Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon - Best sounding CD (updated)

Correct. That’s actually farther from the master tapes than any CD made from them.

 

Idk about the analogue/digital argument, it just sounds better to my ears
(The description has FLAC file downloads btw which is what I listened to)

 

Either way, it sounds significantly fuller, along with much more clarity, to me, than the other examples
A shame that I can’t get the whole album like that.
Although, even when streaming the 2011 remaster I barely even care because it’s just such a damn well produced album.

 

Without doing my due diligence, is the Sax mastered Shine On box the same as what's in the poll as 20th Anniversary and 1992 remaster? If that is the case, the combined general opinion here is the Sax master ranks at the bottom.

 

That man doesn't seem to know CDs very well. The "90's" CD he uses could be the 2nd, 3rd or even 4th (re)master of the original. It sounds brittle, harsh and lacks bass. Both my CDs (Made in Japan Harvest, MFSL) sound better. What I find most surprising though, is the lack of bass in the reel2reel copies he uses. Even the high-res WAV downloads do have less than my CDs. I agree they are the most open and natural sounding, though.

You can get the whole album like that, more or less (with a little more bass). Just find a Made in Japan Harvest black face CD and be done with it (please note there are 3 different batches of black face CDs and only the first 2 have the nicest sounding mastering). Refer to this site for more info: Pink Floyd Archives-U.K. CD Discography .

 

The DOTM from the EUR EMI DADC Austria 'Shine On' box set is a digital clone of the standalone US Capitol Doug Sax and the 20th Anniversary issue, except that 'Speak To Me' and 'Breathe' are separate tracks on the box.

However DOTM from the US Columbia Pitman 'Shine On' box set is not exactly the same. The samples don't stay in sync and the EQ differs a little. The Columbia often has (very) slightly less high end.

Now, if a new AD transfer was done or someone did some resampling and/or digital editing, I don't know. My hearing isn't good enough to hear a difference but maybe someone else can.

 

Hmm, I have that Oppo and it has always played that CD with deemphasis, as expected.

 

SUBQ channel it won't. I believe the 103 is the only one that's been verified as detecting it in that location.
There are two early mastering's for Moon of course, 'the grail' with no 'ticket to ride' -this flag is SUBQ, not sure where the flag is on the other mastering with pre-emphasis.
(p.i.a.)

 

I have all the different CDs and they've all played fine in my Oppo. I can confirm it next week when I get a chance. (I wonder if it's a firmware issue.)

 

Thanks.
Others have posted over the years other models wouldn't either until the 103. (SUBQ flag location)
My old 80 would not, so I never went further with this company.

 

I believe it is, but I stand by my opinion. Polls like this on this forum tend to skew (sometimes undeservedly) towards early Japanese pressed CDs, MFSL releases or latest remasters, so the results are not surprising to me.

In the blind test for this album, the Sax won:

Dark Side Of The Moon on CD: a blind listening test

 

Music isn’t about “winning”, but about taste. I voted in that blind listening test, and I choose the MFSL.

I suggest that everybody tries to listen to a couple of versions for themselves, and then keep what they like. Of course, if that’s not possible, the Sax version seems like a safe choice, because many people do like it.

 

Japan for US
Matrix:
"CP35-3017", "CDP 7 46001 2"

Using Oppo 105.

Ripped it and have tried editing the cue sheet. Streaming to the Oppo’s DAC.

Yet, it still plays too bright. Obviously not recognizing the PE flags. It’s not subtle.

Played the cd in the Oppo.
Sounds fantastic.
Whether the flag is in the TOC or not, I don’t know.

New Order - Low-life original Japan for UK cd - another one that’s supposed to have the PE flag in the “wrong” place does NOT play as well as the non-PE versions.

Very odd.

 

I've never had an Oppo, so maybe I'm missing something, but I'm not sure what you mean by using a cue sheet in the streaming process. Are you referring to a playlist file rather than cue sheet?

I've always thought you actually had to burn a disc using a corrected CUE sheet in order to get the PRE flags recognized by the CD player. Was not aware of any way to do it via streaming.

 

Correct. You have to burn a CD-R.

 

OK, that’s what I thought.

HOWEVER - looking at that CUE file I posted, the index times seem to be waaaaaaay off for some reason. Obviously, that is NOT the correct cue sheet (an index time of “96:26:32” ??? Where did that even COME from? ). I have asked the mods to delete that post. If anyone wants the actual correct .CUE sheet with PRE flags, let me know via DM, and I will send it.

 

No wonder I couldn’t get it to work!

 

I found the MFSL for $12 yesterday....and played it through last night. I'm not sure if it's my favorite, but it sure is smooth.

 

I know the MFSL gets a lot of hate, but it was the first one I got and I still like it a lot. I only heard the singles on the radio, and never owned any LP or other CD. It was the first time that I consciously heard a “black” background in music. Anyway, it’s a bargain for that price. And if you don’t like it, you can always sell it and make a (small) profit.

 

MFSL sounds fine to me. I get why people don't like it. I like the "organic" sound it has. It's my choice for headphone listening. For car listening, I listen to the 2011 as it's a bit louder.

 

Isn't it true that the Harvest editions (Harvest Blackface and Black Triangle) were made from copy tapes and not the original master tape? I thought they used the same tapes used for the Japanese Pro-Use LP from about that same time (1982 or 1983).

 

Not sure about DSOTM, but Abbey Road seems to have been mastered from the master tapes, not the Pro-Use copy.

 

Depends on what you mean by master tape. Given it is an analogue recording, it is unlikely that any version is direct from a master tape (ie a production master, which can have different masterings, is likely to be at least three generations away from the master tape). According to David Gilmour and Roger Waters, the 5.1 SACD is the closest release to the original master (remembering that the album was recorded with quadraphonic in mind) - there is a pink floyd You Tube video on this. The early Sony mastered blackface and BT CDs were made from the Pro-Use 15 ips tape - a production master likely to be at least three generations away as with the other releases.

 

No.

A “master tape” almost always refers to the earliest tape holding the final mixes, and is either mono or stereo (or quadraphonic). In the case of DSOTM, that’s the stereo master tape, which has been used for many releases.

What evidence is there the early Japanese CDs were mastered from the Pro-Use tape copy (or were in fact “Sony mastered”).

 

The redbook layer of the 2003 SACD and the 2011 remaster are the same Guthrie remaster. Really they should be combined in this poll.