what in the WORLD is this clicking noise on 'rocket man' on my US gr hits LP????

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by bigmikerocks, Nov 29, 2011.

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  1. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    so i used to play this LP all the time in my youth.

    i decided to spin it again for old times sake. first pressing with custom label and inner sleeve etc

    rocket man comes in, and when he starts singing 'on such a timeless flight' (right before the drums come in), this clicking noise starts happening. it's EXACTLY IN TIME with the beat, and sometimes syncopated, so it's not a blemish on the vinyl. then it stops again after the 1st chorus, then picks up again on the 2nd chorus, through to the end of the song

    it sounds like click track click, or a metronome, that kind of sound. and it's mixed really loud

    i double checked my UNI 'rocket man' 45, and my UNI HONKY CHATEAU, and of course as i remembered it's not there

    can anyone else with this LP check it out, or is this a known re-mix or overdub or something?

    WHAT IN THE WORLD IS UP WITH THIS??????????

    thanks!!!
     

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  2. Nobby

    Nobby Senior Member

    Location:
    France
    It's on every version that I have and it's Nigel Olsson hitting (I believe) his hi hat cymbal.

    There are three stereo mixes of "Rocket Man", the regular mix, the one on "Superior Sound Of..." and "Rocket Man 03".

    The "clicking" is on the first two.

    "Rocket Man 03" is a very different remix with new instrumentation so doesn't have it.
     
  3. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    this isn't a hi-hat cymbal. it sounds like a click that you'd hear when there's a big chunk of something on the record, or if you've ever done recording digitally, it sounds just like a lot of the click tracks i've used to record with

    like i say, it's not on my first pressing HONKY CHATEAU or on the UNI 45, only on the greatest hits

    matrix numbers from side two of this thing are...

    MCA 587 W16 B.D.I. 2128-B

    i also can hear the sound in 'crocodile rock' too, though not mixed as loudly, and more rapidly (for you musicians it's doing eighth notes on both of them, but rocket man is about twice as slow BPM)
     
  4. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

  5. Nobby

    Nobby Senior Member

    Location:
    France
    Can you put up clips of what you hear from the Greatest Hits and the UNI pressing?
     
  6. Nobby

    Nobby Senior Member

    Location:
    France
    I'd forget about collecting records and take up mind reading instead.

    Seems you're pretty good at it! :)
     
  7. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    the versions on my UNI LP and 45 are the same versions that are on every youtube video that's posted with the studio version

    (i checked them all first to see if the noise was in one of those before i bothered needle-dropping it)
     
  8. Nobby

    Nobby Senior Member

    Location:
    France
    Forgive my drumming terminology, but that's definitely the hi hat/cymbal from Nigel.

    On your recording the treble is really jacked up and it seems to be over modding terribly, which causes the effect you describe.

    Here's the same "clicking" from the "Very Best Of..." CD from the early 90s.

    The clicking is in exactly the same place.

    http://www.4shared.com/audio/QNG6TLXm/Elton_John_-_Rocket_Man__I_Thi.html
     
  9. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    It's in exact sync with the hi-hat and ride cymbal so I think it's some kind of artifact, poor mastering or a distortion somewhere in your system. The vinyl sounds pretty worn.
     
  10. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    it's not at all in sync with it. it is in SOME places, but there are many times when the hi-hats are doing quarter notes, and the click does eighth notes

    and check out at about 3.50 when the ride starts doing eighth notes and the click stays with the quarter notes

    here it is on youtube if you don't want to bother with the download

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9HjGOVeLW4&feature=youtube_gdata
     
  11. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    i think this mastering is pretty treble-y. the needledrop is totally flat.

    i've been playing drums many years, and i've never heard any cymbal sound like this noise. you can hear the noise sometimes along with the hi-hats or ride, and other times it clicks where there's no cymbal, and vice-versa

    even if it was totally in sync, what kind of strangeness could make a click appear when an instrument so low in the mix would create that sound, on just that song? i could understand a loud snare hit, or a bass frequency aggravating some weird overtone, but not a delicate low-mixed cymbal
     
  12. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    Nothing strange about the high frequency of a cymbal causing distortion, especially on a worn record mastered with a lot of treble. I think what you are experiencing here is much like the sibilance problem heard on some records.
     
  13. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    I would agree with that statement, but have you ever heard cymbal induced clipping that sounds like that? And it seems odd that it's on the entire duration of that song, then just totally quits.

    The record doesn't sound that worn through my system. A little noisy maybe. Keep in mind that's it a 192 mp3
     
  14. Drifter

    Drifter AAD survivor

    Location:
    Vancouver, BC, CA
    Interestingly, when I converted it to .wav and ran it through ClickRepair, the clicking was greatly reduced on the sections with hi-hat but not so much where there was ride cymbal.

    160 actually. :shh:
     
  15. Let me chime in here with my very recent first purchasing ever of Honky Château (!!... such a great record!): my Canadian MCA late pressing sounds EXACTLY like what bigmikerocks describes, and also on a few other tracks I can't recall the title of at the moment, and my LP, though bought used, is in perfect condition.

    I'd also be very surprised this would be caused by hi-hat cymbal hits...

    And it bugs me a lot too!
     
  16. McLover

    McLover Senior Member

    The US Elton John Greatest Hits original pressings were overmodulated in places. This song is the worst offender. The UK pressing on DJM of Greatest Hits is much better.
     
  17. MikeP5877

    MikeP5877 V/VIII/MCMLXXVII

    Location:
    OH
  18. pbuzby

    pbuzby Senior Member

    Location:
    Chicago, IL, US
    I believe Nigel had (still has?) a cymbal with rivets or beads that he used on this song as well as other Elton ballads like "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" and "Someone Saved My Life Tonight."
     
  19. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    yeah the quarter note ride cymbal was kind of a trademark of nigel's back in the day. such a great backing band!!
     
  20. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    does anyone else out there with a similar pressing of this to mine care to check out and see if the clicking is on their copy, too?
     
  21. McLover

    McLover Senior Member

    My US MCA pressing has the clicking on it and my neighbor's does as well.
     
  22. HiFi Guy 008

    HiFi Guy 008 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New England
    I'm still not sure what the OP is referring to. I hear the cymbal/high hat and it's very tss-tss sounding throughout the song. I always assumed it was supposed to sound that way.

    I just listened to the MoFi, DCC Greatest Hits and SACD digital versions. They all sound great. The DCC has a bigger soundstage, but the MoFi is less bright and some of the backround keyboard (synth?) is more audible toward the end.
     
  23. zebop

    zebop Well Known Stranger

    I hear it. On the original LP it sounds like a metronome--or something. On my reissue copy, it sounds like cymbals.
     
  24. bigmikerocks

    bigmikerocks Forum Resident Thread Starter

    did you listen to the sound clip i posted/??

    http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showpost.php?p=7175984&postcount=4
     
  25. MLutthans

    MLutthans That's my spaghetti, Chewbacca! Staff

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