The Knack "Get The Knack" Mobile Fidelity MFSL SACD

And that's what music lovers here had to hear when the vinyl industry was still alive in this country. We all knew that the original product had to be superior, but one thing is guessing and another completely different one is actually hearing the difference. If any of those record companies still existed, I'd send them a few "friendly" e-mails.

 

The Colombian pressing sounds terrible.
The original sounds great, if not a little high-end boosted. The MFSL sounds more neutral. I would take a new copy of the MFSL over a used/worn US original pressing...but maybe a US original pressing over the MFSL, if it was brand new.

 

Who was the master engineer of the original album? I think I prefer that one out of the three.

Pity Iconoclassic didn't release their recent version (mastered by Vic Anesini) also at vinyl. Would be fun to compare these three with the Icon.

(I'm owning - by the way - the Icon cd which I prefered to the original cd)

 

I wonder where the Wally Tragott cut fits in there.

 

Please correct me if I'm wrong: As far as I know, he only mastered side A. Never heard of a Wally GTN with both sides cut by him.

Had this been a Wally cut, I would have used "(She's So) Selfish" for the comparison.

 

They're out there. Hard to find. I actually have one with a side one Wally and one with a side two Wally. Still looking for a double sided one.

 

Got the Vinyl MFSL for Christmas... Wow! Love it. Made me realize yet again, that this is one of the best debut albums out there

 

Is the guitar solo in 'My Sharona' a bit subdued on this vinyl re-issue by Mofi ... or is it just me? Is the mixing on that a bit screwed up? It just doesn't seem to have the 'life' and excitement of the solo as I remember it.

 

No, they exist. I have a “double Wally” copy. It took me a long time to find. I posted pics of it on this forum in the past.

 

I own a mid-2000's extended version CD that was remastered in cooperation with Doug Fieger, with a sound which echoes many of the comments here: detailed, but a bit thin sounding. Could have something to do with the original album being rush recorded and released, perhaps. There should be multitrack tapes of this in the Capitol vaults that would permit a remix, shouldn't there?

In any case, it's still a treat to hear an excerpt of "My Sharona" from Doug's cassette writing demo.

 

I dunno. The Iconoclassic release sounds awesome to me. The BGO two-fer before that is pretty good too, I think. I'm actually not sure if I prefer the MFSL to the Iconoclassic (because I've not done a direct comparison). My recollection is the MFSL seemed a little brighter.

 

It's the same mix.

 

Anyone else compare the original CD to the Mofi SACD?

 

That's surprising. I think the Iconoclassic sounds fantastic as well, so I've as yet not bothered getting the MFSL SACD.

The one thing that has me tempted is for a long time I had the Vic Anesini mastered CD of Janis Joplin's "Pearl", was happy with it, and didn't think about the MFSL. Then I got the MFSL and when comparing, much preferred the MFSL. I was surprised how bright the Anesini mastered CD was by comparison. Doesn't sound like that is the case here from your comments, if the MFSL is actually a bit brighter.

 

Keeping the Discussion alive!

I just ordered the MFSL of Get the Knack and eagerly await its arrival. I had this album on original vinyl back in 1979 and, as a teenager, thought it was great. I think folks who were really into The Who, Zeppelin, Skynyrd, Aerosmith, and the like were often down on this kind of rock, but hey, it was a heck of a lot of fun and sounded best when played loud. And when I was outdoors painting houses, loud was absolutely what I needed.

I have always wondered whether one's like of My Sharona was a good test for some kind of underlying "fun" gene. If you can't let it loose to this song, then can you truly at all? Just a thought.

Anyway, pretty soon I will possess Get the Knack in three incarnations: (1) the BGO two-fer with That's What the Little Girls Do, (2) the Iconoclassic mastered by Vic Anesini, and (3) the SACD. I did at one time own the early 2000's remaster, but my thoughts on that will await my next post, wherein I plan to compare the versions I do own.

 

The Sacd smokes all other versions.

 

By a long shot.

 

I just realized I made up a new Knack album in my previous post... That's What the Little Girls Do . Where that came from I do not know, but I obviously should have said ...But the Little Girls Understand. Oh well, either is as perverted as the other . What that says about me, I may not even want to know .

 

Oh wait, That's What the Little Girls Do is one of the Knack's own songs. Duh! Or should it be whew! I am not as potentially perverted as I thought I could be. Of course, you'd have to ask my wife (drum roll please).

But on to more relevant topics. Has anyone noticed that the Japanese Pastmasters disc has more dynamic range than any other release of Get the Knack, even on vinyl (see Dynamic Range Database)? I find this intriguing and wonder how it affects the overall presentation. Of course, we all know those early Japanese discs blow away everything that has come along since, even MFSLs... But hasn't this subject already been covered ?

 

Sincere question: Have y’all heard the Iconoclassic?

 

I am actually listening to it right now, and it being so good in comparison to everything I had heard that came before really makes me anxious to see how it stacks up against the MFSL. I actually thought the BGO was pretty good before I got the Iconoclassic, but I am going to delve more deeply into that when the MFSL arrives. The Japanese Pastmasters disc does intrigue me as well, if for no other reason than its more expansive dynamic range, which oddly may actually do a disservice to this album.

 

Yes.

 

As I stated in an earlier post I have the Pastmasters II release which I like and will probably hold off on the MFSL for now based on the mixed reviews. I would just like to comment that in my opinion, the musicianship of this group is very good and most likely overlooked. I especially like the guitar playing. I'm not a musician, but he's very good in my opinion.

 

I've got most if not all of the cd versions of this title with different masters and I like the MFSL SACD the best.

I purchased the Past Masters release a few years ago and although I'm going by memory, I thought it wasn't very good at the time. I don't recall if the MFSL was out yet, or if I was comparing to the Iconoclast and/or the 2008 (based on the 2001) /2016 Japanese paper sleeve reissues, though.

The BGO is syrupy and rounded but enjoyable.

Sometime in 2020, I'll gather them together and try to name a top 3 versions or something like that.

 

I am beginning to approach your achievement with respect to the number of releases of this album I have owned. I started out with the early 2000s remaster, which I ditched upon getting the BGO, and then I got the Iconoclassic, which in my opinion surpassed the BGO. I still kept the BGO because it is a two-fer containing their second album. I never bothered with the 80s Larry Walsh mastered disc because it suffers censorship, and I do not like to support that kind of thing.

I do not own the Pastmasters but wonder how broadening the album's dynamic range, as it does, might negatively affect the presentation; this album was always meant to be loud. We are not talking Cat Stevens here.

I look forward to your assessment in the new year of the versions you own. I will be doing the same when I get the MFSL, but unfortunately without the Pastmasters in the mix.

One thing I understand is people have different preferences, and it intrigues me as to why. I keep this in mind when I make any comparisons.