Rush - new 2015 vinyl and hi-res reissues thread.

Only had a few moments to listen to "Bastille Day" and "Lakeside Park" but am (as with the 2015 HDtracks versions of s/t and FBN) very happy with the increased air around the instruments and the transients' presence (man, those ride cymbals and that snare).

Here're the graphics for the HDtracks 2015 CoS (24-bit, 192 kHz):

 

It's the 24/192 from HDtracks. Not anything really wrong with it and it may just be that the 2015 master shows the weakness of the original recording and that the rolled off high frequencies of the old CD pressing from the 80's give it some warmth that it needs. The download sounds a bit thin and the highs (cymbals) a bit artificial. Not the step up in quality as with FbN and CoS imo. But still very good and probably the most "correct" digital version.

 

Yes, in a manner of speaking.

 

WOOT! Purchased. Can't wait to get home.

 

I have the Archives set ( I imagine a first press as purchased in the early 80's). Are these as good as the single issues. Is there any mileage in upgrading FBN and COS?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

 

They are the same...And they both suck...IMO.

 

"Roll The Bones" is the main one I want on vinyl that I don't already have.
Interesting, it isn't on of the re-issues. Maybe; later on.

 

Yeah, it's on the insert.

 

Different record label. This is everything that was on Polygram and is now through Universal. But maybe Atlantic will pick up where these leave off.

 

This FBN handily trounces the one in Archives. I imagine the same will be true of CoS.

 

Are you positive? I've never spotted a UK red vinyl for sale, or even listed on Discogs, eli, etc. And if you Google it you only get info for the Canadian issue.

 

Wow this HDTracks 96/24 CoS sounds awesome! Awesome job. Truly a great collection so far. And the best is yet to come!

 

I'll wait to buy the hi-rez COS until some more cash comes my way. It already sounds like it'll be a winner judging from the comments on it. Here's a recap of the samples from various CDs that I posted earlier:
- Bastille Day [Anthem WANK 1003]
- Bastille Day [Chronicles]
- Bastille Day [Sector 1]

 

The reason why is because the Blu-rays are not remastered, and are taken straight from the Sectors DVD-A remasters.

 

It'll be interesting to see how far they can go with all-analog sourcing for this series. I recall a few years ago, MOFI announced they were doing Moving Pictures, but then cancelled it. I and others wrote them about it and the answer we got was that Rush felt the master tape was too fragile. Granted MP was mixed digitally, but I think they might have done an analog dub of the digital mixdown master. Either that or the tape containing the digital mixdown is too fragile.

Plus, for the Sector boxes, I recall reading an interview with Andy Van Dette in which he mentioned that the Grace Under Pressure master tape was apparently in bad shape so they used a 24/192 flat transfer. I recall sending a message to a guy a couple of years ago (his name escapes me righ tnow but I saw him mentioned on another forum), who told me he archived all the Rush master tapes to 24é192 for the band a few years ago.

Anyway, I look forward to whatever Sean can give us for all these albums. So far he's doing a great job. My Caress of Steel should be in tomorrow or Thursday and I`m looking forward to it.

 

For selfish reasons, they only need to go as far as PW for analog-sourcing for me. I own every record past that in mint condition and I can't imagine them sounding any better. Those 70s-era records are hard to find in decent shape, tho, so there's certainly room for improvement....

 

Was only able to spot check the HdTracks COS and it sounds amazing. The air around the instruments, the clarity....this one is a keeper!

 

And how do they suck? Compressed, muddy, thin sounding? As far as I am aware they do not contain the same mastering.

 

^ It's not really compressed. It almost sounds like AM radio. Almost all the Original Canadian Anthem CD's had a unique (and superior) mastering for Rush, but not Fly By Night.

There's tons of discussion about FBN on The Rush CD Mastering Thread.

 

I got my Fly By Night vinyl the other day and finally have had a chance to listen to it.

The vinyl is dead quiet. A really great pressing. The vinyl sounded really spectacular. Lots of detail, good bass punch. A real pleasure to listen to. Then I pulled out my original FBN Mercury pressing I purchased around 1979. The difference was remarkable. The orginal had slightly less bass but the spaciousness of the music was huge in comparison to the reissue. Everything sounded huge, and spaced apart on the original compared with the reissue. I was surprised by the difference given how good the reissue sounded.

I'll still buy some of the reissues of my worn out originals and albums I don't have on vinyl without hesitation. But this comparison was an eye opener.

 

Which FBN cut from Archives?

 

I also would like to know which Archives mastering this is about. I have a MASTERDISK GK set, and this really sounds great. Because of the condition I'm still looking for an upgrade however. If these new ones are indeed better, maby I'll buy one.

 

Finally... I thought I am the only one who noticed that...

 

There was no UK red vinyl Hemispheres. Canada only. The UK 1st pressing came with a voucher to send away for a T-shirt (and had a big sticker on the cover advertising that fact. These stickers were very difficult to remove...). No poster in the UK issue either. Sadly...

 

Yeah, Alex was listening to a lot of Genesis at the time. His solos really have that Hackett vibe to them. It's a very unique record for Alex as he never really had the same tone again.