"Patsy Cline - Greatest Hits" to be released on Analogue Productions SACD

I thought no one really "remastered" it. I thought they just transferred the master tape to DSD, etc. Sure someone supervised, but it was advertised as hearing the true master tape. I could be wrong though. I'll pick this release up in a few weeks, I want to save on shipping with some other releases.

 

Well, according to the release they put out, this was a straight transfer... so no one really did a new mastering, per se. I guess the original engineers would get credit and and a modern tape op?

EDIT: I see Jazz Nut said basically the same thing...

 

You can always order from fellow Forum member my man Karl at Puretone/Phoenix Recs! No shipping charges and great prices, expertly packed, etc. My main go-to source for SACDs!

 

A quick off topic note. Although those peak levels have been increasing, it's really coincidental that the loudness has increased also. Peak info tells us the highest transient, it doesn't tell us anything about the overall loudness level. A cleaner tape with more transient information can result in higher peak levels for a lower loudness in comparison to something from a more muffled tape for instance.
If a disc has a consistent same number peak level across nearly all tracks, there's a high probability that a limiter has been used.
The old thinking was that peak levels on a CD should allow some headroom for the upsampling sampling in the playback device (Inter Sample Peaks). That thinking is coming back in some circles. But there are plenty of discs from our host with 100% peaks, and they aren't compressed, and there's no quest for loudness.

Ignoring the peak issue, it looks like the 2003 Ludwig disc has some level boosting in it, via compression or something else.

 

what's the web site for this store where karl works? i keep getting a hearing aid company.

 

Easiest to just get him here via PM. He's krlpuretone here on the Forum.
As far as I know, he owns the store!

I don't think the store's Website is up any more (or at least hasn't been updated in a bit...) but you can check out backstock on Discogs -- he's listed there as phoenixrex.

 

Another recommendation for krlpuretone.

 

Is there a forum consensus on the sound quality of this SACD relative to digital alternatives?

 

Karl IS da man.

 

Can a Skeeter Davis SACD be far behind? I'm ever-hopeful, regarding Skeeter.

 

Before the end of the world, right ?

 

Excuse me if I missed this in a previous response, but who mastered this SACD?

 

I'm guessing it was George Marino:

"Mastered at Sterling Sound direct from the 1/4-inch master tape. This was a straight transfer, bypassing the console altogether. There was no EQ of any kind. A true direct transfer. You're hearing the master tape!" - Acoustic Sounds website

 

One of my favorite albums but the original issue sounds fine to me.

 

Have you had a chance to compare the original CD to the new SACD?

 

Ryan Smith who took George Marinos place as chief engineer at Sterling Sound mastered this disc. It is fantastic. Demo quality. Far better than the Ludwig HDCD redbook, although the redbook is a remix and very good to. Ryan Smith also mastered the Elvis 57 SACD for AP and that sounds great to. He is also doing the SACD and vinyl mastering for the Stevie Ray Vaughan boxsets coming out on AP.

 

Generally speaking, I avoid the Marino work at Analogue Productions. Will have to give Ryan Smith a shot though.

 

You said it first, but that was what I wanted to know. Marino's work for AP was a very mixed bag. I'll probably buy this SACD now.

 

I was "forced" into buying a couple others from Acoustic Sounds so added this title to get free shipping. Of course, I won't see them for a couple weeks, which will give me time to recover from the prices. Ugh.

Anyhow, I hope it sounds terrific. I'm not a big fan of how they confuse people by mentioning "direct transfer" and "it's like hearing the master tape". This is a remaster by Ryan Smith (presumably). He chooses the A/D gear and so forth irrespective of the absence of EQ tweaks.

 

First of all, they just finished an extended 10% off sale.
Second, they still ship the same day, if the order was placed before 3pm CST, and it's still Fed Ex ( 2 days for me).

 

10% off wouldn't even get half way to realistic pricing. And no, the free shipping is not FedEx. It's DHL and it is beyond slow. I like the product and I buy it, but I don't like whatever the business model is. Too bad there isn't enough competition to force innovation.

 

Fed Ex for me, sorry.

 

Free shipping is ALWAYS Fed Ex for me.

 

Everything I've ever bought from AS has been FedEx.

Bill

 

Just received my order from ImportCDs yesterday. I don't have a lot to compare it to. I do have the MCA Gold "Ultimate Master Disc" edition from 1988 - when it was re-titled as "12 Greatest Hits" & had the artwork changed. I always thought it sounded pretty good ...... until last night. And keep in mind that I don't own an SACD player yet, so this is the redbook layer. The MCA Gold Disc has more bass - sometimes too much in places. - but comparing the two, the older disc sound a little "veiled"...no real discernable tape hiss. This one jumps right out at you - in a nice way, not in a loud way. Lots of presence in this. I like it a lot! (I've never heard the Bob Ludwig mastering, so I can't comment about that one.)

I also have the MCA box set that folks here seem to like a lot, so I'll probably check with my friends & see if one of them wants to give the Gold disc a new home - unless there's a reason to hold on to it...