Natalie Merchant: Tigerlily on HD Tracks

Posted by: Bruce Woodhouse on 09 October 2011

I saw this newly available on HD tracks as a 96khz .flac and since the original sounds so spitty and badly produced I have given it a go, and it really sounds very much better than the original. If you like the album and want a better copy this does very nicely.

Incidentally the fantastic new Wilco album is also available from them, very good too (although not such a leap from the CD original).

Bruce
Posted on: 09 October 2011 by Gale 401

Bruce,

Thanks for the heads up.

I like the original cd.

I have tried a few of those HD tracks downloads and i dont think they are all that.

Over priced and well under the HD that i have heard done well.

Stu

Posted on: 09 October 2011 by Bruce Woodhouse
Agree, these were only the fourth/ fifth albums I'd downloaded but for now I am generally not blown away. Good but not worth the extra. This Natalie Merchant was the first one I'd tried that seemed to really move the original recording up a step.
Posted on: 09 October 2011 by Gale 401

Bruce,

To be honest man you can buy the bit of kit that HD are using and do it yourself.

They are not being given any good master tapes to play with.

Stu

Posted on: 10 October 2011 by mutterback

Good discussion of variable quality of HD Tracks downloads here: http://www.computeraudiophile....-Hymns-24-bit-96-kHz

 

Some people have even discovered a few albums to be simply upsampled where they are selling "higher quality" at higher prices.  Would be nice if some of the reissue people like Accoustic Sounds and Mosaic would do high quality digital. I assume the licensing is a killer, or not even possible. Will we soon seem limited edition FLAC reissues

 

On that note, have any of you bought any of the Verve or other 24/96 jazz files from HD Tracks

Posted on: 10 October 2011 by BigH47

Question re HD tracks is this price $17.99 a normal sort of price for 24/96 D/Ls?

It makes NAIM label a bit expensive at £16.99  doesn't it.

Mind you I'm still trying to get my head around these charges for an already existing product that just has to be linked for D/L.  No P&P no physical product , music and art work already exist.

Anyone would think they are trying to milk it? 

Posted on: 11 October 2011 by Mr Underhill

Bruce,

 

I've just added a PSU to my nDAC and so have been re-discovering my music collection.

 

As it happens I found that I had a copy of this ripped and on the server, I presume this is one of the CDs I have picked up at various charity shops over the last few months, although I don't remember actually listening to it!

 

When I saw it, having read this thread, I've just made a point of listening to it - really very good. Got to say I wouldn't characterise it as badly as you describe it ...thanks for the pointer!

 

M