What's up with lousy bass on classic rock recordings?


Few examples: ACDC Back In Black, Van Halen 1, Boston (1), WHO's Next, Def Leopard Pyromania. 

The low end is almost non-existent. Digital and vinyl. 

It's not my system, I listen to a lot of jazz, other classics like Janis Ian Breaking Silence - bass is rich, full, has slam when appropriate.

Compression? Or were the low frequencies never there? Pretty disappointing. 

macg19

Showing 1 response by whart

I think you need to get very granular about particular pressings. I would assume any copy coming off the presses today is pulled from a digital file (not that this is per se bad) but may not represent the best or even close to the best sound that some of the classic rock records can deliver.

I mentioned in another thread that a visitor got to hear a first UK EMI/Columbia of Jeff Beck’s Truth-- he was stunned at how dimensional and real it sounded compared to all the Epic pressings, UK and US, that are in normal circulation.

The early Sabbaths are best represented on Vertigo Swirl UK- not a cheap option;

I have a fondness for the early pink labels from Island. Crimson’s first album really shines on that pressing- an early one--even though it is noisier on the quiet passages than some of the later copies.

Some albums just can’t get out of their own way but I’ve tried to find the best representations. I’m pretty much full up on classic rock at this point and don’t buy much unless it is to fill a gap.

The market is inflated and the early pressings are pricey and not necessarily in top condition. Give it a few years- more of us will die and the market will open up. Being an optimist about this. :)

PS: that Janis Ian Breaking Silence has crazy heavy bass. A better example is Between the Lines, standard issue Columbia press from the era. That's a good quality record, they just knew how to record and press- Brooks Arthur engineered in a little studio in Rockland County, Columbia could manufacture a decent record. I have an approval pressing of it that sounds identical to the commercial releases you used to be able to find in the bins on the cheap.