Kip Hanrahan is always worth the vinyl version. Sometimes a mixed bag, but the great tracks of which there are many, make it worth buying his records here the album Temderness. Great atmospheric sound as always. Most of them are equally good. I also have the SACD and CD versions (good enough also, get close at least). Also check out the Conjure LP‘s.
They are certainly out of print but available for manageable prices usually.
Nice thread… thanks for sharing your knowledge and incite into some aspects of the collection of recordings. Unfortunately l don’t have much to add.
However last night a friend brought over a first pressing of SoulTrane Prestige 1958. Of course a Van Gelder Hackeysac master. It sounded great on my low-mid HiFi system. How would you rate this recording in regards to quality of playback? We also listened to a first pressing of Kind of Blue. As. It was the 60th anniversary…it was of lesser quality as Julien figured that it was just plain worn out.
Also spun Dorothy Ashby and Frank Wess “In a Minor Groove” on the Label… New Jazz. I think it was a Van Gelder Hackeysac master…It sounded really good too. The recording was as such and volume high enough that we could hear Dorothy humming while she was soloing. I am lucky to have at least one friend that I can spin with and has a nice vinyl collection up here North of 55 parallel…BC
Thanks, great you like it!
I own quite some originals myself of various labels incl. Blue Note. The originals quality can vary from great to poor, really depending on label and year of release with its individual recording circumstances. Mostly they have their special sound, not rarely also affected by technical restrictions of the era, but still of great quality, some better than many newer recordings. None of them imo sounds near the quality of a really good reissue of the same (mastered by Gray, Hoffman, Calbi etc.), but they are really fun and the best version usually in case no high quality reissue exists (which can even be a japanese reissue at times). I compared many and it always changes, some time the original ist much superior to a japanese reissue, often the opposite…one has to compare and there’s no rule. The ones you heard seem to have been great.
Thanks for the reply and feedback. I have been collecting reissues of Blue Note and looked at some Japanese reissues and wondered how they sound. Sounds like bit of a roll of the dice. And they are pricey at $25 a pop. But nothing ventured…
Depends on the content. By the time i get on the scene usually well picked through.
Japanese Blue Note reissues sound “nicer”, cleaner, more “audiophile”, less direct and less lively than originals. A good cheaper choice in case you can’t afford the originals or don’t find a reissue remastered by the few great engineers.
For Bill Evans nuts: This is a great sounding Bill Evans record and one of the best musically, which has no good quality reissues so far. It was announced some time ago I think to remember, but licenses or tapes seem difficult.
This here is the great sounding original first pressing which I hope is not that hard to get, not sure. Just enjoying it…
Thanks for the recommendation, just ordered a copy.
You mean you just found a first pressing so quickly? Great!
Yup! Thanks again. Can’t go wrong with that particular Trio.
My experience Is that Verve LPs from this time period can sound amazing.
Not sure if reprints fit the topic here. I only recently got into vinyl and my analog set-up - a Teac TN300 & a used Rega MM phono stage - probably cost less than the dust cover of a high-end TT though they are fed into my BHK250. I bought the records in the photo here after watching one of Michael Fremer’s videos, and they beat the crap out of the same music steaming from Tidal into my DSD Sr. I just simply don’t understand how my cheap analog set-up can sound so good to outperform one of the best DACs out there. Now comes the new rabbit hole of upgrading my analog system…
Some great vinyl. Welcome to the Dark Side.
Welcome! For vinyl reissues I made another „IN PRINT“ thread, to separat the different interests a bit.
When you hear vinyl on a cheap deck sounding better than on a sophisticated DAC it’s usually the case of a clearly better mastering of a recording on vinyl (which is more common than rare if you choose the right reissues).
In case you compare the same quality reissue e.g. on vinyl and SACD (some like that exist), differences are rather related to the quality of your vinyl or DAC gear.
We recently had a short discussion on Paul’s Posts about which pressing of Court and Spark Mikey Fremer played at RMAF and about the DCC and Rhino vinyl.
I just compared them today. My result was different to Fremer’s who also liked the DCC but preferred the Rhino in his analogplanet review.
I can confirm I heard that kind of different EQ tweeks he mentioned Steve Hofmann must’ve made (except that I hear a better spread low mods/bass tonality on the DCC and a little more bass on the Rhino) and all in all also at top end I liked the DCC really better. Also in other aspects I heard quite clearly a positive quality difference for the DCC.
More happens in the soundstage of the DCC, tonality is nicer, better treble shape and more life in the mids. That’s why I recommend the DCC version over the Rhino definitely.
I also have the 24/192 hires files from the 2013 digital reissue. This sounds by far worse than both, dead/ lifeless with an uncomfortable midrange in comparison that doesn’t want to be played over a certain loudness level. I guess the DCC gold CD version (if it exists) is much better, too.
I admit I’m in a Kate Bush phase. I recently recommended the fabulous Arial album as the in print 2018 version available hires and vinyl.
Here a recommendation for the Hounds of Love album, which was remastered by Hoffman/Gray for Audio Fidelity. Hounds of Love is also available as the 2018 in print remastering. Both are great to have. The 2018 sounds wider and a little more spectacular, but also a bit too throatily in her voice. The out of print Audio Fidelity sounds more natural, less “tweaked”.
If you like the album, get both! Only the Audio Fidelity has this great colored vinyl.
Ready for one of the very best recordings ever?
I have this Wilson Audio recording on vinyl and DSD, it’s not just an audiophile recording, it’s also great jazz.
But the recording is really special, it’s even more spacious right there in the room than many Chesky recordings (similar to their very best) and also one of the best examples how good an analog recording can sound.
Wilson took great care for the initial vinyl release as well as for the digital DSD transfer as you can read from the attached pictures.
I first had the DSD version and when listening I thought it just sounds gorgeous, really some of the best sound available.You will be absolutely happy and miss nothing.
Just when you have a good deck and play the vinyl, you get some more texture in tonal color, acoustic space, still a better separated soundstage, better resolution and extension of cymbals and more impact of drums…a further bit less Hi-Fi.
But as I said, nothing to be missed from the files without direct comparison. Get it in digital format or if you can grab it, the vinyl. This is the one jazz record you must have for sound reasons + you get great music. And it’s possibly the ideal chance to compare the difference of vinyl to DSD from an analog tape.
Kudos to Wilson Audio for this effort and success. Buy this one and the Reference Recordings Jazz recording I mentioned further above and you have two of the best sounding jazz recordings available.
3D galore
I think you’ll hardly hear anything better in hifi than the Classic Records 45 RPM single sided 9LP box version of this recording. Try to get this sound from a DAC.
Seems to be between 500-1000 $ in recent auctions unfortunately.
I love it when the packaging clearly says, “box set”. That way I can avoid referring to it as a carton, saving me much embarrassment.
If for no other reason than it contains “No Lonesome Tune”. That said, there isn’t a weak song on this record.
