The Cure on CD...Remasters or originals?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Drexler_McStyles, Feb 25, 2008.

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  1. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    For some odd reason I've always gone East instead of West, not sure but I would think Japan and West Germany would be eq'd the same, not sure though, Stenway do you have any Japans?
     
  2. stenway

    stenway Forum Resident

    Location:
    USA
    no, I dont have japans, but I have one Siouxsie and the banshees... japan that is from the same label Polydor (same design of the picture disc than cure japans etc...) maybe that help me to reference the cure japan cds... if I remember have the same mastering than other old siouxise cds... but well maybe a real owner of cure japans can we help us?
     
  3. PixieStix

    PixieStix Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    Let me see if i did my homework right...(Need Opinions If I got something wrong)
    These are the unremastered ones to get if my homework did me well:
    (1979) Three Imaginary Boys [fiction 827 686-2]
    (1980) Seventeen Seconds [fiction 825 354-2]
    (1981) Faith [Elektra 9 60783-2]
    (1982) Pornography [A&M CD 4902]
    (1984) The Top [Sire 9 25086-2] ???not as bad as fiction???
    (1985) The Head on the Door [fiction 827 231-2]
    (1987) Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me [fiction 832 130-2]
    (1989) Disintegration [fiction 839 353-2]
    (1992) Wish [fiction 513 261-2] ???guessing???
    (1980) Boys Don't Cry [fiction 815 011-2]
    (1987) Happily Ever After [A&M CD 6020]
    (1983) Japanese Whispers [Siew 9 25076-2]

    If anyone can chime in please do.
     
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  4. jimhb

    jimhb Forum Resident

    Location:
    Denver, CO, USA
    Definitely get the Pornography A&M if you can. I like it a lot more than the other versions out there.
     
  5. radiophonic

    radiophonic Forum Resident

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    One thing I'm surprised no one has commented on is that on 'M' from the Seventeen Seconds Remaster (Deluxe Edition), there is quite audible distortion on the left channel from about 10 seconds in - after the guitar intro, just as the whooshy fade come in. I've checked my rip and it's perfect. I've only heard these versions of the CDs and my vinyl copy of this has quite a bit of surface noise now, but is this present on the earlier CD version? It's annoying enough that I thought I had a tweeter problem. It doesn't sound right / deliberate.

    Edit: Just spun the vinyl. Not a hint of distortion and very noticeably less toppy overall too.
     
    Last edited: Nov 19, 2014
  6. EnchantingWizardofRhythm

    EnchantingWizardofRhythm Well-Known Member


    That distortion sound is present on every single Cd copy of Seventeen Seconds I've heard. I didn't notice it until i recently bought new headphones.
     
  7. andy75

    andy75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Just got the 2007 rerelease of the 2004 box set Join the Dots. I'm wondering if it's the same master as the original? In the booklet it says "Mastered by Chris Blair at Abbey Road Studios". Blair did the remasters of all the albums before "A Head On the Door" & this. Too bad he never did the others too. I like the sound of it! I'm guessing that the mastering is the same, I just wanted to be sure.

    Such a great box set btw. Can't understand why I never bought it when it first came out.
     
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  8. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Neat, didn't realize there was a re-issue only a couple years later, wonder why, is it in a long book or square?
     
  9. andy75

    andy75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Long book. It's a digi book box. The two plastic trays hold two discs each.
     
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  10. Plan9

    Plan9 Mastering Engineer

    Location:
    Toulouse, France
    The 2004 issue I saw also had the Chris Blair credit.
     
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  11. andy75

    andy75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Thanks. It should be the same mastering then. Just different packaging.
     
  12. Pavol Stromcek

    Pavol Stromcek Senior Member

    Location:
    SF Bay Area

    Interesting - I have not heard the A&M. What is it about the sound of it that makes it preferable to the others?
     
  13. Phasecorrect

    Phasecorrect Forum Resident

    Location:
    WI
    Have to agree 17 secs remaster is excellent. I didn't bother with the others as they are adequate for my needs. Dots b-side box is a must!
     
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  14. traveller03

    traveller03 Forum Resident

    The only CD copy without this distortion that I am aware of is the "Happily Ever After" CD (A&M CD 6020) which compiles Seventeen Seconds and Faith on one disc. The Cure - Happily Ever After ยป
     
  15. katieinthecoconut

    katieinthecoconut Forum Resident

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    What's the best release for CD versions of the 1970s-1980s singles? Such as The Walk, Jumping Someone Else's Train, The Lovecats, Killing An Arab and Charlotte Sometimes? It doesn't appear there's ever been a consensus between the various versions of Staring At The Sun, Greatest Hits and Japanese Whispers. I'm looking at CD specifically and while I know there's no perfect option (yet), I'm wondering what's best for now...
     
  16. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Greatest Hits is nice, I like it's warm EQ, but I don't like the added compression
    Apparently for Charlotte-according to comments made here over the years, the Japan VAP 'Staring' is the way to go, but the price for admission for one song I'm curious about is not worth it to me, some have stated that pretty much all editions, even the vinyl single sounds like mud
    Japanese Whispers, I have an Australian D.A.T.A. (Part of a three album box) that I enjoy, the peak levels are different compared to the US and UK editions
    'Jumping' I prefer from my old US SRC 'Boy Don't Cry', compared to the Australian D.A.T.A and old US 'Staring' comp. The 2 disc of 'Three' remaster sucks, only grabbed it for the extra's :laugh:
    Of course this is only an opinion for the type of sound I enjoy
     
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  17. SteveCooks

    SteveCooks Senior Member

    Location:
    Lyon, France
    Thank you for these interesting reviews. Charlotte Sometimes is like Pet Sounds 66 Lp before the stereo version : sounds like mud but gorgeous songs. The same goes with CD version of the walk since Japanese Whispers.
    As far as 3ib is concerned you're a bit hard on the remaster : I find it good it has more oomph than the oldest versions which sound good on Lp but anemic on CD.
     
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  18. SeventhTime

    SeventhTime Well-Known Member

    I think its a bit mixed with the remasters v originals here. (been comparing them volume levelled)

    First 3 - 3 Imaginary Boys to Faith - Prefer the originals, the remasters seem to bassy
    Pornography - Funnily enough in spite of the DR difference, there isn't much difference between the 2. Not sure which one I prefer.

    The Top to Kiss Me - Prefer the remasters on all of these, the originals seem a bit flat and un-involving. I like the EQ of the remasters.

    Disintegration - Not much difference once level matched, some extra clarity at times on the remaster but more balanced overall on the original, so I give the original the nod.
     
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  19. corduroy

    corduroy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pennsauken, NJ
    My only real criticism of the Join the Dots boxset is that some of the tracks have been tampered with. For instance, "It Used To Be Me" and "Scared As You" have a few seconds chopped off at the beginning of the songs. I didn't notice this until I compared the remastered set with the original CD single releases. The aforementioned songs are the two that I know of at the moment, I wouldn't be surprised if other b-sides on the set have been edited as well. I wonder what the reason was for that...surely couldn't have been time constraints?
     
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  20. C6H12O6

    C6H12O6 Senior Member

    Location:
    My lab
    Is it safe to say that the original CD's are all very, very similar (the Elektra CD's in the U.S. and the Fiction CD's in the EU and UK)? That is, any differences are marginal?
     
  21. Joint Attention

    Joint Attention Forum Resident

    Location:
    Gig Harbor, WA
    Carlox, Front 242 Addict and c-eling like this.
  22. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Pretty much, a couple I preferred-
    Disintegration-US over WG
    Japanese Whispers Japan Vap over all others, has a 'warmer' EQ
    Kiss Me, one worldwide.
    For Pornography I guess the Japan For US A&M is the one to get. If it's anything like my Japan VAP LP I agree.
    Head on The Door, I haven't done any critical listening between the WG or US
    Three Imaginary Boys-WG
    For all the others I've been happy with the old stock US to go any further.
    @Joint Attention -wonder if that was sourced from the SATS VAP? It does sound cleaner.
    Nice looking comp, has all my favorites :laugh:
     
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  23. TheSaltman

    TheSaltman Heaven or Las Vegas?

    Location:
    Italy
    Going back to this post I'm shocked by the positive comments over the 17 Seconds remaster... it sounds horrific to me, extremely compressed and EQ'd. The original CD isn't a marvel by any stretch of the imagination but at least it doesn't give me a headache. The only Cure remaster I've been able to stomach so far is Kiss Me, I found the original CD to be often too dull, even though it's not completely terrible.
     
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  24. aravel

    aravel starchitect...then, father!

    Location:
    GDL - MEX
    :::...In my 'Cure' Days, I got the French Box Set 'Assemblage' and by then I owned all longboxes Electra USA cds too (91-92 releases)

    I compared back then, and the European releases of the box were in a lower volume than the USA ones, but not that 'bassy' and I really liked better when playing in high volume.

    I sold the box back in 2008, but I made direct a CD copy of each album. Even though I bought the 1st bunch of remasters (3IB,Faith, 17 secs) and KM KM KM, I prefer to listen to the Copy of the French Box.
     
  25. abzach

    abzach Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
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