Beatles remastered. Good news or bad?

Pano · 7th April 2009, 05:19 PM

So there has been a complete remastering of the Beatles stuff, due out Sept of this year.

Let's assume you like the Beatles and want to own some good recordings of their stuff (I do). Is this going to be good or bad?

I always cringe when I read the words "Digitally Remastered". Who knows what mischief was done? It should be great, but so often isn't.

Anyone know anything about this big remaster job?

A few details at The Rolling Stone.

wakibaki · 7th April 2009, 06:25 PM

Raving about an album I can understand. Raving about a remastering?

I have existing Beatles CDs. Given the immensity of the creative achievement in other respects the mastering is trivial. It's not going to reveal something amazing about the original material now, but if it's respectful of the original treatment then it may become the copy to buy. It remains to be seen.

w

vpharris · 7th April 2009, 07:59 PM

Quote:

"The technology that was available back then was very limited, and with the newer technology they are able to do far more with what they have than they have ever been able to do before," he said. "For people who are plugged into iPods and the whole digital music scene, it's going to be a lot better for them."
....

The remastering project was four years in the making. Engineers used de-noising technology and cleaned up glitches like electrical clicks and microphone vocal pops, so long as it didn't affect the original integrity of the songs.

They also slightly boosted the volume levels....

That makes me think that it will be compressed.

Mr Evil · 7th April 2009, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by vpharris

That makes me think that it will be compressed.

It's amazing what new technology can do - what used to take a whole 16 bits to encode can now be squeezed into only 4 bits! It's a much more efficient use of space...

Pano · 7th April 2009, 10:34 PM

I think Vince means "dynamically compressed." As in louder. And I'm sure it will be. To suit modern tastes. It would be almost impossible not to.

AKAIK, there will not be any downloads or compressed formats for awhile.

My wish for the new masters is for a better, fuller bottom end. The remasters from the 80s sound very thin - almost AM radio. Did the LPs sound that way? Don't remember - sold mine long ago (shame).

I just came across an interview in an old Audio magazine from ~1987. Sir George Martin talking about the first round of CDs and remastering. Will post a bit of it if I can.

Mr Evil · 7th April 2009, 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by panomaniac
I think Vince means "dynamically compressed." As in louder. And I'm sure it will be. To suit modern tastes. It would be almost impossible not to...

That's what I meant too. There is usually only a few dB of dynamic range on new CDs, meaning that most of their 16 bits of resolution is wasted.

It's a shame that something like ReplayGain wasn't part of the original CD spec.

Pano · 7th April 2009, 11:10 PM

OK, got it! Yes, some metadata on the CD would have been great. And I always thought log instead of linear encoding. As well as replay gain, maybe even a compression tag?

There is a lot wrong with the format, - just look at the packaging - amazing that it has endured so long.

jlsem · 8th April 2009, 07:29 PM

I doubt they will ever get anything of really good sound quality from the original master tapes. When George Martin did "Love" with his son they went back to the original tracks and the resulting quality of the album (LP) was far better than anything before. The best thing that could happen to Beatles fans who are audiophiles is if someone like AcousTech could get ahold of those tracks and recreate new masters. Of course purists would be appalled at them not being exactly as they were originally released, but think of the quality of the sound! I would personally pay $100 or more per album for such a release.

John

gl · 8th April 2009, 08:04 PM

I remember reading an interview of George Martin or some other person similarly connected to the original Beatles releases. The interviewee spoke about the low end being severely rolled off to accommodate the then existing consumer playback equipment and radios etc.

I play the bass. Paul McCartneys bass lines are truly works of art. If the re-masters include the full low end of the original masters then the project is totally worthwhile. I will line up and pay my money and be very happy.

Cheers,
Graeme

Mitch Alsup · 8th April 2009, 08:42 PM

I can tell you that the remastering of the "Love" album (vinyl) is very nice. If this is what is meant by remastering, you have little to worry about. On the other hand, there remains a lot to worry about--I guess we'll just have to wait.

I wish they would do this on vinyl (180 or 200) rather than CD/DVD.

7th April 2009, 05:19 PM	#1
Pano diyAudio Moderator Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: North Carolina Blog Entries: 4	Beatles remastered. Good news or bad? So there has been a complete remastering of the Beatles stuff, due out Sept of this year. Let's assume you like the Beatles and want to own some good recordings of their stuff (I do). Is this going to be good or bad? I always cringe when I read the words "Digitally Remastered". Who knows what mischief was done? It should be great, but so often isn't. Anyone know anything about this big remaster job? A few details at The Rolling Stone. __________________ Take the Speaker Voltage Test!

7th April 2009, 10:34 PM	#5
Pano diyAudio Moderator Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: North Carolina Blog Entries: 4	I think Vince means "dynamically compressed." As in louder. And I'm sure it will be. To suit modern tastes. It would be almost impossible not to. AKAIK, there will not be any downloads or compressed formats for awhile. My wish for the new masters is for a better, fuller bottom end. The remasters from the 80s sound very thin - almost AM radio. Did the LPs sound that way? Don't remember - sold mine long ago (shame). I just came across an interview in an old Audio magazine from ~1987. Sir George Martin talking about the first round of CDs and remastering. Will post a bit of it if I can. __________________ Take the Speaker Voltage Test!

7th April 2009, 11:10 PM	#7
Pano diyAudio Moderator Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: North Carolina Blog Entries: 4	OK, got it! Yes, some metadata on the CD would have been great. And I always thought log instead of linear encoding. As well as replay gain, maybe even a compression tag? There is a lot wrong with the format, - just look at the packaging - amazing that it has endured so long. __________________ Take the Speaker Voltage Test!

8th April 2009, 07:29 PM	#8
jlsem diyAudio Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Dallas,TX	I doubt they will ever get anything of really good sound quality from the original master tapes. When George Martin did "Love" with his son they went back to the original tracks and the resulting quality of the album (LP) was far better than anything before. The best thing that could happen to Beatles fans who are audiophiles is if someone like AcousTech could get ahold of those tracks and recreate new masters. Of course purists would be appalled at them not being exactly as they were originally released, but think of the quality of the sound! I would personally pay $100 or more per album for such a release. John __________________ When an LP gets scratched it still makes sense; when CDs crack up they go completely senile and gibber incontinently. - Hugo Williams

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7th April 2009, 06:25 PM	#2
wakibaki Banned Join Date: Jan 2008 Blog Entries: 2	Raving about an album I can understand. Raving about a remastering? I have existing Beatles CDs. Given the immensity of the creative achievement in other respects the mastering is trivial. It's not going to reveal something amazing about the original material now, but if it's respectful of the original treatment then it may become the copy to buy. It remains to be seen. w

8th April 2009, 08:04 PM	#9
gl diyAudio Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Sierra Foothills - California	I remember reading an interview of George Martin or some other person similarly connected to the original Beatles releases. The interviewee spoke about the low end being severely rolled off to accommodate the then existing consumer playback equipment and radios etc. I play the bass. Paul McCartneys bass lines are truly works of art. If the re-masters include the full low end of the original masters then the project is totally worthwhile. I will line up and pay my money and be very happy. Cheers, Graeme

8th April 2009, 08:42 PM	#10
Mitch Alsup diyAudio Member Join Date: Aug 2007	I can tell you that the remastering of the "Love" album (vinyl) is very nice. If this is what is meant by remastering, you have little to worry about. On the other hand, there remains a lot to worry about--I guess we'll just have to wait. I wish they would do this on vinyl (180 or 200) rather than CD/DVD.

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