Miles Davis remasters by Mobile Fidelity (2012-?)

Very pleased with the new MFSL SACD of "Sketches." Excellent balance, strong bass and great detail. Very nice sounding disc.

 

Thank you. I mgiht pick up this SACD.

 

The Mofi has better tonality albeit a little soft IMO. I find the 2005 (2 CD) Legacy Edn a more captivating listen for some reason (more involving). My fear is that if you like the Legacy as expressed then you may not warm up to the MFSL to the level expressed in other posts here. But if you love the album then perhaps get it for it's 'purer sound'

 

Sketches is the best MFSL Miles Davis reissue so far.

 

Anyone compare it to the Sony SACD?

 

I agree, finally a listenable version of Sketches!

 

In the Blood on the tracks MFSL thread, Music Direct emailed about the missing booklet and said, paraphrasing, if the record label gives them content for a booklet, they will do it. Otherwise, they can't.

 

Thanks!

 

I'd still like to know how the MFSL Sketches and In a Silent Way SACDs compare to the Sony SACDs (which I have). Worthy of an upgrade?

 

I also have the original US Sony SACD of Sketches of Spain. It just is not the best that this title can sound so I am definately considering an upgrade.

 

I find the MFSL IASW to have a slightly warmer sound (which I like) in comparison to the 2002 JSACD SIGP 29. Both are great- just a slight preference for the MOFI

 

Miles Smiles is my #1 favorite Miles album, so I REALLY hope they wind up doing it too.

There was an original SACD release (single layer) by Sony back in the day, yes -- it was one of the first SACDs I bought when I finally got a player a few years ago (purchased here in the Classifieds!) I don't remember exactly what I paid, but I'm about 99% sure it was less than $40.

 

^SRGS 4538 - Nice. It may still be available:
http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=SRGS-4538

 

Hey guess what? I dug the In A Silent Way box set out of the attic. Mea culpa: I think I misunderstood the credits.

There are seven recording sessions included within the box, labelled A to G. There is also an F1, which is the session where the takes if 'It's About That Time' and 'in A Silent Way' were edited down to the LP versions.

The sleevenotes say:

Does that make things clearer? Or not?!

 

It makes sense, thanks.

 

Comparing the MOFI Sketches of Spain with the CJM (Columbia Jazz Masterpiece) version. This is a tough one. Both sound very nice in their own way. MOFI has excellent detail and a little more tape hiss. The CJM is a little warmer sounding but has nice detail and is very pleasant sounding. The CJM is very crank-able. Tough call, if you want to save $ spend $3 and get the OJC unless you have to have the MOFI....

 

Thanks for the review. This isn't one of my very favorite Miles albums, but I did pick up the CJM version last year. I used to own the late 90s remaster which I found a bit too bright/sharp in places. I just checked and my CJM was still in shrinkwrap, so after seeing your post I decided to plop it in. Sounds great so far. While I picked up the MFSLs of Milestones, Round About Midnight, and In a Silent Way last year, I think I'll stick with the CJM version for this particular title.

I'm really looking forward to Kind of Blue. I don't spin vinyl and thus my go-to version at this point is the 2009 Deluxe version. It sounds pretty good to my ears, but I'm hoping the upcoming MFSL SACD will be able to beat it.

 

I'm assuming that the Sketches of Spain Mofi SACD uses the original 1960 stereo LP mix and is not a remix. Can anyone verify this? And is the mix used on the Complete Miles Davis and Gil Evans box set also the original LP mix?

 

A great reissue of a problematic recording. It sounds much more natural than the extremely trebly and analytical sound of the Sony SACD. I haven't compared the mixes. Because of the extreme EQ, the Sony SACD is no longer a listening option for me, except for the bonus tracks that are missing on the MFSL disc:

6. Song of Our Country [Issued Take]
7. Concierto de Aranjuez, Pt. 1
8. Concierto de Aranjuez, Pt. 2

 

I agree with this take. I really enjoyed the original Sony single layer SACD when I purchased it several years ago; it does have a nice clarity and increased resolution, but this sound soon became to "analytical" for my tastes. You could say that the original Sony SACD is just a wee-bit thin, but still very clear. The new MFSL SACD is actually more resolving in the fact that some instruments that seemed smeared in the Sony SACD now seem very distinct. Specifically the castanet seems much more alive and real in the MFSL SACD as compared to the Sony SACD. Also there is a much nicer overall eq in the MFSL SACD as compared to the Sony SACD which lends itself to a warmer more organic sonic experience. The Sony SACD of Sketches Of Spain is fine in its won way, but it can become a tiresome listen which leads me to become distracted from the music. The MFSL SACD is much more relaxed and leads to a more engaged listening experience.

The above opinion is based on my comparison of the DSD layer of the MFSL SACD to the Sony single layer SACD done with very tired old ears on a very mediocore stero, YMMV.

 

Seems like Round About Midnight is available on vinyl from Amazon.com ??? In a Silent way is schedule for next month. Has anyone ordered it yet?

 

http://www.amazon.com/Round-About-M...ref=lh_ni_t?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2E5TIDGF9WPID

If you want the link. I'm surprised it was not announced on music direct first.

 

Shows as out of stock though, so who knows ...

 

Do you think some amount of noise reduction was applied to the CJM? Is the CJM version the one with a 1997 release date?

 

The 1997 Miles Davis releases were all Legacy CDs. The CJM CDs date from the 1980s/early 1990s. A lot of them were de-noised.