The Who - 30 years max R&B Box set.

[snowman]

Hi,
I can't seem to find any of The Who MCA re-masters, which seemed to get the thumbs up by many in the 'Tommy thread' below. So my question is, does anyone know the mastering used on the '30 year Max R&B' boxset?
Anyone heard this set? Is the sound quality any good? ... I have the 95' 96' remixes, and can't seem to find anything else. I also want to buy Odds and Sods, but it seems the remix is the only available version out there. Maybe this Box set would be a good compremise for me, depending on the sound.
Any help much appreciated.
Thnx, Danny.

[lukpac]

Originally posted by snowman
I can't seem to find any of The Who MCA re-masters, which seemed to get the thumbs up by many in the 'Tommy thread' below. So my question is, does anyone know the mastering used on the '30 year Max R&B' boxset?
Anyone heard this set? Is the sound quality any good? ... I have the 95' 96' remixes, and can't seem to find anything else. I also want to buy Odds and Sods, but it seems the remix is the only available version out there. Maybe this Box set would be a good compremise for me, depending on the sound.

The box set is one big mixed bag. Some original mixes, some remixes, some stuff from good sources, some from bad sources, etc...

That about sums it up.

[Andrew]

Also, many tracks are annoyingly cross-faded.:(

[Ken_McAlinden]

lukpac is right, but to be a little more empirical...:

The box set is about 80% remixes representative more or less of the latest CD releases that either preceded or shortly followed the box set release. None of the Shel Talmy stuff (everything from "I Can't Explain" through "A Legal Matter") is remixed :) or from particularly good sources :(. Strangely, "Won't Get Fooled Again" is labeled as being remixed, but I don't believe it is. My understanding is that they did not find the multi-tracks from which to remix it until before the release of the "My Generation - The Very Best of the Who" single CD set.

Essentially, if it mirrors an album track from their current CDs, it is the same (usually new) mix. If it is a bonus track, a single mix, or one of the Talmy tracks, it is not remixed.

Regards,

[Dave]

Hmm Sounds like I'll be sticking with my three Steve Hoffman recorded Who albums and my MFSL's for quite awhile yet.;)

[PsychFan]

Originally posted by Ken_McAlinden
Essentially, if it mirrors an album track from their current CDs, it is the same (usually new) mix.

I don't think that's true in every case. "I Can't Reach You," for example, is remixed on the box, but it appears to be a very different mix than the one that appears on the remixed Who Sell Out CD ... For one thing, Townshend's lead vocal appears to single-tracked on the box set, and it's double-tracked on the remixed Sell Out CD (and the original album).

[lukpac]

Originally posted by Ken_McAlinden
The box set is about 80% remixes representative more or less of the latest CD releases that either preceded or shortly followed the box set release. None of the Shel Talmy stuff (everything from "I Can't Explain" through "A Legal Matter") is remixed :) or from particularly good sources :(. Strangely, "Won't Get Fooled Again" is labeled as being remixed, but I don't believe it is. My understanding is that they did not find the multi-tracks from which to remix it until before the release of the "My Generation - The Very Best of the Who" single CD set.

Essentially, if it mirrors an album track from their current CDs, it is the same (usually new) mix. If it is a bonus track, a single mix, or one of the Talmy tracks, it is not remixed.

Actually, that's not the case.

The Who's Next tracks sound like they were pulled straight from the original Polydor CD, fade-ups and all.

The Tommy tracks were not remixed.

Some of the Sell Out tracks, notably Our Love Was, were not remixed.

None of the A Quick One material was remixed.

While a couple of the Who Are You tracks were remixed, the title track in particular was not.

All in all, the vast majority of tracks were NOT remixed. Don't believe the notation on the back of the box for a second.

[Ken_McAlinden]

Yikes! I'll have to do some A-B-ing this evening. I thought that this set came out after the "Sell-Out" and "A Quick One" reissues, so it did not even occur to me that they may have used original mixes. I probably either got my chronology wrong and/or incorrectly attributed mastering or tape generational differences to mix differences. Mostly, I'm guilty of believing what I read. :)

The "Won't Get Fooled Again" mix is a really obvious call since the remix on the "Best of" collection is the only extant long version of the song that doesn't include the overload/crackle on Daltrey's scream after the extended synth & drum break. When I hear the remix on the newer hits collection, I actually miss that crackle (not to mention the dynamics and tonality, but that's another thread :)) in much the same way I miss the false start on the Beatles' "I'm Looking Through You".

Regards,

[lukpac]

Originally posted by Ken_McAlinden
Yikes! I'll have to do some A-B-ing this evening. I thought that this set came out after the "Sell-Out" and "A Quick One" reissues, so it did not even occur to me that they may have used original mixes. I probably either got my chronology wrong and/or incorrectly attributed mastering or tape generational differences to mix differences. Mostly, I'm guilty of believing what I read. :)
The reissues of Live At Leeds, A Quick One, and Sell Out all came out after the box set. If memory serves, the box came out in the fall of 1994, while Leeds came out winter of 1995 and AQO and SO shortly after (or maybe at the same time).

The "Won't Get Fooled Again" mix is a really obvious call since the remix on the "Best of" collection is the only extant long version of the song that doesn't include the overload/crackle on Daltrey's scream after the extended synth & drum break. When I hear the remix on the newer hits collection, I actually miss that crackle (not to mention the dynamics and tonality, but that's another thread :)) in much the same way I miss the false start on the Beatles' "I'm Looking Through You".

Other than being a bit bright on the US CD, I think they actually did a damn good job with that remix. At least that was my thought the last I had heard it. It doesn't stray from the original much at all. Unlike say, Behind Blue Eyes.

[Ken_McAlinden]

Other than being a bit bright on the US CD, I think they actually did a damn good job with that remix. At least that was my thought the last I had heard it. It doesn't stray from the original much at all. Unlike say, Behind Blue Eyes.My problem is not really with the remix (other than my aforementioned irrational attachment to a specific mistake). As a matter of fact, if there was one track on Who's Next that really needed a new mix, that was the one. I just am not crazy about the brightness and flatness of it on that collection.

Regards,

[lukpac]

Originally posted by Ken_McAlinden
My problem is not really with the remix (other than my aforementioned irrational attachment to a specific mistake). As a matter of fact, if there was one track on Who's Next that really needed a new mix, that was the one. I just am not crazy about the brightness and flatness of it on that collection.

While I have not heard them, I believe the German and/or Japanese pressings of that CD sound better than the US MCA pressing - less bright.

[Matt]

Luke,

Do you know anything about the upcoming two-disc "Ultimate Collection"?

Is it going to be a repackaging of the Astley-produced sound?

[lukpac]

Originally posted by Matt
Do you know anything about the upcoming two-disc "Ultimate Collection"?

Is it going to be a repackaging of the Astley-produced sound?

Didn't I post some stuff elsewhere about that?

Here's what I *think* I know:

- original mixes
- mastered by Astley
- US Atco version of Substitute (possibly on bonus disc)
- NOT the House That Track Built version of Young Man Blues (the Odds & Sods version I'd guess)
- Magic Bus in stereo

Now, I just got word that a NEW remix of I'm A Boy has just been done that (I believe) includes the horn and drum overdubs. I don't know if that made it on to this set or not.

[Matt]

Yeah, you did. Sorry, didn't realize 'Oo Anthology was referring to a Who anthology (skipped that thread altogether until I did a keyword search)

[Dob]

Originally posted by Ken_McAlinden
As a matter of fact, if there was one track on Who's Next that really needed a new mix, that was the one. I just am not crazy about the brightness and flatness of it on that collection.

To each his own. I recently did my own Cool Edit remaster of the album and I used the remix of WGFA (German Polydor CD version). I thought the track sounded best with a 3db boost at 8k and a 2db boost at 9.5k. Plus, I used a 6db boost centered at 10k (enough to hear just a bit of tape hiss) for the extended organ/drum section just before Roger's scream. Awesome!