Best sounding David Bowie albums on the RCA CDs (only)?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by pig whisperer, Nov 8, 2006.

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  1. Drexler_McStyles

    Drexler_McStyles Active Member

    Location:
    Cackalack Country
    So am I to understand that ALL the RCA pressings of Aladdin Sane have the same mastering because they were all pressed in Japan? Is it really that much nicer than the Ryko?
     
  2. yesstiles

    yesstiles Senior Member

    I dunno. I think the Japan RCA of Ziggy is the best sounding cd there is for this title.
     
  3. pdovore

    pdovore Forum Resident

    That's great news for me. I'd like his other releases so i'll start hunting for them. Thanks for your advice and feedback!
     
  4. onebit

    onebit Forum Resident

    I have both versions (Japan for USA, Japan for Europe). IIRC the timings of the tracks are different between the two discs.

    So they are definitely not exact clones of each other, but in a shootout it was tough to tell them apart. Same tape; different transfer perhaps? Hard to say.

    Both sound amazing, of course. If you have a chance to pick one of these up, go for it - one of the better RCA's IMO.
     
  5. plickfu

    plickfu Active Member

    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    I will echo what everyone else is saying: the RCA Aladdin Sane (Japan for Japan) is one of the best sounding CDs I own. Pick one up as soon as you can.
     
  6. Are you sure you don't mean Japan for US/UK? If you really meant "Japan for Japan" what is the catalog number of that release? Thanks.

    -s1m0n-
     
  7. onebit

    onebit Forum Resident

    I'm not sure the entire Bowie RCA discography got a Japan for Japan release way back when.

    I have an early Young Americans with catalog number R32P-1038 (artwork in Japanese etc.), and I've seen a ChangesOneBowie from the same series, but that's all so far.

    Are there any others?
     
  8. plickfu

    plickfu Active Member

    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    Oops. Sorry. Duh. I meant Japan for US. I don't know why I wrote Japan. It still sounds great.
     
  9. drbryant

    drbryant Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    I have Changes One, Ziggy and Station to Station. They are rare, and are different masterings form the Japan for US discs.
     
  10. howlinrock

    howlinrock Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    SF Bay Area
  11. Music Emporium

    Music Emporium Forum Resident

    Location:
    Spain
    yes, according to a frien d of mine who used to work in a record store in the late 80's, it seems rcas were withdrawn and stock was depleted , at the time the bowie rca were regarded as really bad sounding cd's!!!!!!!
     
  12. drbryant

    drbryant Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    I ran EAC's of the track "Golden Years" from the following discs:


    Station to Station Japan for US PCD1-1327 45.4%
    ChangesOne Japan for US PCD1-1732 52.6%
    Station to Station Japan R32P-1039 75.7%

    When I selected "play peak range" each track had a different peak range as well. They appear to be 3 different masterings. I like them all, but the Japan for US tracks have a distinct edge over the R32P, which is a little to toppy for me. Some people, like who find the original Japan-for-US RCA's dull, might like the R32P pressings, but I find them less natural sounding and less musical because of that extended treble. The Japan R32P pressings are amazingly rare, so I'll keep them (although I just picked up Ziggy with an obi, so I might sell the extra one I have), but I will probably listen to the Japan-for-US discs.

    So the question is:

    Station to Station WG ??
    ChangesOne WG ??

    I don't have these, but I wonder if there are five different masterings of "Golden Years" on these 5 early RCA discs?
     
  13. Curiosity

    Curiosity Just A Boy

    Location:
    United Kingdom
    There is a WG Changesonebowie and Station To Station - it's with me!
    Golden Years C1Bowie:
    Track 11
    Filename C:\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\Track11.wav

    Peak level 78.6 %
    Copy CRC 28FD5602
    Copy OK
    Golden Years Station To Station WG
    Track 2
    Filename C:\Documents and Settings\User\My Documents\Track02.wav

    Peak level 94.4 %
    Copy CRC D10C584D
    Copy OK
     
  14. drbryant

    drbryant Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Holy smokes. Five different peak levels. Thanks. At least we know.
     
  15. Vivaldinization

    Vivaldinization Active Member

    But wouldn't these likely be different masterings (volumetrically) of the same transfer?

    Again: Differing peak levels does not mean you have an actual different transfer involved.

    We know that RCA wasn't necessarily of the habit of sending off digital tapes to be replicated. However, we also know that they did seem to borrow sources on occasion (I doubt they made the drop-out-laden transfer of "Changes" on several different attempts). Consequently, actually comparing the waveforms is crucial to actually making any sort of determination here.
     
  16. drbryant

    drbryant Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    I understand that, but if they were different masterings of the same transfer, wouldn't the peak range be the same as well?

    Of the three versions that I have, there appear to be differences in more than just volume. In fact, the R32P just sounds very different, with more top end. Which reminds me, I have the R32P pressing of ChangesOne as well, which I'll check tomorrow, so we can see if we have 6 different peak levels.
     
  17. Vivaldinization

    Vivaldinization Active Member

    Probably, but stranger things have happened. For one, wouldn't an inversion also change the peak range (at least relatively?). What's the peak range function measuring in your app?


    I hate RCA with a passion. They seem to be the total opposite of EMI (which seemed to get its **** worked out with digital distribution pretty early on in the game)...so we seem to have all of these micro-variations running around. I don't see the reason, though, why the Japan-for-Japan and Japan-for-US discs would differ in a conceptual sense.
     
  18. The Ryko is filtered and re-equed (largely around 4k).
    Depends on whether you notice the fiddling or not. I do.
     
  19. drbryant

    drbryant Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    The Japan-for-Japan (R32P) discs were actually released quite a bit after the release of the Japan-for-US discs. The R32P Station to Station appears to have been released May 15, 1986. Unless I am mistaken, the Bowie RCA CD's began appearing in 1984 (right?). I suspect that this actually is a reason for their rarity. By the time the R32P discs were finally released in Japan, most Bowie fans already had purchased the US versions. So, when offered a Japan release of the same album (with no bonus tracks), most people passed on paying an additional 3200 Yen. Then, they quickly went out of print. You rarely see them, especially with the neat fold-in obis. Ziggy and ChangesOne appear from time to time, but the others are tough to find.

    Please note, though, there was a very early Japan-for-Japan release of Ziggy and (I think) ChangesOne that I suspect are identical to the Japan-for-US discs, but I can't confirm that, because I don't have them. I think that the product number is RPCD-xxx.
     
  20. BIG ED

    BIG ED Forum Resident

    Are the Japan & W. German Bowie RCA's a west coast/east coast thing?
    I've got 10 & all are "Japan".
    Even one title where the paper is W.G., butt the disc is still Japan.

    In general:
    BIG thx.
    I stayed away from Bowie CD's for yrs; waiting for the "ultimate" releases.
    So of coarse; I find out here, I should have been p.u. RCA's from the get go.
    (if we only knew...)
    After four yrs I've final found the RCA "Diamond Dogs".
    And can you believe it, it was worth the wait!
    Last yr, p.u'd the Ryco, had to have some "DD", just couldn't wait any longer.
    Of coarse its loud & I remember it being "thin". Butt after playing the RCA for the 1st time, I got the Ryco out & its wasn't as badd as I had remembered.
    Detail is more apparent on the Ryco, butt I'm not saying it is: cause of the loudness issue.
    Someone would have to level match to prove or disprove that.
    However there is a denseness to music on the RCA the Ryco can't match.
    Giving an overall "spookier" feel to the sound. Which is "right" for the album.
    Soundstage is of a similar width (maybe, just maybe, the RCA is an inch or two wider on my system, maybe), however I do believe overall depth is better with the RCA.
    Too me its vocals. Which is weird. I would think the RCA would muddy up the vocals: Yet even with the denser mix, even with the lower volume, the vocals are richer & smother.

    Well worth the 25 bucks!

    And the dang thing was minty, minty, minty!
    The jewel case wasn't even scuffed up?!?!
    Wonder where this thing was all this time...
     
  21. yesstiles

    yesstiles Senior Member

    Diamond Dogs is my favorite Bowie album. I'd like to get an RCA cd someday. I've always heard on the forum though that DD is the one Bowie title that was perhaps better on Ryko. Thanks for the heads up.
     
  22. I Am The Lolrus

    I Am The Lolrus New Member

    Location:
    LA, CA, US
    definitely not! The ryko is so different it sounds like a remix (a bad one).
     
    Sebastich likes this.
  23. RussellG

    RussellG Forum Resident

    Yes I think the Japan RCA of this album sounds great too. Better than a couple of the other RCA's.
     
  24. nlgbbbblth

    nlgbbbblth Senior Member

    Location:
    Ireland
  25. plickfu

    plickfu Active Member

    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    Stop doing that!
     
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