Geez, the STAR WARS soundtrack! Has this EVER sounded good on LP or CD?

I don't have access to Spotify so would you recommend getting the 2 cd ultimate edition of TPM?

 

I think he's recommending against it. I would, too. Get the original, single-disc edition (or the new hi-res download).

 

+1

 

I was reading some reviews on Amazon for the 2 CD ultimate edition of TPM and there are a lot of 5 stars listed. Is the reason most here are recommending against it because of the tracks don't flow and are chopped and abrupt edits or other reasons? I plan to get the original TPM CD but didn't know if it was worth also getting the 2 CD ultimate set as well.

 

Just an update on my latest Star Wars collection.

In the past couple weeks I picked up the original Ep 1 Phantom Menace soundtrack and the original Ep II Attack of the Clones soundtrack on CD. The latter was issued in multiple cover art and I managed to get the Yoda one which I think colors look awesome. I've been enjoying these CD's a great deal. I already had Ep III on CD. I also recently got the 93' Anthology 4 CD box set and the latest TFA soundtrack.

I had mentioned above about possibly adding TPM Ultimate Edition 2 CD set to my latest collection and I just received that one the other day. It's used with a few scuffs on the cover but no dings in the corners of the set and insert booklet was all there, the CD's appear to be unplayed and all encoded fine. I managed to just finish listening to both CD's today and I'll have to go against what others have mentioned. I'm really glad I got this, the pieces flow right into one another which kinda made it hard at first to know what was playing but it actually works well for me. I feel that it's in this collection that the listener can really appreciate the London Symphony Orchestra to their fullest potential. I'm hearing orchestral pieces not heard on the original TPM soundtrack.

The booklet inside has 63 color photos for each piece so you know where they appear in the film. It really serves as a guide to the tracks of which some are only a minute or two. It's nice to have so much additional music that appeared in the film that did not appear on the original soundtrack. They call it the Ultimate Edition but it's almost like the score from the film. It was pretty cool to hear the bonus track, Duel of the Fates (movie dialogue version) sorta brings you closer to the movie while listening. I'm really happy I picked this one up even though you guys advised to give it a pass. The film might not be so great but the music is really memorable for me.

I still think the 93' Anthology is probably going to be my most favorite collection thus far, but having all these others soundtracks and editions are nice to own as well.

 

I also just purchased the 93' Anthology from a forum member. So far I listened to the 1st disc (Star Wars) a few times.
Wonderful sounding CD, very organic sounding with great dynamic, which is so important in classical environment, Quality packaging/booklet as mentioned before. I have no doubt that the other discs in the box will not disappoint. It seems that the force is strong with this box...

 

yeah I think this is the winner of all the releases because they used original mix down tapes, not LP copy tapes. They didn't use noise reduction either. Too bad it's out of print!

 

I have had the 93 Anthology since i bought it in 93 at Tower..... I am not even sure i want to buy the "new" LP set as my old Anthology set sounds so good.. I also have the Episode I Ultimate Edition and its great,,,, and Ep III Soundtrack CD/DVD set.
And TFA sounds amazing as well on CD.... I may get the vinyl if it is analog sourced,,,,,,,,,,, I don't have any of the original LP's altho maybe someday if i can get them cheap........

 

I was JUST snooping around here, what the heck. Anyway, indeed, that early 90s anthology box set is the best way to listen to this music, what is included in there anyway (themes are missing). The special edition remasterings of the soundtracks expanded the CDs to include the full score, but they just don't sound nearly as good to me... I've got to say, really disappointing options for this music that has touched so many imaginations and film forever.

 

It is strange that they've gone back to the original album presentations for the most recent releases. While I enjoy those versions (they are the versions I'm most familiar with), I would like to see some definitive, hi-resolution editions.

 

Bump.

Alright, so I already have the '93 and '97 discs of the Original Trilogy. But re-reading through Chris Malone's wonderful PDF (specifically pages 21 - 30 & 50):
https://www.malonedigital.com/starwars.pdf
And comparing the DR values on the Dynamic Range DB
Album list - Dynamic Range DB

I think the best presentation may be the original 80's CDs. Although they contain less music and feature the LP sequencing, (but so do the recent 2018 remixed Disney versions) the tapes were in better condition, the audio went through less digital steps, (the '97's re-used some of the '93's, only re-EQ'd, of which some were taken from the original 1980's CDs anyway!) and, at worse, the albums are 1 DB more dynamic. (often much more so, and not over-modulated like bits of the '93's can be)

It feels crazy to triple dip on film scores, (even if done by the great John Williams) but I enjoy the original Star Wars's so much, I think it may be best.

If only our host got a shot at doing them justice. The Raiders DCC is in my top 3 favorite CDs - but I prefer the Star Wars scores (especially Empire). Maybe one day Disney will wise up and give this material another go-round for some anniversary or boxset. Until then, I'll have to be happy with the originals... all 3 'rounds of 'em. Unfortunately, if you're a completionist, you really do need the 80's, '93 set, and '97's - because all 3 have different material, takes, edits and sequencing!

If only there was an end-all-be-all definitive release. But, 15 years later, there still isn't one. Such a shame.

 

Remember the sources for the 80s CDs are the mastered-for-LP tapes, this means additional analogue steps (edits and copies, centered and cut bass, treble cut, other EQ, dynamic compression, etc...).
And remember that a bass cut/treble boost registers as more DR points on the DR database.
Also look at the waveforms page 50 of the Malone document: the 80s CDs seem to have more micro-dynamics than the '93s (again possible with a bass cut), but they also have less macro-dynamics (the difference between the first and last part of the track).

 

It's particularly damning considering the wonderful job that's been done on Star Trek soundtrack releases in recent years.

Clearly it's not that hard, as long as the owners of the masters want to play ball.

 

What I’m trying to understand is why an early digital recording like Jedi needed noise reduction when the Special Edition CDs were compiled.

 

Jedi is not a digital recording.
As for the noise reduction, yes it is particularly bad on the '97 master.

 

I thought it was. I guess I was misinformed.

 

It's too bad that the original multi-track master tapes for the Star Wars IV is no longer usable a long time ago. Since some are stating the EQ'd master tape for vinyl LP does not sound good, but was there any thought of deriving the audio from the isolated score soundtrack from a copy of the film reel's audio (which I believe is long gone)?

 

I think that the mags or film source might be the source for the 1993 CDs.

 

It's the original stereo mixes that are gone, not the original multitrack recordings; in fact these were used for the remixes from a couple years ago, and the '97 remixes.
The film mags were also used at times.

 

No, the '93 are a mix of original stereo mixes, film mags, vinyl-master tapes and earlier digital copies of said tapes.

 

Agreed. I know it probably crosses the line into semantic obsession, and the LP-masters are a far cry from the best Star Wars could (and should) sound, but I ultimately think they're worth getting... for this crazed collector, anyway. The old 80's CDs are pretty cheap, (a couple of bucks a piece, if that) Star Wars has the 'correct' Main Titles, Empire includes Mynock Cave, (which was absent on the '93's - my preferred listen atm) and Jedi... well why exclude it at that point?

Some of the tracks on the '93's were sourced from the 80's CDs anyway, and as much as I love the scores, sometimes I just want a shorter, 'best of' version. The 2018 Superman 3-CD was great in that it included the full score AND re-released the original LP config on disc 3. I think it would be cool to have something similar for Star Wars. And I never had the original LP.

I'd be interested to see exactly how the 80's digital vs '93 digital masters square up if EQ-matched, though. But it's probably apples to oranges, as the LP mixes (and master) are often totally different than the film mixes, and the hodge-podge of re-release/remasters we've gotten in every set since!

Ideally, I wish it could be re-released a la the 2018 Superman 3CD. Present the full, original score (maybe with even more outtakes!), AND include the original LP config as a bonus!

 

I missed out on the 2012 TOS boxset: STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES SOUNDTRACK COLLECTION: LIMITED EDITION - (15-CD BOX SET)
They really need to do another release of that!

 

I didn't, and yes they do

 

To borrow from JWfan in regards to the original Tomlinson mix...

May 77 / May 80 / May 83 - original releases on vinyl
1983-85 - Initial CD releases (TESB was only half the full 2LP program)
Jan 2016: Sony - digital and vinyl [remastered original analog LP masters]
Jan 2017: Disney Records - digital only [reissue of Sony's 2016 edition] + 3LP deluxe hologram/book edition for ANH [using Sony's 2016 remaster again]
May 2018: Disney Records - CD (first time TESB full 2LP is available on CD) [Brand new Shawn Murphy remaster / "reconstruction"] <--- no good

The 2016 release is the way to go in the digital domain. The 2018 remaster by Shawn Murphy is a catastrophic botch job of bad edits across the entire collection (including the prequels).

As mentioned the CD version of the 2016 box set inexplicably re-used the 1997/2004 2-CD set instead of a down-rezzed version of the new 192/24 masterings, so the next best option is probably the 93 John Neal remix (noise reduction notwithstanding).