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Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2004 10:37 pm
by Ess Ay Cee Dee
nt

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2004 10:44 pm
by lukpac
Ess Ay Cee Dee wrote:I don't know why I care so much about it, but it fascinates me for some sick reason.


Join the club.

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2004 10:59 pm
by lukpac
I'm listening to AYE now. I hesitate to say there isn't any NR since I really don't have anything good to compare it to, but if there is, it was well done. I don't hear any artifacts, and there is still a decent amount of hiss around. I'd say at least on it's own this one sounds pretty good. Perhaps I might think differently after hearing something else, but...

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2004 11:00 pm
by Beatlesfan03
John Buchanan wrote:The Hendrix CDs have been mastered in the US several times.

Band of Gypsys was done twice in the US (and if anyone is interested in a more detailed comparison of this album, email me). The first 25th Anniversary edition was mastered using a copy of the master tape and sounds very slightly phasey with a little bass distortion. The EH version uses the original master and changes Bill Graham's intro to a drop in rather than a fade up. Some soft crackling noises have been introduced also, but overall it sounds better and the booklet is way better.


I never knew this was remastered as I have the original Capitol CD. Does this version also include the tracks that were released on Band Of Gypsies 2?

Xenu wrote:What's this HDCD edition of The Ultimate Experience that sh.tv crowd on about?


I believe it is the same disc that Luke mentioned in his first post. He details the faults quite well.

I mentioned this in the Deja Vu thread, but I seem to recall reading somewhere that 1993 remasters were essentially the same as the Reprise masters. I used to have the 93 version along with my Reprise and I seem to remember that the credits matched to a T. Those '93 versions for some reason are really hard to find. I can find the Warner CDs a lot easier.

Like Ryan, I've also got the Essential Jimi Hendrix and I also picked up Kiss The Sky which was engineered by Mark Linett and Joe Gaswirt. No mention of No-noise in the notes though. I've never really either through a ringer of tests.

I only have one Polydor disc of "Axis," which I snagged on eBay thinking it was the alternate version, but it appears to be the same stereo mix as the US copy. Lots of hiss on it too.

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2004 11:12 pm
by lukpac
Beatlesfan03 wrote:
Xenu wrote:What's this HDCD edition of The Ultimate Experience that sh.tv crowd on about?


I believe it is the same disc that Luke mentioned in his first post. He details the faults quite well.


If it is the same, I don't know anything about an HDCD version. Mine is from 1993. I *think* it came out slightly before the 3 JHE CDs, although I'm not certain. The artwork is similar to those, with a reflective gold background.

The BAL and EL tracks seem decent enough, but as previously mentioned, I think most/all of the AYE tracks run fast, and a few just sound really, really bad.

I mentioned this in the Deja Vu thread, but I seem to recall reading somewhere that 1993 remasters were essentially the same as the Reprise masters. I used to have the 93 version along with my Reprise and I seem to remember that the credits matched to a T. Those '93 versions for some reason are really hard to find. I can find the Warner CDs a lot easier.


Did any Reprise CDs have those b-sides found on the 1993 AYE? How about Red House?

Posted: Fri Oct 15, 2004 11:18 pm
by Beatlesfan03
lukpac wrote:Did any Reprise CDs have those b-sides found on the 1993 AYE? How about Red House?


Red House is on "Kiss The Sky." I'm guessing it is the alternate stereo mix with what sounds like Jimi talking back to the control room.

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 1:41 am
by krabapple
Those awful alternate CD covers were Alan Douglas' idea, IIRC. He felt that these kids today, they need something flashier and more modern to catch their attention when CD shopping. Asshole.

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 2:53 am
by czeskleba
lukpac wrote:As I'm too lazy to look, hasn't Hoffman said some early Reprise CD of AYE is the "one to get"?


If I recall correctly, he said that the very first Reprise CD of AYE used the master tape and subsequent Reprise pressings at least did not. But he also said it featured (in his opinion) really bad EQ so I don't think he recommended it as the one to get.

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 8:02 am
by Kjoerup
Ess Ay Cee Dee wrote:I don't know why I care so much about it, but it fascinates me for some sick reason.


Same here, and I can't even imagine why that is. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that after all this time, the Hendrix catalog is still mysteriously screwed up -- and nobody can say why that is. It would appear that it took more effort to maintain the old Reprise/Track US/UK nonsensical anomalies than it would be to simply fix it.

For what it's worth, the three "ugly cover" MCA CDs compare favorably to the 1970s Polydor German LP pressings I grew up with. That's good enough for me, although I'm sure there are those ready to tell me how bad those German Polydors were, or that I didn't own the proper pressing with the "8" in the dead wax, and so forth.

Whatever. Reading through all this, it appears that both the 1993 MCA and the 1997 EH CDs all sound fine. The truly obsessive can always track down the fabled first pressing of AYE on New Guinea Reprise, I guess, but, eh, I'm satisfied with what I got (at least I was satisfied after I turned the CD booklets around in order to display the original front covers).

Lukpac wrote:Do *yours* still have the stamps :roll:


Mine do indeed have the stamps. Does this mean there's some SDMEtv yuppie out there who's willing to pay me $601 on ebay for them? I sure hope so! Think of them as sticky, miniature internal obis.

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 9:55 am
by Ess Ay Cee Dee
nt

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 9:58 am
by Ess Ay Cee Dee
nt

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 12:08 pm
by lukpac
krabapple wrote:Those awful alternate CD covers were Alan Douglas' idea, IIRC. He felt that these kids today, they need something flashier and more modern to catch their attention when CD shopping. Asshole.


I'm not sure if the covers had any influence on me, but I will say I was quite taken at the time by the clear CD trays. "Wow, this CD has a neat clear tray with a picture under it, it must be better!"

I came across this, which really makes thing as clear as mud. In regards to BAL: "the new CD does have a much higher output level than my old Warner/Reprise CD, resulting in clearer sound". And about EL: "the new CD is fuller, clearer, not as hissy or tinny-sounding, and has better bass response".

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 12:40 pm
by Beatlesfan03
Here's a Hoffman link discussing the Hendrix CDs. The rockman's post (#7) has a comparison of Hendrix discs he has. He doesn't care for the EH reissues.

http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showt ... mi+hendrix

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 1:02 pm
by Rspaight
So, according to that post, I shouldn't listen to Hendrix because my CDs are so completely inferior to some obscure Japanese issues that cost $30-150 apiece, made from nth-generation dubs with ancient A/D converters. That makes my life simpler.

Ryan

Posted: Sat Oct 16, 2004 2:06 pm
by Xenu
lukpac wrote:I'm not sure if the covers had any influence on me, but I will say I was quite taken at the time by the clear CD trays. "Wow, this CD has a neat clear tray with a picture under it, it must be better!"


Wow. You too? That used to be my major psychological "geez, this must be better!" cue. A few others were:

a) Nicely silkscreened disc surface. Generally, the "smoother" the better. Things like the Zappa reissues looked a bit too "pasted on" to me, so I wasn't sure about the MAGNIFICENT IMPROVEMENTS in those.

b) Writing under the case spine. This tends to go hand in hand with clear trays.