Rerurn to Romy the Cat's Site
In the Forum: Playback Listening
In the Thread: Attention Sound Engineers (compression and loudness)
Post Subject: Well, there are some good recordings out there...Posted by Paul S on: 9/11/2007
but I sometimes wonder just what sort of collaboration it takes to produce them. It almost seems like good intentions and great (minimalist) engineering must be bolstered with plenty of plain old luck.
For one thing, even people who claim they set out to produce a spectacular recording generally wind up with something my system renders as between less-than-stellar and painful. Who knows what the "artist" wants to get out of his/her participation in the actual production? I know for sure that artist participation is no guarantee - at all - of a superior recording/record.
And let's not forget that the recording is one thing and the record is another. How many old records do you own that have great recordings of great performances? Of those, how many sound like the stylus is tracing shattered glass? I have one word for you, Benjamin...
I am actually pleased with some of the more recent Classic and similar "audiophile" re-masterings of jazz and classical works, at 30 buck and upward a pop. However, I have no idea how many good original ("mother") sources are avilable anymore for performances of an absolute quality that may never be repeated in our lifetimes. Later generation dubs are doomed to slip right out of the gate.
If you go back through the history of records I think you have to admit that most of the "better recording" hype has been just that, and, disturbingly, there has been more hype and less good delivered as a percentage since, probably, the 60s. And look at all the more recent superior production technology just wasted on "showcase" music.
I remember my first DGG, with all the pre-press and expectation, and then to have Beethoven sound like Mozart, Mozart sound like Bach, and Bach sound like a caliope; it was very disappointing; yet they got one Grand Prix du Disque after another.
Who needs quality when you have collaboration?
It started out that Johnny could actually read, but he just wouldn't.
Now he really can't read , and he doesn't care, and HE DOESN'T NEED TO.
And he is absolutely deaf as a post.
I am sorry to be so cynical, but...
Best regards,
Paul SRerurn to Romy the Cat's Site