Hendrix 'Are You Experienced?' MONO - UK Track vs. French Barclay **samples**

Though I'd share this here.
If you care for this album in mono, I'd strongly urge you to take a moment to listen.

The sample below has three fragments of each record.
The UK Track mono (A1/B1 stampers) fragments are sourced from a 24/96 needledrop
done on a high-end system.
The Barclay is my own transfer (see profile for tech info).
It's the early 70's press with an Isle of wight photo on the front.

Sample - Orig. Track UK vs. Barclay French

For those interested, here's another sample with the same fragments.
The difference is that the Barclay fragments have been EQ'd by me.

Sample - Orig. UK Track vs. Barclay Remaster

 

Wow, that's a substantial difference!

It almost sounds as though the UK Track mono sounds worn (perhaps at one time in its history it was played with a very heavy tone arm?)... have you seen the record, and how does it appear?

 

Sounds like a severe treble boost on the Barclay...

 

I'd say the other way around. There is hardly any information above 6kHz on the Track.

I haven't seen the Track vinyl as used in the samples. But I have heard other drops from different A1/B1 copies and this one here sounded the best.

 

Ah I see then!

 

Although I'm only listening on my PC speakers, I definitely prefer the Barclay. I've always wanted to get a mono edition of this album, I think I'll go for the Barclay and save some $$$.

 

This is what my copy looks like:

 

Wow ... the Barclay sounds really great, Prof. S. I love the mono mix but I've never heard anything but the Track until now ... this is what it was meant to sound like.

Fantastic ... thanks for posting those samples.

 

Excellent work there Prof, thank you very much!

 

You're welcome guys.

 

Can I ask a question about differences in the mono & stereo mixes?

On the U.S. Reprise mono LP when the song AYE fades out it doesn't come back in.
On the U.S. stereo LP it fades out, then back in briefly.

On the U.S. stereo LP near the end of Foxey Lady Jimi says "Foxey Lady, here I come baby, I'm comin' to git ya"
On the U.S. Reprise mono LP near the end of Foxey Lady he says "Foxey Lady, ...(silence)..., I'm comin' to git ya"
("here I come baby" is inaudible).

Do the UK Track LPs have those same differences? I'm assuming they do.
There are probably more differences but those two I remember without having to go back and re-listen.

 

Yes.

 

Thanks! I just noticed that Manic Depression, in mono, doesn't have the loud cymbal sound at the end.

 

Not so sure. I tried my own needledrop. It is tonally similar to yours but there is definitely information above 6KHz. It can certainly be made to sound more like the Barclays with EQ though I'm not skilled enough to know how close.

I'm not sure which I prefer. The Barclays sounds unnatural to me but that might be because of familiarity with the Track.

My needledrop is here:

http://cid-d57e836204feb061.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/needledrops/mono|_uk|_track.mp3

Tim

 

If you think the Track sounds good that's fine.
Your samples sound similair to the ones I provided.
There is no notable audio information above 6kHz, just hiss, clicks and distortion.
You can't EQ something in that isn't there....

 

I may be doing this wrong, but when I use the equalizer in Foobar and boost the levels above 7Khz I easily hear the difference and the treble comes forward more. Is there a better way to analyze this?

Tim

 

Sure, you'll get some more clarity if you boost the top-end.
But do you get a clean sparkly high end up to 20k, comparable to the Barclay ?


No. Because it's not there.

 

Big difference between 6K and 20k.

Tim

 

Spectacular difference indeed! Eddie Barclay imported the 33 1/3 record in France in 1954 and I heard most of his firm's recording, cutting and pressing machines were top of the range. Many recordings by French artists on Barclay in the 60's were terribly hissy (Jacques Brel, Léo Ferré...).

 

In the light of stan94 's post and my own experience of BARCLAY's LPs I amost prefer the Barclay with no EQ.
That being said the original is certainly a bit "pinchy" like some of the original no noised cd issues, and your EQ does help, thanks.

 

A high-pass filter or a wide Q factor (which was used during the mastering of the UK Track) just doesn't chop everything above a certain frequency off and leaves everything below the set frequency intact.
It works like a fade.
Now technically -yes- there is SOME audio information above 6kHz on the Track but not much.
That was my point.

Thanks for that info.
However, I don't think it's the cutting system that makes the big difference here.
It's more likely that Barclay used a different tape than the Polydor pressing plant.
My theory is that the UK Track mastering was actually approved by Chas Chandler.
The French were probably given a 1:1 of the mixdown masters plus instructions how to master (which they ignored).
Exactly the same thing that happened with the 'Die Beatles' LP.

 

That makes more sense, thanks.

I guess then that the Track does sound as intended - whether or not we like it - it is an EQ choice.

Tim

 

Oh my god. That is a huge difference. Until now every version of the mono mix I've heard sounded like a transistor radio. The Barclay has the same fidelity the stereo mix has. Barclay clearly had a much better tape to work from. What a huge find. This is at least as significant as the German Die Beatles LP.

Excellent work prof. stoned

 

Prof., I hear some smearing (and a kind of distorted sizzilng) in the cymbals on your EQd version of "Fire." (I am listening through my Sennheiser 600s). Hope this is taken as a constructive observation.

 

Thanks Prof!

I'll be looking for a Barclay copy. Unless someone finally does a great job with a mono AYE reissue.

My Track copy doesn't sound quite as rolled off tho'. I'm not sure what the stampers are as I'm at work.

Track "Fire"