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Music matters srx vinyl11/7/2022
#Music matters srx vinyl archive#Of the most recent anniversary editions, I have read Blue Note hired top US audio engineer Bernie Grundman to create a corporate archive of Blue Note original tapes, in the form of high resolution digital transfers at 24-bit/192 kHz. Being licensed does not mean given access to original tapes. If an original source recording is not mentioned, or it is “from the best available”, be doubly sceptical, even if officially licensed. A 1/2inch copy tape at 15fps should be effectively identical to the original, but there are many other factors during playback and mastering which degrade transfer. Only “re-mastered from the original tapes” counts. #Music matters srx vinyl mp3 download#Even an MP3 download has a chain of sources dating back somewhere to original tapes. Treat sceptically the claim “from the original tapes”, which applies to every recording. Less than this – I have had records as little as 90gm, the cut is likely shallow, and at risk of scuffing/surface noise or warping. Whilst the weight and thickness of vinyl does provide stability in handling, it does not make any difference to sound quality The lower threshold is around 120gm. Modern audiophile reissues often boast 180gm vinyl, which was the 1950s gold standard. Reissues manufactured during 80s/90s can show digital/solid state artefacts and filtering, with loss of high frequencies. Those from early 2000s may be simply 44kHz/16-bit CD transfers to vinyl, as only very select manufacturers have had access to original source tapes. Invariably overseas issues were from copy tape, mastered by a jobbing house technician with a taste for rock. Blue Note had no international licencing agreements, which only slowly emerged in the Liberty years, and were not widely found until under United Artists stewardship. Made in USA preferred – overseas reissues are generally inferior quality. #Music matters srx vinyl portable#It usually means someone was sitting in the audience with a portable tape recorder and one microphone, bootlegging.Īvoid any indication of “pseudo-stereo” (electronically generated from single-track mono tape, early 1500 series) Mono was the intended and is the preferred format.īe wary of any live recording which claims to be mono but recorded in the era of stereo. Individual titles may differ, better or worse.įor an individual title, test pressing and promo will usually be stronger than commercial release, especially those towards the end of the pressing run.Īlways give preference to edition with direct lineage to Van Gelder master metal (RVG/ VAN GELDER stamp).īe wary of stereo editions mastered from original two-track tapes which tracks were not intended for stereo – Van Gelder recordings between 1957 to around 1960. These are generalised rankings – “taken as a whole”. Toshiba are ranked higher in the period before digital influence, and Music Matters 33 appear for the first time on the upper floors. United Artists have moved up a league, Liberty ranking now reflects the difference between East And West Coast reissues, earliest Toshiba Liberty gets recognition. The only way to know is to try, to compare. There can be significant difference between two copies of the same record and the exact same edition, between first to last off the stampers, and everywhere in between. This updates the earlier graphic, which dated back to around 2012 and was based on a more limited sample listening on much less revealing equipment. My current assessment of audio quality based on around 600 pressings of Blue Note recordings, of which around 250 are original pre-1966 issues, and around 20 modern audiophile issues, and everything else in between.
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