For those of you who have The Best Of 1990-2000 with The Fly on it...

[phanan]

How is the sound quality? Is it remastered like the other songs, or does it not sound as good? How does it compare when listening to it on Achtung Baby?

I obviously don't own the version that has it, and with Achtung Baby not remastered yet, I'm assuming it's the best sounding version out there. Can anyone confirm?

 

[phanan]

Surely someone must know this.

 

[europop2005]

Don't call me shirley

 

[Galeongirl]

I have it, and it's not remastered...

 

[phanan]

Really? Wow, that sucks. It must not sound as good as the rest of the compilation then.

Oh well. Thanks for letting me know.

 

[U2isthebest]

Don't call me shirley

Winnage.

 

[jinn77]

The Fly on the best of CD does sound better than the album version. audio levels have obviously been boosted which makes it worth buying. Sound recording levels are my only real gripe with Achtung Baby as a whole. The best of version of The Fly is definetly louder.

 

[Popmartijn]

The Fly on the best of CD does sound better than the album version. audio levels have obviously been boosted which makes it worth buying. Sound recording levels are my only real gripe with Achtung Baby as a whole. The best of version of The Fly is definetly louder.

Louder != better





(less cryptical: Louder does not mean it's better!!!)

 

[phanan]

So the question is, did they just make it louder so the level matched the other songs, or did they remaster it as well?

 

[cobl04]

Louder != better





(less cryptical: Louder does not mean it's better!!!)

Take How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, for example. Or, How to Dismantle the Listener's Eardrums. HTDTLE.

 

[Zoots]

How to Dismantle the Listener's Eardrums. HTDTLE.

!!! So true!

 

[pat132]

Take How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, for example. Or, How to Dismantle the Listener's Eardrums. HTDTLE.

The first note in All Because of You for exemple

 

[david]

i read an interesting article about how sound volume has been increased because companies and producers realize that a lot of people typically listen to music on shitty PC speakers now.

 

[sue4u2]

i read an interesting article about how sound volume has been increased because companies and producers realize that a lot of people typically listen to music on shitty PC speakers now.

I read a similar article too. Rolling Stone Mag, I think..
(not to say it was the same one)
So is the remastered version Not!! better than the Best Of - just louder?
I'm not an audiophile kind of person, but I'm curious after reading the article. I don't want - louder - at the expense of loosing nuances of the instruments.
Guess I'll find out when I actually buy it.
Maybe I am the audiophile type..

 

[Morgoth321]

My rather naive question is this - why the hell can't records be mastered correctly in the first place? Why this need for endless remastering? Fair enough if it's for music created maybe decades ago, recorded on more primitive equipment and in less than ideal conditions. But, as we know, U2 have been able to record their albums at a leisurely pace for more than 20 years now (the obvious exception being Pop), usually in their own studio, and with producers and engineers who presumably know what they're doing. So why weren't they mastered correctly in the first place? Is remastering a myth to sell repackaged / anniversary editions of albums, or does it just involve fiddling about with the volume settings?!

 

[Popmartijn]

i read an interesting article about how sound volume has been increased because companies and producers realize that a lot of people typically listen to music on shitty PC speakers now.

I don't think that's the main reason though, for having this loudness war. I mean, speakers were also shitty on cheap record players.
The primary reason is that record companies think that by having a LOUD RECORD it'll stand out more than a quiet record.
Of course, then someone came along who made a LOUDER RECORD that stood out even more.
AND YOU END UP WITH MOST RECORDS SOUNDING AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE, THEREBY LOSING ALL SUBTLETY AND MAKING THE LISTENER TURN IT DOWN, ZONE OUT AND NOT BEING GRABBED BY A RECORD.

 

[Popmartijn]

My rather naive question is this - why the hell can't records be mastered correctly in the first place?

Because many listeners still don't know exactly what is going on/can't articulate it correctly. And record companies still believe in this myth (or they fear they can't turn back). So they master the record (too) loud.

Is remastering a myth to sell repackaged / anniversary editions of albums, or does it just involve fiddling about with the volume settings?!

I think that ofter remastering is indeed a myth to sell the same record again. Of course, there are instances where they went back to the actual master tape to transfer that version to CD (and not a n-th generation copy, as happened (and at times still happens) quite often in the early days of the CD). But even in those instances, they remaster it way too loud nowadays. Or do other studio trickery that take away from the music.
Good mastering is more than just fiddling with the volume settings. It's about getting a balanced sound. This might involve a bit of equalising (changing the volume of certain frequencies relative to other frequencies), very careful use of compressing (making the louder parts quieter and the quiet parts louder) and indeed using correct volume settings. And for remastering, add the search for the correct master tapes.

But as I said earlier, many artists/producers/record companies don't care.

 

[Popmartijn]

BTW, some links with more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war
http://www.prorec.com/Articles/tabid/109/EntryID/247/Default.aspx

 

[major_panic]

Of course, there are instances where they went back to the actual master tape to transfer that version to CD (and not a n-th generation copy, as happened (and at times still happens) quite often in the early days of the CD).

Good mastering is more than just fiddling with the volume settings. It's about getting a balanced sound. This might involve a bit of equalising (changing the volume of certain frequencies relative to other frequencies), very careful use of compressing (making the louder parts quieter and the quiet parts louder) and indeed using correct volume settings. And for remastering, add the search for the correct master tapes.

The Joshua Tree, 20th Anniversary Edition.

 

[Popmartijn]

The Joshua Tree, 20th Anniversary Edition.

That's indeed a very good remaster. Gives me hope for the next record (and the other remasters) after the crapfest that was the sound on HTDAAB (the discussion about the actual songs is for a different thread).

 

[Canadiens1131]

RECORDS SOUND LOUDER NOW BECAUSE THE CURRENT TREND IN PRODUCTION IS TO MAKE EVERYTHING SOUND LIKE "IN THE AIR TONIGHT"...SORT OF AN 80s PRODUCTION VALUES REVIVAL, IF YOU LIKE. THERE IS MUCH LESS DYNAMIC RANGE BECAUSE MORE COMPRESSION IS APPLIED TO INDIVIDUAL TRACKS DURING THE RECORDING AND MASTERING PROCESS. YOU WILL NOTICE THAT CURRENT SHITTY BANDS, SUCH AS THE BRAVERY AND THE KILLERS AND FERGIE USE THIS TECHNIQUE TO MAKE THEIR MUSIC NOT SOUND LIKE CRAP, ALTHOUGH TO LITTLE PRACTICAL EFFECT. THE CURRENT CHART SUCCESS OF HIP HOP AND R&B MAY BE THE MAIN CATALYST OF THIS TREND DUE TO THE GENRES' GENERAL LACK OF MELODIC INSTRUMENTATION IN FAVOUR OF "MAD BEATS". THE GENERAL RISE IN BOTH THE COMPRESSION AND VOLUME OF CURRENT MUSIC CREATES A SNOWBALL EFFECT, WHERE RECORD COMPANIES AND PRODUCERS FEEL THEY NEED THEIR SONGS TO BE AT THE SAME VOLUME OR LOUDER THAN WHAT IS CURRENTLY ON THE RADIO IN ORDER TO COMPETE.

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

BTW, some links with more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war

i just read that yesterday. it's scary to see just how loud records have become over the past 20 years.

maybe that's one of the reasons i like older music, it doesn't just sound better musically, it sounds better as in it doesn't make my ears bleed

 

[phanan]

The regular Best of 1990-2000 that I have (from the U.S.) is obviously a bit louder than the earlier albums, but I think they did a good job with them and didn't go over the top like a lot of other discs today. The remastering sounds pretty good to me. Hence my curiousity about The Fly on some of the editions. Despite sounding louder, I was wondering if anything else stood out in the song that otherwise could not be heard on the regular Achtung Baby version.

 

[jinn77]

Louder != better





(less cryptical: Louder does not mean it's better!!!)

Well the world would indeed be a dull place if we all shared the same tastes and opinions.

 

[schnumi]

The latest remaster indeed gives a lot of hope for the future, because HTDAAB was just made to loud, which indeed sadly is the trend in these days.