Atrociously recorded CDs

Napalm · « **on:** 15 Apr 2010, 04:44 pm »

Hi gang,

I've already posted one in the "Audio/Video that MUST be heard" thread, as that one was so bad that it makes it a "must hear".

However I have in my collection a pretty good quantity of badly recorded CDs. I don't want to throw them in the trash as I'm still interested in the music, but some of them are really painful to listen to.

One that I've recently listened to is Pink Floyd's "The Division Bell". Dark, constipated sound with grainy treble. Not at all the Pink Floyd sound I knew. Yes, I know, their previous album "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" has a dark sound too but at least it is clean. Did they switch recording studios after "The Final Cut" or what? That was their last CD with real "Pink Floyd" sound.

How are you guys doing in this respect? Do you have some atrocious CDs in your collection or do you dump them? Anything recently out that you think would be better avoided?

Nap.

b5pt9 · « **Reply #1 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 05:33 pm »

Yeah there's quite a few CD's with great musical content that I cannot listen to on my system due to poor recording. Natalie Merchant - Tigerlily comes to mind, as with some of Sarah McLachlan's earlier CD's.

1ZIP · « **Reply #2 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 05:34 pm »

I go through my collection once a year and cull out those I don't listen to anymore and those that are so bad they make you want to weep! I then give them to a friend who makes "objects d'art" out of them and sells them at local art(?) festivals.

Laundrew · « **Reply #3 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 06:00 pm »

Perhaps a new subject thread "must not hear" might be interesting.

Be well...

Napalm · « **Reply #4 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 06:14 pm »

Ha! I did some research and indeed Pink Floyd changed recording studio - their last 2 albums were recorded on a houseboat

For "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" they were using UREI 813 monitors. They later changed to ATC and recorded "The Division Bell". Also Yamaha NS10's (

) were used for mixing....

Now I also know why David Gilmour's "On An Island" sounds crappy too.....

If I were a billionaire I would establish a charity to replace for free all the Yamaha NS10s with PMCs....

Another one to avoid: Norah Jones "The Fall". Rather uninspired music too....

Nap.

bummrush · « **Reply #5 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 06:27 pm »

The Who Who's Next,and Aqualung

95Dyna · « **Reply #6 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 07:45 pm »

One of the great albums of my lifetime (starting in 1951) sadly is an atrocious recording. Even remastering and reissuing as an SACD helped only marginally. "Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs" by Derrick and the Dominoes. My original recording was a double LP. One is missing and the other is badly beer stained--we were in college in 1971 when it came out

. I wonder if there is a vinyl reissue?

Napalm · « **Reply #7 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 07:55 pm »

I checked on Norah Jones "The Fall". Recorded in Studio A at The Magic Shop in Manhattan. Now let's see the suspects. Monitor equipment they use:

ATC SCM200 Main Monitors W/ ATC power amps
ATC SCM20 self-powered
GENELEC 1031 A self-powered
YAMAHA NS-10m
BRYSTON 4B Power Amp
CROWN Powerbase

So... not only we have the NS-10s again, but they're powered by a BRYSTON amp!!!

I can only imagine how fast the engineer cut the mids and treble in an effort to save his ears from the shrieking sounds coming out of that combo!

No wonder the record sounds dull and muffled.....

Nap.

BobM · « **Reply #8 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 08:10 pm »

Most 70's and 80's rock is just bad sounding in general. The one that springs to mind immediately with great music but a terrible recording is Yessongs. The vinyl, as bad as it is is still miles better than the CD version.

decal · « **Reply #9 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 09:30 pm »

I would have to add anything by Aerosmith to the list.Love the music,hate the recordings.

fly_fish_nz · « **Reply #10 on:** 15 Apr 2010, 10:08 pm »

Californication by Red Hot Chilie Peppers has to be one of the all time worse, least wise the CD is often held out as an example of a poor recording - real shame too, since there is some cool music behind the screeching fingernails.

Anonamemouse · « **Reply #11 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 06:59 am »

Let us not forget this baby:

Not too bad when it comes to music (by FAR not their best!!!), but absolute HELL to listen to. I actually returned the cd to the store.
I still cannot believe how Metallica agreed to this being released.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Gmex_4hreQ

vegasdave · « **Reply #12 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 08:52 am »

Oh yeah, that one's a stinker sound-wise.

vegasdave · « **Reply #13 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 08:52 am »

Quote from: decal on 15 Apr 2010, 09:30 pm

I would have to add anything by Aerosmith to the list.Love the music,hate the recordings.

I dunno, I'd say their 'Toys in the Attic' album is a decent recording. This is on vinyl, however.

Kinger · « **Reply #14 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 12:00 pm »

+1 on that Metallica release. Absolutely HORRIBLE recording. Real shame as I think musically it is their best release since Justice.

craig223 · « **Reply #15 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 01:09 pm »

Back in the late 80s and early 90s, I went on a kick of trying to replace a lot of my favorite vinyl with CDs. A lot of the CDs sounded terrible compared to the vinyl. They sounded as if they fed the output of a cheap cassette into the adc to burn the CDs. A couple of my favorite 70s albums (Doc Watson - Memories and Pure Prairie League - Bustin Out) are unlistenable on CD.

The digital medium does remove one thing from the musical quality chain - badly pressed vinyl. Now we KNOW that the thing was badly recorded!

FredT300B · « **Reply #16 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 01:20 pm »

The number one offender in contemporary CD's (and remasters of older ones) is the indiscriminate use of dynamic compression, not for any valid artistic reason, but just to make them sound as loud as possible.

Several recording industry organizations have been created to educate musicians and recording engineers about the downside of compression. Here are links to the two best known organizations:
http://www.dynamicrange.de/node/1
http://www.turnmeup.org/

Go to this link for some examples of the dynamic range of some well known recordings:
http://www.tnt-audio.com/topics/dr_measurements_e.html

Using the Pleasurize Music software I've found that most tracks having a DR value of 10 or greater sound good, a range of 7 to 9 sounds compressed but listenable, while anything below 7 is unlistenable for any length of time.

Napalm · « **Reply #17 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 01:30 pm »

Quote from: craig223 on 16 Apr 2010, 01:09 pm

Back in the late 80s and early 90s, I went on a kick of trying to replace a lot of my favorite vinyl with CDs. A lot of the CDs sounded terrible compared to the vinyl. They sounded as if they fed the output of a cheap cassette into the adc to burn the CDs. A couple of my favorite 70s albums (Doc Watson - Memories and Pure Prairie League - Bustin Out) are unlistenable on CD.

Similar to my experience. I grew up in Eastern Europe, I had a turntable and a reel-to-reel tape recorder until something like '92-'93. My richer friends at that time got shiny new expensive CD-based equipment. The gear completely failed to impress me. Same opinion on the sound as you. However the CD was continuing to slaughter vinyl, most new releases were available on CD and cassette tape only. Also diamond tips, cartridges, reel tapes etc were becoming unavailable. I gave up and sold everything except amp and speakers, and listened to FM radio + cassette recorder. Then mp3 came, and it definitely was "CD quality", i.e. at that time both were so poor sounding that you could barely tell the difference. Then sometime around year 2000 I regained interest as some decent sounding CD gear and records started to appear.

Thank you Philips for the cassette tape and CD formats. They killed some 10 years of my music listening time.

Nap.

Napalm · « **Reply #18 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 02:22 pm »

Quote from: FredT300B on 16 Apr 2010, 01:20 pm

The number one offender in contemporary CD's (and remasters of older ones) is the indiscriminate use of dynamic compression, not for any valid artistic reason, but just to make them sound as loud as possible.

I agree that it can sound bad but this is a very old trick. Cca 1966 Peter Bown was using an Altec RS124 compressor and Zener limiter to record Pink Floyd's "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn". Also it was considered a cool technique at that time to saturate the tape recorder with a hot signal, in order to compress the signal and add a peculiar flavor to treble.

Lets not blame the CD folks for inventing this.

Nap.

rob80b · « **Reply #19 on:** 16 Apr 2010, 02:55 pm »

Quote from: Napalm on 16 Apr 2010, 02:22 pm

I agree that it can sound bad but this is a very old trick. Cca 1966 Peter Bown was using an Altec RS124 compressor and Zener limiter to record Pink Floyd's "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn". Also it was considered a cool technique at that time to saturate the tape recorder with a hot signal, in order to compress the signal and add a peculiar flavor to treble.

Lets not blame the CD folks for inventing this.

Nap.

So True,

I was told Jethro Tull were touring and will be in Toronto this summer, so curiosity had me pull out some early albums (vinyl) that i've not listened to in 30 years or more, I was a big fan back then being a flutist and all that.
Well all of them were highly compressed, no top no bottom, unfortunetly this was the rave then and still now, the music was mixed to sound it's best on the radio.
I guess I can always dig out my Auratones and plop them on top on the Dynudio Special 25s.

Robert