Led Zeppelin: Original CDs vs Remasters

Just after getting an iPhone and a decent pair of in ear monitors I started to hear the tape hiss and since then I have replaced all of my Marino re-masters with Barry Diament originals. The hiss, bass and dynamics are all there and my ears are happy. The Marino remasters live on as Apple Lossless files on my hard drive for academic reasons but I only listen to the Diament files. For two to twelve dollard per title they were worth every penny. I still check the Led zeppelin Bins but only in hopes of replacing my long lost, I actually gave it away, Target copy of Houses Of The Holy.

Cheers, Michael

 

I just priced up the 32xd/55xd set on Ebay - $1000 + shipping for all discs with Obis... Santa Baby....

 

Also ironically, I can't vote because I've only heard the remasters. But I am planning of buying Physical Graffiti soon maybe. Could someone fill me in on the whole "cough" issue? Were there some original CDs made without the cough?

 

Mine was - but I don't have it any more.

 

A lot of original cds are missing "the cough" for reasons unknown.

Here's one thread on the topic:
http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=211447

Here's another more general thread that contains a lot of "cough" discussion:
http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=88238

My copy is a U.S. JVC pressing and it has the cough, but I don't know if that's true of all U.S. JVC pressings.

 

Originals

 

So is there any way to tell if the album has the cough at the end of that song without listening to them? Or should I just ask the seller whether it has a cough or not?

 

I voted for "originals" although technically speaking, it would be "case by case" (some tracks on IV, for example, I prefer in the remastered form). But the originals have a share of more than 90%, so I went with "originals".

 

Most of the RMs are fine, except HOTH. The original II sounds pretty good, also.

 

Originals. At least for the ones I've compared: II, III, IV, HotH, and Presence. PG too.

 

Case by case

 

The only one I can comment on is II and thats and easy one. Barry's all the way.
It's the only one of the originals I have that I can compare. Some day I'll grab the
others when I can find them.

 

Here are a few rules of thumb:

1) No Japan for US will have the cough
2) All US for US with "RE-1" in the matrix have the cough
3) The Japan 32XD only a couple of copies are rumored to have the cough - but no way of identiying them has been mentioned. My recommendation is avoid the 32XD issue as not worth the huge risk as in all likelihood 99% of them are missing the cough


So here is a case where an RE-1 is better and yet another in my experience where the plain ol' US stock disc is best or equal to it.

Rick

 

Isn't it 55XD, not 32XD?

 

yes

 

I think the remasters sound great and George Marino and Jimmy Page did a good job with the remastering. John Davis who remastered the tracks for the Mothership CD was a member on this forum a year or two ago, and said he plans to transfer all the analogue tapes of the entire Led Zeppelin catologue to 24bit/96khz in the near future. The current digital transfers that Jimmy Page made in the early 1990's (that were the source of the LZ remasters) were only 16bit/44.1 or 48khz transfers. These early 1990's transfers were also the source used for the Mothership CD... mastered in 2007. I think the Led Zeppelin catologue could be improved upon even more because of this. IMO

 

I had to go with case by case because I was one of those guys that had all originals then gave them to a buddy of mine when I bought the remasters. I have been picking up the originals again but it's been slow going, I keep finding the remasters used.

Is there a reason The Song Remains The Same didn't make the list? I have both and know they are considerably different.

 

Really? I find the remaster of PG the 2nd worst of the bunch. 1st being HOTH.

 

Not if they're mastered anything like Mother****.

 

switch the p with a t

 

The SHM's of the first four sound the best on my system.

 

Good idea.

 

Never been a big fan of Zeppelin recordings in any format. I'm a vinyl guy through and through, and I can barely tolerate any Zeppelin vinyl. I'll take my remastered box over any other LZ CDs I've heard, though.

 

Originals for me....although i did buy the remasters for II and IV to compare to the originals.

 

I happen to think the "Mothership" CD sounds very good. You can hear more detail in the recordings - more so than the 1990's remasters. I can't comment on the Barry Diament mastered versions as I've never heard them. The Mothership CD does not deserve to be called what you called it! If you don't like the sound quality of it then that's fine, but don't go and start calling albums stupid names just because you don't like the mastering.