[golgi]

I just received my new copy of Opeth: Ghost Reveries on vinyl today and all I can say is WOW! This record is amazing in both musical content as well as recording. If you spin vinyl and think this band may even be slightly interesting to you, get this record and you will not be disappointed. Absolutely smashing!

 

[trains are bad]

Are you saying it's good on vinyl, or just good? I have the CD and it's great. I'm not sure if you are saying it's better on vinyl or just that it's a great record.

 

[golgi]

sorry, was just pretty thrilled with the quality of this record and had to tell someone about it

I have not heard the cd version so I cannot say if it is better than the cd. Just saying that if anyone had considered buying this on vinyl but then didn't, definitely reconsider because it's great. Sometimes i've read where people will hesitate to buy the vinyl version of recent releases because for some reason they seem to think that all or most of the modern recordings on vinyl are of low quality. I personally don't believe that and this record is definitely proof fo that.

 

[Enverxis]

Really?

I would have thought the general consensus (at least here) thought they were of equal or better quality

 

[roadtonowhere08]

The 31st of this month will see the release of a 5.1 version of this album. Shazzammm!!!

 

[Hevimees]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Enverxis Really? I would have thought the general consensus (at least here) thought they were of equal or better quality

Nowadays many vinyls are of very poor quality, with lots of hisses and cracks in new vinyls. Still Life vinyl for example is rather bad

Ghost Reveries CD and vinyl sound pretty much the same, I have them both. Or course there are some differences, but they are caused by differences between mediums and players, the recording itself is the same.

For the record, I pretty much never listen to vinyls with headphones. There's always some annoying background noise, cracks and such that really stand out with headphones. With speakers the problem isn't so bad, and I can actually enjoy listening to music from vinyls.

 

[Enverxis]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hevimees Still Life vinyl for example is rather bad

So is Still Life on CD

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

Wasn't Ghost Reveries recorded digitally? If so I fail to see how vinyl can sound any better.

 

[trains are bad]

1. It could be mastered differently. Sometimes radically differently. I doubt it in this case.

2. As you probably know, vinyl recordings are put through an RIAA equalization curve. Also, vinyl has less dynamic range and channel separation than CD. Given the differences in the media, I would find it amazing if they DID sound the same.

 

[golgi]

Just to clarify so we don't make this thread into a vinyl vs. cd war, I actually wasn't comparing to the cd at all. I've never even heard the cd of this album.

My reason for posting was just to let the vinyl fans in this forum know that this was a solid addition to the record collection and not to be concerned with it's quality as I think it's great (not that I'm some sort of audio authority or anything). Also wanted to see if others who had heard this album on vinyl would confirm this thought of mine.

Once again, this is not intended to be a "vinyl is better than cd" or vice versa post. Often times, however, if you listen to a vinyl lp and compare it to the same album on cd while both are played on similar grade equipment you will notice a difference (of course there are exceptions to this). For me, this difference is in the way notes decay on the two formats. On vinyl, there is a very natural decay while on cd if I listen very closely, the decay doesn't seem as natural. I'm no expert in audiophile verbage but it just seems more like natural music to me... if that makes any sense.

 

[s m @]

I've seen this at a local shop, I think this reco will push me over the edge and make me get it finally. I've also considered the HDCD version before, but if the vinyl is of HQ I'll go for it.

Also, I've said it before, but most digital recordings are made in a higher rez than 16/44, so if that rez is used to make the analog master, it would allow for vinyl's strengths to show through. Also, I think the quality of current vinyl is getting better and better. One example would be that Matador's vinyl releases have gone from bad/fair to exemplary in the past year. Also, most reissues are done in high quality. The only real issue is that older analog recordings may be experiencing some small degree of sonic decay (in the master recordings that newer versions are probably made from). I don't find this a problem, though. I'd also say the same thing for redbook, that its quality seems to have increased a lot in the semi-recent past.

 

[Enverxis]

my version of GR says HDCD

 

[golgi]

I've never heard an hdcd played through a cd player with the hdcd capability. Is there a big difference between hdcd and cd?

 

[s m @]

^^^I don't know if I'd say 'big difference', but I do think there's an improvement in many cases. Some others not so much, but if there's an HDCD version available then that's usually what I'd go with. Given the format's unclear future right now I don't know if I'd recommend buying a capable player as a priority, but it's definitely nice to have.

 

[Sleestack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by roadtonowhere08 The 31st of this month will see the release of a 5.1 version of this album. Shazzammm!!!

That is great news. Can't wait to put this one through the 5.1.

Last month, Ghost Reveries literally vibrated a 6'x6' mirror off my wall from accross my house. The mirror shattered all over my family room and required 2 days of massive cleaning. Needless to say, I'm not about to change my listening habits, so that makes for one less mirror in my house.