Are classical CDs suffering the same brickwall issues; old versions collectable?

I had quite a few DG "Originals" CDs and didn't like them at all, they sounded bright/harsh to me. I like the original CDs better (), though DG recordings are generally not my favourites.

 

Thank you! I had a listen, and it's interesting: you can hear a distinct change of sound quality in the Amazon clip, too, although as I recall it's more pronounced and abrupt in the Royale record. I don't recall if it's in the same place; I guess this may give me the nudge I need to install that new LP cartridge and get my turntable back into long play mode.

Otherwise, I guess that Kabasta and Toscanini, while I find them good *turn*table companions, might not have been exactly compatible *dinner* table companions at a party....

 

I have never heard a good-sounding DG "Originals," but I gave up on them years ago. I won a lot of them in a contest once. A good comparison are Karajan's Mahler CDs. Also, Kleiber's Beethoven 5 & 7.

 

Thats kinda funny now that I think about it...MOST classical ive heard on cd sounds anywhere from awesome to very good. Ive rarely heard anything bad or no-noised or compressed at all as far as I can tell. I guess that tells you something that mastering is by far the most important thing in a recording, or at least not mucking up the sound. SOME classical stuff I own the noise of the audience is annoying but there has not been a technology developed to reduce THAT....lol

DG is one of my favorites, but must admit I do own several TELARC recordings....enen though some on here dont like them.

 

Many Philips "Legendary Classics" CDs from the early 1990s were no-noised.

 

Sviatoslav Richter

has anyone heard the new Richter - The Master discs? i read that the series is a reissue of a 1994 Philips campaign. twenty-one two-disc volumes are expected.

 

But their original CDs, including the Silver Line series, usually sounded very good. Do you know how they were mastered? [Philips were usually my favorite sounding classical LPs, too.]

 

That recording might have been an original analog recording.

 

Symphony No.5 was recorded in 1975, No.7 in 1976. Both were analogue recordings.

 

Decca recently came out with the Original Masters series which offer real good values - multiple re-mastered discs in a reasonably priced set. Some of the pieces have never appeared on any CD's before. Its sister divisions DG and Philips also have similar offerings.

 

I think I have these recordings on DG LP's.

 

I have just found Tchaikovsky's No.6 by Kurt Sanderling (DENON 38C37-7062) on my father's CD shelf.

This one is Ⓟ1983.7

I think I'm gonna steal it

 

Many of these Denon classical CD's are now OOP ...

 

I haven't heard a brickwalled (or even close) classical CD yet and I own about 3 thousand Classical CDs.

The NR issue is a big one for classical collectors, with certain labels (Pearl, Naxos Historical, Biddulph) staying true to the music, while retaining the hiss/surface noise. Also, certain mastering engineers do superb work with historical stuff, guys like Mark Obert-Thorn, Ward Marston and Seth Winner.

Ward Marston's label puts out incredibly high quality performances, mastering and packaging. The liner notes are informative and thoughtful as well. Not to mention their superb customer service. Unfortunately, they only press 1000 copies of their CDs and when they are gone, like with the DCCs, they are gone forever.

Again, the NR used (and other futzing) on later masterings make the earlier issues more desirable. In some cases, the difference is great, in many others it is marginal.

I value them for the performances. For classical I don't have to worry as much about mastering and will endure whatever I have to endure to hear the great historical performers of yesteryear.

OOP stuff can become very expensive, like over at amazon, but often those discs will just sit there for months and months.

 

They futzed with them, though not ridiculously so. If you can hunt down the previous issue of this material - the Authorised Edition on Philips - you'll have the material in best sound. Only the Schubert 2 disc set has Richter at his best IMO. Sure the sound is nice, but Richter can be heard in better performances of most of those works elsewhere.

 

EMI has been systematically destroying the Callas catalog since 1998, through a combination of no-noise (ART) and other digital processing. The rest of the EMI opera catalog has fared little better, most recently with the 2009 remaster of the '59 Giulini Don Giovanni absolutely destroyed by no-noise. Decca's catalog has fared better, but the recent La Boheme (Pavarotti-Freni) sounds quite brittle, and is an ominous sign for the rest. Keep those old AAD original issues, and even the old ADD are better than the newer ones.

 

Indeed, EMI is the biggest culprit when it comes to poor classical CD mastering.