Had the UK Vertigo 1st long time ago, but on another equipment. This WB does it for me for now. If I should stumble over another UK I'll try it for sure, but till then this is good enough for me
The early WWA volume 4 has the Vertigo catalogue numbers on the run off crossed out with a line through it and the WWA catalogue number etched after it. It sounds superb. You can hear Iommi's fingers dragging on the strings as he changes chords. The early NEMS version of the first Black Sabbath album has the WWA catalogue number on the runoff and the Nems catalogue number etched after it. It comes on a substantial slap of vinyl and sounds terrific.
Funny you should quote the long-departed Jeff Carney as an authority here. You should look up what he had to say about your beloved Black Box
I had the WWA Volume 4 with the Vertigo numbers crossed out (second cut, no Porky/Pecko) and liked the original US olive label pressing better. Same goes for the NEMS version of the first Black Sabbath album with the WWA catalogue number in the deadwax. I do prefer the WWA/Vertigo Paranoid and WWA Sabbath Bloody Sabbath to their US counterparts though.
I realise most here don't like the compression and it being a bit bright but other versions of Vol. 4 sound muddy and muffled with a veiled sound. I don't know how anyone can like the 2009 Sanctuary Pearce remaster, that's the worst I've heard. Tape dropouts and its just dead sounding.
I just saw this. This actually doesn't seem like Jeff talking, unless you're paraphrasing? I kept up with him for a little while after he left here, and I always remembered that his punctuation was better than this. Maybe you could provide a link?
As your descriptions have yet to in any way accurately describe the contents, I have to say I'm not convinced you've actually heard the Pearce. Are you sure you didn't "obtain" some poorly labeled files?
The CD I heard was part of the UK Ozzy Years Complete Albums set released in 2010 which im pretty sure has the Pearce remasters? Universal/Sanctuary release.
Supposedly they used the wrong final masters for those, and the 'real' Pearce remasters are in the vault somewhere. If that's true, I'm absolutely baffled as to why this hasn't been corrected. Link to Discogs or Amazon or something like that?
http://www.discogs.com/Black-Sabbat...et-Limited-Collectors-Edition/release/2894190 With the Pearce Vol. 4 you lose so much detail/resolution. Same with the US Rhino 180G Vinyl I have mastered by Chris Bellman. Nothing beats the UK Porky tho!
I got a 1972 french swirl (6360 071) and i have compared it to the Japan SHM-CD. The cd sounds thin and harsh , in comparison.(too much treble) The vinyl has more meat , (better lower end) sounds powerful , the way Sabbath is meant to sound. Never heard the porky though.
Couldn't disagree more. I have the SHM CD and it sounds fantastic. Not thin or harsh on my system. I think this album is a mess sound wise and I've heard many versions and none of them are all that great. I even had a minty original Australian swirl and I thought it sounded meh! I find it comical how people go on about the vinyl pressings of that album, they just aren't very good.
I agree I have the first three Black Sabbath deluxe editions on the SHM format and they sound great too me.
Nonsense. I've got some vinyl pressings of Vol. 4 that will shake the foundations of the earth. "Snowblind" on the original Porky cut Vertigo, for example, is simply INCREDIBLE! The problem with the SHM's (non-SACD) is that they are just taken from the Castle remaster or the Pearce remaster, so what's the point unless someone likes looking at an obi strip?
This. Most SHM-CDs are the biggest rip off. Inflated prices for old masterings usually still available for peanuts. Sometimes they are the exact same and other times they add in some EQ, compression, limiting, etc. I was very disappointed to find the Syd Barrett ones to be nothing but loudened versions of the 90s remasters.
Throw Paranoid on that list since it uses the 1996 Ray Staff mastering. Either Pearce didn't do a mastering for that one for some reason or it's also on that shelf. One of the major audio disappointments was buying the deluxe in expectation of finally getting a proper mastering of the album as well as the quad mix, only to be greeted with the too bright/thin 1996 mastering and what sounds like an awful needle drop of the quad album. I don't know why I was so silly, but I expected a new CD mastering since it was credited to Pearce and the quad to be sourced from tape.
I have no idea what went on with the Paranoid deluxe using the '96. Who's decision? Was it an error? Does Pearce even know? I know he addressed the sound of TE and NSD and how that's not how he mastered them, but don't recall anything being mentioned about Paranoid. The quad, I know what happened, it's just very disappointing they would do that instead of making the effort to do it right. WB holds the quad master. Just like they hold the master for "Wicked World" and Euro CDs have always been using a poorly done needle drop. I don't if they refuse to share or if the UK labels have bee unwilling to spring for a fee to use the tapes.
Well that explains the weird sound on the 96 and 04 Castle CDs.... Is this also true for the 2010 2-CD S/T remaster?
