[Mike Nomad]

Hi Folks,

Given the sad state of CD quality maybe the ability to download and play high resolution digital music files (BDA-1/BDP-1) may be the answer?

James

Increasingly, I am going in the direction of downloads for Hi-Rez music. DVD-A (and related) are almost dead. SACD is on its way to becoming a well established niche format . That said, I see Blu-Ray as (eventually) _the_ Hi-Rez disc format. I am seeing more and more LPCM & DSD content show up.

[vegasdave]

i own both the very first release on cd and a later version, and the first one actually sounds as good as the vinyl album. the re-release sounds like sh*t.

this is something i notice frequently, specially with older albums. the first release of a cd sounds good to excellent, any re-release after that just sucks...

Nah, to me the vinyl blows all of the cd's away.

But I agree with you, the original Elektra cd sounds the best.

[Napalm]

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.

Just checked... guess what.... again Sterling Sound NY (that I mentioned earlier for botching Gotan).... I'll make sure I don't ever again touch their stuff.... no matter whom the artist is....

Nap. 

[drew54]

i personally believe that cd's can and do sound great- depending on recording and mastering.  Natalie Merchant's Ophelia happens to be a demo disc I use frequently.   

Dynamic range is an important consideration:  i recorded a Steinway grand at my aunt's house.  I thought the CD came out pretty good after mixing and mastering on my system. 

Back at my aunts house, when she turned it up to hear the quiet bits, the woofers rattled in her upstairs spkrs, and her walls rattled downstairs using a Bose sub/sat system.

Do I think engineers should make records/cds for me, with 4x 12in woofers, or for my aunt?  For me, obviously, but the engineers dont seem to agree.

[Napalm]

Do I think engineers should make records/cds for me, with 4x 12in woofers, or for my aunt?  For me, obviously, but the engineers dont seem to agree.

Problem is.... aunties don't buy CDs... and you will stop buying them too if they're mastered for aunties....

Or, more to the subject: iPod users don't buy CDs, they buy iTunes. If you master your CDs for iTunes/iPods, whom is expected to buy them???????

How dense can be these CEO/sound engineers/managers to not realize that if they manufacture CDs at iTunes quality level, they won't sell? It is so much more convenient and cost effective to download just the hits from an iTunes album. If the CD doesn't bring anything more but some extra tracks with junk, why would anyone buy it?

They alienate exactly the only people that would actually buy CDs, then they blame it on internet and "the pirates".

Nap. 

[Napalm]

How history repeats itself.... A 28 years old article from Stereophile:

http://www.stereophile.com/asweseeit/where_we_are_and_how_we_got_here/

Nap. 

[werd]

Just checked... guess what.... again Sterling Sound NY (that I mentioned earlier for botching Gotan).... I'll make sure I don't ever again touch their stuff.... no matter whom the artist is....

Nap. 

The XBOX guitar hero version of that album has a good recording. You can find it on the internet if you look.

[Anonamemouse]

The XBOX guitar hero version of that album has a good recording. You can find it on the internet if you look.

True, but so far I have only found an MP3 version of it...

[Napalm]

Interesting article in Stereophile:

http://blog.stereophile.com/stephenmejias/benchmarks_masters_from_their_day/

I perfectly agree with what they say here:

"Listening to music from the legendary catalogs of Decca, Atlantic, Stax, Sun, Parlophone, etc, it’s hard to believe that several of those immortal recordings were made in a single session. How could any of those revered recordings have been made in one day? Simple... They had a killer studio, great gear, an extremely talented crew, and, most importantly, great artists. They were the masters from their day. "

Ah well, both those in bold are rare these days...

However... watching the video... I got completely disappointed..... here's a small game for you ... can you spot a pair of Yamaha NS-10m in the video?

Nap.

Answer: go to minute 6:40. If I were Benchmark I wouldn't want to be associated with those in any way.

[Napalm]

Some news:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/10/business/media/10audio.html?hp

Nap. 

[rob80b]

Interesting reading some of the above listed links, truth is, outside the audiophile community our hobby is unconsciously perceived by the public as no different from those who have model train systems set up in their basements. There are obviously differences, in that almost everyone listens to and enjoys music, it's part of our life; and are impressed by the advances in home cinema.  On that note there are probably more hobbyist now than when I first got into the auditory pursuit, but the fact remains outside these and other forums (the web is still a recent event) and audio venues, I’ve probably only met less than a handful of audiophiles in over forty years.
The thing to remember that as an audiophile it’s all about the music, painfully though music is not all about the audiophile.

Robert

[Moon Doggy]

How dense can be these CEO/sound engineers/managers to not realize that if they manufacture CDs at iTunes quality level, they won't sell?

They alienate exactly the only people that would actually buy CDs, then they blame it on internet and "the pirates".

Nap. 

Tell it like it is Nap!

[Napalm]

Looks like our European friends are learning from the American recording studios. Another victim of the loudness mania. This time our candidate to the Hall Of Shame is signor Massimo Visentin from Studiottanta-Fortuna Records, Italy. Paolo didn't deserve this. 



Nap. 

P.S. Yeah the famous Yamaha NS10s are there too: http://www.studiottanta.it/pages/ing/sale/sala7.htm

P.P.S. Werd, click on the link above to see what the signal is passing through at recording time. And you think that a bypass switch on your preamp would "degrade" it ? 

[Napalm]

Some interesting statistics by the Recording Industry Ass. :

http://www.riaa.com/keystatistics.php?content_selector=MusicConsumerProfile

Now something doesn't quite add up here. We can see that the over 40 category is as important as all the kiddos combined + the 30ies. We also know that they're more likely to have some decent sound system, and be inclined to quieter musical genres like jazz or classical. However when you look at the musical genres stats you could decide that american grannies must be avid rockers, rappers, goths or industrial fans . How comes. 

And just for laughs we can notice that in 2008 SACD has surpassed vinyl. What a feat. 

Also interesting:

http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_news/20100428.html

which tells us that the "global decline in music sales" is actually led by US, while Europe is pretty stable. Maybe they should learn how to master those "loud" CDs too.

Of course, there's a "blame Canada" conclusion there too. Yeah sure.

Nap. 

[Dave P]

Michael Jackson  -   What can I tell you. I really like his music but not on a decent Hi Fi – Please!
The HIFI site
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[Napalm]

Interesting reading:





http://www.amazon.com/Life-Death-Classical-Music-Recordings/dp/1400096588/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1274905551&sr=8-2

Nap. 

[Laundrew]

"And just for laughs we can notice that in 2008 SACD has surpassed vinyl. What a feat. "  

Nap. 

I missed that one...

 

Be well...

[Napalm]

Let us not forget this baby:

Have fun:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbyIvxxW8Qc

Nap. 

[vegasdave]

And just for laughs we can notice that in 2008 SACD has surpassed vinyl. What a feat.