Yes - 90125: Blind Listening Test

I'm aware that 90125 isn't as well-liked as the '71 to '77 output, but this is the only one where I owned enough masterings to warrant starting a poll. Well, plus it's my favorite, but that's different story! As one of the band's more popular albums, I'm hoping there's at least some interest here!

These FLAC samples have been taken from 4 different CD masterings. Each one is approximately 3 minutes and contains excerpts from Owner of a Lonely Heart, Changes, Leave It, and City of Love, in that order. I've applied Replaygain to each of the files via foobar.

The rules will be the same as my previous blind tests.

• Please try to refrain from guessing which mastering a sample uses in order to avoid confirmation bias. This wasn't much of an issue with my previous blind tests, but I feel it bears repeating.
• If you intend to vote, it's recommended reading the discussions after you have listened to the samples and voted, in order to escape confirmation bias.
• It's recommended that you listen to the samples and discuss what you heard. Please take into account that discussions based on visual inspection of waveforms, spectral plots and DR values might condition the poll results while the poll is open, if folks read the discussions before listening to the samples.
• You can't view the results before you vote.
• The sources will be revealed after the poll closes. You'll be unable to vote after that.
  
• Votes are publicly displayed.
• If you want to change your choice, you can do as much as you please until the poll's expiration.
• This is entirely optional, but I would appreciate if you could point out if you're listening on speakers or through headphones. If you don't, then that's totally fine. It does help a bit though.

Dropbox sample links:

• Folder with all 4 samples (just in case)
• Sample A
• Sample B
• Sample C
• Sample D

My previous blind tests:

• Rush - Signals
• The Police - Reggatta de Blanc
• Genesis - A Trick of the Tail

This poll will end in exactly 2 weeks from now. Have fun everyone!

 

Does anyone want to give this a shot?

 

I went with B with a close C behind DG
These sounded the most natural to me
SBTouch into a Emotiva DC-1

 

I listened through earbuds from a PC, just to see if I could hear any differences. First thing is the volume is different on each, going from softest to loudest: C, B, A, D.

On the earbuds "A" sounded best to me - a bit fuller sounding than B or C. I might choose differently on a different setup or with speakers. B or C may have the best DR numbers though.
"D" sounded like it may be "brickwalled" and/or have clipping from loudness.

 

It's funny to see all these threads here...what would I do to find some time for similar or completely different activities....!!!

 

Oh I find them fun Sath. A nice retreat from doing yard work this morning

 

I vote for C . It sounds more natural, more articulate close to the vinyl.
A is not bad but less natural, seems a bit compressed
B is compressed
D is too loud

Thanks Diablo !

 

I went with B as well. A&D are much louder.

 

He said he level adjusted with ReplayGain. Make sure you have a player that honors/uses it. If not, there will be large volume differences.

 

Listening through speakers, I think I prefer sample B. It seems to have the best midrange. It’s almost a tie between A and C, with C having what seems to be a little extra reverb. D is just plain loud.

 

Good idea depending on how and what you listen to your music with. I'm mainly compact disc so it's nice to not have them level matched. So if I were to track down a mastering I enjoy I don't want a mastering with hyper compression on disc

 

Very intresting test: there are 3 mastering that I like and one that I dislike/
I love the music on 90125 but I never bought the album on cd, this test will help me to decide which cd to buy after you reveal from which cd you took the sample that I like the most

A: clear sound ,The sound is lighter ( not too much bass- I like this ,
the treble is open and nice but a little less treble would be great , like the treble on C which is still clear and detailed

B: natural sound / fuller sound that I like , needs more treble like the one on C , I like this mastering

C: more defined and detailed treble than B , A bit similar to A but with a bit less treble, excellent treble for me.

D : sounds harsh , the music sounds strange and unfocused .I dislike this mastering .

It's hard for me to choose between A,B,C , I would be happy with each one of them
but I have to choose only one so

I vote for --- c

I listened with shure headphones srh940 and then with shure headphones srh440

Thank you for the Thread Diablo Griffin

 

I could have voted for either B or C, both sound great to me. I went with C since it appeared to sound a bit more smoothly, but it was close. A is not as lifelike, and D is harsh sounding to me.

 

Like with the Genesis blind test, I'm going to be comparing these samples twice with different headphones each time. For this session, I used my backup pair; Noontec Zoro HDs.

A: Good bass, somewhat recessed lower-midrange, and sparkly treble (for better or worse). City of Love actually sounds better here than on the rest of the samples. It has more of a 'rock' vibe if that makes sense!
B: Nicely balanced vocals and drums. The bass is great and doesn't overpower anything else. City of Love is a bit more relaxed and 'polite' here, and that doesn't really fit very well with the song's tone IMHO. Maybe that's a little harsh, but since this is my favorite Yes song, I think it's okay for me to nitpick a little!
C: Very similar to B, but the high-end sounds a bit grainier on Owner. Changes and Leave It sound about the same as they did on B. City of Love is almost as good as it is on A.
D: Excessive bass and too much midrange suck-out. The vocals are drowned out by all of the instruments. It also runs at a slightly faster speed than the others. Is it outright bad? It depends on the day for me, but for right now, I'll give this one an 'eh'.

Overall, it was close, but I think I'll go with C because it was more consistent. D just stuck out like a sore thumb. Not sure how this will turn out next time, but maybe my preferences will be different. We'll see.

 

I voted D. I am very torn between B & D - I love the smoothness and the midrange of B, but there's something about D that really works for me with these samples. There's kind of a weird phasey quality to it that I can't quite put a finger on, but I love the growl of the bass and the way the kick drum sounds. Maybe this is one recording that actually benefits from a little compression?

I'd rank them D>B>A>C

I listened to them in this order: c-d-b-a

My notes from first listen (on speakers):

1

EQ similar to 3 - maybe a bit compressed or overly processed, more/ better bass

2

real nice midrange
very smooth, if slightly veiled

3

eq seems mostly fine, but sounds slightly processed and just not engaging
lacking deep bass
not overly harsh or bright, but does seem to accentuate upper mids slightly

4

depth and realism
better soundstage and imaging
better separation on vocals
good bass
clarity, thump, impact

 

Here's another version of Owner if you feel like hearing it. It's from the Flash FM disc of the Grand Theft Auto: Vice City box set. I don't think there's much of an issue in revealing the source since it's not an official part of the poll. Vic Anesini and Valdo Meller did the mastering.
Sample E

 

Slipped in my edit , D has also Boomy sound , like you wrote, Excessive bass

 

Am I the only one who hears way more reverb on JA's voice (in "Owner" at least) in #4?

 

E sounds close to B
I still prefers C. The more i crank up the volume the more it rocks ! I like this.

 

Speak for yourself, LOL. I love 90125, it's my favorite YES album, every song sounds like a hit to me.

It match's Asia's debut for commercial acumen, and it's an LP that peak Foreigner would have been proud to have released.

Great record!

 

I adore this album - it's The Art Of Noise minus Anne Dudley at the height of their production prowess. I mainly compared the chorus of "Leave It", and sample C sounds the most open to me. There's plenty going on in the mix and the bassline and rhythm guitar usually feel slightly buried. My guess is sample C is the target CD and sample A the remaster.

 

I listened again - This time was a more critical/analytical listening session, and I planted myself more in the "sweet spot" of my listening room. I won't change my vote for now (it's probably not going to be a deciding vote, anyway), and I do think that this album benefits from some additional low-end, so I'll stay with D for now. But... I'm thinking now that "D" would be too fatiguing in a normal context (i.e. listening to an entire track or the whole album). I do like the impact of the bass, but that "swishy" quality - I think it's in the upper mids, right below the "sibilance" frequencies - gets annoying after a while. I think whoever mastered this had the right idea but did it in a sloppy fashion. (what's up with the speed, also?)

As far as C goes, I'm not sure what I was hearing when I said I heard a "processed" quality in C. Upon further review, I would say that maybe it's not as "open" sounding as what I remembered from this album (I have a couple versions but mostly listen to the original ATCO). However, it is silky smooth, clear, and very crankable! I stand corrected.

 

Never thought I'd see GTA mentioned here.

 

I listened for only a few seconds of each so count my opinion as invalid but hey I'll mention it anyway just coz. I didn't vote.
Cool thread idea btw.
1. B
2. D
3. A
4. C

They all sound very similar to me. C Stands out the most, though. D and A sound practically the same to me. None sound very good to me, though. Maybe that's because I'm used to 60's recordings, or because I'm tired. All I know is I need to listen to more Yes.
Listened on Foobar2000 with DT250 headphones (80ohm).

 

It is between C & B for me with the other two sounding nothing like my cup of tea for this album. C seems more audiophile-y which I can certainly appreciate, but this album is burned into my brain and B is like how I remember it. I suppose to keep me from being distracted from what I know, or to get the memories really flowing, I need it to sound most like that 80's production, just to the edge of jacked-up, snare hits sharp enough to cut your head off line I remember oh so well; so it's B for me but I'd guess C will do very well.