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Steely Dan UHQR

There is a great interview with audio engineer Bernie Grundman on the new UHQR album "Aja". At $150 it better be amazing. He talks about how they had to modify the sound of albums in the past so they would play on crappy turntables and how this album, at 45rpm, is designed for the best turntables and cartridges. He also speaks about how the "Dan" gang wanted to use their own speakers to listen to the master and not Bernie's. (Wish he had called out the speakers) But let me ask you this, can a sound engineer with 80 year old ears (born 16 December 1943), have the hearing to engineering a UHQR album to audiophile standards......I know my hearing is shot due to what I did in my 20's with Rock n Roll sound levels....At 70, no way could my ears be trusted for such a task.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGLFTm6jMrY

rbertalotto
jw944ts's avatar
jw944ts
325 posts
 

never enjoyed Steely Dan -style, just saying....sounds like elevator music to me

dmk_calgary
121 posts
 

SD is one of my fav bands. I have the MoFi version of Aja that Stan Ricker mastered. Excellent sound. The UHQR version is better - is if worth $150? Depends. I don't think so, but it is definitely better than the MoFi version. Dynamics and quieter. Esp the cymbals at the end of Aja - they are very muddy on the MoFi version and much much cleaner and clearer on this. Dunno what happened on the MoFi version. In any case, if you are a SD fan, then you will like this. I have also preordered Gaucho and Katy Lied. I have the 1/2 speed master of Gaucho by Bob Ludwig.

rbertalotto OP
138 posts
 

JW944ts..."never enjoyed Steely Dan -style, just saying....sounds like elevator music to me"

 

I keep looking through this thread, but I can't find where anyone asked you for your opinion......As Thumpers mother said..."If you don't have anything good to say, Don't say anything!".....Good advise for internet forum trolls ....

laecp123
13 posts
 

$150 is a lot for one good recording.  I just spent $162 on David Bowie Box Set Brillant Adventure and it has 18 records in it and all sound pretty clean and a very nice set.  It is getting fairly crazy the prices for these new/virgin/remastered/200 gram records.  I am sure they sound really good.  But it is really becoming an expensive hobby if you want to purchase some of these titles.  

baylinor's avatar
baylinor
1,406 posts
 

AJA is sooo yesterday. Another audiophile masterpiece I never take the time to listen to anymore. Life is too short to play the same records over and over and over.

 

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