Why, oh why, do people ruin music with compression???

The 2012 reissue is head and shoulders above the original 1999 pressing (I had both, the 1999 literally sounded like the crushed CD cut to vinyl) fwiw

 

IF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY TOOK OVER THE BOOK INDUSTRY, IT WOULD ALL LOOK LIKE THIS. AND I AM ACTUALLY WHISPERING.

 

The shame is that, today, we could give listeners a choice. The file could be distributed with reasonable compression, and the playback hardware could compress on the fly during playback, adjustable to the listener’s taste.

 

Makes too much sense. Then who would pay $30-$50 for "boutique audiophile pressings?"

 

Or two different files. One with limiting / compression and another without.

 

Every Ford/Mazda I've owned since 1999 had a compression function built in to the stereo. You knew the album was already compressed if you turned it on and off and didn't hear a difference.

 

1980s country artist Sylvia's newest music is audiophile quality as an example of independent stuff that sounds great. Her new stuff is sold on CD Baby.

 

"Compression" (in a musical context) is not what this is about.

It is brickwall limiting that ruins most (if not all) modern releases and productions. "Compression" is a required element for any standard multitrack recording session.

VP

 

It's a collective action problem! Everyone's individual incentive runs counter the collective interest. If you exercise restraint, other "louder" music sounds better when streamed. Everyone may want to have everything quieter, but individual fears that others will cheat and make their music "louder" is the problem.

Same dynamic sees us all crank our air conditioners to cool off - increasing our collective carbon footprint in ways that make the earth hotter - so we all buy more air conditioners

The potential solutions are 1) a leviathan (coercion); 2) incentives (side payments); 3) moral appeals (socialization) - But they all have problems

You can argue it is THE social problem - bank runs, inflation, arms races, etc...

 

Yes, our host did the Stadium Arcadium vinyl from the 1/2 master analog tape.

 

I know, I own it. I was talking about Californication, though.

 

This statement is bogus since ALL streaming services feature volume leveling which virtually ensures all music (regardless of brickwalling) streams back at the same level.

This process "leveled" (no pun intended) the playing field years ago - so there is still no point in equating it with respect to any perceived "louder is better" advantage on a streaming service.

No matter how loud you are - it will not matter - your crappy brickwalled mix will be forced to conform whether you like it or not.

And - the louder it is - overall - the worse it will sound on the mainstream streaming platforms.

VP

 

You're right. There's nothing wrong with compression. I think the issue is when it's overdone like limiting. It sounds to me like all of the instruments are fighting against each other.

 

More like all instruments have been told to hit digital zero - and stay there

VP

 

And the bass and drums dominate everything

 

Ouch!

That would confuse most people. Remember that we're a tiny niche market. Most of those companies don't care about catering to us and our preferences. Just the way it goes.

 

When your choices are crap or nothing, it won't make the public happy no matter which one of those options they choose.

You're on this board and this is a concept that is challenging for you to grasp?

 

A stupid saying in so many ways.

In this case, you should watch the video I posted on the first page as compression doesn't just make everything louder but musical content is entirely lost in the process. Sound quality is ultimately what is at play, here. Strongly recommend you watch that video so you can understand what is being discussed here.

 

Not at all what that saying means.

It means anyone who complains about how loud something is is an old man complaining for no good reason. It's a popular saying often used in guitarist circles as well.

It also confirms the member who posted this is not aware of how compressed-to-hell tracks actually sound regardless of how loud they are.

 

Compression has always been used by "compression" is currently used in the popular vernacular to refer to limiting and digital clipping... which is what is being discussed here. I thought that was extremely obvious.

 

I don't complain about people don't buy CDs anymore. What was your point?

 

Sorry for the mistake. "by" should be "but".

 

Snark?

 

You're in the minority here, it seems.

 

Weird argument to have these days really. How many people here stream from a service that doesn't offer multiple masterings, and therefore sticks you with the latest, loudest version? Yet the services flourish, people love them, and no-one complains. If that same music finds itself pressed on to a CD, suddenly it's the end of music as we know it........