CD vs LP

[Bonsai]

Interesting article here by Ian Shepard who apprarently investigated the dynamic range on a CD and LP version of the same (newly released) Red Hot Chilli Peppers album. I also do recall a huge difference between a CD and LP version of Jeff Buckley's (RIP) 'Grace' album in favour of the LP when I did a comparison a few years ago.

Here's the link:-

Don’t Blame the Format for Bad Sound, Blame the Suits - CE Pro Blog Article from CE Pro

[Bonsai]

I think part of the issue here is that it is just too damn easy to compress music when it's in the digital domain. On an all analog signal chain, that's a different story though, although I doubt the album mentioned above was recorded in this way.

I would surmise that record execs know that LP is 'branded' as audiophile quality and therefore don't compress the hell out of them. Great Pity because CD is also capable of great performance.

[ThorstenL]

Hi,

Originally Posted by Bonsai

Interesting article here by Ian Shepard who apprarently investigated the dynamic range on a CD and LP version of the same (newly released) Red Hot Chilli Peppers album. I also do recall a huge difference between a CD and LP version of Jeff Buckley's (RIP) 'Grace' album in favour of the LP when I did a comparison a few years ago.

Any guy into Vinyl KNOWS that LP has better dynamic than CD. Now we have proof...

Funny story.

One of the extremely few recordings that I had a hand in and that achieved release outside East Germany (and what we did in East germany had very limited runs) went onto a compilation CD.

The West German record company asked us to remaster for CD release with much less dynamics than we had on the East German version, they claimed it would otherwise not work on CD, if we did not they would just put a compressor on the thing...

That was probably in 88, maybe early 89, I can't remember now.

Ciao T

[a.wayne]

put it on 24/192 .... no problem ....

[ThorstenL]

Hi,

Originally Posted by a.wayne

put it on 24/192 .... no problem ....

We would have loved to, but in 1988 there was no 192/24 release media. I have no idea what happened to the master tapes after the East German regime collapsed, probably ended up in a landfill somewhere, like so much else...

Ciao T

[Bonsai]

Personal preferences aside, I think there are some good examples out there of both formats. The issue here is why compress the hell out of some CD's? Give us back our Dynamic Range!

[Bonsai]

I need to clarify my statement above re the Jeff Buckley album. I did not check DR specifically, I just did an A-B comparison. Like nite and day in terms of sound staging. I should have stated this earlier - apologies for this.

[ThorstenL]

Hi,

Originally Posted by Bonsai

Personal preferences aside, I think there are some good examples out there of both formats. The issue here is why compress the hell out of some CD's? Give us back our Dynamic Range!

I guess the record company executives have already decided that everyone who buys CD is incapable of appreciating quality.

Just as they have decided that everyone who wants to buy Classical, Jazz, Blues and other forms of music that cannot be covered by formulaic Boy/Girl/Mixed Teen bands, Rapping Gangsters and strangely dressed and made up heavy metal bands is not their customer.

Ciao T

[AndrewT]

Originally Posted by ThorstenL

We would have loved to, but in 1988 there was no 192/24 release media. I have no idea what happened to the master tapes after.........

the original CD specification (red book) was rushed out too early using old (out of date) computer processing power from the 1970s.
It would have made better sense for us consumers to have waited just a few years until the technology had developed to allow at least 20bit performance or the full 192/24 to become a practicality.

But the greed of the manufacturers was allowed to take over.

[SY]

Originally Posted by ThorstenL

I guess the record company executives have already decided that everyone who buys CD is incapable of appreciating quality.

So have high end reviewers. In one high end webzine (I think you might be a contributor there) I recently read a review of a CD by a former Stereophile guy. This album is one of the worst examples of compression and bad EQ that I've ever heard, I use the dynamics analysis from it as my "bad example" in any comparisons, but the sonics got a rave. Go figure.