This must end

I begin this topic because I'm a bit surprised by the negative apriciation of the recordings of some older (proto)prog records. I constantly here things like "Burn was the first well recorded record of Deep Purple" and such. This is just an misinterpretation.

I love playing my old vinyl LP's on my antiquated (late 70's) analogue equipment. IMO there is a warmth to the sound that does seem to be missing from CD's.

Modern music is, objectively, recorded with better quality than the past.  I think that people tend to prefer old recordings just because some people like the sound of the compression that tape naturally adds to music.  Sure, a lot of music is recorded well but then overbumped until it sounds like crap (to make it louder on the radio), but this tends to be pop music and not niche stuff like prog.  The best-recorded music of today has better sound quality than the best-recorded music of the 1970's, and modern research suggests that the only audible difference between a turntable and a 256 mb/s mp3 is the pops and clicks on vinyl.  

Edited by rileydog22 - August 05 2008 at 22:55

Kingfriso, I agree with your basic premise that old recordings sound warmer, but as you say, thats all down to taste. Some people dont want that warmth from their music, they want clarity and dynamics that showcase the intricacies of the musicianship. If someone wanted to make an album that souned like it was made in 1972, they could, even using modern digital technology. Of course, to discerning ears like out we'd be able to tell it wasn't an analogue recording...maybe..

Can yo tell the difference between a real Mellotron and an 'M-Tron'? I like to think I can


I think, although you make a number of generalisations, especially about mp3, and what music is reciorded for these days, I think artists do generally record with quality stereo sysems in mind. mp3 is a convenience tool, in terms of how much music you can store in one location, and how you can organise and playback those files, but mp3, will never be a superior playback substitiute for older or younger listeners, who take music seriously. Any type of music. My experience of mp3, hasn't been totally negative, but generally there is loss of quality, certainly at the 'top end' from most mp3 players, or PC/mac based media players. Listen to the best produced piece of music you have, in both formats, one after the other and you'll hear the difference.

But basically, there are only good or bad recording in terms the definition of the instruments and the quality of the mixing, what people prefer in terms of clinical digital, or organic analogue is their own choice. I've moaned enough about moden recordngs in the past, I've just come to accept that if I dont like them, I dont have to listen to them.

^I disagree that it's horrible... somewhat muddy, maybe - but definitely no worse than other similar rock bands of the time - label mates Bakerloo, for example. In comparison to, say, Meddle, it lacks a certain finesse in production - but I kinda think that's part of the point. You can tell that the analogue equipment is being abused in a way that you cannot abuse digital equipment - and that's fun.

Edited by Certif1ed - August 18 2008 at 09:41

Dick Heath wrote: T.Rox wrote: I love playing my old vinyl LP's on my antiquated (late 70's) analogue equipment. IMO there is a warmth to the sound that does seem to be missing from CD's.     Deep Purple In Rock on the original vinyl is a horrible muddy mix (as is the original CD release) - just listen to the remastered CD version for clarity.