So I’ve been revisiting rap music of late and I’m very disappointed with the remasters on some classic albums. Case in point ‘juicy’ by Notorious BIG. Every remaster version of the track completely ruins the harmonics of the track. All that remains is a bright and compressed sound. Compared to the original it’s very disappointing.
I’m sure tidal isn’t the only streaming platform that is guilty of this but I don’t understand why engineers remaster and make it sound worse than the original.
Does anybody else have any experience with a platform that offers originals more than remasters. Otherwise I will really have to grow my CD collection and purchase early editions of my favourite albums.
I see that Qobuz have different versions on many albums, and they date them. But it’s for buying them. I don’t know if it’s visible via online streaming.
Not that I’ve ever used streaming as a ‘hi fi’ source, but this is the solution I’ve chosen when ‘remastered’ CDs have made my ears bleed. I’ve been gobsmacked at just how good a lot of late-80s/early-90s CDs sound on my CDX2. When they can be picked up for a few quid on Discogs, or pennies at charity shops, there really is little to lose.
I’ve had the same experience. The originals sound better. They may be slightly thin sounding like the MJ albums but don’t suffer from the compression issues of the remasters
Streaming services just use what the record labels give them which tends to be the latest versions. Obviously, it’s a case by case and comes down to personal preference as to what sounds better but if you’re like me and prefer dynamic mastering, you’re better off creating your own library through CD rips or using your CD player. You can’t rely on streaming services to give you the best sounding versions unless it’s a new album and then it’s probably highly compressed anyway unfortunately.
