. but the downside of this is a loss of dynamic range. when comparing a CD that's masted in such a way to a record that is not, such as a new remaster of a classic album compared to a 70s issue, it's the mastering that causes the effects that some listeners don't like, not the medium itself. you can master both formats to show the full dynamic range, which would result in a lower level on the medium, or you could effectively brickwall on both, so the record sounds louder too
if you take 24k needle drops that some people make, some people prefer this even though it's now a digital recording, as it includes the same compression and rolled highes and muddy bass that some consider a richer sound. that's just personal preference. you aren't hearing a recording closer to the original sound
you could effectively master a CD using similar compression techniques to resemble a vinly recording, but then the recording sounds less like the original recording Exactly. 90% placebo effect. | |
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Screw this. I won't get excited until its a 100% official remastered release. | |
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let us get our paraphilia fetish on "Climb in my fur." | |
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