What are the characteristics quality recordings?

Hi,

Regarding cd´s;

I wrote this on another thread:

Considering a CD takes 2secs to press ( including cooling ), and the ´master-copy´ looses detail on every press ( can take 2-10K of cycles ), your lucky if you get one of the first ones off the press, as the rest will decrease in quality. Buy two of the same CD, play them, chances are good that they will differ in quality.

Serious press-companies/Labels runs with a new master in Very short cycles. Getting better quality sounding CD´s.

The first ones off the press sounds just astonishing!

Also, I just get scared when knowing that a lot of studios plays with a simple transistor-/household-/car-/megaboom-stereo
for reference/mixdown-reference. Because they know that there´s were the music will be played the most. They make it sound good on those thus they know that will sell them more records. Scary and Ugly, but true.

Mike

I'm confused. Why does the master copy lose detail? Maybe I don't understand the process.

I keep waiting for examples of compression in cd's, very few responses other than the general comment, "most cd's are compressed, blah, blah, blah", no specifics. Also, don't you think classical and jazz music has much more dynamic variation than rock. While some rock starts out slow and quiet, then takes off, I think many more classical pieces and jazz can start out very quiet, then reach louder crecendos, and quiet down again, you know quiet passages/then loud. The rock song usually maintains the same beat/volume througout the song.

Ok Bufus;

They make copies.

Process: Very tiny plastic granulate is poured into an "oven", there it is melted, poured onto a small platter and just before the plastic sets again a "master-copy" is pressed ( mirrored ) over the platter. Takes about 2secs, and then the plastic has the master-copy´s "grooves" in it ( to small to see with eye ). The "almost-cd" then is lifted out and a thin aluminum foil is placed over the "top" of the unfinished cd ( for laser to be reflected in, just like a mirror ). After that a "empty" platter of plastic is glued onto the "bottom" of the cd, protecting the "grooves". Finally a thin layer of laquer or print is placed on top of the cd. Thus the "top" of the cd is the most vunerable part of the disc. The "music" side is protected by a 1mm plastic layer.

Each time a press is done over the melted plastic, it WILL damage the master-copy. However the damage is minute, but after 20000presses you would have lost 5-10% of the original state. Not much - but as guessed, very audible.

Mike

I have ordered some of the music mentioned by Rushton and Slipnot & look forward to listening. Thanks!

I've observed something in recordings that appears to be related to compression in relation to Wildoat's question. My amp has a meter that reflects the input from the source, so I have a visual measurement of the CD input on each channel. An example of a not too compressed CD is the Dead Can Dance Spirit Chaser. The volume of the music on this CD is quite varied on each cut and the meter "needle" of two channels often move in unison, but often not in unison. The level of the input varies tremendously throughout most of the CD cuts, as does the volume. This seems to produce a solid emotional response. I also see this variance in the Dire Strait's Brothers in Arms, The Cowboy Junkies' Trinity Session, and even in Ysaye's Solo Violin Sonatas, where there is only one instrument. To me, these CDs don't sound as good on my car stereo as that of others, such as Sheryl Crow.

Sheryl Crow's "Very Best of.." CD on the other hand has very little meter variation, except at the beginning and at the end of each song. Indeed, both meter "needles" are pointed to the maximum throughout most of her songs. I tend to adjust the volume dial of my amp down with CD's such as this, and ironically, I find the music to be less pleasing at very high volume. Personally, I am not moved by her music, and this might have a relationship to the compressed and altered "mastering." On my car CD player, Sheryl Crow sounds good - lots of bass, good beat, and I generally don't expect much else.

From the perspective of compression alone, these seem to be examples of good versus not so good quality of recordings and of how this interact with our components.

John