Steve Hoffman's "Aja" Steely Dan...WOW!

I also have a copy of this pressing, some where in storage. Sounds identical to my DIDX-55 21A6 +++++ pressing.

Back in 1984 when these CDs were pressed, there were very few CD players in America. 5000 might be a high number of CD players. I don't really know (I do know that I did not know anyone with a CD player until 1987 when a guy in my dorm at college bought one). 5000 units was probably a very reasonable order for the time. Now that everybody and their Grandmother has at least one CD player (usually two or three) 5000 units is not a lot of CDs.

 

Evan, I understand what you are saying. I was thinking that Steve might jump in here. (He's probably tired of this subject by now! ) I was hoping he could answer these burning questions:

1. Have you (Steve) compared a Japanese CBS/Sony pressing to a Japanese JVC pressing and said definitively that one was made from your master and one was made from Nichols' master? Have you compared the Japanese pressings to a US first pressing (DADC in plastic ring) and determined definitively which master was used for the US pressing?

2. If the answers to the above questions are 'no', are you absolutely sure that your master was used by MCA? I ask because my Japanese CBS/Sony, Japanese JVC, and US DADC pressings all show the same times and sound the same. I'm thinking that all three discs were made from your master or Nichols' master.

3. If you are certain that your master was actually used by MCA, were you informed by MCA at some point that it was only used for 5,000 copies of the CD? Was it the first 5,000 copies? If so, that would suggest that we should be looking for the Japanese CBS/Sony pressing.

 

Thanks to Ben, I was able to compare the '92 remaster of Aja to the Japanese CBS/Sony pressing. Since I have a CD-R of the '92 remaster, I used a CD-R of the CBS/Sony version. (We can argue the merits of this all day long, but I'd rather not. )

I compared the two discs on both of my systems, but I will only mention differences heard on the better system. All I will say is that I heard differences on the lesser system, but the better, more revealing system better differentiated the two discs. The better system consists of the following components:

* NAD C 370 integrated amp biamped with NAD C 270 power amp
* Totem Arro speakers
* Sony SCD-C555ES SACD/CD changer
* Audioquest Diamondback interconnects

I also have a Sony SCD-777ES SACD/CD player in this system, which is better than the 'C555ES, but the changer facilitates comparisons. Besides, the 'C555ES is still highly capable.

O.K. I listened to "Black Cow" and "Aja" extensively on the two discs. My first impressions are as follows:

* Japanese CBS/Sony disc: smooth, not fatiguing, but a bit recessed or closed in

* '92 remaster: detailed, open soundstage, lots of information projected

Upon further listening, I found the '92 remaster to have an "in your face" quality. It's loud, and the music jumped out and smacked me in the head at some points. I think "sharp" adequately describes the '92 remaster. As an example, the snare drum at the beginning of "Black Cow" sounds sharp or thin. It sounds like the drummer is smacking the snot out of the snare drum. The snare sounds more like a snare on the CBS/Sony pressing. It sounds like a smoother drum hit, like the drummer is more relaxed (but not overly so).

There is some digital edge or "hash" in the vocals on the '92 remaster. On "Black Cow", this was especially evident on the female vocal "they saw your faaaaaace". The vocals have more body on the CBS/Sony disc.

Overall, I found "Black Cow" to be "listenable" on the '92 remaster. The CBS/Sony disc is smoother and less fatiguing, but the '92 remaster isn't downright awful. That said, things got interesting in comparing "Aja".

"Aja" on the '92 remaster is pretty awful. Perhaps the reason for my different impressions of "Black Cow" and "Aja" on the '92 remaster is that "Aja" shows more changes in dynamics. Loud dynamics are likely to enhance one's perception of sharpness or fatigue. Fagen's vocals have a raspy quality on the '92 disc (that digital hash). The piano at the beginning sounds a bit edgy or sharp on the '92 disc when compared to the CBS/Sony disc.

The '92 version really goes to pot on the dynamic portions of "Aja". For example, the higher notes of the guitar solo are sharp and searing. What really drove me crazy on the '92 disc, however, is the ending of "Aja" where they jam (instrumental). The cymbals are loud and overbearing. It's that "in your face" quality I mentioned before. Everything is just loud and bombastic. It almost sounds like each musician is working hard to be heard over all the others. What you get is just a smattering of loudness. Where's the musicianship?

The CBS/Sony disc, by comparison, sounds controlled and warm. Part of me thinks the soundstage could be wider or the sound more open, but that's a minor quibble. This disc is not at all fatiguing, and the group sounds like a functional ensemble, not a bunch of egomaniacs trying to outdo one another. The vocals are smooth and natural and the music flows.

I don't know how the '92 remaster was done. Some say that Nichols did not use the original master tapes. I wonder if that is the only problem. I'm thinking he jacked up levels here and there. It sounds tweaked, like the MFSL CD. The MFSL CD is definitely better than the '92 disc, but both share that tweaked-EQ sound to my ears.

Has anyone had a look at the '92 remaster with EAC? I don't have the program, but I would be curious to see what is going on with this disc.

That's all...for now.

 

There's a Steely Dan biography that suggests that Nichols did use correct tapes for the '92 (I think it was really '93, but maybe they were done in '92 and released the following year) remasters.

From the sound of them, they're most likely tweaked, really tweaked.

 

Having done only a limited amount of comparisons between the 84 CBS/Sony and the 92 remaster, I can say that (so far) I agree with all of Keith's observations.
Well done Keith. I'll be listening carefully in the coming days and will update if I catch something new.

 

Ben, thanks. If you have anything else to share, please do. I'll continue to compare the two discs.

 

I am the original owner of a pristine copy of AJA that was mastered by Steve Hoffman and here is my take. I just got through listening to an SACD of a very good jazz disc mastered by Steve Hoffman, BUDDY RICH WITH THE BEST BAND I EVER HAD on the Audio Fidelity label. I played this disc all the way though at a very comfortable volume, and I am very impressed by the dynamics and airy top end of this very well mastered SACD. Then immeadiately after this SACD experience I played my Steve Hoffman mastered copy of AJA. WOW!!!! If all CDs sounded as good as this there would be no need for SACDs. My impression; Steve Hoffman's AJA has a very similar level of dynamics and punch as the SACD, and the top end (I'm speaking here of the very top end, such as the cymbols and the timbre of some of the brass) was almost as extended and open as the SACD, and the airy quality was almost as pronounced as that of the SACD, the difference being so minute as to be undetectable by the majority of the listeners. I wouldn't hesitate to say that redbook CD has more potential than the mass marketed CDs available at Wal Mart and Circuit City, and if all CDs could be made to sound as good as this copy of AJA, then no one would be rushing into hi-rez audio.

 

The percussion on track 2 of Steve's AJA is amazing! I'm thinking around the 2:30 mark.

 

Thanks for the report, but now comes the inevitable question, the one that bedevils us all: how do you know that Steve mastered the disc you have? That's a real question!

 

.....here we go again!

dave #24
A breed...a part

 

My CD is 1977, 1984 copyright with catalog number MCAD 37214-DIDY-55. I don't know who exactly mastered it, but it sounds damn good. Nice and warm and detailed. Sounds even better through Dolby Pro Logic II.

 

Wow....a 10 year bump! Anybody know if that is a record....er, milestone?

 

I can't find that Hoffman Aja CD. I have the DIDX Made in Japan though and I'm not sure if they sound the same.

 

Keepin' the bump goin'. Just got an MCAD-37214 DIDX 55 US and it just absolutely crushed the MFSL. I cannot ever remember a MFSL getting stomped so bad. No idea if this is Steve's but man to beat this must be really something.

 

I think the most depressing thing about this thread is that it seems to confirm that 99% of the people have no idea whether they own a Hoffman-mastered copy of Aja, present company included.

 

If there were only 5000 pressed before Nichols took over then I doubt the odds are very good that many have the Steve Hoffman mastered version of Aja.

 

I stopped worrying about that when I pushed 'play' on mine.

The DIDX 55 I own, has been preferred to any subsequent release I've tried. The MOFI was very disappointing.

 

I can still remember buying "Aja" on CD when it was first released. My copy is (by numbers), exactly like the one in Gary Freed's post #5 of this thread and I have never found a reason to search elsewhere for a better version on CD. Another thing that I remember about my copy was that it came in a long box with a cut-out area in the front of the long box, so you could see the actual jewel case!

Interesting side story with this disc ...

The first CD player that I ever owned was a Hitachi DA-1000, which was a fairly cool looking player, with fun styling and a unique door that opened to feed the disc in and out of. Somewhere in the player's first year, I started having a few issues with the playback and because it was still under warranty, I sent it back. Before it was sent back, I was on the phone actually talking to a guy in their tech department and he asked which CD proved that the machine was having problems and my copy of "Aja" was best to prove it. The guy ask if I would send the disc back with the player, which I hesitated on doing, mostly because I loved that CD so much. (NOTE: Keep in mind, that this was long before anybody knew that CD's could and would have different masterings!) So, off they both went, back to Hitachi. Because I had a direct phone number to the guy at Hitachi, he was very good to keep me informed with the progress. It turned out that there was indeed something wrong with the laser of my player, but instead of a repair, he just offered to send me back my CD, along with their newer model player, which was flat and as boring, as has been nearly every CD player made ever since. Once you see the following video (not mine), you will see why I always felt that it was a "cool" looking player, versus everything since.



By the way, the CD in the video is Roger Hodgson's "In The Eye Of The Storm" Track 1, "Had A Dream", which has a very Pink Floyd-ish quiet and ultra long intro!

 

Its hard to tell with my copy. No barcode and smooth sided case. Made in WG. Sounds fine though.

 

I think you mean GAUCHO?