Hi-Res Download News (HDTracks, ProStudioMasters, Pono, etc.) & Software/Mastering Part 12**

THIS WEEK on HDtracks...

Echo & The Bunnymen - The John Peel Sessions 1979-1983
Sheryl Crow - Threads
Alessia Cara - This Summer
Ray Charles - Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music, Vols 1 & 2

plus much much more...

 

After working in the professional audio field for 18 years I am not surprised. Some engineers say 24/192, some say 24/44.1, some swear by 24/48 like this guy and others swear by 24/88.2. There is no concensus. Unfortunately most engineers don't really know how digital works. But they are sure of one thing....Their ears.

There is this myth that everyone hated 16/48. Nonsense. It's a myth. No one missed:

- Wow and flutter
- multitrack copies that were obvious inferior to the original
- the loss of high frequencies and transients with repeated heavy playing of analog tape.
- not being able to put a soft track next to loud one
- editing with a razor blade.
- noisy tape
- Settimg bias and Dolby level

As my Uncle says, "People have short memories.."

 

While I don't agree with Toby about 48/24 being good enough, thank you for the article. It was an interesting read. And I agree......... use your ears! We all have different hearing curves & differently voiced systems.

 

No argument there! Yum yum good.

 

THIS WEEK on HDtracks...


Korn - The Nothing
Goo Goo Dolls - Miracle Pill
Alice Cooper - Breadcrumbs
PIXIES - Beneath the Eyrie

plus much much more...

 

"Vandenville said: ↑
Regarding Warner Flat transfers: dont forget the whole Rod Stewart back catalog... beautiful flat transfers from analogue tape, sounding great!
No argument there! Yum yum good"

I've never heard a bad sounding master in that series. Back when the labels cared............

 

What is it with the compression? A little bit of peak limiting on transient peaks is cool. Makes it a bit louder and it tightens the sound up bit and no one notices it's there. Normalization will will always make a modern CD sound louder than a 80's CD. Does anybody understand that audiophiles don't want or like compression added to their music?

 

I think he means Alice Cooper sounds best in 24/48. While Sandy's Progressive Orchestra sounds best in 14/32.

 

Either the labels don't get it or they want the format to fail.

 

Since when is there anything inherent in an 88.2 or 96kHz sampling rate that amps up high frequencies? I suspect user error.

 

Yea....mmmmmm........I read that too. I thought maybe I had imagined I had read it. Like, did I really see the NTSC DVD of Doctor Who - Planet Of The Spiders for $1224 on Amazon.ca. .....Yea Unfortunately I did. (Thank Thor for those $10.80 PAL disks.) And unfortunately yes he did say it uped the highs. Not a very smart engineer. I would have to really pile on the "prescription medication" to start hearing boosted highs with higher sampling rates.

We don't record bands. We just mix, remix and master. We even have a little room with cheap mid-fi components to really test the mixes and mastered disks.
I think it's an old Sony CD changer, a Yamaha receiver from the 80's and some old Polk speakers. Uncle Jack got all this junk on Ebay and set it up in one of the offices. He said, "Now we will know what the average person will hear."

 

I used to be a pro musician. In the day (I suspect it's similar now) most studios had 1 set of car speakers in a box & 1 set of upper mid fi speakers.

 

Never ascribe to malice to what you can put down to stupidity.

 

Just downloaded : Shurayuki-hime Album Hama from Bandcamp. I have no idea what this sounds like but Audiophile brain couldn't resist! DR 35!!
foobar2000 1.4.6 / Dynamic Range Meter 1.1.1
log date: 2019-08-22 03:07:05

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Analyzed: Shurayuki-hime / Hama
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DR Peak RMS Duration Track
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DR34 -7.25 dB -45.58 dB 10:00 01-A
DR36 -7.08 dB -47.14 dB 10:00 02-B
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Number of tracks: 2
Official DR value: DR35

 

It is total crap. Just popping noises. I thought it was going to be some crazy art fun noise.

 

There's a lesson here somewhere.

 

The audiophile paradox at work

“The best recorded stuff is nothing you want to listen to”.

 

That's the problem with some of the indie audiophile labels. Great sound quality, but mediocre music.

 

Has anyone grabbed the Gregg Allman Tour release? Curious if its really any better than the 2001 Polydor remaster CD.

 

Yes, I haven't played it yet. IMO, 24 bit always beats 16 unless the mastering sucks. It's a DR10. Will try to play & post soon.

 

Is there a list somewhere of all available Warner flat transfers?

 

A screen cap of HDT 5 years ago............ Maybe wiki? In all seriousness all I can think of is try googling or writing Waner

 

LOL LOL 24 bits is just 8 more bits. The 8 more bits are after the last 16 bit. When we dither down to 16 bits in our studio the dither goes after the 16 bit. I have taken 24 bit masters and just looped up the last 8 bits (truncation) and NEVER have I ever heard detail lost. Some funny weird artifacts maybe but never detail lost. We use 24 bits in the studio for extra headroom. Any engineer who thinks he is getting extra detail from 24 bits is well.....Needs to stay out of my medicine cabinet. 24 can and often does sound better. Why? Because 24 bit has a larger sweet spot. Huh?! All DACs are analog devices right up to the conversion. And analog devices weather they be amplifiers or whatever have a region where they sound their best at. The DAC is no different..

In 16 bit 0VU = - 12 dbfs RMS (average not peak) Don't peak over - 3 dbfs PEAK. (NOT RMS)

In 24 bit 0VU = - 18 dbfs RMS
Don't PEAK over - 6 dbfs PEAK (Not RMS)

In Europe it is - 20 dbfs RMS (don't ask!)

Do the math! 16 bit you have 9 db of good headroom. In 24 bit you have 12 db.



However...Be warned! Just because an engineer says something (Steve, me, Thomas Roy Baker, CLA & TLA or Giles Martin.) doesn't mean it's true.

Use your ears. Maybe some people do hear more detail in 24 bit. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Back in 1982 they said digital was perfect. YEA RIGHT!

 

They will a) have no clue these ever existed, and b) even if they did they wouldn't admit anything about it.

 

I have several of them: Pretenders, Rod Stewart, Yes, and Prince are coming to mind. I should try to compile a list - but it's probably moot because many, if not all, are probably no longer available (?).
I was listening to 1999 by Prince last night. DR14, and sounds amazing. I guarantee the upcoming Super Deluxe Edition remaster won't sound anywhere near this good.