Sundazed S. F. Sorrow vinyl - stereo or mono?

I've listened to it many times, does not sound like a vinyl dub at all.

 

That's what I think too...it's not that noticable either.

 

My obsession with this album is getting worse, I just bought the 1987 Edsel CD

(along with the Edsel CD of Parachute for around AU$22 each off eBay )


How many CD masterings of S.F. Sorrow are there? I count:

- 1987 Edsel
- 1998 Snapper (MONO jewelcase version)
- 2001 Snapper (STEREO digipak version)

Plus:

- Resurrection 2 disc set (2001 Stereo mastering)
- Repertoire (EQ'd, NR'd and compressed version of the 2001 Stereo Snapper)

Are there any more? Japanese versions perhaps?

 

In the early to mid '90's, the SPV label in Germany released "S.F. Sorrow" on CD. I no longer have the CD, which I sold when the Snapper CDs were released, but I seem to remember that it sounded very similar to the earlier Edsel CD.




Ed Hurdle
HeavyDistortion

 

I had the SPV, too. I remember it sounded pretty good, but once I got the mono and stereo Snapppers I was hooked on those.

 

Just saw your post-
I only have the Snapper CD to compare it with; alas, no other vinyl versions.
The Sundazed is in a gatefold cover, with the lyrics and story printed inside. Great band photo on the back cover. The front is the US cover pic, though, which is not as evocative as the UK cover.

 

If you love S.F. Sorrow, track down a copy of the Edsel CD!

They are tonally quite similar but the stereo spread seems wider on the Edsel, and it doesn't sound as congested as the Snapper. Probably due to the lack of compression.....

It will never be a great sounding album but the Edsel is certainly the best sounding copy on CD that I own

Thanks for putting me onto that one Jamie!


(The Edsel Parachute is awesome too )

 

I just compared tracks from the Edsel S.F. Sorrow to the Stereo Snapper and they appear to be the same digital transfer!

There is a slight drift but that only amounts to ~160 milliseconds by the end of a song, which would either be from the digital re-processing of the tracks for the Snapper issue, which if done in 16-bit would shorten the word length, or that the 2 CDs are different transfers from the same DAT tape, which would also lead to a slight difference. I'm guessing the former as the Snapper consistently has the shorter tracks. I highly doubt that 2 analogue to digital transfers done 14 years apart could be so similar...

I'm guessing that when Snapper released their Stereo version in 2001, they just went back and EQ'd the old Edsel disc, instead of going back to the analogue tape which would have cost quite a bit more to do.

If this is true, then the 2004 Repertoire is an EQ'd copy of the 2001 Snapper which is an EQ'd copy of the 1987 Edsel!

At least if I'm right, we know it's all from the same tape, master or not

 

Nice work Ben.

 

Great work indeed Ben. Never got the Edsel "Sorrow" and wondered how that sounded in comparison to the Snapper version.

I do have a question about "Parachute" of which I've only owned the Snapper version. At the very beginning of "The Letter" you can hear the bass frequencies suddenly being pushed up just after Phil sings the first line and it's very noticeable. Did this occur back in 1970 when the album was mixed or is this a piece of sloppy mastering? Only way to compare is of course the original vinyl album or the Edsel CD. It's bugged me ever since I first got the Snapper CD!

 

Thanks Jamie!

Looks like owning 5 copies of S.F. Sorrow has paid off with some good info!

It's on the Edsel CD too, exactly the same as on the Snapper (except few dB quieter overall )

 

Thanks for that info Ben. Much appreciated.

 

It's in the mix. The Edsel CD sounds the same way.

 

Has anyone listened to the Sundazed vinyl (black or colored)? Impressions?

 

Good news for anyone searching for an Edsel CD of S.F. Sorrow, the SPV disc from Germany is bit-identical to the Edsel

That makes 6 different CD releases of S.F. Sorrow that I own

1987 Edsel, 1996 SPV, 1998 Mono Snapper, 2001 Stereo Snapper, 2003 Sorrow + Resurrection Snapper 2-fer and the 2004 Repertoire. Anyone know of any that I'm missing?

At least the SPV only cost me $1.75 plus shipping

 

That's great news. For that price anyone can check out the Edsel/SPV CD.

 

Well, bear in mind that the band don't get any $ from the SPV, though it sounds ok; I'd still say Snapper mono &/or Snapper stereo are best.

 

Best meaning brightest? The Edsel is the most musically balanced and without the hyped top and bottom end of the Snapper. The Snapper sounds better but loses some of the music in the midrange.

 

Didn't Snapper go on in their liners about how they just mimicked the original cutting notes found in the tape boxes?

 

My blue Sundazed stereo is not the greatest pressing. It's a little noisy with some pops throughout. Also warped.

 

I have the Snapper mono and hate it.
I play the 2-fer stereo vinyl all the time, 'Real Pretty' on Sire.

I agree that mono simply does not flatter the material here.

 

...and it's the same digital transfer anyway. All of the Stereo S.F. Sorrow CDs are made from the same digital transfer, which was first used on the Edsel CD, making it the purest source.

What is the best source for the 67-68 singles? I have the See For Miles Singles A's and B's 1967-1971 disc and it sounds a little less boosted that the Snapper bonus tracks, but "Talkin' About The Good Times" is the alternate mix (with the awesome Mellotron overdub during the instrumental section )

On that note, does anyone have an original UK or US "Talkin' About The Good Times" 45? Which mix is on it?

 

Snapper simply released and published what was given to them by manager Mark St.John, whose sleevenote on their "SF Sorrow" reveals a man who is prone to exaggeration, so one can take that cutting notes thing with a hefty pinch of salt since it's been proved that the same digital master from 1987 has been used for all releases since.

Bit of a shame since he and the Pretties do own all the EMI master tapes.

Try as hard as I can, I just cannot warm to the Snapper mono mix. It's stereo every time for me.

 

Same here. The mono mix is just a lesser version of the stereo. The stereo panning sounds very intentional as if the whole album was planned and arranged with stereo in mind.

 

I'll third that, it doesn't do much for me either. Nice for a change occasionally but it will never replace the Stereo mix