I wonder what happened to the RCA backing tracks left in the Olympic dumpster and rescued? They sound SO GOOD. It's about time they do a full remix (Steven Wilson/Andrew Sandoval style, not Giles Martin style). A pipe dream probably.
Well, yes, but the price differential between the 2 is only a few dollars. Admittedly it is probably easier to find the Abkco but if the OP happened to come across a London it should be snapped up.
Indeed, but also remember that the volume levels are very low on the London Aftermath and Buttons, and I suspect that is why those discs sound "wrong" to another commentator above who called them sub-par. I figure it would be best for the OP (who is not an audiophile) to just stick with the Abkco 2002's for sonic and visual consistency (those spines do look nice in a row) and also because it's just easy to remember.
Not bad advice but in terms of SQ, the London Buttons is not nearly as good as the London Aftermath. I don't know that volume levels are the reason the London Buttons was called sub-par. There is a lot of EQ added on the Abkco which generally helps. As I said, if someone came across a London Aftermath they should grab it. But the 2002 Abkco will suffice, agreed. There is something to be said about spines lining up in a row and I've sometimes felt the desire to get all of the Abkco 2002 SACDs for that reason. (I have the debut and Aftermath only on London and Satanic Majesties only on a Japanese SACD I found years ago that faithfully replicated the cover art. No 3D but the picture on the cover isn't cropped). I know some say they're not audiophiles but if they're asking questions about what CD version to get they do care about sound.
Interesting Andrii that you prefer these CBS CDs. I haven't heard them all but did used to have the Japan 32DP 609 and it left me a bit unimpressed. The one that sounds better to me is the 2014 Platinum SHM.
Maybe just me but the 50th anniversary "beggars banquet" sounds slower somewhat ? Definitely something feels a bit off about the sound to my ears. I much prefer my older version.
What's your history? What's "old"? In 2002, ABKCO copped to all extant digital versions of BB being at the wrong speed before they came along and decided to correct it. The 2016 "In Mono" work was a remaster by Bob Ludwig. TSMR, BB, and LIB 50th anniversary editions all got dedicated remasterings (mono and stereo) by Ludwig post-2016.
I'm in my 50s mate. So ive got one of the early CDs to compare with. Definitely sounds a bit brighter to me. The 50th anniversary one verges on sluggish. It really leaps out on "dear doctor" for instance.
All older vinyl & cd’s were mastered at the wrong speed. ABKCO’s post-2002 masterings has the correct speed of the master tapes.
Thanks Ironbelly - brand fade here at chez Torch. Yes the nice mini card sleeve with the k in the number of GHS is the 2009 remaster and therefore the original mix.
As a matter of fact, that album is recorded well and all versions sound good. As usual 2009 is too loud. But if you'll look at differential amplitude-frequency chart, the differences are not that critical. Here what is left after flat transfer (green horizontal line at 0 dB) is subtracted from CBS and Virgin CD. This is for Dance. This is typical for the whole disc. Some tracks from CBS are very close to the flat transfer, partially overlapping with that one. I.e., w/o analog step of ~1.5 dB. But all have the very same EQ profile added atop of flat transfer. Virgin CD is essentially CBS CD but a bit louder. So, you know, in this case CBS disc is a safe choice if you would like to get something close to flat transfer but do not want to pay extra for Japanese stuff. Virgin is OK too if you do not mind louder CD. PS. There is some playback speed differences between flat transfer and CBS. But it is not THAT critical as some people say.
Interesting information on this thread re the 1971 and onwards catalogue. It does seem the CBS era cds (are all CBS cds of a particular album the same?) are getting more appreciation than they did back in the 80s and 90s. I keep all my Stones stuff so there are a lot of choices here!
Well, it depends. Some CBS CDs are good, some are not that good. In many cases that hate of CBS CDs was based on the fact that Sticky Fingers 'sounded thin ' and Exile 'is muddy and have mastering error'. As a result all that series got strange reputation. Virgin CDs, on the contrary, were mastered uniformly. Although, at least 6 of those are based on CBS tape transfer.
Some of the CBS discs are very good indeed. They have a very pleasant, smooth sound and are much quieter than the rather ‘overdriven’ (IMO) Virgin CDs (a few of which - Sticky Fingers for instance - sound like they are offenders from the Loudness Wars). The Virgins have better transfers, yes, but the mastering is more aggressive and fraught. Examples of the best CBS discs for me: Exile On Main Street (if you don’t mind the baffling volume drop in Sweet Virginia) Goats Head Soup Black and Blue Emotional Rescue Tattoo You
Would u mind sharing for me the T You best CBS disc your recommending possibly if it exists on Discogs that is the quietest? I suffer from migraines so that particular quality is most important to me especially since I know so many of TY versions are very loud. Is it also the one where Slave is not cut off and thus over 6 minutes? Thx much!!
All the CBS discs carried the same mastering in all territories I believe, so it doesn’t really matter which one you buy. Slave is cut off at 4:58, unfortunately.
There are some unique early masterings among the pre-Virgin editions. The CP35 version of Tattoo You is one of those, I believe.
The CBS discs are the quietest. The 1994 Virgins are louder but not "very loud" like the ones that came after, and are equal in loudness to the 2002 Abkco remasters of the earlier albums, which is another reason why sticking to 2002 Abkcos and 1994 Virgins would be streamlining for you. The 1994 Virgins have the longer versions (Slave) and sometimes use better tapes.
The 2002 and 50th Anniversary are different because they use the original masters and not generated and off-speed copy tapes. They didn't really "decide to correct" anything, though. They simply used the original tape and needed to explain why and how the pitch had always been wrong.
True, but there are worse examples, as dire as that is. And note the frequent complaints about how the new versions "sound wrong", which does imply foresight on their behalf.
Do they really sound uniform, though? 4 of them are identical to the CBS apart from being made slightly louder through peak limiting. The ones that are properly remastered are louder than those, and the EQ is much more bass-centric. Sticky Fingers is loudest of them all and has very different EQ (reduced treble).
Thanks I had no idea of that. I have the below made in Japan Tattoo You cd from 1986 CDCBS 450198 2. CD is manufactured in Japan but the art work is from Holland. Rolling Stones - Tattoo You
