"A Charlie Brown Christmas" CD remaster.

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Mattb, Oct 10, 2006.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. Cassius

    Cassius On The Beach

    Location:
    Lafayette, Co
    Any Chance of us getting the 45 RPM release in time for Christmas? I've been looking forward to listening during the holiday season with the family.

    C
     
  2. soundQman

    soundQman Senior Member

    Location:
    Arlington, VA, USA
    You're right. I was quite disappointed in the mix. Plus Linus and Lucy doesn't sound right. They don't list it as an alternate take, but I think it is. Well, it was an impulse buy which I should have left in the rack. :(
     
  3. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    Pressing them now!
     
    rbichamp likes this.
  4. Cassius

    Cassius On The Beach

    Location:
    Lafayette, Co
    Excellent. Thanks for the update Steve, I'll make sure to get my order in now.
    Clay
     
  5. Derek Gee

    Derek Gee Senior Member

    Location:
    Detroit
    Linus and Lucy IS an alternate take, and it's obvious from the first few notes that it is not the master take. How ANYBODY could grab the wrong take of this very famous song absolutely baffles me... Plus the mixes are simply terrible, and there has been some processing to the takes because I can hear a metallic residue to at least one of the songs. (I did an A:B comparison to the originals to find this. It makes me think that despite the story that they didn't use NR, that they actually did!)

    Derek
     
  6. Greatest Hits

    Greatest Hits Just Another Compilation

    Re: "A Charlie Brown Christmas" CD remaster with bonus tracks on 10/10

    This is the one I have. It sounds wonderful. And no noise reduction.

    From 1988. Mastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios.
     
  7. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
  8. Derek Gee

    Derek Gee Senior Member

    Location:
    Detroit
  9. DJ WILBUR

    DJ WILBUR The Cappuccino Kid

    wouldnt a test pressing have to be a test of the actual stampers, so it'd have to be 45 rpm, or it wouldnt be a "test"????

    Curious how many pieces of vinyl a stamper would make before it would be retired. With only 1000 pieces being pressed, would they all basically be the same stamper or mother or whatever makes a record? or would the first few hundred be "better" than the last few hundred?
     
  10. signothetimes53

    signothetimes53 Senior Member

    Re: "A Charlie Brown Christmas" CD remaster. No-noised?

    I've been rather puzzled by this new CD version. I have been struggling to figure out if it's a remix, or the original CD was heavily edited, or what....but the differences between the two CDs are pretty dramatic. If you are accustomed to the old CD and the actual notes you heard played, the new CD is going to sound as if it's a re-recording.

    If the difference is only "remixing", well, it's a VERY dramatic remixing.

    I like both CDs, but anyone who buys the new one thinking it's just a "cleaner" version with better audio fidelity and less tape hiss is in for a rude awakening.
     
  11. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    Heh, obviously you didn't read this thread. I would suggest doing so!
     
  12. signothetimes53

    signothetimes53 Senior Member

    Actually, I did read the thread.

    While one person suggests an alternate take of Linus and Lucy was mistakenly used on the reissue, others insist it's nothing more than remixes and/or edits.

    My point remains: this thing is pretty different from the version(s) most of us remember, and the purchaser is in for a rude awakening.
     
  13. AudiophilePhil

    AudiophilePhil Senior Member

    Location:
    San Diego, CA
    I'm hearing some tape hiss with the new 2006 remix. It's warmer sounding than the original CD which sounds thinner in comparison. I think they were both rematerd by the same guy in Fantasy Rec.
    I heard both through a $15,000 Meridian CD player in a friend's house.
    I can't wait to hear the 45-rpm vinyl.
     
  14. Evan L

    Evan L Beatologist

    Location:
    Vermont
    I have heard both and still like the original CD version better.


    Evan
     
  15. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    Re: "A Charlie Brown Christmas" CD remaster. No-noised?

    It's been remixed (except for maybe one or two tracks). The remix is a completely new perspective and doesn't replicate the original mix at all.

    There has been NR used on several tracks and Linus and Lucy is a much different take than the one we've heard for 40+ years.

    The bonus tracks are fine but don't really offer anything new or Earth shattering.

    Hope that helps. :)
     
  16. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    The new mix has more energy in the lower mids/upper bass range but the original mix actually has deeper bass and a brighter top end. The new mix doesn't offer the wide separation of the original.
     
  17. AudiophilePhil

    AudiophilePhil Senior Member

    Location:
    San Diego, CA
    Yes the newly 2006 remix has more energy in the lower mids/upper bass which makes it sound warmer. I'm happy with the sound of this disc because I can still hear some tape hiss and it's not loud.
    While enjoying the new CD, I'm also waiting for the Steve's remastered 45 rpm vinyl. I preordered a copy three weeks ago.
     
  18. signothetimes53

    signothetimes53 Senior Member

    Re: "A Charlie Brown Christmas" CD remaster. No-noised?

    Yes, but a remix only changes how prominent (or not prominent) various instruments are in a performance. It can't change what was actually played on the piano, for instance, it only changes how much of what was played the listener can hear.

    I have yet to see a definitive report in this entire thread that states with certainty which tracks are alternate takes, which tracks have been heavily edited in previous editions and are now restored to full length. Many of the tracks sound like alternate takes to me, though I know that's not true, that some are heavily edited/restored to full length.

    In addition, has anyone compared the running times of the songs on this new edition vs. previous editions? I have the 1988 Fantasy disc, and I found it highly suspicious that the run times on both discs are shown as EXACTLY the same. Not a single variation in run times is indicated on the back liner on both discs.

    But the tracks actually time differently (no great surprise, run times shown on liners are almost never accurate), and two are significantly different (tracks 1, 7):

    Track 1 on the new disc is actually 5:12 (vs. 5:03 listed, 5:08 actual in 1988)
    Track 2 is 2:24 (vs. 2:20 listed, 2:25 actual in 1988)
    Track 3 is 3:13 (vs. 3:15 listed, 3:13 actual in 1988)
    Track 4 is 3:08 (vs. 3:03 listed, 3:07 actual in 1988)
    Track 5 is 6:09 (vs. 6:06 listed, 6:06 actual in 1988)
    Track 6 is 2:47 (vs. 2:44 listed, 2:47 actual in 1988)
    Track 7 is 2:41 (vs. 2:24 listed, 2:27 actual in 1988)
    Track 8 is 1:54 (vs. 1:55 listed, 1:55 actual in 1988)
    Track 9 is 3:26 (vs. 3:22 listed, 3:26 actual in 1988)
    Track 10 is 1:05 (vs. 1:02 listed, 1:07 actual in 1988)
    Track 11 is 3:18 (vs. 3:15 listed, 3:17 actual in 1988)
    Track 12 is 5:29 (vs. 5:25 listed, 5:26 actual in 1988)

    Interestingly, the "alternate take" of Linus and Lucy (track 4) shows only a 1 second variation from the 1988 Fantasy disc. At minimum, it suggests a very well-rehearsed piece by the band.

    I also understand that many of these variations might be meaningless, since the placement of the data markers on the discs indicating the start and end of each track for playback purposes can also vary.

    FWIW...
     
  19. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    Re: "A Charlie Brown Christmas" CD remaster. No-noised?

    Right, but it can change the overall sound and feel by shifting importance of instruments. The swishing of the brushes became so prominent on some of the songs they are a distraction.

    O Tannenbaum has a three second intro on the new disc that wasn't on the other. Also Skating (track 7) was faded on the original disc whereas it plays to the end on the new version.

    Linus and Lucy is the only alternative take for the album. The bonus tracks are obviously different.
     
  20. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    BTW, the only track that hasn't been remixed is track 2, What Child Is This.
     
  21. Steve Hoffman

    Steve Hoffman Your host Your Host

    That's a two-track recording. Nothing to mix. Same as vocal version of Xmas Time Is Here.
     
  22. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    Ah!

    Listening to it knowing it's a 2 track recording I hear what they did. The original mix has the music (drums, piano bass) in the left channel but during the intro you hear a lot of room bleed going into the right channel where the voices are.

    With this version they've taken that 2 track and "mixed" it so the music is panned in more toward the center and during the intro they've muted the room leakage in the right side and replaced it with a digital reverb. When the voices come in they're also more centered (but still off to the right). They also have a brighter sound and the digital reverb.

    It sounds as different as if it were a multitrack remix unlike What Child Is This which sounds like the same mix I remember. Does all that make sense to everyone?
     
  23. Dave

    Dave Esoteric Audio Research Specialistâ„¢

    Location:
    B.C.
    :agree: Definitely! It also makes me realize I'll be happy with the original Fantasy until Steve's can be released on CD. ;)
     
  24. Jamie Tate

    Jamie Tate New Member

    Location:
    Nashville
    That CD sounds better to me every year! :laugh:

    Aren't the LPs shipping on Wednesday? :goodie:
     
  25. Dave

    Dave Esoteric Audio Research Specialistâ„¢

    Location:
    B.C.
    No 12" spin-o-matic here I'm afraid. It frightens me to think about trying to start collecting Vinyl at this stage of life. :eek:
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine