The Smiths Rough Trade questions

Maybe by comparing dynamic range? Peak level minus average level?

 

I just got Meat Is Murder and The Queen is Dead and they both sound fantastic. Meat is Murder edges The Queen is Dead by a hair because of the more even equalization. The bass is nicer on meat while Queen is janglier and a little brighter but the music is so much more alive on the Rough Trade discs it isnt even funny.

 

You're comparing to the Sire/RT?

 

I assume that the Sire/RT CDs have the same mastering as the WEA CDs. Is this true?

 

I don't think so... I Think the WEA are remasterings from the 90's. Does someone want to share peak levels on the WEA, Sire and Japanese mini-LP?

 

Many of them were discussed here:
http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=94956

 

From this thread, I can tell you that the Aussie WEA's Louder than Bombs are way louder than my Sire

 

Interesting, I had assumed that they were the same. I don't have multiples to compare though.

I got The Queen is Dead RT recently and find it to be easily the most improved of the three that I have now (Strangeways and MIM are the other two.)

 

You are torturing me this morning, with your RT of Queen Is Dead.

 

Sorry my friend, that was not my intention.

 

I had the WEAs and the Sires. All different.

 

I think we can pretty much assume that the Sire, the WEA and the Rough Trade are all from different (re)masterings.
The only unknown are the Japanese mini-Lp. Some say it is a new remastering, some say it is the WEA, just louder.
We could, I guess, settle this by comparing dynamic ranges... If the dynamic range is the same, with just different peak levels, then we are pretty sure it is the same remastering, isn't it?

 

Well, the mini-LPs do SOUND different. I felt that they were compressed, thus bringing out faux detail. IMHO, it's just best to avoid them altogether... the original Rough Trades are so much better. Until somebody can re-master them properly (with natural EQ and without altering the dynamic range), I'm sticking with the originals.

 

I have the Japanese mini-vinyls, but I sold off the WEAs...

 

Which are better? (For each album please)

 

I can only speak for Murder, Queen and Strangeways - my three faves - and for those I quite preferred the original RTs.

I agree with Keef though - I think the compression on the Japanese discs led one to hear things they couldn't hear as well before.

 

I have to say that I don't hear a big difference between the WEA Meat Is Murder and the Rough Trade -- so that one is at the bottom of my list.

I have The Queen Is Dead and Hatful Of Hollow Rough Trade, but have never compared them to other versions. They both sound great. Hatful, particularly; I have read enough opinions to be assured that RT Queen is the best version, but I'm not in love with the native sound of it. I'm glad I don't have a worse mastering, though, because it's my favorite Smiths album.

The only other album that I've actually compared is Strangeways, and I do like the Rough Trade more -- although as I've said earlier, I don't think the US Sire version is bad, and some with different tastes (maybe not SHMF-goers, though) might prefer it.

I would sure like to get the Rough Trade Louder Than Bombs. I've heard that's supposed to be a noticeable improvement. I'm not a fan of the first album, so I probably won't ever have the RT version of that unless it drops in my lap.

 

Sure, I meant the Sire VS the WEA.

 

I recently acquired a 1993 WEA cd of Queen Is Dead. I can say that compared to my Sire cd it sounds a little louder but not too loud and seems less brittle and warmer, overall it's much better than the Sire cd. I also recently picked up a copy of the RT vinyl of Queen is Dead and the WEA cd sounds VERY similar to the RT vinyl. At least for this particular title, I doubt the first Rough Trade cd (though I haven't heard it, just comparing it to the Rough Trade vinyl) will sound that much different than the later WEA release (again the 93 version, since I'm not sure if they mastered it differently for later WEA releases).

Also, not that you asked, but vinyl-wise the Rough Trade LP of Strangeways completely trumps the Sire LP in almost every way. It sounds awesome (big sound stage, warmer eq). Highly recommended!

 

I have the US Sire LP and CD, and the Rough Trade CD certainly is an improvement. Just like you described the vinyl: big sound stage, warmer eq.

There are just WAY too many choices when it comes to the Smiths catalog.

 

Yeah, my WEA Queen is Dead definitely sounds better than my Sire Louder TB and Hatful.

 

i prefer my Rough Trades (i have all but Hatful, unfortunately) to the MiniLPs (just got all of them yesterday), and i generally find the RTs to be better. how much of that is just familiarity (i've heard these albums about a trillion times), i don't know. i find the MiniLPs to be better than the Squires, from an audiophile perspective, but the squires are less fatiguing. i gotta find a RT Hatful, that's for damn sure.

i dug up my WEA Hatful (the first Smiths CD i ever bought), and the Japanese version sounds, to my ears, slightly hotter, but slightly broader. not a huge difference, on this one, anyway. i do find the WEAs and the MiniLPs to be dynamically compressed compared to the Rough Trades, but it's not bad at all. if this were King Crimson or something it would be bad, but the Smiths didn't exactly use a ton of loud/soft (if you know what i mean), so it matters less.

 

UK Vinyl question.

Anyone here have the Rough Trade UK 10 inch LPs for The Queen Is Dead and the 2 disc Hatful Of Hollow? Was wondering aobut the sound quality. Are they good from a audiophiel perspective or is it better to stick with the regular edition Rough Trade LPs?

 

Strangeways Here We Come - Gold cd?

Hello!

I am hoping someone can help regarding the 'Strangeways Here We Come' Made In France by MPO pressings.

I recently purchased an original Rough Trade CD106 from Amazon.co.uk. The CD is actually a gold color, but I am concerned it it a 'bronzed' CD.

I want to find out if it is defective or just another pressing.
I did have a badly scratched French MPO standard silver CD at one time so this CD has me a little concerned. Sadly I do not access right now to digital camera to upload a photo.

Does anyone have a Rough Trade 'Strangeways' gold colored CD?

THANKS IN ADVANCE!
Charles

 

Mine is kind of gold also...
Perfect rip in EAC.