Been playing around with more digital than vinyl lately, mostly hi-res downloads since I bought that great Chord QuteDAC. Many conclusions forming, or at least hypotheses and feelings. I have, through a variety of means, built up a library of over 2,200 hi-res recordings - about half 24bit PCM files, and half DSD rips from SACD.
My first is that hi-res digital 'direct' easily supplants redbook CD. And SACD for that matter. Easily, no matter the sample rate - 88.1 at 24 bit being pretty much the start of true high resolution. I am not yet certain that 192kHz sampling really offers tangible benefits, but my feeling at this stage is - I have no idea what the future will bring, so I might as well get the highest available. An early hypothesis is that equipment will need to play major catchup to get everything out of very high resolution downloaded files. Another is that tubes may ultimately prove unsuitable for true high resolution and that this may be where tube equipment for many hits a brick wall. It just might be that the majority of output tubes are going to find that their bandwidth limit defeats much of what hi-res is all about, although I am sure that many - maybe even yours truly - will continue to use tube equipment for the tonal advantages (and those who use tube equipment as filters will probably continue to be fooled into carrying on with that).
Unlike SACD, which was DOA as anything other than a rather tiny niche, every piece of digital equipment sold today has hi-res USB capability at some level, and it is inevitable that every audiophile and pretty much everyone else will at some point in the near future hook up a USB cable to their laptop and see what it's all about.
My last feeling is that next year, we will see hi-res downloads really come into their own and just as I am now, in the last 6 months, seeing that virtually every classical release of even minor merit is available at hi-res, and pretty much every other release of significance, as well as a healthy and increasingly frequent reissue program. What I figure we will see is hi-res killing the classical CD market first, just as the advent of CD hit classical in a big way first. Virtually all the interesting labels doing classical releases in 192k, I am now totally out of the physical classical market. Then we will see majors and more significant indies making a hi-res release standard, and it will take some time before the rock and alternative indies get there - as they pretty much record at 16 bit still, and will for some time.
Some think that the relatively high price of a typical hi-res download is prohibitive. Each has their own notion of relative value, but what the negative types don't understand that for every downloaded recording purchased, likely three or 4 on average are distributed from that without payment. Until that can be solved without sonic degradation, prices will stay somewhat high - but really, getting a 192kHz file for $22 to $25 with zero sonic degradation due to some copy protection regime is in my opinion very good value.
The Chord has broken in now and is superb in every way. I started using a Cardas USB cable and I really am uncertain if it is sonically any better than the $10 one I had laying around, but it does offer some psychological benefit, and I didn't pay too much for it as I don't order from list price big box sellers like Music Direct. I switched during the summer to a high end Oyaide USB and I think it offers a good level of sonic improvement. Even Acoustic Sounds is now selling the Chord, it is a real stunning piece and the technology is not the off-the-shelf type stuff in most of the DAC's touted as high-end these days.
The next leap will without a doubt be true high end audio computers or servers with e-Sata or even Thunderbolt connection for a high quality, solid state hard drive. For the most part, computer audio will kill much of the tweak market and will have a major hit on the cable market.
On to some downloads I have been listening to lately.
Just last week, Hiresaudio started rolling out some classic titles from the Decca and Deram catalogs. I picked up the 24/96 Caravan - If I Could Do It All Over Again and my first impression was good, but a bit 'muffled', and that may be so, but repeated listening brings me to the conclusion that this is a very old tape, not the best, but there are places where the 24/96 really shines and brings out fantastic tonal aspects, if not a much greater level of detail. That the master tape is not the best is confirmed by listening to The End - Introspection, a Bill Wyman produced underground psych classic, which sounds amazing, as does another piece of psychedelia - The World Of Oz - which actually had a hit single back in the day - and although ever so slightly dated in places, it is a wonderful artifact full of vibrancy, and sounds fantastic. Savoy Brown had a good string of records on Decca and Blue Matter may be the best, good choice, outstanding 24/96 mastering, sounds like not a hint of compression, very clear and detailed, the grunginess really comes through. I hope there are lots more from Deram/Decca in the pipeline.
E-Onkyo has rolled out a big CTI reissue program, and I just LOVE CTI. I grew up on this stuff, and these are all fresh King Records remasterings from analog tape, and interestingly, they have been given both 24/192 AND DSD remasterings - not conversions, separate remasterings (or more likely separate feeds from the tape deck). They may be considered expensive by some at 3000 yen apiece, but you just can't put a price on this phenomenal material, undeniably so well done, if you want t commoditize music, buy MP3's on Amazon. These transfers shows the true potential of 24/192 taken from analog with top quality remastering. They are tonally just amazingly lifelike, the sound explodes just so three dimensionally and lives completely outside the speakers - the rhythm and pulse is alive down to the floorboards - and the dynamics are thrilling. These were, regardless of what one may think of mid-70's jazz, outstanding RVG recordings - absolutely state of the art analog.
Part of the CTI formula - a big part - was Ron Carter's bass. So get a massive bass sound on vinyl Creed Taylor would keep side lengths relatively short so RVG could cut deep, wide bass grooves. On these transfers, you can now hear just how well RVG caught Carter and the bass is huge, pulsing, tight. On Freddie Hubbard's Red Clay, the dual horn front line is vibrantly clear, delineated, and powerful. Hubbard is rich and detailed, and Joe Henderson's tone is beautiful and rich. Hancock has a natural Fender Rhodes sound, and the high end is crisply clean. The dimensionality is astonishing.
A nice thing about this series - and I am hoping this is just round one - is bringing back some gems that are not necessarily the most popular CTI titles but are the most interesting artistically. Joe Farrell is one - Outback is one of my all time favorite CTI titles, hell, one of my favorite records period. Elvin Jones! The amazing Buster Williams! Chick Corea! and Farrell himself - tenor, soprano, flute. What an amazing band, and what a phenomenal straight ahead jazz record. And it sounds freakin' amazing. Farrell's Penny Arcade of a few years later is further along the CTI evolution towards a more poppish, even disco-ish sound, but at this point although funkier,it has more rock elements - Joe Beck on guitar, the beat is more rock, so this is much more a fusion record and much more of its time, but a great record on its own merits as Farrell is on fire, the long solos are terrific, the band is red-hot and the sound is again phenomenal. Heading in a more popular drction, George Benson's God King Bad is right before Breezin, and it seems to me that Benson was uncomfortable in where Taylor was taking him. These are very poppish, almost dance floor tunes, and although the musicianship is very high, the tunes themselves are sometimes slight, and Benson plays much harder than usual, comping with a very jagged tone. The sound is not up to the rest of the series, probably what the master sunds like, but certainly still a significant upgrade, and although I like the record being a different side of Benson - it ain't no Breezin, and sure isn't a White Rabbit or Body Talk. A welcome return for Ron Carter's Spanish Blue, featuring Hubert Laws - whose flute on this transfer has so much richness, so much micro-tonality, it just is a showcase for what real hi-res audio can bring to the table. Carter again is massive, and Roland Hanna is a real treat to hear like this. An under-rated gem, this one. Stanley Turrentne's Cherry is interesting - along with Sugar it is usually considered the best of Turrentine's CTI period, which is where he really blossomed into a great jazz tenor - and even though Salt Song and Don't Mess With Mr. T are my favorites, Cherry has much going for it - not the least the presence of Milt Jackson. Sony in the U.S. issued a 24/96 transfer of Sugar this year, and it is very good - but nowhere near as good as the King 24/192 transfer of Cherry. That in itself is interesting.
I picked up a few of the E-Onkyo CTI in DSD. Hubert Laws Rite Of Spring, Jackie & Roy's amazing Time and Love, Don Sebesky's Giant Box, Randy Weston's Blue Moses. Of these, the Laws and Jackie & Roy are essential. The sound is again exceptional, particularly the Jackie & Roy, but the comparison to 24/192 is fascinating, one of the rare opportunities to compare DSD and 24/192 directly in a series of high quality transfers, and I have to conclude that (as has been generally my finding over the past year) that I prefer 24/192 by a significant margin. There is nothing wrong with the DSD sound on its own. Just compared to 24/192, it seems to be a bit more relaxed, a bit more smoother, and bit indistinct on top, and overall, I can see why some people might prefer it. But it hasn't got the dimensionality and impact, the three-dimensional, breathing outside the box feeling of 24/192, and although it easily gets tone right, it just misses on the dimensionality and realism of good 24/192.
The CTI series from E-Onkyo is one of the most compelling reasons yet to get into hi-res audio. I hope much more is to come. Its a harbinger of what hi-res can and will be.
HD Tracks have recently proven just how badly a screwed up website redesign can hurt business, The new site is a confused mess, leading me to believe it could not possibly have been tested with customers prior to launch. Always do consumer testing on a website redesign. It will cost you money to test it. It will cost you a lot more not to.
I suppose the biggest release on HD Tracks recently as been a new 24/192 transfer of Miles Davis Kind Of Blue. I have Kind Of Blue coming out my ears, and really, I need another KOB like I need a hole in the head, but I have to admit, this hi-res transfer - a remix from the original multitracks - is worth every penny, particularly the stereo version. The bass is huge, maybe a bit too much so, yet it walks all over the floor - bone crushing tonality. Miles is pure, his bright, pinched tone, almost speech like, so totally real and suspended ethereally in space. Coltrane has the warm, rich metallic tone so filled with harmonics that so rarely gets reproduced right - and Bill Evans has a fantastic,light percussive touch. The transfer rocks, its a beauty, and makes my Japanese SACD rip sound weak and two dimensional. Phenomenal work, and essential. Actually is a case where even my cherished Classic Records vinyl is eclipsed. The mono - I know, mono is one of those cool fashion cult affectations for audiophiles these days - is tonally just as good as the stereo, but being mono, has nowhere near the dimensionality, the spaciousness, the panoramic soundscape of the stereo. Seems to me that this notion bandied about on some online forums that mono is 'punchier' is just another slogan, or attempt to create some new collectability category for folks (like me) prone to being collectors - of course a single channel is going to be 'punchier', whatever that means. Its all crammed up into one. I often like mono, but the fact is, stereo took over for a very good reason - the realism and dimensionality, the separation, the sense of the room - just cannot be beat, and the sacrifice in these areas in favor of some dubious notion of 'punchiness' is to me simply not a valid tradeoff. There are always exceptions, but this KOB shows that stereo rules. This is an amazing release in hi-res, and essential - superbly well done. I know, some wankers are complaining that it is a remix - bullshit, this is a new mix from the original three tracks tapes rather than an aged, over-used master tape (that is in fact no longer playable), and that is a good thing - the proof is in the listening, and that is superb. Throw out the dogmatic preconceptions.
There are other worthwhile releases to quickly note on HD Tracks - the Van Morrison stuff is good, but I felt that it could have used a good mastering as opposed to a straight flat transfer, the Joni Mitchell material has been getting better and better as the series rolls out - Miles And Aisles is flat out astonishing and sounds like a whole new record it is so warmly rich and lifelike analog in sound. Court and Spark is similarly warm and alive, Hissing of Summer Lawns has never sounded so good - and so on. The Yes series has a lot of high spots - The Yes Album is amazing, so is Relayer. The early ones are big improvements, particularly Time and a Word, which is a great album. Anything on ECM will sound fabulous. The Everest classical transfers are not as good as the Classic Records DVD-A series, but are still worthwhile - the Copland, for example. Approach with caution, though, as many of the performances are not of 'classic' standard. The Pearl Jam titles are a missed opportunity and too compressed to be definitive, a shame as they are analog recordings. One day Pearl Jam will be done right in hi-res, wait for that. The Clash also have compression applied, but not nearly as heavily as the Pearl Jam, and are excellent sounding - detailed and alive, rocking like crazy.
The Grateful Dead studio albums collection at 24/192 is essential, and yes, I do find a worthwhile sonic difference from the 24/96, which I had first. The Ella Fitzgerald Songbooks series is rolling out at 24/192 and is drop dead amazing, a voice with the range of Ella simply cries out for 192k extension.
SubPop have a number of titles on HD Tracks, and while I welcome more and more new/indie hi-res, these are pretty much all compressed at the mastering stage - mastering done obviously in hi-res - and it seems labels have not yet realized that this is not acceptable in the high resolution format. Avoid. I am not dogmatically allergic to compression, but these are too extreme. A fabulous album like the new MGMT is demolished in hi-res. So is the latest Tame Impala. Stick to vinyl as the preferred format for new releases.
An exception is Dream Theater, which have pretty much their entire Roadrunner catalog at 24/96 - and this stuff is awesome, the kind of sound you really need to wear diapers for - you'll wet yourself, massive dynamic sound, another example of where hi-res can really shine. If Opeth used hi-res in recording, it would make my 2014 to see THAT band in hi-res!
There hasn't been much of anything worthwhile from Bee Jazz in 2013, I hope that changes in 2014. Yet Qobuz remains a source rich with the jazz that is still quite regularly recorded in France, by fabulous talents that came through the fusion era with a nod back to the 60's, and there is a lot of fantastic modern jazz around France. Aside from the rich mine of BeeJazz titles on Qobuz - nearly all incredible, diverse, unique and even visionary. Best label in jazz today. Superb recordings. Some interesting artists operating in France - tenor Eli Digibri, drummer Stephane Huchard leading a Rhodes driven quintet, tenor Vincent Mondy's quartet, baritone Jean Philippe Scali, bass clarinet Thomas Savy, soprano Vincent Jourde - so many others. Adventurous, yet coming from the history - particularly the mid 60's to mid 70's.
For more straight ahead, modern jazz - on HD Tracks get anything by Smalls Records you can - excellent recordings and the cream of today's crop, Joel Frahm, Alex Sipiagin, Ralph LaLama, Dezron Douglas, David Schittner - all of these are wonderful hard bop albums 'in the tradition' of advanced bebop playing.
I should also point out that there is a fantastic series of 24/96 downloads available on Peter Gabriel's website - every show from his current tour is coming up to download shortly after the show, in terrific sound, and these shows are direct hi-res recordings mixed on the spot, the shows as they were heard that night - flaws, hits, misses - everything. I have three so far and all are excellent.
Next time, I may kick around the hi-res classical scene more deeply.
Jumat, 27 Desember 2013
Selasa, 24 Desember 2013
Some of my favorite new records of 2013:
Starting with Frightened Rabbit's Pedestrian Verse, this record is light years ahead of their previous work. Tight, pop, somewhat psych, very contemporary, yet could easily have been released in 1967. Fabulously crafted songs, utterly catchy and thoroughly enchanting. A piece of sheeer magic, not to be missed. The vinyl sounds very good and is a decent pressing, and I just love the cover art.
Senin, 16 Desember 2013
Miles Davis on Mobile Fidelity - Three To Review - Round About Midnight, Milestones, In A Slient Way:
Let me say from the outset that I have these also on SACD, and have ripped the DSD ISO's to my hard drive, and digitally - at least in DSD - these are outstanding remasters. For the most part, the DSD of these titles exceeds the earlier Japanese SACD sonically. I am less certain that the Japanese SACD's of later titles like Jack Johnson and Filles De Kilimanjaro will do so also, but that remains to be seen.
The vinyl MOFI incarnations are sonically a different animal. MOFI have struggled at times with vinyl - and overall, I would not say their vinyl mastering is on the same level as their digital, although it has improved dramatically over the past 2 years. Perhaps the limiting factor is half-speed mastering, which I generally have found to produce a bass deficit.
Listening to Milestones (here in stereo) I have to say the sound is remarkable. There is an openness, a three dimensional quality - and tonality MOFI just gets SO right. Miles is creamy, but then bites and spits, the edges on his notes, particularly when he pinches a note of hits a curt staccato note, are presented with all the nuance the master tape possesses. Miles never had a big tone, and he was never the storming player that Hubbard was, or Dizzy, or even Morgan. Miles was subtle, and used space and an economic note choice to great effect, and like many great players of that era, was brought up on tone as the attribute to strive for, and to finish every note - attributes that have largely been lost today. This is what made Miles a great player, and a great reissue like this reminds me of that and drives it home - it has subtlety, nuance, and a kaleidoscope of tone. MOFI gets Coltrane's 'sound', his unique tone, so completely, and no other issue of this music has ever had that 'sound' so exactly as it was in the studio. Coltrane's tone will never be heard more true than it is on these reissues.
In a way, Round About Midnight has that Coltrane tone even more realistic. I never cared for the title cut, but I 'get' it now, which I suppose is what a good reissue should do - give cause for re-evaluation. Again here, the range of tonal colour is astonishing, and sonically what has been a 'dark' record now becomes a much clearer, more light - infused affair, to the better. Garland sounds nothing like he does on his many Prestige appearances - where on Prestige he sounds like a barrel house lounge player, here he shimmers with a light touch, beautiful. Way better than the (very good) Speakers Corner. Pressing is a late 2012/early 2013 one - RTI went through a rough patch there with a bad batch of vinyl they had to work through, and the pressing visually isn't a pretty sight, but cleaned with my usual new LP method - Nitty Gritty FirstRV - it comes up great.
Now on to In A Silent Way, a very different recording, being both later and heavily spliced together. It is another absolute classic. This is the birth of fusion, and even could be considered the birth of ambient. Obviously the analog master - an ugly splice remains intact, which surely would have been cleaned up if the mastering went digital at any point. The record was intended to be listened to at a quiet level, so that is how I approached it - and even at a relatively modest level, the remastering is rich and subtle, with a deep low end. The pressing is superb. This is a model reissue, exceeding my original and my Japanese pressings by a significant margin. It's all about getting closer to the music, and this one is another case of bringing a fresh perspective - it is interesting how rich Zawinul's organ is, contrasted with Hancock's almost funky comping, Miles floats above ethereal and piercing, Holland brings it back to ground. Masterpiece - highly recommended!
A note on MOFI remastering. As opposed to Analogue Productions and just about anyone else in the reissue game, MOFI does a distinct, unique mastering for both vinyl and digital - in other words, as opposed to, say, AP - who run a feed from the mastering console to both the vinyl cutting head and the digital recorder simultaneously, MOFI remastering for vinyl is done separately, by (typically) a different person. So this is one of the rare cases where the vinyl will, and does, sound different from the digital. It is interesting to have both.
Minggu, 15 Desember 2013
A couple of new releases - Miles Davis E.S.P. on Impex, John Coltrane With The Red Garland Trio on Analogue Productions:
A couple of new vinyl reissues - 33 rpm - appeared in my mailbox this week courtesy of Fedex.
I have been looking forward to the Impex reissue of Miles Davis "E.S.P.", his first recording with his classic 60's quintet (Shorter, Hancock, Carter, Williams) - the finest group he ever led. ESP is maybe the 'purest' record that quintet ever made (although arguably Nefertitti might be) and is s tone masterpiece. I have always had reservations about Columbia's mid 60's recordings, I sometimes found them to be slightly thin, and dry, there always seemed to be just that last bit of harmonic richness, or truth, missing. I was interested to see what Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Studios could make of these master tapes.
And as it turns out, it is somewhat of a minor revelation. Miles spits and shouts, his pinched, speech like tone bursting forward. Shorter is richly metallic, and both horns are realistically out front, with lots of space around them. Hancock is superb, crisp chromatic runs, tight percussive comping. Tony Williams is somewhat of a revelation, not only his wonderful cymbal work, but listen to the drum solo opening Side 2 - a bottom end to his bass drum bombs that has never been present before, and a huge, wide drum kit sound almost orchestral. Ron Carter's bass is very solid and deep, maybe a bit too much of a good thing, but then again, previous issues of ESP have never had Carter's bass so solid and deep.
Highly, completely recommended. This is THE prime Miles period, and more can only be hoped for - although MOFI is apparently doing the rest of the 60's Miles titles in 2014 (or whenever, as usual, they seems to be announced eons before they get released).
On to the John Coltrane With The Red Garland Trio on Analogue Productions. A good, solid 200g pressing at 33 rpm - all good so far. They use the original Prestige cover - very good move, the one more commonly associated with this title is nowhere near as interesting or evocative of the period.
The record is a classic, the first really good record Coltrane did, and in my opinion a better record than the more popular Prestige Soultrane.
For the most part, the Analogue Productions Prestige series, beset by multiple delays (Analogue Productions seem to like to announce release dates, take preorders, and at the last minute move the release date - often multiple times, a game I find unprofessional) and the titles have been, with a few exceptions, very uninteresting.
This one, though, is a classic deserving of a new look.
The sound is very full and solid, tonality is excellent. As seems to be the norm for AP, the high end is a bit muted, or softened by EQ, and so this misses the highest level of realism - it seems to be playing to that segment of audiophiles who recoil from realistic cymbal work in particular. But fortunately, not nearly as much as Hoffman did with the AP Blue Notes, so there is still plenty of high end shimmer. The Prestige recordings were, as a whole, blowing sessions, recorded very up front with not a whole lot of subtlety (as opposed to Blue Note RVG recordings) and this is what you will find here - a big sound, very up front, hard blowing - solid. A very good reissue, probably better than an original, certainly better than any reissue. Very welcome - a great title in the Analogue Productions series.
I have been looking forward to the Impex reissue of Miles Davis "E.S.P.", his first recording with his classic 60's quintet (Shorter, Hancock, Carter, Williams) - the finest group he ever led. ESP is maybe the 'purest' record that quintet ever made (although arguably Nefertitti might be) and is s tone masterpiece. I have always had reservations about Columbia's mid 60's recordings, I sometimes found them to be slightly thin, and dry, there always seemed to be just that last bit of harmonic richness, or truth, missing. I was interested to see what Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Studios could make of these master tapes.
And as it turns out, it is somewhat of a minor revelation. Miles spits and shouts, his pinched, speech like tone bursting forward. Shorter is richly metallic, and both horns are realistically out front, with lots of space around them. Hancock is superb, crisp chromatic runs, tight percussive comping. Tony Williams is somewhat of a revelation, not only his wonderful cymbal work, but listen to the drum solo opening Side 2 - a bottom end to his bass drum bombs that has never been present before, and a huge, wide drum kit sound almost orchestral. Ron Carter's bass is very solid and deep, maybe a bit too much of a good thing, but then again, previous issues of ESP have never had Carter's bass so solid and deep.
Highly, completely recommended. This is THE prime Miles period, and more can only be hoped for - although MOFI is apparently doing the rest of the 60's Miles titles in 2014 (or whenever, as usual, they seems to be announced eons before they get released).
On to the John Coltrane With The Red Garland Trio on Analogue Productions. A good, solid 200g pressing at 33 rpm - all good so far. They use the original Prestige cover - very good move, the one more commonly associated with this title is nowhere near as interesting or evocative of the period.
The record is a classic, the first really good record Coltrane did, and in my opinion a better record than the more popular Prestige Soultrane.
This one, though, is a classic deserving of a new look.
The sound is very full and solid, tonality is excellent. As seems to be the norm for AP, the high end is a bit muted, or softened by EQ, and so this misses the highest level of realism - it seems to be playing to that segment of audiophiles who recoil from realistic cymbal work in particular. But fortunately, not nearly as much as Hoffman did with the AP Blue Notes, so there is still plenty of high end shimmer. The Prestige recordings were, as a whole, blowing sessions, recorded very up front with not a whole lot of subtlety (as opposed to Blue Note RVG recordings) and this is what you will find here - a big sound, very up front, hard blowing - solid. A very good reissue, probably better than an original, certainly better than any reissue. Very welcome - a great title in the Analogue Productions series.
Music Matter Blue Note 33 rpm series for 2014! John Coltrane - Blue Train!!
I have been spending much of the past year getting into hi-res audio, building my laptop based system and building a library - now over 2,100 titles. It has been a fabulous journey of discovery and re-discovery, a few duds along the way, but in truth 99% have been glorious. But I am not writing today about hi-res, I am here to talk about the return of Music Matters Blue Note series - the new 33rpm series hitting you in 2014.
A set of 12 titles have been announced - all warhorses, most done before in the Analog Productions 45 rpm Blue Note series a few years ago, some also done previously at 33 rpm by Classic Records. I have previously written that I find the Music Matters 45 sound distinctly superior to what Analog Productions gave to Blue Note - free of the unfortunate treble roll off and upper mid dip typical of the AP BN sound, the Music Matters simply had better presence, definition and tonality - and tonality is everything. The Music Matters series got better as it rolled along - once they got rid of Steve Hoffman, the sound improved significantly, and as Kevin Grey upgraded his mastering chain, so did the Music Matters sound gain incremental improvements.
Still, my first reaction to this new series was - why would I need ANOTHER copy of Blue Train in my collection? Or another Cool Struttin? Another Midnight Blue - the Classic stereo was really excellent? And Somethin' Else, a record that I never really got into? Looked to me to be unnecessary, and pretty unexciting.
But then I slipped on the new Music Matters John Coltrane - Blue Train, a record I have known now for over 30 years. Jeez, was I ever wrong. This new mastering is simply MONSTROUS - it was a shock, a revelation, completely out of the blue.
First - it is mono. Great call. Mono is the way to go here. But - the sound!! My first thought was - holy shit, this is going to be problematic. The sound is just SO much better than the Analogue Productions 45 - it makes the AP sound mushy, dull, flat. But problematic in the sense that - this is even way above Music Matters own 45 series, like miles ahead, and I'll bet some folks are going to have some issues with that - issues with perhaps their love of the 'audiophile' 45 rpm ethos being ripped to shreds by these new 33's.
For me, they snapped me back into reality after spending so much time playing in the hi-res digital world - reality in the sense that there is nothing that comes close to vinyl at this level, even though vinyl all too frequently is not anywhere near this.
First thing you will notice is that the noise floor is vastly lower. Half of excellent sound is purely technical - the equipment in the mastering chain. It is clear on Blue Train right away - the mastering chain has taken a quantum leap forward. The other half is mastering - Grey has achieved the remarkable here.
Philly Joe Jones has never sounded so real. The cymbal word has a detail and realism that is unbelievable. Coltrane's tone is just incredibly real - massive, the metallic warmth of the Otto Link mouthpiece with it's rich harmonic overtones vividly presented. Lee Morgan thunders in, and you can hear his every movement and he dances around the microphone, swooping in, dipping down, leaning back. The pure physicality of this mastering is astonishing. The AP 45 was a 'pleasant' listen, the Classic, in it's various incarnations - even the very good Clarity Vinyl 45 - a crystal clear, honest listen - this Music Matters is a visceral listen, one that makes you stand up, move with the music, it hits in the body, where the Classic incarnations are more of an intellectual purism, and the AP is somnambulist. The new Music Matters has timing in spades, and it shows the AP in comparison to just be missing the swing. It has a harmonic organicness that is one where you can just close your eyes and see every player right out in front of you - the medium disappears, you are transported back to a room in 1957 where 6 young cats were spreading their wings, swinging like crazy, opening up a whole new harmonic world. Sheer magic.
I thought I didn't need another Blue Train. I was wrong, and this is worth every penny. If you thought Music Matters couldn't get any better - think again. If you thought Music Matters is making a mistake to go from 45 to 33 - prepare yourself for a shocker that will make you re-evaluate any cherished pre-conceptions. When you here those 3 horns coming in on the title track, it has never been so immediately gripping - the call of the blues train - then Coltrane brings that train roaring in, barrelling down the track, the blues train storming through the night. It's not just that you are there - in the studio. You are there - on that train - and you will never want to leave. Absolutely gripping.
More on the rest of this upcoming series shortly. Stay tuned.
I should mention that you can order these directly from Music Matters - http://www.musicmattersjazz.com/category_s/92.htm
And for those who care about such things, the lowest numbered pressings are always going to be found there.
A set of 12 titles have been announced - all warhorses, most done before in the Analog Productions 45 rpm Blue Note series a few years ago, some also done previously at 33 rpm by Classic Records. I have previously written that I find the Music Matters 45 sound distinctly superior to what Analog Productions gave to Blue Note - free of the unfortunate treble roll off and upper mid dip typical of the AP BN sound, the Music Matters simply had better presence, definition and tonality - and tonality is everything. The Music Matters series got better as it rolled along - once they got rid of Steve Hoffman, the sound improved significantly, and as Kevin Grey upgraded his mastering chain, so did the Music Matters sound gain incremental improvements.
Still, my first reaction to this new series was - why would I need ANOTHER copy of Blue Train in my collection? Or another Cool Struttin? Another Midnight Blue - the Classic stereo was really excellent? And Somethin' Else, a record that I never really got into? Looked to me to be unnecessary, and pretty unexciting.
But then I slipped on the new Music Matters John Coltrane - Blue Train, a record I have known now for over 30 years. Jeez, was I ever wrong. This new mastering is simply MONSTROUS - it was a shock, a revelation, completely out of the blue.
First - it is mono. Great call. Mono is the way to go here. But - the sound!! My first thought was - holy shit, this is going to be problematic. The sound is just SO much better than the Analogue Productions 45 - it makes the AP sound mushy, dull, flat. But problematic in the sense that - this is even way above Music Matters own 45 series, like miles ahead, and I'll bet some folks are going to have some issues with that - issues with perhaps their love of the 'audiophile' 45 rpm ethos being ripped to shreds by these new 33's.
For me, they snapped me back into reality after spending so much time playing in the hi-res digital world - reality in the sense that there is nothing that comes close to vinyl at this level, even though vinyl all too frequently is not anywhere near this.
First thing you will notice is that the noise floor is vastly lower. Half of excellent sound is purely technical - the equipment in the mastering chain. It is clear on Blue Train right away - the mastering chain has taken a quantum leap forward. The other half is mastering - Grey has achieved the remarkable here.
Philly Joe Jones has never sounded so real. The cymbal word has a detail and realism that is unbelievable. Coltrane's tone is just incredibly real - massive, the metallic warmth of the Otto Link mouthpiece with it's rich harmonic overtones vividly presented. Lee Morgan thunders in, and you can hear his every movement and he dances around the microphone, swooping in, dipping down, leaning back. The pure physicality of this mastering is astonishing. The AP 45 was a 'pleasant' listen, the Classic, in it's various incarnations - even the very good Clarity Vinyl 45 - a crystal clear, honest listen - this Music Matters is a visceral listen, one that makes you stand up, move with the music, it hits in the body, where the Classic incarnations are more of an intellectual purism, and the AP is somnambulist. The new Music Matters has timing in spades, and it shows the AP in comparison to just be missing the swing. It has a harmonic organicness that is one where you can just close your eyes and see every player right out in front of you - the medium disappears, you are transported back to a room in 1957 where 6 young cats were spreading their wings, swinging like crazy, opening up a whole new harmonic world. Sheer magic.
I thought I didn't need another Blue Train. I was wrong, and this is worth every penny. If you thought Music Matters couldn't get any better - think again. If you thought Music Matters is making a mistake to go from 45 to 33 - prepare yourself for a shocker that will make you re-evaluate any cherished pre-conceptions. When you here those 3 horns coming in on the title track, it has never been so immediately gripping - the call of the blues train - then Coltrane brings that train roaring in, barrelling down the track, the blues train storming through the night. It's not just that you are there - in the studio. You are there - on that train - and you will never want to leave. Absolutely gripping.
More on the rest of this upcoming series shortly. Stay tuned.
I should mention that you can order these directly from Music Matters - http://www.musicmattersjazz.com/category_s/92.htm
And for those who care about such things, the lowest numbered pressings are always going to be found there.
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