Bill Evans - You Must Believe In Spring - Craft 45 rpm LP, and SoTA digital

Back to using H and playin’ REALLLLLLLL slowwwwww tonight folks.

okay that’s just mean, but I really do imagine listening to this at 33 is what it would sound like while doped up.

 

Classic variation I’ve done- trying to use my car’s remote entry fob to unlock the front door of my house.

 

I thought the same thing. “So I guess craft chose the “B- grading scale” from RTI with this release”.

compared to the A- quality for TPs and A+ super vinyl for Mofi and the one steppers.

I really wonder if they have QC or pressing quality scales to choose from. Because this release’s vinyl formula definitely sounds more brittle than a Tone Poet.

 

I think I read the digital mastering used Plangent process? Or other clean up processes that the vinyl obviously could not utilize.

so the digital mastering to me is a true equal to the vinyl in this case.
One being state of the art and cleaned up, the other being an artifact of the master tape as-is.

 

IME, RTI is unpredictable, at least of late. I have lots of nice RTI pressings on the shelf, but recent pressings are hit or miss.

 

Yes, the digital used the Plangent Process, and if the vinyl is AAA then it could not have. However I was referring to the pressing issues people seem to be having on the vinyl, not the mastering.

 

My copy is perfecto

 

have you seen the thread about the recent Clapton one step? Definitely appears to be about F- super vinyl on that one

 

I mean sure, there are problems anywhere. I have that release and it was A+ for me.
But point taken on the potential grading system on vinyl mixture (feels like there's more than just "super vinyl" or "the regular blend"... Tone Poet is the middle blend) vs QC oversight and the threshold of what they pack and ship.

Those Clapton pics seem like it was shipping related... how could RTI in all honestly see that and ship it?

 

Sure, and thus digital might win for you for that reason alone.
I was lucky I guess... or my threshold for "acceptable" is lower. I did notice maybe 3-5 clicks across the album. More than a typical TP from RTI, but on par with Optimal. That's not really a major issue to me.

EDIT: I re-read your comment and realized my point. You mention "the mastering is there" for the Qobuz stream. And it is! But the mastering on the vinyl is different from Digital. And maybe not quite as "there" as the digital due to no Plangent processing. NO disrespect to KG of course.

 

So I'm playing my promo copy. The original is really good. Larger scale dynamics are there. When the music swells, it swells and expands. Images are large, close to equalling the Craft in that regard, but more 2-dimensional. The bass is clearly deeper and more assured on the Craft. And when the music swells on the Craft, it's absolutely effortless.

What the Craft also has over the OG is a precision to the images that just isn't there on the OG promo. With the Craft, I can 'see' the precise placement of each instrument, where they do and don't exist in the soundstage, as well as in their own space from front to back. That's just not there to nearly the degree on the promo copy. On the OG, the soundstage is a thick, less transparent.

And the Craft is more fleshed out. The piano has more weight, it sounds more real. The instrumental textures on all the instruments are juicier, more 3-dimensional. The cymbals have a more natural shimmer, with a more natural decay, again more distinctly in their own space.

There's an ease and flow on the 45rpm that's just a bit better. It's one of those relaxed "ahhhh" kind of thing. It's subtle, but it's there. It's not just more relaxed, though. When the three musicians push, there's a greater sense of urgency. It fills the space outward more.

That being said, the presentation of music on the OG, overall, is just fine. You're not going to say that it's terrible. For those with less resolving systems or for those who are not big Bill Evans fans and/or hate 45s, the 33 is fine. You'll get a majority of the musical intentions. This isn't Sunday At The Vanguard, where the MoFi OneStep just blew open access to the musicality.

But there's the subtle drum in Gary's Dream that reveals itself on the Craft that you can miss on the OG. The Craft just gets you closer to the performance. The instruments sound whole and more real, and, well, I just feel their spirit more, I'm more involved with their performance via the Craft.

I wish Side 1 was a bit less noisy. It's borderline. Should I just live with it? I'm thinking about it.

 

Great post, very informative, thank you.

 

If anyone is not hearing much difference between their original and the Craft, they're not listening intently enough, or it's the system through which they're listening.

 

I don't think anybody has suggested they sound the same unless I missed that post.

I have both and they certainly do not sound the same. I'm not quite ready to declare the Craft the winner, though.

 

Please listen again and compare. Between my copies, I can't think of an area where the Craft isn't better. I'd certainly be interested if you thought differently.

 

All the digital is from the Plangent transfers, fyi- mastered by Paul Blakemore.

 

What a beautiful album. I am not much into jass, but I enjoy Bill Evans. My pressing is nearly perfect.

 

My copy arrived and as all records pressed at RTI the records are dished (concave on a side and convex on the other).
Sometimes not even with the clamp you can get the record flat on the turntable,and this negatively affects listening as the records off center.
At least the Craft cost € 55,00 and not € 200,00 as the MFSL One Step which have the same defects.

 

My first two copies were terribly noisy. My third replacement is acceptable (still has noise in some spots but I can live with it) but is also edge warped. I think I'm just gonna stick with it.

Do people think edge warps wear out over time in that area quicker than flat records?

 

Let's see what we will be getting from EU Amstores when the release date is reached (June 17).

 

It is not a question of wear,is if one has a certain level analog front end with the VTA adjustment to optimize the pick up reading with a record not flat it is like having a cheap turntable.

 

I don’t understand this sentence

 

Received my copy last week and gave it a serious listen. A wonderful job by Craft to give us this release by The Bill Evans Trio. Brilliant and so welcome to see these recordings being released.

 

Comparisons between the Plangent digital and the LP would be appreciated. I suspect the digital is more life-like.

 

Wow you're really coming into it with an open mind. Weren't you involved in the digital in some capacity?