Kinks Deluxe editions 2011 (part 4)

Continued from here:


http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/kinks-deluxe-editions-2011-part-3.259838/

 

Further to my earlier post, can I make a plea for the Lola reissue to include all single mixes, even if they have to be sourced from a 45? Give us everything that was released officially...please.

 

I wonder if there's any chance these next two reissues could be slightly less loud than the last six.

 

The recording of them is probably better than the Pye stuff so there may be more subtlety jn them to begin with. I wouldn't complain if they're mastered more...sympathetically, but I don't mind the mastering on the first six too much because the mixes themselves seem pretty cluttered and smashed to me.

 

A question that I know that has been answered before, but if I get all of the 2cd deluxe versions, do I need to keep any of the old single disc (the last reissue) versions of the same albums?

 

bump

 

Yes.

 

Kinks - no

Kinda Kinks - no

Kink Kontroversey - YES, for an alternate version of Dedicated Follower of Fashion (but it's also available on the Picture Book box set so if you have that then no)

Face to Face - YES, for an alternate mix of Mr. Reporter

Something Else - YES, for an alternate version of Lazy Old Sun (as well as There Is No Life Without Love unless you got the Dave Davies Hidden Treasures release)

VGPS - no

Arthur - YES, for an allegedly alternate mono mix of She's Bought a Hat Like Princess Marina (though I personally cannot tell a difference)

Kinks scholars, correct me if I'm wrong on any of this or leaving anything out.

 

Yes, if there could be little to no compression in the mastering these deluxe editions could really be definitive.

 

I think the last batch of reissues could quite possibly be the loudest '60s CDs I own.

 

Throughout these 3+ threads, people have been nearly unanimous in loving the sound -- this is the first I'm hearing of any of them being "loud." I don't have any of them (yet), so can anyone else chime in here? Thanks...

 

I thought they sounded great. They used the best source tapes available to date. That's my 5 cents.

 

I agree. They are better, to me, than all previous versions I've heard. That's all that matters.

 

I haven't heard any of these yet. I really miss when there were commercial records stores that used to stock all these reissues to hold, look over and buy, but those days are past. I'm much less likely to order things online, so I guess I'm missing out on stuff like this. Having bought all the '98 reissues, are these really better sounding enough to warrant replacing those?

 

They're not that loud and they're not very compressed. People are just being picky and have nothing else to complain about today. They sound great! These early recordings were not very dynamic in the first place.

 

Just curious, if they're not loud then what sixties reissues are in your opinion?

 

For others, like me, they are cleary worse than the PRT CDs (with the exception of Kinda Kinks). Bright, harsh and compressed is what they are to me.

 

They sound great.

 

So it's settled then!

 

That's what passes for "settled" around here.

 

Extreme opinions with no common ground?

 

As with ALL Andrew Sandoval remasters -- they sound fine. Especially, in light of the less-than-optimal quality of the original recordings, I'd say this is as good as these songs can sound. I have many of the PRT's, and when you adjust for volume, the new remasters sound better.

What really gets me is this -- the lack of understanding of what it is the remastering engineers face. Steve Hoffman once made a list of all the complicated EQ adjustments that would be necessary to make these Kinks records sound good. The EQ choices were needed to UNDO bad EQ choices made at the time of recording or mixing. None of these things were done on the PRT's. I'd wager a pint or two that Mr. Sandoval DID exercise these EQ moves. But the recordings are never going to be of a quality you might hear on a Beatles record, even with the best mastering in he world.

What really rankles is, these unfounded complaints about 'loudness' actually serves to undermine the legitimate complaints of mastering overreach when they occur, which is most definitely NOT the case here.

 

I think it would to be hard to argue they don't sound far better than the 98/04 editions. They're definitely not gentle but, as several people have noted, the masters can hardly sound that good. I think the deluxe editions are wonderful packages. Not perfect, but wonderful.

 

Yep.

 

The Deluxes are not as fun to listen to at high volume as the PRTs, that's for sure.

Despite the brightness and compression, the big positives are that there isn't any intrusive NR like some of the '98 Castles, and the excellent new sources used for many of the bonus tracks.