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


Hello! My first text! My user name, is short for my Companies name.
  Anyway, I ALWAYS wondered, which sounds better to you with $$$$ equipment? The Led Zeppelin Rhino Black box of Japanese made, mini copies of the record album sleeves CD’s of ALL the albums? Or, the large sized four CD disk boxset with the crop circle picture on the front(1990 release?), and the later small box, that had the songs missing from the four box “crop circles” box? The mini-album Japanese CD’s sound pretty damn good to me!  Any thoughts? Which sounds better to you? Those with CD based systems I can only dream of owning?  As to my rant, I went to the Wiki article of: The Sound Wars! And there was a link where you can put in your CD or album title and artist, and it tells you if it’s been compressed(LOUD!), or, not. Specifically: CD’s, (if it’s compressed, the VU meters will stay locked in the red) My favorite Fleetwood Mac CD, The Dance, all in the RED, BAD! 😢 U2’s Joshua Tree (special boxed edt.) All in the GREEN (GOOD). But I swear, the drums/cymbals, IMO, sound awful on that CD! Especially the cymbals! NEVER could find a good sounding Joshua Tree CD that the drums and cymbals sounded good. 🙁 That was my FAVORITE concert!!! 4’th. row seats!! AWESOME! Other albums, NIN CD’s all in the red, Van Halen as well. And the worst, totally unlistenable, got it for Christmas many years ago, Led Zep., The Mothership CD’s. 🤮

Thank you all!!!
savroof9849
The same thing applies to the first LP pressings of Black Sabbath compared to the first CD issues. The later remastered CDs again come in at third place. I expect streamed versions to be in last place! Those who have never heard the first versions of the Sabbath LPs and CDs may not know what they are missing!
I still think the first pressings of the Zeppelin LPs are the best, followed by the first CD issues. There is a raw elemental energy on those LPs that is diminished by digital transfers! Using increasingly expensive DACs and streamers does not restore the "magic" missing!
I had the 1990 LP box set. Didn't like it! The original pressings from the pre-digital era sounded way better! That set was digitally mastered! Now I am listening to some of the first Zeppelin CDs and comparing them to the later "mastered by George Marino and Jimmy Page at Sterling Sound". So far I like the very first versions more! These are apparently flat transfers.