Gentle Giant Remasters (Part 2)

To read part one go here: http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=52912

 

Are there any of these "bad" copies still floating around? How careful should I be if I'm buying from an ebay or Amazon seller? Is there any way to tell whether it's the correct or incorrect version?

 

A damn good question... to which I can't answer! I should have taken note before shipping it back, but haven't... There must be a difference in the matrix #...

 

ParloFax, thanks for the reply! Anybody know the answer to this?

Thanks in advance...

 

You should be very careful about buying a used DRT Interview because many of the sellers on eBay and Amazon wouldn't know the difference between the faulty and corrected versions. There are many of the faulty versions out there I'm sure! It took DRT a long time to reissue the corrected one, and they didn't do a recall, so the faulty ones are probably out there in a semi-large quantity.

Frank R.

 

Thanks Frank, that sounds like good advice...guess I'll play it safe.

 

REP shows these as January releases...
http://www.repertoirerecords.com/upcoming/frameset.htm

Amazon UK sez January 28th!

Only thing is, where's AtT??

 

Interesting. I see that they're re-releasing Octopus in a new digi-pak version. Maybe they are changing the packaging in order to distingiush it from the older digi-sleeve version with the digital glitch.

 

I can't remember where I read this (but it must be in the Part 1 thread somewhere), but I think that the change was always on the cards. When, for example, AtT was marketed as a limited edition, the idea was that it was just the packaging that was limited. It wasn't that the CD was going out of print after they sold the 3500 copies or whatever. I assume that must be true for Octopus as well.

Geoff

 

Well, let me post a re-post a very relevant question here to Eroc that I asked back in part one and never really got an answer to, and being that he is in direct communication with Repertoire: are we going to be able to exchange the defective Acquiring CDs for the new ones and if so, how will that be handled? Or do we just have to re-buy this title AGAIN—not that it's not worth it!—for the 4th or 5th time?

 

I just want that Three Friends!! I can't wait for that! I have two CD versions, and they both sound pretty bad. I always have to listen to the vinyl if I want to hear this album sound good.

Frank R.

 

As far as I have heard from REP some months ago they act very fair if someone sends in CDs to them for exchange. When it comes up to new pressings of "Octopus" and "Acquiring" I will talk to REP again about this problem and then post here. So stay tuned...

- Eroc

 

What do you think about the sound of this edition? I think it's must be the regular Universal mastering... Or REP?

http://www.cdjapan.co.jp/detailview.html?KEY=UICY-90782&ref=myp

 

I just preordered Three Friends from Amazon UK. We'll see what happens...

 

"Catalog number UICY - ..." that's typically japanese vinyl replica editions. Some King Crimson remasters share those 4 letters. Not REP remasters.

 

Thank you. What do you think about the sound of the current japanese vinyl replica 'Octobus' CD? Is it really awful?

 

I've heard it a long time ago before I tossed it in favor of the Repertoire edition. It wasn't awful by any means - at least to those ears at the time - and I found it was even better than the original Vertigo CD. But I think the Repertoire is the definitive digital version of that album.

 

The japanese Octopus remaster dates back from 2001 by the way. I don't think they re-remastered it again since. As with almost everything the Japanese master, they added a lot of air (above 15 khz) to the sound.

 

Ok, Thomas, thank you. I will look for the REP version I don't like digipacks but have no choice

 

sorry, I know it's been mentioned before but this thread has gone on for so long....is my 2001 Japanese mini-LP of Octopus (or Tako, if you wanna go native) have a glitch? And where?

 

You're welcome, serj.
I have one of the 3000 copies of the limited REP edition. At least you'll get the same excellent mastering! (maybe even de-glitched!)

 

As far as I know, only the current 2007 Repertoire edition has a glitch, NOT your japanese one.

That's a very minor glitch by the way; hell, I can't tell where it is, even after repeated listenings!

 

You need headphones to really hear the glitch in the REP version of Octopus. Same with Acquiring The Taste.

Frank R.

 

Maybe this new (January) portion of 'Octopus' CD's will not have this glitch?

 

The REP is the one with the glitch. The J-mini doesn't as far as I know.