Postby Rspaight » Wed Oct 29, 2003 7:31 pm
OK, here's the last I plan to do with these. Mr. Patrick M was kind enough to lend me some of his Dylan vinyl, so here's some quick-hit thoughts on three more titles. (Note that the turntable for these is the Music Hall MMF-5, rather the JVC empoyed on the previous comparisons.)
DESIRE - "Hurricane"
The LP (PC33893 white label promo) sounded pretty good, if a bit "pinched" (the violin was edgy and the guitar and vocal lacked body). The soundstage was nice and well-defined, and the bass was nice.
The old CD (CK 33893) had better tone for the violin, guitar and vocal, but not ideal. The soundstage was pulled in a bit as well. It sounded good, not as bright as the LP but (perhaps due to that) with less presence.
The CD layer of the new disc (CH 90318) was not enormously louder than the old CD. More high end, and thus better presence and detail. The percussion was more forward. Not an enormous difference to my ears, though.
The SACD layer opened up the soundstage a bit, and had the best guitar tone. Oddly, the percussion seemed less forward than the CD layer.
The differences between all these versions were subtle.
BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME - "Maggie's Farm"
The LP (UK CBS 62515) sounded about like BIABH always has: thin, pinched, not much bass. The CD (CK 9128) was a bit better (fuller and clearer) but not hugely different. The CD layer of the SACD (CH 90326) was louder and remixed. Still, though, the sound was quite similar, but another notch clearer, especially in the drums. The SACD layer sounded like yet another notch of better definition, but again no huge differences here.
JOHN WESLEY HARDING - "All Along The Watchtower"
This one was bizarre. There was a dropout on the word "plowmen" on all the copies I listened to, which suggests the same source, but...
The vinyl (CS 9604, an old 2-eye that had had a rough life prior to finding Patrick) was pretty noisy, but underneath that I heard a smooth vocal and very recessed instruments.
The old CD (CK 9604), on the hand, was more balanced between the vocal and the instrumentation. The vocal wasn't as smooth, though.
The CD layer (CH 90320) I initially thought wasn't any louder, until the vocal came in very loudly. The balance between the vocals and instruments was back to the LP sound again, with the instruments pushed way back. The vocal was better than the old CD. (The SACD layer sounded very similar to the CD layer.)
So what the hey? Is the old CD a remix and the new disc the original LP mix? Did the old disc have wildly different EQ to try to "rebalance" the voice and instruments? Am I hearing things again? Is anyone reading this? Did anyone who actually paid to see "Freddy Got Fingered" do so while sober?
Ryan
RQOTW: "I'll make sure that our future is defined not by the letters ACLU, but by the letters USA." -- Mitt Romney
