"Band on the Run" unlimited remaster, "retains the dynamic range of the original master recording" Options

[2Bdecided]

The anti "loudness race" trend continues...

HIGH RESOLUTION DETAILS

The audio industry has seen many technical innovations since Band on the Run was first released on vinyl in 1973, the most notable being digital recording. However, with the introduction of CD came two advances, “de-noising” and “peak limiting” which have become increasingly unpopular within certain areas of the music industry and amongst audiophiles.

De-noising was introduced to remove the inherent sound, or hiss, associated with analogue tape. The amount of processing used to remove tape noise can be varied, but when used excessively, many believe that it also has a detrimental effect on elements of the musical sound.

Peak limiting is a process that increases the loudness of music. It is achieved by holding the loudest peaks down and raising the overall level of the music. Much depends on the amount of limiting applied, but at its most extreme the result can be a serious reduction in the dynamic range and often audible distortion.

The release of The Beatles’ remasters in 2009 saw a marked change in attitudes towards these issues, where both noise reduction and limiting were used sparingly with the aim of representing the master tapes more accurately. Such is the case with the newly remastered CD of Band on the Run: tape noise reduction has scarcely been used and the degree of limiting is subtle. In addition digital technology has advanced with the ability now to offer recordings in 24 bit/96kHz. The high resolution version is being made available via download and is being offered in two formats: limited, which is comparable in volume to the remastered CD, and un-limited, which in comparison with the limited version will sound quieter, but retain the dynamic range of the original master recording.


Allan Rouse Abbey Road Studios

They're "only" charging an extra £3 / $5 above the comparable "CD" download, though you have no option but to pay for the 9 extra bonus tracks if you want hi-res.

If you just want the normal album, you're paying double to get hi-res (limited or unlimited version).

9-track "CD" download: £6 / $9
18-track "CD" download: £10 / $15
Hi-Res download: £13 / $20
Both Hi-Res downloads: £23 / $36

From here:
http://www.paulmccartney.com/bandontherun/

Cheers,
David.

P.S. I haven't heard it. It's a shame it's not on Spotify! (The recent John Lennon releases are).

This post has been edited by 2Bdecided: Nov 10 2010, 12:15

[JSW]

I actually did pay $20 for the 24/96 "unlimited" download, even though this isn't the kind of music that I usually listen to. I am extremely satisfied with the sound quality of this download, and I don't even really care whether it sounds better than the best possible 16/44.1 mastering. I figure they did well to find a way to reissue a classic rock album in a state-of-the-art mastering without dynamic range compression. The price? I think it's reasonable. It isn't clear how many copies of either 24/96 version will sell, and they have to set a price that will make the effort of setting up and hosting these rather large downloads worthwhile even with rather moderate expected sales. Certainly it would not have been commercially viable to issue the CD in double-inventory with and without peak limiting, and since many people prefer the sound with peak limiting, why not take advantage of the new trend in the audiophile market to offer a better product than would have been marketable otherwise? There is no way that sales figures for this version will be interpreted as support for DRC.

What I find surprising is that there are people choosing pay the same premium price for a 24/96 version with compressed dynamic range. What are they thinking?

This post has been edited by greynol: Nov 11 2010, 03:28

Reason for edit: Edited by request.