Finding The Best Sounding Genesis (Part 1), Album By Album...

I'm pretty certain Barry would not have done the original Duke that was a Japan for US pressing.

He did do the catalog later, but these masterings were never issued. At least that we have been able to establish.

 

This happened with the DE versions; the market was flooded with the older or original issues. More of the same again I think.

 

Anyone want to try and find out if we can figure out the better sounding V/C of Foxtrot? My cover is up above, and it's mastered by Nimbus. No matrix code. UPC on the back is 5 012984 505827.

When were UPCs introduced on CDs? My Live doesn't have one. Made in Japan by Sanyo.

 

This one sounds pretty good to me

FYI the 32VD has a UPC code.

 

I have, I believe, one of the earlier V/C Germany pressings of Duke.

It is a blue-faced disc, catalog: CRBCD 101, Stereo (patent symbol) 1980, Virgin Records.
Silver hub.
Matrix: 814 278-2 03

I'm not impressed with the sound of this at all! There's something just WRONG with this sound. Perhaps it's one of the inverted phase versions?

In contrast, I'm listening to the dreaded DE US Atlantic (82692-2) version right now, and in some ways the DE is actually better.

Could this blue-faced German V/C actually contain the earlier, pre-Virgin/Charisma mastering? I had read previously in another thread that there was such a mastering - Pre-Virgin Charisma - and that it was inferior.


Perhaps Virgin had to unload some of those pre-Virgin Charisma discs and had them merely labeled as Virgins, but in actuality were pre-Virgin pressed Charisma's.

Anyone else have this?

German Blue-faced Virgin Charisma "Duke" CBRCD 101
Silver hub.
Matrix: 814 278-2 03

Peak levels:

Track 1 91.3%
Track 2 88.4%
Track 3 45.7%
Track 4 94.5%
Track 5 98.4%
Track 6 95.8%
Track 7 95.8%
Track 8 84.3%
Track 9 85.4%
Track10 80.7%
Track11 90.7%
Track12 92.3%

 

Sorry if this has already been covered...but are the early Japanese CD pressing of Trick Of The Tail recommended here?

 

Mine is the same... Mastered by Nimbus with the cropped, "Nice Price" cover. The numbers on the CD are CASCD 1058. 3:5. It's the best version I've heard so far.

 

My Germany V/C of Duke is black on silver disc.

 

The Duke I just received is a V/C, CBRCD 101, with VIRGIN MEGASTORE and MASTERED BY NIMBUS in the inner ring. No barcode. Silver CD with black lettering.

Also...just received an Abacab, made in UK by PDO. Virgin/Charisma CBRCD 102. Again, no barcode.

Anyone else have these?

--Matt

 

Are you referring to the Japan-for-US ATCO 38101-2? If so, consensus here is that yes, it is recommended. Apparently the V/C CDSCD 4001 is a little better...right guys?

 

And I'm guessing it's peak levels are different from mine, and sounds terrific?

 

I have a theory that this might be the later mastering then. At least here in the states, no early CD releases would have had a "nice price" type thing on the disc. That only happened for "cutouts", and later releases that weren't anticipated to sell that well. Hence, the price drop. ??

 

The later versions are supposedly better being the ones included in the 4 CD box.

 

Right. But earlier in the thread, there's conjecture that the individual releases manufactured after the box set came out might also have the same mastering as the box set.

 

Live

A question for those with a non-DE of Live. In the closing seconds of track 2, "Get 'Em Out by Friday", before the applause fades, does the sound kind of stutter in the right channel? It does on my Nimbus starting at around 9:12.

I only have the DE to compare with, and it doesn't happen there; but then, the DE has a segue to the next track that isn't on any original version of the album (which has a fade to silence at the end of track 2) as far as I know.

 

It does, but it is only during the applause; the music has finished by then.

Tim

 

Thanks. That's exactly it. Which CD do you have? I'm trying to find out if this is on all the earlier masterings. I suspect that it is on the master tape, and this is why the DE does a segue to edit it out.

 

Not sure, it is in a box somewhere, but I think it is V/C Nimbus.

Tim

 

I Found a COMPLETE Version of Genesis' "Eleventh Earl Or Mar" (the Video) that was cut to ribbons on the DVD portion of the "Wind & Wuthering" package....better picture quality too. (I found it on You Tube,by the way.) Michael Boyce

 

Duke

I just got this same French V/C. I can confirm that it cancels out with the Atlantic when the latter's channels are reversed. However, the "1.2 dB difference" thing isn't quite that simple (it never is, is it?)...

Tracks 4, 7, 8 and 9 on the Atlantic are only 1 dB quieter. This means that these tracks are effectively 0.2 dB louder than the V/C relative to the rest of the album.

The rest of the tracks on the Atlantic are indeed 1.2 dB quieter than the French V/C except for track 3. And that is where it gets really weird...

The left channel of track 3 of the Atlantic (which, for those of you who are still able to follow this saga, is actually supposed to be the right channel) is 3.2 dB quieter than the right channel of track 3 of the V/C. However, the right channel of the Atlantic (which is really the left) is only 3 dB quieter than the left channel of track 3 of the V/C.

Unlike the case with the V/C and Atco Trick CDs, there is no clipping anywhere. In other words, this is just a matter of having different relative levels from track to track (and in the case of track 3, from channel to channel). The Atlantic has more dynamic range overall.

So which is more correct? Is there even a way of telling for sure? The only thing I have to go by is the DE. And on the DE, the amount of dynamic range is more like the Atlantic than the V/C.

I'm giving this one to the Atlantic, reversed channels and all, unless I see any other evidence that sways my opinion. But if you have absolutely no means of reversing the channels, the French V/C isn't such a big compromise.

 

Nice work.

 

The songs are the same it's just that Guide Vocal is softer in relation to the other songs than it is on the V/C.

 

Re: Duke

I wonder if the French V/C and the NIMBUS V/C are the same....

 

Yeah, I didn't feel exactly comfortable saying the Atlantic had more dynamic range, because, out of context, it seems to imply the French V/C is peak-limited, and it isn't. But that's ultimately what the end result can be described as, and as I said, the DE shows a similar difference in volume in the transition from "Duchess" to "Guide Vocal".

The funny thing is, I was expecting to find something interesting in track 3 on the V/C because of the segue from track 2. I thought there would be a gradual raising of the volume on the V/C, but there isn't. It simply gets bumped up 2 dB in the left channel and 2.2 dB in the right the instant the track number switches.