[Audiofiler]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rextrade /img/forum/go_quote.gif Definitely count me as one of the scoffers Unless the CD has been remastered for the Japanese market or there is a defect in the CD, I can't believe that there is any difference at all in sound quality.

not quoting your ears, but in looking at your rig and gear utilized, this does not surprise..
Markl is right on, as usual, and has much knowledge of the subject.
Agree with him by and large.

 

[infinitesymphony]

Quote:

Originally Posted by markl /img/forum/go_quote.gif IMO, on very good equipment, there are *subtle* audible differences between a well-pressed and a badly-pressed CD featuring the same mastering. The differences between well and badly pressed discs are *measureable*, The question is are those measurable differences *audible*. I believe they are.

Which is why some people insist on buying high-quality CD-R media and copying/re-burning CDs.

Thankfully, the quality of media is becoming less and less important as players mechanically and technologically improve, and more people shift to playing back music on a digital medium like a computer.

Back on topic, yes, it would be silly to master anything below 24-bit resolution. The real differences between imports and local copies occur when there are different masterings. If an album is internationally released within a month, chances are good that the albums will have the same mastering job. On the other hand, if a release comes out 5+ years later in another country, it might be a localized remaster.

Wish I could've bought the Yes - 90125 Japanese HDCD while it was available. Even if the master was a little artificially bright, I still miss the detail when I listen to the recent Rhino remaster/rerelease.

 

[Brueghel]

Ah, but have you listened to them, Gatticus, and compared both head to head?
I'm afraid I have to respectfully disagree with you. I purchased at least a dozen Japanese imports back in the late 70s and early 80s, having heard all the advantages they had over our own pressings, a result of fewer pressings, thicker vinyl, stringent QC, etc. Beyond that, the packaging was clearly superior. Still, I was reluctant to spend 3x the price. First time out I bought just one (on Queen St East in Toronto): Led Zep's Physical Graffiti. The rumours were true! Sounds quality was definitely better (friends and I compared them head to head)! I even had a friend cajole his older brother, an audiophile who worked for Onkyo and was employed for his EAR, to come over and listen. He confirmed it: crisper, cleaner sound ... he then went out and started buying imports himself.

 

[lashing]

CD's are way more expensive in Japan than America. Everything media is actually - books, scores, DVD ... the market prices there are 2-3 times what we pay.
 
However Japanese expectations are much higher across the board as well. Shopping in Japan is a treat. Here are home you get lazy, uneducated/disinterested staff, dirty stores and a general walmart atmosphere. In Japan this does not fly. People in stores actually help you. I mean over the top. They don't point and say "over there" .. they physically guide you and everything is clean, organized and just presentable. I love shopping in Japan. The selection and service is outstanding. 
 
Quality tends to be higher too. The Japanese again have an expectation. It isn't like here at home where people scam each other and pass off crap. That is really disgraceful in Japan and no company would last long doing that. Product for the domestic Japanese market is often better as a result and more expensive.
 
Just saying, been there, experienced it. Cant say I know how they master etc but I do know the overall attention to quality on everything is a different world from ours.

 

[vertical]

I don't have a large sample to compare, but for the 2 Pink Floyd CDs where I've had both US market and Japanese imports (black label) the imports sounded better at the time. So, I only kept the imports. Albums are Meddle and DSOTM. Decision was made 30 years ago, so I don't really remember the details of the difference at this point, though. 
 
BTW, do you folks realize that this thread you responded to was last posted to more than 7 years ago?
Plus, gatticus can't respond 'cause he was banned (looks like a while ago).
 
Enjoy the music!
 

 

 

[wuwhere]

What a dredge indeed. I've always wondered where and how they got the original tapes if that was their source. I wonder the same with the downloadable HDs.

 

[vertical]

Good questions, wuwhere.
 
I recall seeing a thread a while ago discussing the details of the various Pink Floyd pressings. Unfortunately, at this point I don't remember where. I think it may have been in the Steve Hoffman forum. Often found helpful info there in the past when trying to sort through the many re-releases of 60s & 70s albums. Some knowledgeable folks post there (at times).
 

 

[wuwhere]

  Good questions, wuwhere.
 
I recall seeing a thread a while ago discussing the details of the various Pink Floyd pressings. Unfortunately, at this point I don't remember where. I think it may have been in the Steve Hoffman forum. Often found helpful info there in the past when trying to sort through the many re-releases of 60s & 70s albums. Some knowledgeable folks post there (at times).
 

 
Exactly. If the source is the original tape the only way for each pressing to sound different is in the eq to create the source to make the CDs. One can make copies of the original tape even then. It can be digitized. But still as a consumer I need to know that.

 

[lashing]

I don't know where any confusion comes from.
 
Japanese vinyl were almost always better. The reason - better vinyl. Japanese consumer standards are higher than ours. Sad but true. Pressing plants used virgin vinyl. In America we got vinyl that used to be other things like pop bottles etc. Especially in the 80;s, remember those chunks of label etc pressed right into the vinyl? Brand new records made thumps and skips because of that shoddy material usage. They also pressed so many from bad master copies. 
 
The first Mobile Fidelity albums were pressed in Japan. Then they imported "super vinyl" from JVC Japan to press MFSL stateside. For whatever reason, no one but JVC Japan produced supervinyl, which was a pure and durable vinyl which resulted in dead quite records.
 
Thats the LP side of things. CD is not as clear cut. BUT ... many Japanese CD's are polycarbonate. A stronger clearer plastic. Its also more expensive. Look at the underside of a Japanese CD the look at an American. The American is cloudy. Does that matter to a lazer? I actually don't know but the difference is there for your eyes to see.
 
Sometimes the masters are different. In America the brickwalling is out of hand. In Japan, again people don't stand for that. They will do what we should ... return such nonsense for refund and stop buying. Therefore Japanese releases will often have superior mastering. It will often say on the package. Bonus tracks are a good indication as well. If there are more songs those has to be mastered. Someone from the record companies in Japan should chime in.
 
I have been to Japan. Those crazy import prices here are also what they pay there. Media is simply more expensive in Japan. America cannot seem to understand that we have always had the choice and we made it. Walmart and low price vs quality. The reason America is cheap cheap and all Chinese goods is that is what the public buys. Stop buying junk and demands quality and we too will have quality. Of course it comes at a higher price. There is no magic here. Japanese consumers have higher standards. Its that simple. People in North America often do not understand that quality of life is not tops in America. It hasn't been for a long time. There are places in the world with much better standards on everything. For instance eat some fruit in Japan, Germany, Belgium ..... they don't take the Windex tasting junk we eat. Even KFC in Japan is better. They simply have higher standards.

 

[luberconn]

I prefer pirated chinese cd's to domestic or Japanese.