Best Live Phish CDs

Ketchup,
My own source tapes from that weekend (AKG 480/61 & Earthworks SR77>Lunatec V2>Apogee a/d1K>Tascam DA P1) are pretty good. IMO, far too many people see Schoeps and think it's everything...And, I think the FOB crowd at some shows were way too in front of the sweet spot.

Give a listen to AUDs from the 7/12 Vernon Downs show if you can. Taper's Section vs. FOB. Taper's Section tapes hold up really well. I think the bigger difference in FOB comes INDOORS. Outdoors, the music has less reflective interference and has a chance to bloom. When yer FOB and right on top of it, your mics can't pick up the gel 'cause you are way in front of it. I think the exact opposite is true indoors.

I need to pick up a CDR setup and get some of these DATS into circulation. After over 15 years of taping, I sold off all my gear, and am listening to the fruits of my labors.

Ketchup & Slipknot1, How do I get some of these recordings?? Most of my bootleg stuff is from Napster/Bearshare in an .mp3 foramt, which for the car is fine. The music is what I have always been after, but now that I have been able to finally afford a decent high end system, I would like to listen to some of my favorites and have the quality be there as well. Thanks

dewinkle,

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All you need is a high speed internet conection.

slipknot, i agree totally about the schoeps recordings. why is that? sure, some sound great, but i've heard great recordings done with just about every combination of gear! i have also heard horrible recordings done with every combination of gear! there are just too many variables to say that this piece of gear will always produce great tapes.

Best Phish Show -11/17/97 McNIchols Arena, Denver. Ghost is incredible and flawless Reba.

Ketchup,
I think the same rules apply for live recordings as applies to high-end audio. I have heard some megabuck setups that sound so-so, and very modest setups that are very involving. People see a particular brand name and assume it sounds great without knowing all the variables involved. Schoeps mics are superb to be sure, but in some hands and in some setups.... maybe not as good as can be. When I was taping on a regular basis, I could have used just about whatever mic setup I wished. I happened to prefer the AKGs and Earthworks mics, mated to Audio Magic Presto II cables as the source for my rig. I will say that I have heard lots of Schoeps and Neumann tapes that were gorgeous. My point being, to many end listeners see FOB and Schoeps listed as the source and think this is the be all and end all of live concert event reproduction. I always advised people to try to get a couple of copies of a show, sourced with different mics at different locations within the venue before dismissing those tapes that weren't made with (insert mic brand here) mics. Couple that with the fact that toward the end of the '90s into the early '00s, the taper's section of Phish shows was filling up with rich trustafarian Schoeps snobs. Just one ancient taper's opinion. Hell, I've made tapes on my old Sony D5M cassette deck with a pair of Nak mics that were as emotionally involving as some of my later high-end rig tapes.