Pink Floyd "The Wall" on Columbia C2K

I was wondering if any CD version of Pink Floyd's "The Wall" on Columbia starting with C2K... will have the preferred mastering for this title, even if the CD case has a sticker on it: 20th Anniversary 1979-1999 ?

Your input would be greatly appreciated.

Roland

 

No. What you want is the original US pressing (pre-remaster).

 

If it appears factory sealed, then no. The exact catalog number you want is C2K-36183. If it's a used CD then anyone could have stuck that sticker on it. This catalog number is definitely not in print any longer as far as I'm aware of.

 

It's also easy to distinguish, because nowhere on the back does it say "1992, 1994, 1997, 1999 or "digital remaster."

 

I personally don't care for the "pre-master". IMO, the current Doug Sax remaster sounds like the original vinyl, also mastered by Doug Sax.

The pre-master also has that irritating pop before Comfortably Numb.

 

I prefer the original. In fact, I think it beats the MOFI by a mile and the remaster by a 1/4 mile. It's softer than the remaster and very, very warm and analog sounding.

Now, maybe there have been several remasters, as no one has ever really been able to figure that out for certain, ttbomk. But as for the "20 Year Anniversary 1979-1999," which I believe states it as having been remastered in 1997, it doesn't quite do it. It is a bit digital sounding and too brittle. Some subtle EQ probably. And it's a bit louder. Not obnoxious, but louder. I believe the most popular theory here is that all the 90's versions use the 1992 Sax mastering, but this doesn't seem to have been established as fact.

 

I just checked the booklets for More (1995), Ummagumma (1994) and Relics (1995) and they all credit Doug Sax in the booklets.

I've never heard the MFSL The Wall before. I like the MFSL disks I have (DSOTM and Atom Heart Mother) but I never felt the need to pick up The Wall. I'm happy with what I have.

 

I'm glad I got an original. Would still like to hear the MFSL one though.

 

Well, I was referring to just _The Wall_, but yes, all 90s Floyd CDs in general seem to have remastered by Sax in 1992. However, some have argued that there was apparently a second mastering when Sony took over Columbia, and I believe Sax confirmed this, but it doesn't seem to be noticeable. In addition, I think it only applies to WYWH through _The Wall_.

And as for that MFSL Dark Side, sell it on eBay and pick up a US Capitol (pre-remaster) for five bucks. It beats it. The MFSL Dark Side is screwed up, IMO. Same with their issue of _The Wall_.

 

The European Dark Side Of The Moon CD (with the Doug Sax remastering credit) is not the same as the 20th anniversary edition or the version on the Shine On box. In fact, my "Made In Holland" CD with copyrights 1992 and 1994 is identical to the Japanese Toshiba and Harvest discs and the with "TO" in the matrix number.

So we should be careful when we talk about "remasters". They are not all the same.

 

You can't be serious. The most popular theories around here are that every Pink Floyd CD release employs a different mastering. Some argue that the 20th Anniversary DSOTM is different from Shine On and the Sax remaster. Well, if they are that means they hauled those tapes out 3 different times during the same period in '92, which seems ridiculous. Others argue that there are different masterings even when the CDs are from an identical issue (the black triangle DSOTM).

my guess is that there are really 5 different versions of the '67-'79 (Piper - Wall) catalog out there: The original Japanese CDs, the original UK CDs, the original US CDs, the Shine On '92/'94 remasters, and the '97 remasters for WYWH-Wall.

 

I thought the MFSL "The Wall" was too bright.

 

I can only add my two cents worth! The year that the MFSL was released I met with some friends from Sony Canada and I asked their opinion of The Wall>with a wink and a promise not to quote them by name I was told I made the right decision purchasing the MFSL! I have heard the original Canuck CD & the Shine on box I own! I'm not knocking any that I have heard, however the MFSL is my choice for listening to this masterpiece.

 

Wow, I have the completely opposite opinion. I've had 6 copies of this album on CD dating back to the very first release and the MoFi is the only one I listen to. I also have the Japanese mini-LP release simply for the "neat" factor.

 

I have the remaster of Animals (1997) on Sony/Columbia and the booklet credits Doug Sax with the mastering.

 

So the "Shine On" Animals & Wall are different from (and worse than) the currently available ones?

 

Ric, when you say "very first release", do you mean the Japanese Harvest CDs? I have this version myself and I've always thought it sounded very good. I've been wondering if I shouldn't look around for a C2K-36183 or MoFi version. If you had this Japanese Harvest version, how did it compare?

Kevin

 

Interesting. I don't find the MFSL too bright. Sounds too boomy on my setup. Just overkill on the bass tracks.

 

Search the archive. Many folks seem to feel that the 1992 remasters by Sax are all that exist from the 90s, and that the different issues from '94, '97, '99 are all just reissues of those and the confusion comes in from the Sony/Columbia thing. Plenty of people feel differently, so perhaps I mispoke in saying that this is the most "popular" theory, but I think the confusion has caused most people to give up on the subject and kind of assume one way or the other, without actual tests.

EAC logs could pretty much resolve this, not to mention folks just posting their TT results.

Anyway, I don't have any Sax remasters, but if someone just posted an EAC log for their 1992/1994 version of say, _The Wall_, and someone else posted their EAC log of the 1999 Sony version of _The Wall_, we would likely learn something. If the EAC logs are the same, the chances of them being different are minimal.

 

Kevin,

Yes I meant the Japan Harvest release. I had both The Wall and DSOTM, I got rid of The Wall awhile ago, I still have DSOTM. I remember it being not bad and enjoying it until I heard the MoFi. From what I can recall, it sounded very neutral but flat. To me it sounded a little bit lifeless, whereas I find the MoFi to be much better in that dept.

I also have the recent Japanese mini-LP release and that's pretty good too, but a little compressed sounding compared to the MoFi.

 

I'm listening to the MFSL right now, and it sounds pretty nice to me. A little bit of the typical MFSL "smile" EQ going on, but I think it kinda works well on this. The detail is quite amazing - I'm hearing stuff I really don't recall noticing on other versions. "In the Flesh" (both versions) really blew me out of my chair.

Having said that, I don't own the newest remaster - I only ever owned the original Columbia CD and the Shine On versions (plus the MFSL).

 

The Japanese Mini LP is just the common Sax remastering that is copyrighted 1992/1994.

 

Yep that's what I thought, thanks Jeff.

 

You're definitely right regarding The Wall. There are even 2 different versions one year apart with the same catalog number. One sourced from the original Japanese mastering and the second sourced from a NRed/enhanced digital copy (louder).

The MFSL was totally screwed up and the only way to tell is to compare it to the Japanese first 50DP, second 48DP, or the third which became the N. American first pressing C2K. EQ boosted in weird places while robbing the breath of life is how I describe the MFSL. Same with Dark Side.

 

Very interesting; is the Shine On Wall correct and when comparing the two what should I notice? I have been enjoying something that's screwed up......hmmmm the only way to tell? ? I agree with your view of Dark Side MFSL but I don't with The Wall-it sounds quite nice to me with nothing to bother my ears.
Heh Dark Side SACD -CD layer is the best! You can have all the rest! (hands off I'll keep them on the shelf) and the SACD surround is nothing short of amazing!