Question for those with “Golden ears”, and a frustration! (The Loudness Wars)

Another vote for the 2014 remasters. They're not perfect but I doubt whether there will be a better digital set than them.

The Barry Diament remasters were always well regarded but alas he didn't get to have a go at Led Zeppelin lV.

The Mothership was indeed awfully compressed. Not really fit for audio playback.

I've posted a link below to the results of a Stevehoffman music forum poll which I wouldn't argue with.

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/led-zeppelin-on-cd-poll.606937/

@savroof9849,

I just wish that the U2’s Joshua Tree album, I’m not joking, sounded as good, cymbal crashes/drum wise, as the YouTube official video of “The Streets have no name”. Don’t understand that at all. Could a German CD copy of the CD album sound better??


This has sometimes puzzled me too on those occasions when the online one sounds better than my CD one.

I put it down to different masterings used by various pressing plants.

Mastering matters and sometimes the YouTuber may have uploaded a superior one.

As for the Joshua Tree, well Daniel Lanois was known for that muddy sound.
Some folks feel the same about his work with Dylan but I like it, and U2 must have wanted it too.

It’s certainly a far cry from the ultra clean sterile work provided by Steve Lillywhite on their earlier LPs.

Maybe the best version of JT is the mfsl one.

I like it and it compares well with my brother’s original 87 UK LP.

https://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/u2-joshua-tree-mfsl-disc.110228/

@jafant ,

Yes, it's now accepted that many of the original 80s CD transfers are often still the best available, despite their faults.

Even the 87 Beatles George Martin CDs are holding up well, despite all the various reissues.



@savroof9849,

"Unless somebody here owns the 24K gold disk, and can assure me, the cymbals and drums sound GREAT!"


No they don't. It's a warm, expansive and somewhat muddy sound that breathes.

I suspect the 80s CD might be best for what you are after, but I've not heard it.

Maybe you could post the YouTube link so we can get a better idea of what you are looking for? 

There must be various different versions of Joshua Tree amongst the collections of members here.

Someone here might even have the same copy as the one that was uploaded.

@lowrider57 ,

Thanks for the 'inside' information - mystery solved.

The fact that they can tweak the sound for broadcast probably renders it impossible for the OP to get a commercial equivalent of his preferred version of The Joshua Tree.

The fact that they sometimes actually improve it can also be a little frustrating when the supposedly official version fails to match up. 

I've experienced similar situations where I wanted a recording of a certain song from a film only to find the version on the official soundtrack album significantly worse sounding and/or edited/ truncated.

[Elvis Presley's Wooden Heart from G.I. Blues and Oom-Pah-Pah from Oliver! are two examples, but there are  numerous others.]

In the end I would sometimes resort to downloading the music off the preferred YouTube clip and then fixing it in Audacity if required. 

In this laborious way I've managed to back up quite a few of my preferred versions of  favourite recordings over the years to a USB stick. Before anyone asks, yes I have also backed that USB up to a hard drive. 


@arcticdeth, 

I sometimes do the same thing with MP3Gain if the CD is recorded a little too hot for its own good.

It kind of works but then I worry that I've destroyed the precise balance that was intended, as MP3Gain tends to average out the differences in volume between the various tracks

Or if I can I just try to find a better mastering. 

On a side note - one of my friends bought all the remastered Scott Walker albums (1-4 and maybe Til the Band Comes In, I think) to replace his originals only to later have to admit his mistake and then go back and find copies of the originals!