Rush - Vapor Trails "mastered much too hot", Alex Lifeson says...

Is there hope for a remaster at some point?

Alex Lifeson:

http://www.rushisaband.com/display.php?id=1068

 

Having a band member address the problem is definitely an intriguing and encouraging development.

I have a hunch that Vapor Trails was overpressed on CD, and a remaster isn't going to come along until the warehouses run dry. Or I could be off entirely...

 

We can only hope...In the meantime, I'm really enjoying Snakes and Ladders. Thanks for the rec, Dave.

 

Looking forward to the 5.1, whenever it finally comes out!

I know Vapor Trails isn't most Rush fans fave, but I don't mind it. I prefer it to Test For Echo, but sadly can't play it much due to the god awful sound.

 

Sounds like Big Al has a conscience. We'll see a remaster some day without a doubt by his comment...the question is "when?"

 

Tomorrow?

 

Is Snakes & Arrows less compressed/better sounding? Point me to a thread, if need be.

 

He deserves to toss and turn all night to the sound of a night stand clock ticking against a water faucet driping in irregular rhythm.



Basically the previous statement was that it was tracked and then mixed poorly, now it is just the mastering being mentioned?

 

Yes. It is still a little loud but nowhere near VP's disaster. There are much worse out there. It is well produced album in my opinion.

 

Sure it's not Vapor Trails, but what is?

Snakes & Arrows is compressed flat as a pancake. Loud, squashed, made-for-car-stereo sound. There's no getting around that fact.

 

One week left until my LP version of Sankes and Arrows is released. I hope they did better with the mastering. Its pressed at RTI. Perhaps Kevin Grey gave it some magic.

 

So, is the vinyl any better?

 

Yes, it's a beautiful pressing. Other threads around here are full of good comments about it. I posted a needledrop sample and waveform pics somewhere on the forum. Use the search.

As for the CD, it's not as bad as some claim. It's definitely a 2007 recording and a zoomed out waveform looks flattopped but if you zoom in, the waves are not that bad. The album was recorded digitally to hires but then mixed to analog tape. Thus it's nowhere near the fuzz fest that Vapor Trails ended up being.

 

Steve, I think he's asking about the Vapor Trails vinyl.

 

No was asking about Snakes

 

Snakes is %$$#%^ awesome on vinyl!

 

Oops, ok. The conversation in the past few posts was about S&A so I was in that frame of mind. I read somewhere that the vinyl of VT is almost as bad as the CD.

 

My bad......it got a bit confusing there....look again.

 

Yep! A person can get lost wandering through all those layers of sound that can clearly be clearly distinguished on the LP. They all just merge together on the CD but the LP is almost 3D.

 

Vapor Trails was mixed to 1" analog tape as well. It's a shame they let it turn out the way it did. How did the LP come out?

 

From what I have read, not as bad as the CD but still bad.

 

IMHO the last three Rush studio outputs are all very poorly done, what bothers me the most is how all the vocal overdubs are done and the general "sound" of the vocals is not appealing to my ears at all, and I have loved Rush since 1974.

Dave

 

It's to bad they dont have the same clause in there contract as Steely Dan had.
Donald had Warner Bro's recall The Nightfly cd when he found out they were using an analogue copy tape for the mastering (it was recorded and mixed digitally)

 

If this really bothers Alex and the band they could easily remaster it and make it available as a download. No manufacturing costs involved. And if they really feel bad they could give it to us for free to make up for the original CD.

 

Vapor Trails vinyl

I have only ever owned the vinyl so, I don't have a CD to make comparisons. This CD has become known as one of the worst CD masterings around here.

Quite honestly, I think that one of the biggest problems with the sound is the bloated and congested mix of the album itself. A bad mastering certainly doesn't help matters.

Cheers,
Chris