Brilliant thread guys! I have no idea what version I had back in the late 70s in Dublin... A UK pressing no doubt, but nostalgia does sound good... Only now replacing all my long lost vinyl... Just snagged an NM AB1006 on eBay so here's hoping for the best.
Well, the masters are long gone. I could be wrong but my guess is it's a digital file or a nth degree tape copy.
I have an AB, AA and Japanese Nippon Columbia YX-8114-AB. To my ears the Nippon Columbia sounds the best. In fact the Nippon Columbia versions of Katy Lied and Royal Scam also sound great.
This thread was a big help when I was browsing the stacks today. 3 copies of Aja, one was AB and the other two were AA. I already own an AA I wanted to see what the fuss was about and, boy was I not disappointed. The bass is tighter, stronger and the midrange overall much warmer. I'm quite happy with my $7 investment!
I have the AB 1006 release paid for in the year of release for about $6 and the Cisco release that I purchased for over $100. The original that I have sounds good but the Cisco is truly superior in my opinion. I feel fortunate to own both copies of this excellent album.
I'm sorry but, what is the Cisco release you're talking about? I read most of the thread and I didn't see an explanation. Thanks!
My goodness. My Cisco sounds SO murky in the upper midrange, and doesn't have the air that my original has. The Cisco does have more presence in the bass, so that immediately impressed me upon first listen, but my original has SO much more clarity, air, and immediacy. In comparison, the Cisco sounds like there's a layer of gauze over it.
Which only reinforces the point that everyone hears/interpets the same exact sounds differently. This is all as futile as comparing food reviews.
Partly true, but I'd also like to hear why, in what ways, the other poster preferred the Cisco. I could also have a defective copy.
AnalogJ, Please tell us about your Cisco, ie: what serial number, did you buy the Cisco new and how many times have you played it? I've read people accuse the Cisco of being too hi-fi but I've never heard anyone say it was murky in the mid band. And I find the Cisco bass to be less prominent, presumably due to the more judicious compression. I think I've posted many times already on this thread but here's my earlier posted personal observations regarding the Cisco vs a good original: I have to say, I also passed on the Cisco when it came out as well. My US first sounded really good and it was easy to dismiss a high priced reissue when the original sounded so good. But the Cisco sounds better. Is it worth the difference between hunting for the magic AB first US for 5 or 10 bucks and hoping it plays well or dropping 75-100 on the Cisco? That's for the buyer to decide but at the end of the day and many years later, for me it was. I like the shimmer and sheen of the Cisco high end and I think the bass is more...accurate, especially when you're pushing the volume. Compression can be a sexy beast and I think that's what makes the US first cut sound so good. Let's face it, it's a very highly processed album to start with. But when I compare these two, especially with the volume up, the Cisco wins out. BTW- I did a count and actually have 8 copies of this!
I have the Cisco, the MoFi and the original ABC. None are bad and the album is great. IMO, if you can find a good quiet original ABC count your blessings and spend your music dollar on something else you can't find.
I'm a huge Steely Dan fan. I bought the Cisco when it first came out. I also bought the original release, but it wasn't an AB. I also bought the MoFi when it first came out. By the way, my Cisco copy is buried somewhere, but I bought it when it first came out originally. There's no shimmer/sheen with my Cisco. Sure, it's smooth, but it's more like thickened butter compared to the AB (and this is taking VTA into account). Again, I was impressed with the lower end presence of the Cisco when it came out. But when I compared it to an AB I bought last year, it was like a shroud was taken away. I was totally surprised when Michael Fremer reported the same thing, because he had raved about the Cisco when it first came out. Later, after he heard an AB for the first time, he realized how murky the Cisco sounded. The Cisco sounds big. It has plenty of bloom (moreso than the AB). It's just that my AB is open and clear. It's not as rich, but by the same token, it's not as thick sounding (as in pea soup). If you read my profile, you'll see that I have a souped up original VPI Scout, SDS, Benz wood-body Glider, Art Audio Vinyl Phono Preamp, and Tara Labs The One cable running between the phono stage and the Unison Research Unico integrated.
All fine and dandy, but trying to find a silent ABC AB-1006 one is like trying to find an honest Wall Street banker.....
Keep in mind that their release was during a period when they were doing the "smile" EQing. Dynamic? Yes. Natural sounding? No.
