Your favorite/best-sounding silver MoFi's?

[nashreed]

I recently got a copy of Grateful Dead "From The Mars Hotel" on MFSL aluminum, and I was very impressed with it- very full sound, nice bass. I always thought this was regarded as a bad sounding disc for some reason, but it really was very nice (except for the electronic hum between songs...).

I have a dozen or so silver MoFi's- I always buy ANY that I see- but, other than the "Porky's Revenge" soundtrack (which I haven't ever played because I don't want to destroy the black plastic longbox-shell it is in :( ), the titles I have aren't exactly ones I'd want to play often, if at all...(including: David Foster, Dixie Hummingbirds, Firesign Theatre, and some Russian jazz :confused: ).
What are everybody's favorite titles for listening and sound quality-wise? I figure that there might be some worth "collector's prices" if I see them, but I don't want to pay over $40 for something sucky.


Thanks!
nashreed

[Tullman]

I have two silver MFSL's. Allan Parsons I Robot which I think sounds good and I do enjoy listening to it. I also Have Joe Walsh's Barnstorm cd. It is still sealed. I havn't broken the seal yet because I have Japanese disc which sounds pretty good.

[Gary]

You know, Nashreed, I just have to laugh! I have the Mars Hotel and I was not impressed! I guess I'd better take another listed thru my tubes, huh? :D

Rick Wakeman: Journey to ... is excellent. It just blows away the gold disc - and the gold disc blows away the stock copy! The last time I looked the silver MFSL was going pretty cheap, too. Everyone wants the gold disc!

The best CD copy of Alan Parsons: I Robot is the MFSL silver disc. But it could be outdated by the DVD-A from Classic.

This will be a good thread!

Next contributer! :)

[joachim.ritter]

Originally posted by nashreed
[B]What are everybody's favorite titles for listening and sound quality-wise? I figure that there might be some worth "collector's prices" if I see them, but I don't want to pay over $40 for something sucky.

I guess I have 100 or 150 of the MFSL aluminium CDs. One of the few I listen to from time to time is "Al Stewart - Year of the Cat". It usually costs more than US$ 40 ...

BTW, if anybody wants to get rid of a couple of MFSL aluminium CDs, just let me know. Perhaps we could set up a trade.

Joachim

[Blair G.]

I've got :

The Tubes (self titled debut)

Hall and Oates: 'Past Times Behind' (old recordings as Gulliver, I think)

Some Firesign Theatre (why did they bother?)

Procol Harum: Home, Broken Barricades, A Salty Dog, Live With Edm. Symphony

Rick Wakeman: Journey To the Centre of the Earth (was also issued as Gold)


None are what I'd call spectacular. The Procol Harum's, mainly Home and BB are
probably the best. Tubes pretty good too, which they had done the second album.

[Ronald]

I like the Firesign Theater disks, although the humor is dated. The sound levels are low, but tolerable. Loggins and Messina Sittin' In on MFCD aluminum has better sound quality than the Sony/Legacy gold. The Levon Helm and Levon Helm and RCO All Stars disks are worth the search.

I also have the Taj Mahal disks, Chet Atkins two-disk set, and... well I like almost all that I have. However, I did not care for the Soviet Melodiya series. I didn't care for the music on those disks. I have a number of those Soviet Jazz "cultural exchange" disks.

I think the most coveted are Year of the Cat and Way out West . I wish I could have heard Armstrong and Ellington's The First Time / The Great Reunion two disk set.

This can get winded, so I'll halt here.

[Dan]

The only two I have:

Joe Walsh-Barnstorm
Dillard & Clark (2 albums on 1 CD)

The sound is very good on both.

[joachim.ritter]

Originally posted by Ronald
I wish I could have heard Armstrong and Ellington's The First Time / The Great Reunion two disk set.

Actually this is only one CD (with the order no. 2-807) and it was released as MFSL gold CD as well.

Joachim

[John Carsell]

I really like Booker T. & The M.G.'s McLemore Avenue. Like some others it was a short lived title at Mo-Fi.

Anyone else heard this one?

[njwiv]

My only MFSL aluminum is Levon Helm's 1978 self-titled album. The only CD release of this album, although his other solo albums were reissued by Edsel a few years ago. It sounds great to me. Not nearly as loud as most CDs these days. "Audience For My Pain" is a great cut!

Jay

[Ben]

Let's see, Silver-CD's from MFSL I own...


I Robot Good sound, tight bass.
Very nice - although I like my UHQR LP very much (sorry, Tom!).

Barnstorm OOOOh! Wow- great sound!

The Tubes Stock A&M vinyl sounds better

Woodstock Stock vinyl sounds better


Year of the Cat Very nice sounding CD - however the stock CD also sounds good.


Ben

[ED in NY]

From my collection:

Procol Harum-Broken Barricades (An underrated album where Trower really begins to shine) & Live (now if Trower only stuck around for 1 more; still a great release)

The James Gang-Live In Concert (Just an all around great one; I'd love to hear the whole concert !)

Best - ED

[Dob]

The only comparison that I've done is the MFSL Procol Harum "Home" to the import remaster with the bonus tracks. I like the bonus tracks, but prefer the sound of the MFSL.

[Kevin Korom]

Can't add any new ones, but I have:

APP: I Robot- sounds very good, easily beats standard issue. I used to think the Classic DAD issue smoked it (and in some ways it may still do so), but reading the Alan Parsons' interview on Soundstage tempered my enthusiasm (briefly, he talked about re-eQ'ing & tweaking the sound:( )

Joe Walsh: Barnstorm- I love this issue! Totally spanks the domestic vinyl; if you like Joe, beg, borrow or steal a copy!!!

James Gang Live in Concert: a great performance & decent sound, not spectacular. This issue sounds very much like a good domestic LP, so if you have a good vinyl copy, this isn't a must-have, IMO

[Steve Hoffman]

The silver MoFi CD's are really the only true "flat from the master tapes" issues of these albums that we will probably ever hear.

So, warts and all, if you want to hear what the actual master tape sounds like of Procol Harum stuff, Youngbloods, Loggins & Messina etc., get the silver MoFi discs.

[cunningham]

Originally posted by Steve Hoffman
The silver MoFi CD's are really the only true "flat from the master tapes" issues of these albums that we will probably ever hear.

So, warts and all, if you want to hear what the actual master tape sounds like of Procol Harum stuff, Youngbloods, Loggins & Messina etc., get the silver MoFi discs.

I just picked up a Loggins & Messina "Sitting In" on ebay, and outstanding album. There is another one out there. A classic.

[czeskleba]

I have two:
The Dillard and Clark two-fer, and the Willie Nelson "Shotgun Willie/Phases and Stages" two-fer. Both sound great... in fact, I would rate them as two of the better-sounding Mofis I've heard, gold or aluminum.

[Dave]

Most of the MFCD Aluminum cds are really good, but there are the one's that I've heard which do the album no justice.

Woodstock, Ike & Tina Turner and The Gratefull Dead are not very impressive IMHO.

Some of the good one are:

The Joshua Breakstone Quartet: 4/4=1 (really good modern jazz)
The Firesign Theatre: (any of them)
David Foster: The Very Best Of (good, but not really my cup of tea)
Amos Garrett: I Make My Home In My Shoes (great acoustic blues)
SPCD8 Sampler: Campus Edition (A definate must have)
Chris Spedding: Cafe Days (relaxing and up-beat modern jazz)
Joe Walsh: Barnstorm (what can I say that hasn't already been said about this one).

BTW Nashreed. The last Al Stewart went for $153.00 US. on ebay.;)

[pjrashid]

It's ironic that MOFI tauted that gold doesn't oxidize as much as aluminum, and perhaps the sound is better because of the superior reflective properties of gold, but they still issued aluminum cds. Not that I'm sorry that they didn't, because I don't buy the hype in gold vs. aluminum.

I've got about 20-25 aluminum MOFI's and they all sound great....really smooth sounding! In fact, I think that they are just as good, if not better, depending on your personal taste, than the gold cds! Although I don't think that the packaging, like the booklet, is as good as in their gold releases.

The Russian jazz stuff is interesting, but the best sounding cd...hummm...it's a close call between Stewart's Year of the Cat, Mars Hotel and the Spirit 12 Dreams for your popular music enjoyment.

Really, you can't go wrong with any MOFI aluminums...get whatever you can!!

:p

[nashreed]

Interesting comments, so far.

Nobody else like the Grateful Dead one, though? The David Foster, for example, sounds, to me, very low-fi (as in, quiet in volume, and no amount of volume fixes it.) Maybe my stereo likes it, but I thought it sounded great!

nashreed

[mcow1]

Originally posted by nashreed
Interesting comments, so far.

Nobody else like the Grateful Dead one, though? nashreed

I like the Dead one, I must admit though it's one I've never listened to for sonic quality I'm only listening to the playing when I listen to it. I also really enjoy Elephant Mt. by the Youngbloods, an all-time favorite album

[Craig]

Amos Garrett - I Make My Home In My Shoes
Firesign Theatre - I Think We're All Bozos On This Bus
The Flying Burrito Bros. - The Flying Burrito Bros.
Albert King - Live Wire/Blues Power
Charles Musselwhite - Memphis, Tennessee
The Youngbloods - Elephant Mountain

At the time I bought them, it was the only way to get them on CD. I'm not disappointed in the sound of any of them.

[Dave]

Craig,

Can you please tell me exactly what type of music The Flying Burrito Bros., Charles Musselwhite and The Youngbloods are? THX

[Evan]

Originally posted by Dave
Most of the MFCD Aluminum cds are really good, but there are the one's that I've heard which do the album no justice.

Woodstock, Ike & Tina Turner and The Gratefull Dead are not very impressive IMHO.


I agree about the Ike and Tina Turner. They could of at least included the mono version :mad:
Of course, maybe they mastered it flat and that is just how the master tape sounds. Who knows? Maybe Steve has some idea.

Originally posted by Dave

Some of the good one are:

SPCD8 Sampler: Campus Edition (A definate must have)
Joe Walsh: Barnstorm (what can I say that hasn't already been said about this one).


The "Barnstorm" is an absolute must have.
And I only have to sell a few pints of blood to get it :eek:
It was worth it.


Does the Campus Edition sound different than the regular SPCD8 Delco Electronics Sampler (other than the booklet). Fascinating reading , though. Those early Delco CD players came with a "compression" button. Of course modern mastering techniques have rendered them useless :D

[ArneW]

Hi,

Among two or three others, I bought the silver MFSL "Sarah Vaughan Live In Japan" 2-disc set more than 15 years ago. It still holds up very well against all those multi-bit oversampling reissues claimed to sound better than the initial releases from the early CD era. I wonder whether a new transfer would improve anything. Besides the MFSL, has there ever been another release of the complete "Live In Japan" set?

Arne