Paul McCartney Flaming Pie Archive Collection - Sound Quality Discussion

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Captain Paul, Aug 2, 2020.

  1. aphexj

    aphexj Sound mind & body

    My bad, I didn't notice the second noise in a row that isn't on the original. It's less intrusive than the noise immediately before it (which, I think, is some kind of squeak from the instruments) but I'll admit I'm not super familiar with the original track
    You're correct of course, I was commenting on the 'flip' noise that comes immediately prior to the glitch point being less intrusive with my EQ move
     
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2020
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  2. jcr64

    jcr64 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Indiana
    I missed the glitch in "Souvenir"--I'll listen for it next time around--but on the whole I have to say that the vinyl sound quality is fantastic.
     
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  3. Captain Paul

    Captain Paul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    Could it be that the original CD and 2020 remaster come from different sources? Things were different in the mid-90s.
     
  4. mindgames

    mindgames Forum Resident

    Location:
    -
    My bad, then it's only 'Magneto' which didn't have it on the hi-res files.
     
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  5. mindgames

    mindgames Forum Resident

    Location:
    -
    To settle it once and for all, refer to this post when it’s a point of discussion again in the future.

    I’ve matched the 1997 master and 2020 master for ‘Souvenir’ in volume and EQ-ing and inverted the polarity for the 1997 master, which makes both sources identical in those aspects.

    This is a 4 second snippet of the doomed part, with the glitch in the middle. It’s a .GIF, so make sure you can see it moving back and forth:

    [​IMG]

    Look how the left half is almost 1 on 1 and aligning precisely, and the right half doesn’t. At the exact moment of the glitch the timing suddenly shifts ever so slightly as you can see, which happens at no other point in the master.

    Then, here’s the frequency spectrum, another GIF:

    [​IMG]

    Everything looks exactly the same, apart from the large “tick” (vertical line) and the “swoop” in the lower frequency range, which are both audible. And everything shifts in time from there on.

    It's an error, it's a glitch, it shouldn't be there, it's not part of the master tape. I checked the hi-res files, and it’s present there as well.
     
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  6. Paul H

    Paul H The fool on the hill

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    Good sleuthing. Now I just need to find a way to isolate it in Audacity (it's isn't clear to me precisely where it is) so I can remove it.

    As for the wider discussion about sound quality, I have to say that having gone to the trouble of undoing the limiting on the parent album, its really disappointing to see that they didn't do this with the B-sides and Oobu Joobu tracks. They didn't remaster B-sides from Flowers in the Dirt either but that was of less consequence because the originals sounded very good to begin with. It seems odd that the team are happy to remaster older (1970s) B sides, as if they're an important part of the catalogue, but they aren't bothered about more modern ones.
     
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  7. Captain Paul

    Captain Paul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    Do any other of the Paul McCartney Archive Collection vinyl sound as good to you? I’ve held out on buying some of them but I wouldn’t mind getting them for the bonus tracks if the sound was top notch.
     
  8. Troyh

    Troyh Forum Resident

    The RAM mono and the RRS, original planned 2 lp.
    The rest are okay, but I prefer most of the other original issues, ( UK, German, and Japanese, with a few US thrown in.)
     
  9. Troyh

    Troyh Forum Resident

    Agree with both above! RRS is to be expected as it's kind of a Frankenstein, and the Wild Life archive is better than the original US by a country mile.
     
  10. Separan

    Separan Forum Resident

    Location:
    South Korea
    Yeah, I listened Souvenir(s), 1997 original, Pure McCartney remaster and 2020 remaster. 2020 has 'tick' sound that 1997 and Pure don't have. It's 100% sure glitch.
    Maybe It can easily fixed.... right? just replace a little fraction from original. low prequency 'swoop' also.
     
  11. Paul H

    Paul H The fool on the hill

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    There's something really bizarre going on with these hi res files. I downloaded them and resampled them to import into my iPod. Several of the songs have a noticeable tick in the left channel either a second before the music starts or before the file ends (in the silent parts at either end). I've looked at the waveforms of both hi res and downsampled files and there's nothing there. Listening to them on my pc, there is no sign of these ticks. And yet they appear consistently in the same place whenever I play them on my iPod. 'Tis freaking me out, doncha know.
     
  12. Paul H

    Paul H The fool on the hill

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    After a bit of tinkering, I've managed to remove the glitch. Of course, its at the cost of a very brief section that is no longer hi-res or subject to the same EQ moves but neither of these are remotely noticeable. I'm happy to have fixed the problem but its very disappointing that little old me has to do it with my home pc and a piece of free software. Where's the QC?
     
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  13. Paul H

    Paul H The fool on the hill

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    Is anyone else hearing these ticks? It's very noticeable at the start and end of The Song We Were Singing. By pasting some digital silence over the, um, digital silence at the start and end of the track, I've been able to remove the ticks but I'm still baffled. Nothing else reproduces the sound and there's no sign of anything in the waveform that I can see.
     
  14. Plan9

    Plan9 Mastering Engineer

    Location:
    Toulouse, France
    Sounds like your system is doing those, not the files.
     
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  15. jacden

    jacden Senior Member

    Location:
    Denmark
    I've listened to my hi-res files three times now (two times blasted through headphones) and haven't detected anything like you're describing. I'm usually quite sensitive to digital ticks, so I would definitely have noticed something like that. Maybe it's a hardware related problem?
     
  16. Paul H

    Paul H The fool on the hill

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    Indeed, but I've never experienced this with any other files, regardless of source or processing. And it isn't random: the ticks appear in the same place in the same songs every listen. I'm utterly baffled.
     
  17. Captain Paul

    Captain Paul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    Have you tried listening to them on something different like on your computer?
     
  18. andy75

    andy75 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sweden
    Never noticed it during my first listening, but now when I know it's a glitch, it bothers me. I guess we can't hope for a replacement, or can we? It's sad because it sounds really good apart from that.
     
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  19. jmxw

    jmxw Fab Forum Fan

    Tell that to Love Is Strange... :wtf:
     
  20. Paul H

    Paul H The fool on the hill

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    Yes, that's what's baffling: it only happens on my iPod: pc and other music players are fine.
     
  21. Captain Paul

    Captain Paul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    What iPod are you using?
     
  22. Paul H

    Paul H The fool on the hill

    Location:
    Nottingham, UK
    Classic 160GB
     
  23. Captain Paul

    Captain Paul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    As far as I know that doesn’t support 24bit files.
     
  24. Captain Paul

    Captain Paul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    USA
    So to really get this thread going, is the HDtracks download and the box set downloads the same?
     
  25. Contact Lost

    Contact Lost Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ireland
    I think it's a lovely remaster overall.

    Very happy that hi-res files have no limiting and I hope this trend will continue. I don't hear a huge difference in sonic signature / timbre, but some tunes sound more open and have very punchy snare and clearer vocals. There's more air in them. BTW, Was it Ringo on drums on Really Love You?
     
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