[phuque]

I'm trying to venture into trying out Miles Davis for Jazz and I noticed his Kind of Blue album being featured on most articles. I was trying out a re-issue CD on a local store that said it was restored from the original LP.

Almost all tracks from the album had a background "hiss" through out. Is this something normal because it was re-mastered from an LP? I'm thinking that this could be annoying though.

 

[gtp]

I've owned two CD versions, both hissed.

 

[MatsudaMan]

It hisses, but does not detract from how awesome it is. It transcends the hiss!

 

[BayouSlide]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phuque /img/forum/go_quote.gif Almost all tracks from the album had a background "hiss" through out. Is this something normal because it was re-mastered from an LP? .

You're hearing just what the engineers heard originally: tape hiss from the original tapes, or from the copies of the tapes that they remastered from if the originals were unavailable or too deteriorated.

Even two-inch tape without Dolby can be pretty noisy according to todays standards. And often two-inch tapes were mixed down to smaller tape sizes at the original mastering. All of it created noise that is now apparent with CDs and better source components.

Try to remove too much of it in remastering for digital and you can adversely affect the sound.

 

[tru blu]

It's interesting…about once a month someone starts a thread about the hiss on Kind of Blue. I have been listening to that record most of the four decades I've been on Earth, and it's never registered with me. Guess it's hard for me to imagine that record being annoying on any level—except maybe from overuse.

 

[phuque]

Thanks for all the quick replies. I should have searched or read up a bit more. I guess when I first heard it on the first track, it started with the hiss before the instruments came in, thus that distracted me from paying attention to the music.

You're right about the gear, the store that I go to have sampling stations with AKGs.

 

[BigEat]

It's not unique to Kind of Blue. Many of the "Re-Masters" contain some hiss and noise. It's a hold over from the original engineering. Even the Rudy Van Gelder series on Blue Note, which widely regarded as some of the best remastered material has some noise here and there. Those old recordings, though dusted off time and again, will never be the same as new digital recordings....thank God.

 

[markl]

Tape hiss contains valuable audio vitamins and minerals. It's good for you!

 

[bperboy]

Hiss is there, but if you leave the volume lower until Miles gets into the groove, you won't really notice... the music is just too good... maybe not SQ-wise, but the performance value is awesome!

 

[Uncle Erik]

Tape hiss isn't too bad on the SACD version. But I mostly tune it out and focus on the music.

 

[bperboy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Erik /img/forum/go_quote.gif Tape hiss isn't too bad on the SACD version. But I mostly tune it out and focus on the music.

Where do you get this SACD version? Can SACD play on computers, or does it have to be a dedicated player?

 

[steviebee]

Wait til you hear Mahavishnu Orchestra 'Inner Mounting Flame' (esp You Know You Know). Not sure if it's tape hiss or amp buzz.
bzzzzzzzzzzz...

 

[LFF]

AFAIK, the SACD version has less hiss than any other release. It's not a perfect remaster but it's the best of the bunch.

Order the SACD from HERE

Why from there? Well, it's the only place where you can order the Hybrid SACD. If you get it here in the states, it will be SACD only. If you get the hybrid, then you can play it anywhere.

 

[ronin74]

Quote:

Originally Posted by phuque /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm trying to venture into trying out Miles Davis for Jazz and I noticed his Kind of Blue album being featured on most articles. I was trying out a re-issue CD on a local store that said it was restored from the original LP. Almost all tracks from the album had a background "hiss" through out. Is this something normal because it was re-mastered from an LP? I'm thinking that this could be annoying though.

HA! I can't wait to hear your review of a Keith Jarrett cd, new or re-issue. He hums along with his jams, often off-key.

 

[jp11801]

tape hiss is your friend and far better than the "no noise" application many mastering engineers use that squelch the top end. I actually listen for tape hiss and when it is present typically it is representative of a mastering that is closer to the master than the no noise alternative. I'll take a tape hiss cd with a lower sound output over the compressed and no noise versions that are usually present on current re-masters.