The Official "Apple Digital Masters / Mastered for iTunes" Thread*

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by nbakid2000, Apr 19, 2014.

  1. pronghorn

    pronghorn Forum Resident

    Location:
    Minnesota
    Thanks for starting this thread, good idea. I too am very much enjoying LZ and AC/DC. Of course, MFIT is not the perfect solution, but it's a step in the right direction. Kudos to Apple for moving the ball down the field.
     
  2. Clanceman

    Clanceman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Portland, Or
    The ac/dc stuff is great too!
     
  3. Encuentro

    Encuentro Forum Resident

    I have The Doors complete studio recording MFIT. 8 albums including the post-Morrison albums, Other Voices and Full Circle. The 6 Morrison-era don't sound that great to me. Perhaps it's due to the fact that I've heard those albums for 25+ years in various formats including the Hoffman gold CDs and the Analogue Productions 45 rpms, but the 6 Morrison-era MFIT albums sound weak to me. They lack any kind of punch. Very soft sounding. However, Other Voices and Full Circle sound pretty damn good. This may be due to the fact that I haven't listened to those albums nearly as much as I have the 6 Morrison-era albums.

    I have The Rolling Stones Hot Rocks 1964-1971 MFIT. It sounds very good.
     
    Clanceman likes this.
  4. funkydude

    funkydude Forum Resident

    Location:
    Germany
    why exactly do people believe that less compression was used for the his res files that were sent to apple to be made into MFiT files? Or that there is even any kind of mastering difference. I am 99% certain that the same masters are used for regular and for MFiT files. The differnce is just the conversion chain. MFiT files are made directly from the his res masters while regular files are made after the hi res master files have before been converted to 16/44.1.
    If the original masters are compressed and/or brickwalled, they are compressed and/or brickwalled. A different conversion chain doesn't change that.
     
    Steve Martin likes this.
  5. lbangs

    lbangs Senior Member

    And yet, despite those incredible odds, that is not always true...

    Shalom, y'all!

    L. Bangs
     
  6. funkydude

    funkydude Forum Resident

    Location:
    Germany
    well, all apple is saying is "send us your master files and let us convert them ourselves". that's all. This has really nothing to do with mastering choices made by an engineer.
     
  7. lbangs

    lbangs Senior Member

    Not exactly. Apple claims it will reject files that audibly clip too much. Apple does not supply a specific number of instances of clipping that will trigger a reject, but the literature released definitely claim it will happen.

    Additoinally since many files for new releases Mastered for iTunes have higher dynamic range readings than the redbook versions, I think it is safe to say the sources are not always exactly the same....


    Shalom, y'all!

    L. Bangs
     
  8. lbangs

    lbangs Senior Member

    iTunes added Mastered for iTunes versions of the Cream and Eric Clapton albums; I bet they're from the same masters currently making the rounds on the high-resolution sites...

    Shalom, y'all!

    L. Bangs
     
    coffeetime and swedgin like this.
  9. coffeetime

    coffeetime Senior Member

    Location:
    Lancs, UK
    Not the first band that comes to mind when it comes to candidates for MFiT but the first 7 Ramones albums, the Sire Years 1976-1981 set and a Greatest Hits comp are all up on the UK store.

    Will check through when I get chance but hopefully these aren't the brick walled masters from the Expanded & Remastered reissue campaign.
     
    lbangs likes this.
  10. lbangs

    lbangs Senior Member

    Nice catch!

    They're also in the US store.

    Shalom, y'all!

    L. Bangs
     
    coffeetime likes this.
  11. lbangs

    lbangs Senior Member

    There's a special page now for Blue Note albums, many which are Mastered for iTunes (and most I've heard sound great). I'm not sure how many new albums have been added, but there's some great gold in that mine...

    Shalom, y'all!

    L. Bangs
     
    dee and coffeetime like this.
  12. DJ WILBUR

    DJ WILBUR The Cappuccino Kid

    I grabbed the Damon Albarn MFiT and it sounds terrific, I know he's got hi res files on sale on his website or somewhere, but I bought these on a whim and they really sound excellent.

    Has anyone heard the Ray Lamontagne MFiT? The Amazon 'autorip" files on this one were horrifically bad. maybe the worst sounding retail files I've ever heard.
     
    stem likes this.
  13. Paranoid Android

    Paranoid Android Forum Resident

    Isn't Dan Auerbach involved? My guess is the music will be great and the mix less-than stellar.(Like Black Keys stuff)
     
  14. Paranoid Android

    Paranoid Android Forum Resident

    If there was one song I should buy that is "mastered for iTunes", which one would it be? Would like to see what all the hype is about.

    (Mom gave me a gift card for my birthday.)
     
  15. coffeetime

    coffeetime Senior Member

    Location:
    Lancs, UK
    Without wanting to prejudge your tastes I'll cast the net as wide as my experience allows:

    Rock wise, just about any track off of Led Zeppelin II or Physical Graffiti - What Is And What Should Never Be or Ten Years Gone personally speaking. Keep in mind that these are from different masters than the 1990s CDs currently in circulation. Any of the Black Sabbath Ozzy era MFiT albums sound good; I'll plump for Master of Reality as its my fave.

    Any of the Pink Floyd MFiT files are worth while and are from the same remasters as the 2011 Discovery reissue CDs. High Hopes from Division Bell, Hey You from The Wall or If from Atom Heart Mother would be my picks.

    Sunken Condos - Donald Fagen compares extremely well with the CD of the same.

    Many people have had good things to say about the Bruce Springsteen MFiT files, not heard them here though. the AC/DC MFiT files sound pretty good but aren't the most dynamic, especially when compared to early CD masters. The one track I've bought from the Abba MFiT reissues sounds very good (The Name of the Game from The Album), especially when compared to the 2005 Complete Studio Recordings CD box - wanting on the digital box set due out in September before picking up the rest of the catalogue.

    Punk wise just about any track you might care for on The Clash - Hits Back is worthwhile.

    Jazz wise Esperanza Spalding's Radio Music Society sounds fantastic - Cinammon Tree is a wonderfully chilled, great sounding track. In a similar vein but with a more Latin vibe try any track of Melody Gardot - The Absence. Mira for something upbeat, So We Meet Again My Heartache for more chilled.

    Classical is where MFiT shines as many labels, especially Universal put some serious effort into decent mastering & supplying decent liner notes. Recommendations include:

    Nicola Benedetti - Italia. Try Guistino: Vedro con mio diletto (track 4).
    Janine Jansen - Bach Concertos. Violin concerto in E major. I. Allegro (track 1)
    Alan Loveday - Four Seasons. Any track at all. 1968 recording that sounds damned good to my ears.
    Scottish Chamber Orchestra - Mozart Sympnonies 38-41. Not sure which tracks are available to buy individually but track 1 is a stunningly good piece, well recorded and sympathetically mastered.
    Jacqueline du Pre - Elgar Cello Concerto. Track 1 - as above ;)

    I realise you want just the one recommendation: If I had to pick just one of the above as a showcase for MFiT, it'd probably be Led Zeppelin II - What Is And What Should Never Be. Given the different masters, it proves probably the biggest night and day difference with the existing CD.
     
    Togo, Scopitone, stem and 4 others like this.
  16. swedgin

    swedgin Forum Resident

    Location:
    Earth
    R.E.M. IRS and Warner Catalogues up to NAIHF are now available MFiT's, individually and in sets? Also Unplugged collection is available MFiT for anyone like me who missed the RSD vinyl.
     
    dee, JeffMo, GetHappy!! and 2 others like this.
  17. lbangs

    lbangs Senior Member

    It appears the Sun Ra albums are heading this way...

    (Edit: Actually, it looks like today they've already posted many of these to the store Mastered for iTunes...)

    Shalom, y'all!

    L. Bangs
     
  18. HotelYorba101

    HotelYorba101 Senior Member

    Location:
    California
    The Zeppelin tunes sound just as good as my Classic Records needledrops it is pretty crazy! Whatever iTunes is doing I quite enjoy
     
  19. Thurenity

    Thurenity Listening to some tunes

    Part of the MFIT process is a set of best practices to the artist / label, and that includes reduction of clipping and improved dynamic range. See this PDF for details: http://images.apple.com/itunes/mastered-for-itunes/docs/mastered_for_itunes.pdf

    Of course the artist / label can do whatever they like, these are just recommendations.
     
  20. Billy Infinity

    Billy Infinity Beloved aunt

    Location:
    US
    This x 1,000. The 2011 campaign was incomplete without these titles.
     
    coffeetime likes this.
  21. coffeetime

    coffeetime Senior Member

    Location:
    Lancs, UK
    The forthcoming box set of The Division Bell gives me a little hope that Floyd aren't quite done with their catalogue remastering.
     
  22. sharedon

    sharedon Forum Zonophone

    Location:
    Boomer OK
    What was exclusive about "See Emily Play?" I somehow missed that!
     
  23. botley

    botley Forum Resident

    It was remastered (for the millionth time) on that comp.
     
  24. Billy Infinity

    Billy Infinity Beloved aunt

    Location:
    US
    I think he means that's the only place to get the 2011 remaster of that song... on A Foot in the Door.
     
  25. sharedon

    sharedon Forum Zonophone

    Location:
    Boomer OK
    Ah - thanks, gents!
     
    Billy Infinity likes this.

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