Linda's favorite digital versions of all Black Sabbath albums

I'm worried what you will write when Tony's remix of Forbidden will be finally released

 

It’s the same case with Steve Harris, Maiden’s CD’s have really suffered since 1998.

 

I didn't notice any distortion there either. It's the fatigue at higher volume and the lack of queiter moments that bothers me. The only expression is Zeitgeist which is both a quieter song and has DR9, as opposed to the other tracks which have DR5 (or some of the bonus tracks that have DR4).

Well, that will obviously depend on how it will sound to me. Tony has already said in an interview that the remix will not be very different from the original. I am more worried it will be compressed. The worst case would be if they applied the same approach they used for 13. Anyway, given the sound of 13, The Devil You Know and the 2021 remasters of Vol. 4, Heaven and Hell and Mob Rules, chances are, indeed, that I will not like the sound of Forbidden 2027 (or whenever it will finally come out).

FYI, many people are saying the original Forbidden mix is awful, but I am not one of them. IMO the original mix is OK. I also really like Ice-T's performance on Illusion of Power. The thing that bothers me most about Forbidden are those of Tony Martin's lyrics that sound like he's trying to imitate rap slang, especially on Get a Grip. They sound very inauthentic to me. In interviews he seemed to be suggesting that he was more or less forced to do it that way, but I frankly don't believe that was the case. I believe he just repeated a mistake he had already made on Headless Cross: he chose and overdid a certain style of lyrics because he somehow felt it fitted the band or atmosphere when it didn't.

 

Don't forget that there are multiple versions of each and every Creative Sounds Sabbath release, often with different masterings.

 

Just to pick some nits the DR values on vol 4, H&H and mob rules are not bad at all certainly nowhere near the mess that is 13 or tdyk and while at first listen the vol 4 was definitely STRANGE it has grown on me and I dont hate it , vol 4 is the most different sounding of the bunch at least to me

 

When I talked about my dislike regarding the 2021 remasters, I was not referring to compression. They are not extremely compressed. They just sound very bad to me altogether, so we'll have to agree to disagree on that point.

 

Linda,
Glad you got back on that, I wasn't sure if I was out of my mind or not on that, regarding 13 distortion. It's just undynamic and fatiguing.. There's a few other Rubin productions out there like this where I quite like the music but it's too in your face. Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave spring to mind.

 

Decades of being in front of blazing amplifiers/speakers will have an impact on one's hearing.

 

I agree with you, I feel it the same... but as you see there are too many haters of VOL4 2021 remaster

 

Black Sabbath being what it is, from the era they come from, dollars to donuts that Tony had hearing loss very early on.

 

Well what does everybody dislike more, the new Vol IV mastering or the last Pierce before it?
I'm thinking the Pierce is more consistent, thus easier to EQ for my preferences. Not that I spend time with these versions.......

 

Agreed. I was really shocked when I noticed I disliked the Vol. 4 2021 even more than the 2012 Pearce. The Pearce is just crazy bright, which is awful but kind of straightforward. The 2021 sounds so weird I wonder if the sound engineer took too much cocaine and danced on the EQ controls rather than using their hands to adjust them.

Thinking about it, I am not sure I hate it, I guess I just deeply despise it.

 

If specifically hearing a "different sounding" version of Sabbath's classic albums were something I strived for, I would load the SACD-rip into iZotope RX and play around with EQ and effects. Everyone can create weird sounds.

 

I wonder how sales of VOL 4 2021 are and what the average person ( non obsessed sh board member thinks of it )

 

Shame on you

Tony and Geezer are certainly very disappointed from your approach

 

The average person doesn't even know what a mastering is.

 

So much writings about it... I think I've got a taste to play VOL4 2021 remaster... I would put all the haters in front of the speakers and play it loud as hell

 

Please grant us the mercy of a less agonizing death.

 

In all fairness, if you like the 2021 remaster then that's what counts for you. There are so many versions of Vol. 4 (and the whole of the Ozzy era catalog) to like.

I've surmised Linda prefers darker masterings. - I like slightly more bright masterings with lots of well-defined bass and clear highs (Smiley-faced EQ). I like to read everybody's opinions.

 

No, no, no don't tell me that! - Arrrrrrrrgh!!!

[just kidding (kind of) ]

 

Yeah, I don’t even know the difference between mixing and mastering….

Apparently

 

Sometimes I almost wish I was that person

 

No more needs to be said

 

You said it Jeff,…..

I notice all the time that my memory and ears are not one and the same thing

I actually accept my hearing loss….. I’ve said before, my hearing now cuts off at 12-14khz depending on my meds

I’m thankful I still have that, my mum took at test and couldn’t hear above 8-9khz, whereas my dad who is 72 can still do about 13 kHz

I genuinely think older people like me (51) kid themselves they have the same hearing they did as a 30 year old

I think I’m just realistic

I’ve lost some hair… I’ve also lost some hearing

unlike Jeff ….. he still has a majestic head of hair