U2 "Boy" - original CD vs. 2008 remaster

I have War: I dug up the UK vinyl to compare with the remaster. Vinyl is A1 / B1 but a bit noisy- may need a clean. It varied track by track with EQ; some tracks sounding more similar than others. Both cold sounding and thin in the bass department. I thought the EQ on the CD was a subtle improvement and that there was more detail in the background. I was listening on modest headphones. An improvement? For me, yes. Mind blowing? No. I like the bonus tracks on the 2nd disc, particularly the remixes.

 

I'm confused. I have an canadian Island War's edition, CID-112, credited to Phil Brown.
Is it one of the originals Barry D. mastered?

 

IMCD 248 818 008-2 also has Send in the Clowns.

 

Despite a little drama here and there, I have found this thread and the many replies really informative. So thanks to all who have shared their opinions.

Just pulled the trigger on the Boy and October Deluxe editions. I'm really looking forward to hearing the CDs (especially the various bonus tracks).

Will probably also pick up the Under A Blood Red Sky Deluxe some time soon too...and might just go for that German CD version mentioned by ricks, as well. Those should cover my bases...

 

No, that Island Masters version of Under A Blood Red Sky does NOT have the 'Send In The Clowns' snippet. I have it and it's not it. I know I specifically bought this version as it did not contain that snippet (yep, I'm an obsessive collector when it comes to U2 ).

 

This version DOES have it. I know because I have it too and I listen to the Send in The Clowns bit every single time I spin the disc

 

I don't think you can go wrong with those. I think the sound is excellent, but the bonus tracks and outstanding liner notes, photos, artwork alone would make these sets worthwhile. Enjoy!

 

They could be different. what is the length of Electric Co on each of your respective discs?

 

My Island Masters IMCD 248 818 008-2 does not have it. The label says the correct length for it to be there, but the actual length on the CD is the shorter one. There is a whole bunch of additional numbers on it like LC 0407, BIEM MCPS, PY899, but the relevant matrix code seems to be 8180082 01 %. Also IFPI L132 and Made in the UK by Universal. Some of the matrix code stuff appears to have been double printed too. Some more I can't even make out !!

I'm not sure I've ever seen a CD with as many "identifer codes" on it as this one.

I just thanked Roland in a PM, but I picked up the 1st one he linked to from eBay.de. CID 113, seems like it'll be the correct one.

 

I've heard that LD rip of Red Rocks. It does sound better than the DVD PCM. I've always considered making a hybrid complete show if I had the actual uncut LD.
Can't tell you how many times I've checked used Red Rocks CDs in stores for the uncut Electric Co.

 

Hi, is your DVD PCM or Dolby Digital? The stand-alone [without the CD] is Dolby Digital only, is the one in the Deluxe set the same?

 

That's the one I have too.

 

The audio tracks in the Deluxe set DVD are:

- Dolby 5.1
- DTS 5.1
- LPCM 2.0
- Dolby 2.0 (Director's comments)

(I think the stand-alone DVD is the same)

 

OK, I just really listened, and compared EQ, between Barry's US digipak, the French CD that Plan9 has, and the DE.

What bothers me most about the DE is indeed this:



This is in Audacity. See the red at the right ends of the L & R bars? Those are "peak hold" "over" peaks. Those light up through most of I Will Follow. So there's the 25% dynamic compression we already know exists, which is not an improvement over Barry's, and the red in those bars means that there is additional distortion being generated on the D-to-A conversion during playback. Not just once during I Will Follow, but many, many times.

The channels are reversed too. The French CD and Barry's are the same: the guitar is more towards the left channel in I Will Follow. The DE has the guitar more towards the right channel.

Most of you have probably seen an EQ comparison like this. I pick Barry's as the baseline, and then I subtract the French CD minus Barry's, and the DE minus Barry's to see how they are different. Says nothing about which is more correct, just illuminates the differences between CDs:



I'm actually not going to say too much about this, except that if you draw a horiz line at 3 dB, the DE really isn't all that different from Barry's. You can hear the additional boost for the highs though. But I actually wouldn't say that's a bad thing, just that they are different. The French CD seems to be either a level shifted version of Barry's, or from the same tape with the same final EQ.

In the end, I still prefer Barry's. The DE isn't bad, but I don't know how anyone can say this is a preferred mastering over Barry's with the dynamic range chopped the way that it is, and all those "over" peaks. A good mastering IMO simply does not have clipped peaks.

But sure, I really like the bonus stuff on the DE's, and well as the booklets.

 

Some people are fans of a Dynamic and easy sound. Some love detailed and modern. Neither is right or wrong. The original CD and remaster are both 'inexpensive' and easy to find. I really think every one should get both then direct compare and see which they prefer. Once they determine they should now how to proceed for the whole catalog.

 

Well, it took a few months but I finally completed my U2 Deluxe collection (DE of Boy, October, War, Under A Blood Red Sky, The Unforgettable Fire and the Super DE of The Joshua Tree).

You guys were right: Awesome Packaging! And I really like the sound, the bonus tracks. I found that I couldn't stop picking them up until there were no more to get. The last one I received (just a day ago) was Under A Blood Red Sky. Absolutely amazing, the DVD that is. The Edge is just on fire, they all are (that might be peak live U2 for me). I suppose I like raw U2 more than I like dramatic U2 or ironic U2 or slick U2.

I was so happy to see "Out of Control" caught there. That is one of my two favorite tracks on Boy (w/ Shadows and Tall Trees), so to see and hear a live rendition, with some alteration, is a real surprise and treat. The rendition of "Two Hearts Beat as One" sounded fantastic as well. What a great visual document of the time.

 

I just got the 2-LP Joshua Tree - thirty seconds into "Streets," I knew that this was the definitive version of this album. I have the original CD, the original LP, and the Super Deluxe CD box, and none of them even come close to the the two-LP remaster. It has all of the benefits of the remastered CDs (better tape source, better tonality, better detail), minus any digital compression. Spreading the music across four sides of vinyl makes for a huge improvement over the original LP - inner groove distortion is eliminated, that's for sure. I've never heard Adam and Larry sound better on any other U2 LP or CD, with the exception of the original Rattle and Hum LP, which also benefits from being spread across four sides of vinyl. Larry's drums on "Bullet the Blue Sky" are one place where the quality of this pressing is apparent; another is "Mothers of the Disapeared," which I never really cared for until I heard this version. And the packaging on this release is beyond top-notch - heavy cardboard stock for the sleeve, rare photos on the inner sleeves, custom LP labels with more rare photos, and a beautiful LP-sized booklet.

If you have any interest in this album, you need to hear this version of it.

I am praying that Achtung Baby gets a similar 2-LP reissue.

 

Wow. That sounds great...especially since I only have a Columbia House Joshua Tree...
I hope all the post Achtung albums also get repressed.

 

OK, you sold me!

 

The upgrade to Running to Stand Still compared to my original Island pressing is quite frighting. I too am praying for a similar treatment for Achtung Baby.

 

I recently picked up a West German pressing of Boy(in the digipak)and it sounds stunning.

Evan

 

Yes, the harmonica and steel guitar on "Running To Stand Still" on the 2-LP version is quite beautiful. Of course, on the 2-LP version, "Blue Sky" and "Running To Stand Still" are on the outer third of the LP side, instead of on the inner grooves 20+ minutes into side one of the original LP.

They have got to do a similar 2-LP reissue of Achtung Baby, another album that was pushing the limits of what can fit on a single LP.

 

Hi all,

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but this one seemed to have the most relevance for my question. I am searching, like many here I'm sure, for a copy of Under A Blood Red Sky which includes the full unedited version of The Electric Co. Whilst most versions state on the booklet that the length of the track is 5.18 it is actually 4.58 with the Send In The Clowns bit edited out. In fact it's further edited on the latest remaster to 4.38 but that's another story.

From the discussions in this thread it seems that some believe that a version (or two) of the CD was produced which contains the full 5.18 unedited track. My question is can anyone confirm the existence of such a pressing and if so share all the disc/catalogue details to help me track down a copy.

Apologies if this has been covered elsewhere.

Many thanks in advance
Chris

 

I believe it`s the early German Sonopress 610 559 CID 113 that has the Send In The Clowns snippet.This cd is fairly common and inexpensive on the German ebay site ebay.de and even Amazon.de

Cool place here to hang out,have fun!

 

Many thanks for the info. Much appreciated.

My copy has catalogue # CID 113 but the disc itself is marked Nimbus England, presumeably place of manufacture.

I shall search ebay.de and Amazon.de as suggested and keep my fingers crossed.

Thanks again