Welcome to the new BlahBlahCafe!

Having trouble registering? You can contact us at the "Contact us" link at the bottom of the page.

Oxygene 14-20


Post Posted Thu Mar 02, 2017 4:33 pm
feline1973


Posts: 25
Location: Slieve Croob
Likes given: 1

Pat Gleeson wrote:Vinyl sounds better than CD / digital precisely because it can't be brick walled to the same extent - the damn stylus would skip off the platter. It's better by default. ...
that's a very odd way to think about it :lol:

The ideal delivery medium is transparent and has perfect fidelity to the finished mix from the multitrack.
CD, with its 44.1kHz 16bit PCM audio, *can* come very close perfect fidelity if the mastering engineer isn't a total dick.
Vinyl can never come close to fidelity in a million years, and inevitably imparts a variety of audio distortions all of which are objectively measurable

Here are some good articles about it
http://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advic ... est-medium
http://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advic ... l-releases
http://www.soundonsound.com/music-business/hot-metal (this last one will make you weep when you learn the sorts of things that happen to reference lacquers!)
Post Posted Thu Mar 02, 2017 4:37 pm
feline1973


Posts: 25
Location: Slieve Croob
Likes given: 1

Velodynamic wrote:So what about this "better" vinyl master, is it digital from the beginning before it becomes a vinyl record? How come we don't have direct access to download that one instead of the brick wall squashed shite?
In my world of thoughts it would've been much easier that way and saved the production one whole step! :roll:
The CD booklet says Oxygene 3 was recorded in Ableton Live on a MacBook Pro, so yes, the original multitrack and mixdown is all digital.
Post Posted Thu Mar 02, 2017 5:03 pm
Finaero


User avatar
Posts: 2978
Location: Finland
Likes given: 186
Likes received  : 54

Depeche Mode's 2005 album "Playing the Angel" is a good example of the vinyl edition sounding better solely due to the vinyl mastering not being commercialized/half-assed/brickwalled - and in fact, the vinyl edition actually having a separate master.

In any case, a few months have passed since the release of the album. I must say, Oxygene 17 definitely is a true favorite of mine, and has passed Variation 3 in my "Top 4 Favorite Post-O7-13 Jarre tracks" list (Stardust, Paris Bourges, O17, Variation 3). 8)
Post Posted Thu Mar 02, 2017 11:36 pm
shadow


User avatar
Posts: 1511
Likes received  : 35

Oxygene 14-16 (honestly it's just one long track in my eyes) and 19 are my favorite. 17 is a fun upbeat track but nothing special, 18 is just boring though I get the idea and 20 while interesting execution I'm just not fan of it.
27-11-10: Ahoy Rotterdam
22-11-16: Heineken Music Hall Amsterdam
Post Posted Thu Mar 02, 2017 11:56 pm
Dr_Jones


User avatar
Posts: 3729
Location: Leiden, Netherlands
Likes given: 194
Likes received  : 402

feline1973 wrote:
Pat Gleeson wrote:Vinyl sounds better than CD / digital precisely because it can't be brick walled to the same extent - the damn stylus would skip off the platter. It's better by default. ...
that's a very odd way to think about it :lol:

The ideal delivery medium is transparent and has perfect fidelity to the finished mix from the multitrack.
CD, with its 44.1kHz 16bit PCM audio, *can* come very close perfect fidelity if the mastering engineer isn't a total dick.
Vinyl can never come close to fidelity in a million years, and inevitably imparts a variety of audio distortions all of which are objectively measurable

Here are some good articles about it
http://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advic ... est-medium
http://www.soundonsound.com/sound-advic ... l-releases
http://www.soundonsound.com/music-business/hot-metal (this last one will make you weep when you learn the sorts of things that happen to reference lacquers!)
THANK YOU very much for these articles.
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 7:18 am
HunterTech


Posts: 14

feline1973 wrote:if the mastering engineer isn't a total dick.
Which is why vinyl will continue to prevail in sales. Because the mastering engineer continues to remain a dick on digital media.
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 9:00 am
feline1973


Posts: 25
Location: Slieve Croob
Likes given: 1

HunterTech wrote:
feline1973 wrote:if the mastering engineer isn't a total dick.
Which is why vinyl will continue to prevail in sales. Because the mastering engineer continues to remain a dick on digital media.
Hahah well there is that ;).
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 9:16 am
Finaero


User avatar
Posts: 2978
Location: Finland
Likes given: 186
Likes received  : 54

shadow wrote:Oxygene 14-16 (honestly it's just one long track in my eyes) and 19 are my favorite. 17 is a fun upbeat track but nothing special, 18 is just boring though I get the idea and 20 while interesting execution I'm just not fan of it.
O18 reminds me quite a lot of "Celestial Whispers" from Vangelis' Rosetta, tho' I definitely prefer the latter (even though it's also more of a segue). ;)
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 10:12 am
feline1973


Posts: 25
Location: Slieve Croob
Likes given: 1

Dr_Jones wrote:THANK YOU very much for these articles.
Well don't thank me, thank Sound on Sound magazine. :D I've been a subscriber for years, it really is a very good source of reliable technical info.
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 1:37 pm
Jote


User avatar
Posts: 1025
Location: Lodz, Poland
Likes given: 55
Likes received  : 68

HunterTech wrote:
feline1973 wrote:if the mastering engineer isn't a total dick.
Which is why vinyl will continue to prevail in sales. Because the mastering engineer continues to remain a dick on digital media.
With the ReplayGain gaining (sic) popularity this might change? I hope so...
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 4:02 pm
Pat Gleeson


Posts: 684
Location: Limerick, Ireland
Likes given: 303
Likes received  : 16

feline1973 wrote:
that's a very odd way to think about it :lol:

CD, with its 44.1kHz 16bit PCM audio, *can* come very close perfect fidelity if the mastering engineer isn't a total dick.
.. and if the mastering engineer is a total dick ?
My point precisely.
Concerts attended:
Destination Docklands 1988
Paris la Defense 1990
Europe in Concert - Wembley Stadium 1993
Oxygene Tour - Wembley Arena 1997
Theatre Marigny Paris 2007
Oxygene Tour - NCH Dublin 2008
2010 Tour - The 02 Dublin The 02 London (10-10-10)
Electronica Tour - 3Arena Dublin 2016
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 4:09 pm
Pat Gleeson


Posts: 684
Location: Limerick, Ireland
Likes given: 303
Likes received  : 16

feline1973 wrote: Vinyl can never come close to fidelity in a million years, and inevitably imparts a variety of audio distortions all of which are objectively measurable
Again, I agree. The problem is that the so called 'loudness war' has meant mastering has become so loud that vinyl - with all the limitations you have outlined quite correctly - have to use quieter masters than the superior digital formats. Once such company - Audio Fidelity - insist on using only the original made-for-vinyl masters for their digital formats - SACD etc. The sound quality and dynamic range are fantastic.
Concerts attended:
Destination Docklands 1988
Paris la Defense 1990
Europe in Concert - Wembley Stadium 1993
Oxygene Tour - Wembley Arena 1997
Theatre Marigny Paris 2007
Oxygene Tour - NCH Dublin 2008
2010 Tour - The 02 Dublin The 02 London (10-10-10)
Electronica Tour - 3Arena Dublin 2016
Post Posted Fri Mar 03, 2017 4:10 pm
Pat Gleeson


Posts: 684
Location: Limerick, Ireland
Likes given: 303
Likes received  : 16

feline1973 wrote: Well don't thank me, thank Sound on Sound magazine. :D I've been a subscriber for years, it really is a very good source of reliable technical info.
Thanks for finding the links all the same - very interesting articles ... :D
Concerts attended:
Destination Docklands 1988
Paris la Defense 1990
Europe in Concert - Wembley Stadium 1993
Oxygene Tour - Wembley Arena 1997
Theatre Marigny Paris 2007
Oxygene Tour - NCH Dublin 2008
2010 Tour - The 02 Dublin The 02 London (10-10-10)
Electronica Tour - 3Arena Dublin 2016
Post Posted Sun Mar 05, 2017 2:16 pm
feline1973


Posts: 25
Location: Slieve Croob
Likes given: 1

Jote wrote:
HunterTech wrote:
feline1973 wrote:if the mastering engineer isn't a total dick.
Which is why vinyl will continue to prevail in sales. Because the mastering engineer continues to remain a dick on digital media.
With the ReplayGain gaining (sic) popularity this might change? I hope so...
By "ReplayGain" I think you're alluding to things similar to the EBU R-128 "loudness normalisation" standard?
(Again, Sound on Sound did a good article on this - I linked to it about 20 pages back in this thread ;) http://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/end-loudness-war )

Basically, I'm amazed that any professional mastering engineer is still churning out squashed crap like Dadwater, because due to EBU R-128, pretty much *EVERY* broadcast or streaming medium now (radio, television, Spotify, YouTube, Google Play, etc etc - and most hardware MP3 players as well) all use "loudness normalisation" to basically make everything they play the same subjective loudness level. So you CAN'T master a track to make it sound "really loud", as it just gets turned down when played, and so just sounds crap (lacking in dynamics).
Post Posted Sun Mar 05, 2017 2:18 pm
feline1973


Posts: 25
Location: Slieve Croob
Likes given: 1

Pat Gleeson wrote: .. and if the mastering engineer is a total dick ?
My point precisely.
Yeah, and Dadwater does definately seem to be a dick!
The more I listen to Oxygene 3 (ripped from the CD to lossless FLAC, mostly listening on a Sony Walkman with nice MDR-1000 headphones :) ) the most I really do not like the way it's mastered. It's far too squished, it doesn't suit the material at all, which needs to be light and ethereal.







  • 2020 Zoolook.nl
    Powered by phpBB forum software