What do people think of the sound quality of the 2014 remasters?i think they sound crisper and deeper and less muddy.
Crisper, deeper, and less muddy than what? The vinyl? 80s CDs? '94 remasters? This has been covered in multiple threads before. The real answer is - it depends. Its a mixed bag. Some are marginally better than the Diament/Sidore/Marinos, some slightly worse, less bassy, more compressed, too bright, etc, some clearly worse. It changes depending on 1) who you ask, 2) which album you're asking about. There are some who maintain the 80s discs remain the "ones to own" on digital. For me though, the LPs are still the high mark for owning Led Zeppelin. But I will say that overall I think the recent batch of remasters are solid. Minus Houses of the Holy, which I think is a bit too shrill and bright. Though I need a copy of the Diament to compare.
i have the 1994 remasters on cd.and a few on 180 gram vinyl.to me the 2014 remasters sound great compared to them
I have 24bit versions of the most recent remasters and they sound better than the Cd versions I bought around 2003.
I love new pressing of "How the West Was Won". Agree with "mixed bag" statement, albeit I think PG is remastered worse then HOTH. Original mixes are simply not good enough to remaster them without compromise. But I believe that one day someone will remix them properly. Well, at least the ones with existing multitracks.
To my ears, LZ III, Presence, and In Through The Out Door are the ones that shine from the 2014/15 Davis Remasters......... LZ III (Davis)- There are plenty of other vinyl options I prefer over the Davis cut for sound, but the cd sounds better than the 80's Diament and the 90's Marino mastering in my opinion. Presence (Davis)- Sounds really good on vinyl, but I still prefer an early US. The best sounding digital option by far. In Through The Out Door (Davis)- The best sounding option for vinyl or digital (my opinion).....I spent years trying to find a vinyl pressing that didn't sound like it had mud in the grooves..........the Davis cut finally bought out the detail.
2014 vinyl...I agree that III, In through the Out Door, and Presence are the big winners. ITTOD in particular is a huge improvement over the original US Strawberry, as Dr. Funk said. I, II, and IV are pretty good I think. I know they have their detractors but I think they are solid. I never picked up Houses or Coda. I have so many RL copies of Houses I figure that is all I need.
thats my next step the 24 bit downloads.are they just on hd tracks or other sites also? it just seems hd tracks can be so expensive
They aren't better than the Classic Records issues. They should have just gave the tapes to Grundman again. He was all ready familiar with them.
I consider the remasters for II, III, HOTH, Presence, ITTOD and Coda to be the definitive digital versions, I feel they are a vast improvement over the Diament’s and the Marino’s although in the case of HOTH sometimes I still listen to my Diament CD as it sounds almost exactly like my RL vinyl. I love the remastering of the BBC Sessions and HTWWW as well, haven’t heard TSRTS yet. As for the other studio albums, I felt they sounded way too bright with lousy bass, especially IV. Was very letdown by the remastering of that one. The first album sounded very dull, flat and uninviting to me although I liked the mastering of the bonus Paris concert, then again I also don’t like the Diament or Marino CD’s of the first album either, the George Piros vinyl of that is the only way to hear it for me, no digital version comes close.
There's been a ton of discussion on this but your singular description pretty much sums it up for me. The best ones are the first three albums. I was hoping for more "deeper" and 'cleaner" for "IV" but it's still an improvement over the originals, IMO. Another quip...a less sibilant Ocean would have been great on the vinyl version. But other than that, I agree with your assessment as it concerns both vinyl and CD versions.
...any Mothership fans out there..?? I know I'm in the minority but I have the vinyl box set and think it sounds excellent.
... we also finaly get a digital release of HOTH without the distorsion on The Ocean, that has annoyed me since the 80's when I first heard it on the Diament CD.
Besides originals, the first 180 gram Classic Records versions are the best that have been done Original master tapes and tube cut I have the first four thanks to my father
Kashmir from 2015 remaster seems to have a less spinning sound sound effect . I like it better. Trampled under foot sounds clearer
I don't know if it's my system but I found the remaster of PG CD sounds rather flat. Kashmir is especially undynamic. Not sure why. ITTOD, II and HOTH sounds great, especially II. S/T and IV are not as good but better than PG. Don't have the others.
I prefer the 80's Diament mastering for Zep I and II, but the 2014 remaster of II is a nice option even though it's a very different animal from the earlier Diament CD. What I prefer about the earlier Diament for both I & II is the bass heft, overall balance and soundstage depth. The 2014 remaster seems to have a bit more forward presentation and detail (may be due to utilization of the master tape rather than a low generation copy), but the bass seems to have less energy in the mix, ...at least that's my impression. Other remasters are case by case (for instance, the 2014 remaster of III sounds pretty good). Having multiple versions is fun for those who like occasional A/B comparisons, but for early Zep, you can't go wrong with the 80's Diaments (IMO). Preferences vary dependent upon gear and which presentation appeals to personal tastes. That about covers it. Cat
I'm really surprised Zep I isn't certified Diamond yet. It's stuck officially at 8 million for the U.S. With the success of the 2014 reissues both in physical sales and downloads and both in single and deluxe offerings, and how ever it is they calculate streams, it needs resubmitted to the RIAA.