Led Zeppelin - Barry Diament masterings

Thanks for the heads up - I ordered the Diamant remastered PG from Discogs.
I'll reprt back after I have had a listen
SJ

Now that we have so many Barry converts, let me take it a step further. If you want not only the best mastering but the best pressing on CD as well - then go for the Japanese First Pressings. They came out in the mid 80s and you can recognize them by their catalogue number starting with 32XD (e.g. LZ III has the catalogue number 32XD - 566). They were at the time made at a specific pressing plant in Japan by the Warner Pioneer Corporation.

quote:

Originally posted by MilesSmiles:
Now that we have so many Barry converts, let me take it a step further. If you want not only the best mastering but the best pressing on CD as well - then go for the Japanese First Pressings. They came out in the mid 80s and you can recognize them by their catalogue number starting with 32XD (e.g. LZ III has the catalogue number 32XD - 566). They were at the time made at a specific pressing plant in Japan by the Warner Pioneer Corporation.

Very coo, but VERY expensive....just checked:

II,III,IV + Houses = 155€...



Do you own them, dear Miles???

quote:

Do you own them, dear Miles???

An easier question is to ask him which ones he doesn't own.
There can't be many left to collect MS , can there?

quote:

Originally posted by BigH47:

quote:

Do you own them, dear Miles???

An easier question is to ask him which ones he doesn't own.
There can't be many left to collect MS , can there?

There is always something new to collect out there.

quote:

Originally posted by Luxen:
Very coo, but VERY expensive....just checked:

II,III,IV + Houses = 155€...



Do you own them, dear Miles???

You need a bit of patience if you want to collect them. Some folks will ask for crazy $$$, especially for the 55XD of PG, but you can get them for around $30 each in the classifieds. I have all but Houses. PG is my favorite.

Miles to which classifieds are you referring?

At a tangent... anyone know if there will be a DVD of the 02 gig?

Have you compared the the Japanese 1st pressings to the 2nd pressings (catalogue 20P2)? They are the same mastering.

The 20P2s are a lot cheaper than the 32XDs!!

Hmmmm....I think I got to re-say my findings:

The SHM-CDs really are good...maybe a tad too loud, but the soundstage and the separation of the instruments are really better than on BD-versions....but good to have them both...

quote:

Originally posted by bob atherton:
At a tangent... anyone know if there will be a DVD of the 02 gig?

I have a video of the 02 gig that is pretty amazing - but I didn't buy it...

quote:

Originally posted by BigH47:
Miles to which classifieds are you referring?

Some of the other forums that have classified sections and you can be sure to buy from a reliable seller.

quote:

Originally posted by Zepfan:
Have you compared the the Japanese 1st pressings to the 2nd pressings (catalogue 20P2)? They are the same mastering.

The 20P2s are a lot cheaper than the 32XDs!!

Very good point, I have compared the second pressings to the first pressings for some titles but not for LZ - you will find differences to varying degrees based on the pressing. Since I am a hughe Zep fan ( ), the collector in me had to go for the first pressings. I might pop a second pressing in this weekend to compare.

Very interesting:

Look at the waveforms....the SHM-CD is very different from the Barry Dament-one...just short before "loudness-war"...

SHM-CD



Barry Diament:



Loudness-war looks like this:

Metallica - Broken, Beat & Scarred

quote:

Originally posted by MilesSmiles:

quote:

Originally posted by Zepfan:
Have you compared the the Japanese 1st pressings to the 2nd pressings (catalogue 20P2)? They are the same mastering.

The 20P2s are a lot cheaper than the 32XDs!!

Very good point, I have compared the second pressings to the first pressings for some titles but not for LZ - you will find differences to varying degrees based on the pressing. Since I am a hughe Zep fan ( ), the collector in me had to go for the first pressings. I might pop a second pressing in this weekend to compare.

I'd be very interested in your findings!!

quote:

Originally posted by Luxen:
Very interesting:

Look at the waveforms....the SHM-CD is very different from the Barry Dament-one...just short before "loudness-war"...

SHM-CD



Barry Diament:



Loudness-war looks like this:

Metallica - Broken, Beat & Scarred

That Metallica reading is scary, long live Barry - let's give us a chance to turn the volume up not down.

Hey Luxen,

What software are you using to get the signal traces you showed earlier? I think i can just make it out..."Nero"?

Anyone else know of good (mac) software for this?

Winky

Either NERO Wave Editor or Audacity.

There has been much said about the Led Zeppelin remasters, but what about other bands?

What is the opinion on the remasters of: Yes, Genesis, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Tangerine Dream, any one else?

Personally I like the sound of Yes 'Close to the Edge', but now wonder if there was a better version out there before. That remaster still sounds like the album I knew from vinyl.

The problem with the George Marino Led Zeppelin masters, and the remaster of Pink Floyd 'Dark Side of the Moon' I heard in 1994, was that they sound forced, and not like the vinyl.

Any opinions?

(I have also posted the same question on another forum to see what answers I get there.)

quote:

Originally posted by JamieL:
What is the opinion on the remasters of: ... Pink Floyd, King Crimson, ...

For PF you would have to start a thread on its own. I like the early Japanese pressings in general but it really depends on the title which one to go for, e.g.:
DSOTM - JPN Black Triangle (No TO, No CDP matrix)
WYWH - Sony Mastersound gold CD, 35DP(only after you win the lottery )
Wall - 50DP, JPN Blackface
Meddle - MoFi


For KC the Japanese Black Triangles are by far the best versions I've heard.

All just IMHO.

quote:

Originally posted by JamieL:
What is the opinion on the remasters of: ... Genesis...

For Genesis I like the Virgin/Charisma original pressings in most cases. The DEs issued mid-nineties used a lot of noise reduction etc IIRC.

Not heard the Japanese Black Triangles for Genesis. They are expensive and almost certainly the same mastering as the cheaper UK issues. Only difference would be pressing differences.

As for the SACDs/hybrid/surround mixes, avoid like the plague unless you like the dynamic range of your CDs to be halved!!

To be fair the surround mixes aren't too bad, but the 2-channel redbooks are amongst the worst I have ever heard. Trick of the Tail can kill a cat at 500 paces - it really is awful!

I have now:

* II
* IV
* Houses of the Holy
* Presence
* In through the outdoor

They are really wonderfully mastered and I love the dynamics and the naturality.

But the SHM-CDs win by many miles...they have better soundstage, separation, more punch, better vocals,....
So my initial post was too quickly shot...

But I got these BD-CDs for not much money...so they stay, too.

A friend brought me Led Zep I -IV, mastered by a Dr. Ebbett via first-class vinyl stuff...they are in 24bit/96Khz...

Sound excellent on the PC...will convert them to 16/44.1 and check out more...

quote:

Originally posted by John M:

quote:

Originally posted by bob atherton:
At a tangent... anyone know if there will be a DVD of the 02 gig?

I have a video of the 02 gig that is pretty amazing - but I didn't buy it...

I was lucky enough to be at the gig and saw quite a few video camers being used so I thought that a DVD was on the cards...?

For PF, one very good remaster is the 30th DSoTM.
M