SH Spotlight I'm asked stuff: Favorite mastering engineer, best BOSTON CD, best TRAVELING WILBURYS CD, etc..

@Steve Hoffman What's the deal with the tape for "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight"? On the 2003 and the MFSL stereo remasters of John Wesley Harding there is a fair amount of tape hiss and some other weird stuff going on during that track. The version on your Greatest Hits, Vol. II disc sounds much better. Not only in EQ, but in lack of tape noise/artifacts. Does that stuff exist on the master, and did you seek out a nice copy tape that had less wear? Something else? Either way, you did a wonderful job. It's one of my favorite discs.

I love those non-album tracks: You Ain't Goin' Nowhere, When I Paint My Masterpiece, I Shall Be Released... Some of my all time favorite Dylan songs.

Does the original CD release of John Wesley Harding have the same issues? I've never heard that version.

 

The AF GHII uses the original JWH CD as a source, which was remixed. Details here:

I pulled out my old Columbia CD of Dylan's JOHN WESLEY HARDING just to be sure....

 

Ah ha. Thank you. After I made that post I took another listen and actually thought it may be a different mix.

 

That said, the original mix can be found in the same high quality on the Biograph and GHII remasters.

 

So the original mix in "full fidelity" can be found on the above CDs, but the dubbed / limited / compressed LP master (of the original mix) is what was used for the 2003 and MFSL stereo releases? Very bizarre that the full fidelity versions were used as recently as 1999 but the 2003 SACD uses the LP master. I think I prefer the mono mix for this album anyway, so I'll save myself a headache seeking out a "definitive" stereo version.

 

Yes. Along with All Along The Watchtower (GHII) and Dear Landlord (Biograph).

Whether those who worked on the 2003 and MFSL releases were not aware of the "full fidelity" tape(s) or if the LP master was used for a specific reason is unclear.

 

Wildflowers.

 

I just realized re-reading some of the thread you linked above how recently everyone was discussing this. I totally missed it. Funny coincidence that I just happened to notice something up with “I’ll Be Your Baby Tonight” within the last week. Thanks again for all the info!

 

I’m real interested in Steve’s take on 5.1 mixes. But for me on my system the Doors Greatest Hits Quadra mix is Superb.

 

@Steve Hoffman do you know what's up with the Waiting For The Sun master tape? The tape used for the DCC has some phase issues (as I'm sure you remember), but overall the whole album sounds much clearer than the AP SACD. Part of this seems to be EQ choices, but much of the difference sounds like a source discrepancy to me. Botnick was forthcoming about using a copy tape for S/T, yet he also claimed that the master tape was used for Waiting For The Sun. The 1999 and HD Tracks releases also sound more similar to the AP than the DCC. Was the DCC the last time the actual master tape was used?

 

So come on then, Light Their Fire!

 

@Steve Hoffman I was reading the liner notes on Van Halen’s “3” album, the one they did with Gary Cherone. Among the “thanks to” it says Steve Hoffman. Is that you or some other Steve?

 

I’d be impressed if there was another Steve Hoffman out there being thanked in liner notes

 

Just curious but what was required to get an FCC license besides the $20? Was it a questionnaire similar t0 passing a driver's license written test?

 

Was it difficult? Can you give an example of what was asked in the test? One question that stumped you?

Had you already established yourself as having a good ear to be recommended for the Metromedia position after the other college dude left for CBS?

 

YIKES! You must've been a fast learner to be able to know all that in college without any formal training.

 

Were you ever told by Doug Brown and other technicians?..."Don't touch that button" and/or "Who pushed that button and didn't turn it back off".

With all those buttons and levers displayed in the pictured control board I can't imagine the disasters in sound that would occur. It's like a airline cockpit. I know I couldn't keep straight what any of those buttons would do to the outgoing broadcast sound.