New Van Halen CD

Obsession18
Obsession18 Posts: 191
edited March 2012 in Music & Movies
I gave a listen to the new Van Halen CD - A Different Kind Of Truth last night and although I thought a lot of the songs were pretty decent, the recording quality SUCKS!!

Very congested and loud without any dynamic range, David's vocals are in your face with the rest of the band a loud gargled mess behind him. Why do they mix music this way, every part of the track seems to have been mixed at MAX volume.

I'm with Neal Young - give me some quality digitally recorded music!
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CD Player: Jolida JD-100 Preamp: Cambridge 840E Amp: Odyssey Kismet Stereo
Spkrs: Tyler Acoustics Linbrook Signature Systems
Post edited by Obsession18 on
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  • decal
    decal Posts: 3,205
    edited February 2012
    I hope you weren't expecting much more than that!!!!! BTW, it's Neil Young.:wink:
    If you can't hear a difference, don't waste your money.
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  • Obsession18
    Obsession18 Posts: 191
    edited February 2012
    Decal - Yea I kind of figured before hand that the recording quality wouldn't be that good, but damn it was really bad.

    All the gear you see in my signature below has been acquired within the last year and what really sucks about it is how much worse it makes bad recordings sound compared to the cheap Cervin Vega based system it replaced. Well recorded CD's are a different matter - WOW it almost brings tears to the eyes!

    A word of warning to those considering upgrading their systems - you may not enjoy some of your music as much as you did in the past.
    2-Channel System
    Analog: VPI Traveler TT, Audio Technica 150MLX, Pro-Ject Tube Box DS
    CD Player: Jolida JD-100 Preamp: Cambridge 840E Amp: Odyssey Kismet Stereo
    Spkrs: Tyler Acoustics Linbrook Signature Systems
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  • fossy
    fossy Posts: 1,378
    edited February 2012
    Eddie van Halen rips it on this CD ..... best he's done since the early days IMO..... maybe it's not the best recording but it sounds good on my system .. .I can't quit listening to it .....
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,203
    edited February 2012
    The cd is pretty good, the recording is so horrid I won't even buy the cd. I listened to it at a friends house and Eddie still has it. Recording is beyond horrid.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • Toolfan66
    Toolfan66 Posts: 17,328
    edited February 2012
    I was done with it after two sittings, glad I borrowed it.. Yes there is some good licks from Eddie but not worth owning it..
    Polk Audio SDA 2.3tl Fully Hot Rodded. 😎

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  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 25,649
    edited February 2012
    heiney9 wrote: »
    The cd is pretty good, the recording is so horrid I won't even buy the cd. H9

    probably mastered by the same guy that did VH3 that one has SO MUCH distortion it hurts to even listen at a very low volume. Why do they even bother to put out garbage....No we don't know why CD sales are down...all these folks that mix and master really need to see the light.
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  • ken brydson
    ken brydson Posts: 8,776
    edited February 2012
    I don't hate it nearly as bad as I thought I would from the previews. Totally agree on the crappy recording. Funny thing is it sounds pretty good on my ipod.... much better than on my rig:eek:
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  • BlueFox
    BlueFox Posts: 15,251
    edited February 2012
    ken brydson wrote: »
    Funny thing is it sounds pretty good on my ipod.... much better than on my rig:eek:

    Which, I suspect, is a major reason why we have crappy recordings. If you used your iPod as a music server, and ran the digital output into a decent DAC, you would not be saying it sounds better on your iPod.
    Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
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    Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes

    Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
    Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
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    Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
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  • ken brydson
    ken brydson Posts: 8,776
    edited February 2012
    I was just saying it doesn't sound as bad on my ipod with earbuds. Try to play it thru anything quality and it sucks.
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited February 2012
    This is the unfortunate aspect of our hobby. 1/10th of 1% of the people who buy the new VH album are listening on systems like ours. The other 99.9% are listening through stock iphone earbuds, and unfortunately for us, music is mastered to sound as best as it can for those 99.9%.

    On that note....... Tomorrow night. Van Halen. Madison Square Garden. On the floor. I am there!
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • BlueFox
    BlueFox Posts: 15,251
    edited February 2012
    nspindel wrote: »
    This is the unfortunate aspect of our hobby. 1/10th of 1% of the people who buy the new VH album are listening on systems like ours. The other 99.9% are listening through stock iphone earbuds, and unfortunately for us, music is mastered to sound as best as it can for those 99.9%.

    I could live with that if they bothered to make a better recording available to those who want it. It really would not take much effort to offer a non-compressed version. Sort of like the release of a movie on both DVD and Blu-Ray. I could even live with having to download the non-compressed version. It isn't that hard to copy a file to a CD if needed.
    Lumin X1 file player, Westminster Labs interconnect cable
    Sony XA-5400ES SACD; Pass XP-22 pre; X600.5 amps
    Magico S5 MKII Mcast Rose speakers; SPOD spikes

    Shunyata Triton v3/Typhon QR on source, Denali 2000 (2) on amps
    Shunyata Sigma XLR analog ICs, Sigma speaker cables
    Shunyata Sigma HC (2), Sigma Analog, Sigma Digital, Z Anaconda (3) power cables

    Mapleshade Samson V.3 four shelf solid maple rack, Micropoint brass footers
    Three 20 amp circuits.
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  • fossy
    fossy Posts: 1,378
    edited February 2012
    nspindel wrote: »
    On that note....... Tomorrow night. Van Halen. Madison Square Garden. On the floor. I am there!

    Let us know how it was ...... Lucky arse !!!!

    And yes , this recording is one of the worst I've encountered as of late ....I still have to give it a thumbs up .... but half heartedly
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  • ken brydson
    ken brydson Posts: 8,776
    edited February 2012
    nspindel wrote: »

    On that note....... Tomorrow night. Van Halen. Madison Square Garden. On the floor. I am there!

    Definately a review please. Got tickets for Tacoma in May at $165 a pop. Never paid that much for concert tic's before....
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  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    edited February 2012
    nspindel wrote: »
    On that note....... Tomorrow night. Van Halen. Madison Square Garden. On the floor. I am there!

    Rock on, Neil!!!! :cheesygrin:
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited February 2012
    fossy wrote: »
    Let us know how it was ...... Lucky arse !!!!

    Luck wasn't involved. Just cash!
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • ken brydson
    ken brydson Posts: 8,776
    edited February 2012
    nspindel wrote: »
    Luck wasn't involved. Just cash!

    Big cash. What your tic's cost? Feel like we're contibuting to the DLR retirement fund...
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited February 2012
    BlueFox wrote: »
    I could live with that if they bothered to make a better recording available to those who want it. It really would not take much effort to offer a non-compressed version. Sort of like the release of a movie on both DVD and Blu-Ray. I could even live with having to download the non-compressed version. It isn't that hard to copy a file to a CD if needed.

    Interesting read for you. Looks like Apple is trying to take this on:

    http://www.macrumors.com/2012/02/28/apple-reportedly-developing-high-definition-audio-format-with-adaptive-streaming/

    "Apple has also recently begun a significant expansion of its Mastered for iTunes program. The initiative encourages recording professionals to utilize high-quality master recordings of songs and albums as the initial source material for iTunes Store submission, processing them using Apple's guidelines and tools to achieve file compression allowing for the highest-quality sound available."
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited February 2012
    Quick review was that it was fantastic. Sound quality sucked, but sound quality always sucks at MSG. Performance was fantastic. Dave was crazy as ever, leather pants, spin kicks and all. Can't believe he can still do those maneuvers in his late 50's. And Eddie was ON! He looked great, not like the worn out addict that he apparently was on the last tour. He was running and jumping all over the place and having a grand old time. Alex was as tight as ever, and I thought Wolfgang did great. Plays a mean, tight bass, and I think they practiced the harmonies a lot since the original reviews. Great show, although they deviated from the setlists that have been online and did not play Mean Streets, which is probably my favorite VH song. I'm going to upload some iPhone video to youtube later.
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • heiney9
    heiney9 Posts: 25,203
    edited February 2012
    I hope they are that good still when I go see them in Chicago on April 1.

    H9
    "Appreciation of audio is a completely subjective human experience. Measurements can provide a measure of insight, but are no substitute for human judgment. Why are we looking to reduce a subjective experience to objective criteria anyway? The subtleties of music and audio reproduction are for those who appreciate it. Differentiation by numbers is for those who do not".--Nelson Pass Pass Labs XA25 | EE Avant Pre | EE Mini Max Supreme DAC | MIT Shotgun S1 | Pangea AC14SE MKII | Legend L600 | BlueSound Node 3 - Tubes add soul!
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited February 2012
    http://www.vhnd.com/
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • ken brydson
    ken brydson Posts: 8,776
    edited March 2012
    Glad to hear the show was good. Never spent that much on concert tic's. Looking forward to the local show in May. The Tacoma Dome has pretty good accoustics so hoping for the best....
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  • nspindel
    nspindel Posts: 5,343
    edited March 2012
    You Really Got Me:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyAA6SJcxqE

    Jump:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0pxJ-1URqk

    Let them buffer before you watch or they skip like crazy.
    Good music, a good source, and good power can make SDA's sing. Tubes make them dance.
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  • Geoff4rfc
    Geoff4rfc Posts: 2,459
    edited March 2012
    Gotta share something funny. I stumbled onto this thread and got me looking at my discs. I picked this up from Costco and have had it for a couple of weeks and haven't listened to it yet.

    So I throw it in and sure enough, it sounds like crap. David's done imo.

    But, my wife I find out is totally spoiled on my new speakers. I asked her to try and identify the band, she can't do it and cheats and looks at the case, "Van Halen?" "That sounds like crap" I asked her "What do you mean?" she says "It sounds so one dimensional" I just laughed, she's so right.
    Source: BRP Panasonic UB9000, CDP Emotiva ERC3 - Display: LG OLED EVO 83 C3 - Pre/Pro: Marantz 8802A - Amplification: Emotiva XPA-DR3, XPA-2 x 2, XPA-6, Speakers, Mains/2ch-Focal Kanta No2's, C-LSiM706, S-702F/X, RS-RTiA9's, WS-RTiA9's, FH-RTiA3's, Subs - Epik Empire x 2

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    EXPERIENCE: next to nothing, but I sure enjoy audio and video MY OPINION OF THIS HOBBY: I may not be a smart man, but I know what quicksand is.
    When I was young, I was Superman but now that old age has gotten the best of me I'm only Batman
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  • p51tj
    p51tj Posts: 23
    edited March 2012
    Yea...they won't be the same, however I did get the CD and have Tix to see em in June. CD sux and I'm sure the vocals at the show will suk also! The set list looks great though!

    Unchained
    Runnin' With the Devil
    She's The Woman
    The Full Bug Play
    (First time played since 1983)
    Tattoo
    Everybody Wants Some!!
    Somebody Get Me A Doctor
    China Town
    Hear About It Later
    Oh, Pretty Woman
    (Roy Orbison cover)
    Drum Solo
    You Really Got Me
    (The Kinks cover)
    The Trouble with Never
    Dance The Night Away
    I'll Wait
    Hot For Teacher
    Women In Love
    Outta Love Again
    Beautiful Girls
    Ice Cream Man
    (John Brim cover)
    Panama
    Guitar Solo
    (Including "Eruption" and "Cathedral")
    Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love
    Jump
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