What annoys you the most about badly mastered recordings? - Page 2

Funny I've never heard this the voice is always clear I'll have to listen to that track, by now it's probably re-mastered. 

Nirvana Nevermind is an awful recording......it just sounds flat with very little detail and sound stage....shame

sibilance

Quote:

Originally Posted by tjohnusa 

Nirvana Nevermind is an awful recording......it just sounds flat with very little detail and sound stage....shame

Which release of Nevermind do you have?  You must be listening to a remastered release.  I have the 1991 CD release (DGCD-24425 without the hidden track) and it sounds great.  The sound is not flat.  Absolutely awesome sound compared to what passes for post-2000 mastering.  Proof that you don't need the album to be mastered loud to have loud music.

I've not listened to any other release of Nevermind than the old 1991 CD that I've got.

Quote:

Originally Posted by tjohnusa 

Nirvana Nevermind is an awful recording......it just sounds flat with very little detail and sound stage....shame

Aw I just listened to it....never again.

Another thing I hate is static freaking annoying. 

I just listened to Nevermind on my other headphones and on my BX8a monitors.  Now I hear what's going on.  The mastering is bad if you listen with headphones or speakers that aren't full range or that are bright.  It's near deafening painful in the midrange and treble with the Grado SR325is.  Thin and bright on the HD600.  It's a little better on the BX8a monitors but still lets you know that it wants you to have a sub and it doesn't sound good.

The thing is though, it sounds great, really great, on my Denon D2000.  And the D2000 is what I mostly listen to.  I'd forgotten what Nevermind can sound like on other headphones or on speakers.

It needs headphones that can do low end from 20 Hz to 100 Hz and give a punch to the bass drum.  They've got something going on with the bass kick drum that is filling in a lot and if the headphones or speakers don't bring that out you are missing a big necessary part of the sound.  It also needs headphones that aren't bright.  Unfortunately pretty much every headphone leans to the bright side.  The D2000 manages to avoid the too bright problem and it has bass with punch and extension.  The magic ingredients to make Nevermind sound good.

So Nevermind is going to sound awful on most headphones and isn't going to sound good on speakers unless you have a sub or full size speakers that are truly full range.

Re: thread title, it would have to be

1. audible clipping

and

2. flat sound lacking in dynamics,

about equally. In other words, the usual "victims of the loudness race" stuff.

Late-80's rock recordings tend to be on the bright side, but I doubt it's only mastering related. I'd say it's a mix of recording techniques (e.g. miking of hi-hats and stuff), reverb, clipping and EQ.

What annoys me most is that some really good music could have sounded so much better.

Quote:

Originally Posted by zotjen 

What annoys me most is that some really good music could have sounded so much better.

Good point. These days new releases tend to be either interesting musically or good-sounding, but very rarely both. The standards for "run-of-the-mill" recordings pretty much seem to have gone down the drain.

What really pisses me off is the missed opportunity to do something right!

Quote:

Originally Posted by zotjen 

What annoys me most is that some really good music could have sounded so much better.

Exactly! It's frustrating.