why CDs are sounding bad lately

[conspicuous]

I already accepted that CD is CD, Analog is Analog, and MP3 is MP3, so I'm not bothered with the formats anymore.

I don't listen to the sound no more, I listen to the music.

Currently listening to Aerosmith on MP3 file stored on my notebook...

"We're partners in crime, you've got that certain somethin..."

my favorite example of this is i always get pumped whenever i hear the church's "under the milky way" whether on my home stereo, on the car radio, on a cheap casette recorder or in an elevator (i haven't heard it on an 8-track player yet). it's the music that i hear

[AUDIO8]

That's why cd's manufactured locally sounded terrible maybe because of the equipment they use in producing these cd is already substandard in the first place. Recording companies don't care about the quality of sound as long as they can sell the cd cheaper and PROFIT become bigger.
Because of this I stopped buying cd's here and just source it abroad wherein quality is superior than the one's sold here even the same album you will be surprised that there's a significant difference.

[brady]

I noticed the same thing brought up by Audio8. Most recently in the Diana Krall albums. But this shouldn't be so, theoretically, that is. Just ones and zeros after all.

[Jon Agner]

That's why cd's manufactured locally sounded terrible maybe because of the equipment they use in producing these cd is already substandard in the first place.

Zach also mentioned this in one of his post of a similar thread.

[SoLiDtUbEs]

The so called "redbook" cd has been the scapegoat eversince it's conception for poor sound quality. But then again of course it would in it's pathetic compressed state!

Those who press substandard cd's are just like adding salt on an open wound.

Now how do we stop the bleeding? Well for one thing as mentioned by AUDIO8 there's nothing like buying the imported audiophile standard pressed real thing. This gives you the edge of hearing the sound you like on a much more appreciated level.

Well some do get off by listening to music on other formats like Mp3, but who are they kidding it simply isn't good enough. And at the end of the day that's what matters most when you playback material on your Pride and Joy system.

Another simple alternative is to rip off your redbook cd's into lossless format and burning them into new ones with a fairly good CDRW. Not only will you benefit from the uncompressed recording in terms of sound quality (as many have now realized) but you also have a backup copy of your collection which you can take anywhere with your PC.

For those who haven't tried Lossless, NOW is no other better time to do so and reap it's benefits. Again you have nothing to lose coz' you can always go back to analog hehehe.

And yes not all cd's local and imported SOUND the same<----Believe it or Not!

-S-

[pigdog]

agree with audio8 even though i bought a lot of cds in HK i was able to make a comaparison between the HK pressed Beatles Love Album with those of the Japanese pressed cd the quality of the japanese versions are astoundingly nice and they are HDCD as well...at least to my cd player as the HDCD led would light up, whereas the HK version is just flat and uninvolving. knowing the history of this album helps as i am aware that mastering engineer for apple records handling this project is no other than Giles Martin, the son of longtime beatles producer George Martin is a perfectionist... i ended up buying several copies of the jap versions as presents to friends..

That's why cd's manufactured locally sounded terrible maybe because of the equipment they use in producing these cd is already substandard in the first place. Recording companies don't care about the quality of sound as long as they can sell the cd cheaper and PROFIT become bigger.
Because of this I stopped buying cd's here and just source it abroad wherein quality is superior than the one's sold here even the same album you will be surprised that there's a significant difference.

[bdiament]

For those who might be interested, I've posted an article on the subject called "Declaring an end to the loudness wars". It can be found at:
http://www.barrydiamentaudio.com/loudness.htm

I hear many of my fellow pro engineers complaining about being asked to make loud records and I understand that people have to make a living. I just wish they would follow their complaints with acknowledgments that they themselves make loud records and allow their names to be put on those records.

As I say in the article, "Lip service will not end the loudness wars, action will." I am proud to say I do not use dynamic compression in any of my work, whether recording or mastering.

I can understand its use as a special effect on an individual track of a multi-track recording, for example the "whoosh" of Ringo's cymbals. However, I prefer recordings with full dynamic range.

Best regards,
Barry
www.soundkeeperrecordings.com
www.barrydiamentaudio.com

[SoLiDtUbEs]

For those who might be interested, I've posted an article on the subject called "Declaring an end to the loudness wars". It can be found at:
http://www.barrydiamentaudio.com/loudness.htm

I hear many of my fellow pro engineers complaining about being asked to make loud records and I understand that people have to make a living. I just wish they would follow their complaints with acknowledgments that they themselves make loud records and allow their names to be put on those records.

As I say in the article, "Lip service will not end the loudness wars, action will." I am proud to say I do not use dynamic compression in any of my work, whether recording or masteri

I can understand its use as a special effect on an individual track of a multi-track recording, for example the "whoosh" of Ringo's cymbals. However, I prefer recordings with full dynamic range.

Best regards,
Barry
www.soundkeeperrecordings.com
www.barrydiamentaudio.com

Yes Sir this explains the accurate and pleasant sound of your recordings. May your tribe increase.

-S-

[jtgf1966]

While i'd rather listen to the music rather than harp on the format...i can't help but agree with the other guys as well. Listening to today's cd's is not the same pleasant experience as before. During the heyday of vinyl I can lie there for hours on end listening to my records...i can't say the same thing today with cd's. My ears get "exhausted" after just a few tracks.

As for those cd recordings processed in DSD, i share the view that this holds some promise as i can feel some of the warmth analog used offer. I prefer listening to the DSD processed version of Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff" or that of MFSB's "TSOP" (found on a sony issued compilation cd on 70's music) than the one found on their official albums. I hope they can take this method of processing to another level.

What i find disturbing is the habit of today's youth of listening to their mp3's at deafening high levels. Guys, you won't appreciate the bass that way. The bass actually has more depth when listened to at a moderate volume; one where other people don't have to hear your headsets from a mile away.

Just my two cents worth.

[planarribbon]

permanent hearing damage

i should know. may hearing loss ako

[soundpurist]

CDs nowadays are sounding bad is more of economic equation than the technical of it.

The audiophiles represent only a slim size of the pie. The bigger for those who go for mp3 qualities,pirated copies, and cellphone downloads.The latter being buyers of cds for the music, not for the sound.

I suppose high quality recording is a mastery by industry techs, but technocrats' SWOT analysis dictates cost-profit over qualtiy to survive in almost free-for-all downloads environment.

The analog resurgence is a tiny factor too.

The more good pressing LPs in the market, the lesser audiophiles, the more bad sounding CDs.

Kaya analog na lang ako.

[redspecial]

:shock: permanent hearing damage

i should know. may hearing loss ako

Ako nga may hearing loss na rin - prolonged exposure to guitar amplifiers on a certain volume (never pa naman ako nag 10 sa amplifiers but it's loud nonetheless).

Yes kids today play discmans and ipods cranked to the max para raw dinig lahat ng instrumento. Pero nakikipag usap sa katabi .... duhhh...hello!?

I have the 30th anniversary pressing of Queen's "A Night At The Opera" cd/dvd and the original 1975 pressing of it. Although I don't mind both formats, I can listen to the lp 3 times and still feel comfortable. Pag yung cd nauumay ako after one complete spin. I think digital inherrently has a stiffer sound than vinyl.

I had Urszula Dudziak's Papaya transferred to digital file at the difference is significant - and I am using a 1988 Pioneer Stereo component that is all made in Cebu (may Pioneer factory tayo sa Cebu dati). The bass sa vinyl gumagapang at the digital file hindi - matigas ang tunog.

I am sure if I have valve stereo amplifiers mas obvious ang difference.

[vynilmaster]

I am just wandering why most (maybe around 85%) of recordings done in our local studios do sound very thin. Ive been out of record production for a long time and I was expecting that by this time we should have arrived. Our Church (music ministry) recorded a worship album and I am not really impressed by the quality. Sayang all the orig music. All the songs recorded were thin. I also happened to listen to other local recording production and they all sound alike. Is it because we are too digitalized? I notice that all the instrument were recorded too clean that the human factor (that very tiny fraction of human error) is lost. Is it because of the culture of our present sound engr? Or lack of equipments? I remember when I was doing a lot of recording at Cinema Audio, Sampaguita, etc. we were using 36 tract 4inch tape setups and the results are far better than what I hear recorded today. Well, as an an analogue audiophile I do prefer vinyl sources than CDs but others who are not are also giving the same observation. Calling all sound engineers.

[Jon Agner]

Mods,

please move this topic to the general audio or music forum.

@ vynilmaster,

there's a discussion on this before I''ll try to link it as soon as your topic has been moved to the proper forum.

Cheers.

[tenderobject]

makikisabat din ako..

napansin ko din ito.. iba sabi nila nasa klima natin or sa location natin? not sure..
nakaexperience ako magrecord sa analogue before same din ang nipis! di ko alam siguro dahil yung eng ay walang idea sa music na ginagawa namin..
then naexperience ko din ang digital recording (PC).. medyo nagawan namin paraan.. pero karamihan nga ng recording dito ganun ang napapansin ko?
baket kaya?

[Vinylhead]

Just learned that most or some locally issued cds are mastered from old vinyl records that they store in their library. I thought they get mastered from original reels or something. Or is that really how cds get mastered?

[marcusd]

actually I think this is the case for a lot of new recordings - a lot of the output sounds thin or really compressed with unusual focus for instance on drums over guitars etc. I am no sound production specialist but my cd collection tells me things

[vynilmaster]

makikisabat din ako..

napansin ko din ito.. iba sabi nila nasa klima natin or sa location natin? not sure..
nakaexperience ako magrecord sa analogue before same din ang nipis! di ko alam siguro dahil yung eng ay walang idea sa music na ginagawa namin..
then naexperience ko din ang digital recording (PC).. medyo nagawan namin paraan.. pero karamihan nga ng recording dito ganun ang napapansin ko?
baket kaya?

I dont really know if our climate has got something to do with it. Kasi sa mga recording studios controldo ang temp d ba, airconditioned. And moreover there are some locally produced ones that sounds great, even better sometimes than the once recorded abroad. I beleive that some sound engrs should not only be technically excelent but they should also have the ear and the heart for music. I dont want to sound brutal but if those who would like to get into sound engineering does not have music heart baka mas mabuti iba na lang ang ipursue. You See GOD gave us giftings, The gifts that some received are defenitely different from what othes got. Otherwise we will all be musicians. Wala ng Karpintero or mekaniko or other profesion that has nothing to do with music

[Jon Agner]

Here are some previous discussions on the topic

http://www.wiredstate.com/forum/viewtop ... hilit=zach


and another discussion... regarding mastering and related post production, including CD stamping:


viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5183&start=20

just continue discussions on this thread

[triokenwood]

I am just wandering why most (maybe around 85%) of recordings done in our local studios do sound very thin. Ive been out of record production for a long time and I was expecting that by this time we should have arrived. Our Church (music ministry) recorded a worship album and I am not really impressed by the quality. Sayang all the orig music. All the songs recorded were thin. I also happened to listen to other local recording production and they all sound alike. Is it because we are too digitalized? I notice that all the instrument were recorded too clean that the human factor (that very tiny fraction of human error) is lost. Is it because of the culture of our present sound engr? Or lack of equipments? I remember when I was doing a lot of recording at Cinema Audio, Sampaguita, etc. we were using 36 tract 4inch tape setups and the results are far better than what I hear recorded today. Well, as an an analogue audiophile I do prefer vinyl sources than CDs but others who are not are also giving the same observation. Calling all sound engineers.

I'm interested in what recording consoles/mixing desks were you using then--Rupert Neve, SSL, API, etc.?