Crosby Stills & Nash - MOFI One-Step Ultradisc. Compared to 2001 Classic Records & 1969 original LPs
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ต.ค. 2024
- Comparing the brand new Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab One-Step Ultradisc release of Crosby Stills & Nash's seminal self-titled debut album with the 2001-2002 Bernie Grundman mastered Classic Records reissue, and the UK original first pressing.
Many thanks to David Brook of thevinyladventure.com
While stocks last, at: www.thevinylad...
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Cool video. I expected the outcome. Those OG’s are difficult to beat. You said the soundstage is bigger on the MOFI. I think by making a big separation on some of those tracks, you’re taking away from the magic of the closeness. Most of the time we love a big soundstage, but on certain recordings those sounds being closer actually intertwine with each other. Those magic vocals swirl around the strings of the guitars. The key is to keep both clear and vibrant among themselves.
Glad you liked the video. I can imagine some (many?) people preferring the audiophile reissues, but for me, in this particular instance... all I'll say is it's reawakened my quest for a mint US original...
Hi, I love this record too, it brings me back 40 years ago when I discovered it during a summer vacation. Sweet memories.Thanks.
Glad you enjoyed it
Great review; much appreciated as I need to upgrade my CSN vinyl. Have read that CSN was recorded on 16 tracks; four for drums, one for electric guitar, one for bass, one for vox! Yes, all 3 into the same mic. Apparently they had to tell Crosby to step back a yard! I wonder if originals have stereo bass, and mofi mono-ed the bass on the DSD256 to eliminate lo freq smear and improve perceived bass timing?
Thanks for the feedback John, glad you liked the review.
Dave could it be that the original CSN was what sticks with us from 50 years ago when we heard it for the first time
Very possibly, generally I prefer the original pressing of any album. I kind of want ‘audiophile’ reissues to sound the same, but better. Not different, if you get what I mean.
Nice video thanks Dave. I do love those first two CSN(&Y) albums, but I think my UK first presses will do me just fine tbh. I don’t know if you have the first Stephen Stills solo album? That’s one of the greatest albums of all time, and seems to be quite underrated in my opinion. It’s the only album to feature both Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton so well worth the price of admission just for that alone surely!
The first Stills album is definitely in my top ten! It is an utterly incredible LP!
@@DaveDenyer same. Deffo in my top 10 as well it really is an awesome album. ‘Black Queen’ might be my favourite track on there - what a tune that is!! Take care
Spot on there tends to be something with the sound of originals which why I collect originals and stopped buying MOFI's. My only exception is that I do buy the Analogue productions Jazz reissue series as in the UK we have little access to original Blue Note's or Prestige pressings.
I do find myself coming back to the originals more often than not...
Having said that I'm trying to buy the UHQR Exodus right now, but failing miserably... Acoustic Sounds seems to have crashed the web! I have an original UK test pressing of Exodus: so that would be an interesting comparison.
Having a UK plum label first pressing comparing to the Classic Records, I much prefer listening to the UK plum label. It may not be as "audiophile" but the UK plum label is the most enjoyable to listen to as a wholistic complete experience....Like it has the most natural sound. I passed on the one step, and do agree with you that with the UK plum one feels more connected to the music, one can feel the band's energy more and feel more involved with the sound....really connects with the soul and propels you to move around, smile and dance!!
Thanks for your comment, I like the way you describe it, and thanks for watching the video Michael.
You captured brilliantly the magic of a first pressing . There is something about a first pressing that really captures that moment. I have a few Neil young/ Croby and Nash test pressings and they are even more standout.
In fact I gave my test press of Songs for Beginners to Graham Nash ( but that's another story ! )
I have the 45 rpm 4 LP Classic of CSN which is IMO,is amazing ( As does The Crosby on 45). I am slightly nervous about the of the imminent arrival of the MOFI version of the album .
The Deja Vu 200 gram on classic I love also but can see why you don't want to open it. It never got to 4 LP status with Classics but it did get to test pressing stage ( I just saw one listed on a US store website for $1500.
I now want to go back to my first pressings of those albums just to be sure. I read that when CSN was recorded , all 3 of them were gathered around one mike, hence your point that the sound is difficult to separate
On the subject of 1st pressings, I picked up a really battered looking copy of Stephen Stills Manassas ,( which I think is about the best hard rock album ever made )
.It cost me $1.99 in a store in San Fran where I was visiting. Inside the battered copy were 2 mint LP's. I don't think they had ever been played and they completely blow away my Classic 200 gram version
Hi Roger, I'm glad you appreciated the video. I bet those test pressings were amazing!
Lucky Graham Nash!
I haven't played Manassas for a while, for too long I shall have to rectify that soon!..
@@DaveDenyer Your video last night also prompted me to think about my vintage equipment and how that somehow captures sound in a unique way, and of its time. I still have my set up from 1990 ( Linn Sonndek/Naim Aro/ Naim Amps/ Linn Kabers). I have auditioned more modern equipment over the years in the pursuit of hi fi nirvana but have never found anything to match what I have. The more modern equipment (to my ears) sounds more clinical, not unlike what happens in the process of re mastering vinyl
@@rogerwoodgate1766 I used a Linn LP12 / Aro / Naim Prefix / 52 / 52PS / NAP135s back in the 90s > early 2000s... I replaced them with the 'starter' Aesthetix phono and preamps, and haven't really changed since: I've just upgraded as retrofittable improvements (Signature versions) were introduced... My turntable was developed and first introduced back in the 1980s, so it's not much younger than your Linn, again, I've just added retrofittable upgrades over the years & decades... I much prefer to buy the very best I can at the time and hope to enjoy it for decades... I have a deep respect for companies that operate in this manner (retrofittable upgrades and model lives that extend over ten years or so...).
My choice of cartridge and tonearm also is very much along these lines: classic musicality in preference to latest tech / spec... Oh, and tape of course: the latest hardware addition to my system (the Studer A80) is 53 years old!
@@DaveDenyer I have got the 52 and the NAP 135's and have done most of the Sonndek upgrades but when I watched your video on your kit I must admit, I was really impressed with the look of the Clearaudio and the Aesthetix. I just went on their website and it was great to see that they are hand built and have won lots of awards.It must have been great kit for you to swap from the Linn/ Naim set up. what for you is the improvement you saw ? Tempted to go audition !!!!
@@rogerwoodgate1766 starting with the Aesthetix, it was more resolution, but in a very natural 'organic' kind of way, certainly never clinical. It made the Naim sound coarse and grainy, (and everything else I'd heard sounded either bloated, forced, or veiled in comparison). That was going to the 'basic' Rhea and Calypso. Frankly, at that time I'd not heard anything I preferred (and working in the industry, I'd heard a lot of kit). I didn't get the Aesthetix power amp until quite a few years later (Aesthetix didn't even make a power amp back then).
I initially swapped my LP12 for a Clearaudio Reference, in fact it wasn't really a swap; I ran the two side by side for a year or two until it dawned on me I was hardly ever using the Linn, that's when I sold it and ultimately upgraded to the Master Reference.
Again it was neutrality and precision but not at the expense of musicality, and that comparison was made between the LP12 vs the Reference. I'm not knocking the LP12 here: it is a superb turntable, I especially liked it with the Aro: more agile than the Linn arms IMHO. I can't remember how many years I had the Linn, maybe ten years or so, the Master Reference is the only turntable I've had for longer...
Great video Dave. I had ordered this MOFI but cancelled the order due to all the unsatisfactory reviews. I have a Canadian original and second pressing. I also have a 1976 Japanese reissue. I prefer the sound of the Japanese reissue but the OG runs a very close second. It needs a cleaning. So when my cleaning machine arrives and I get a chance to clean it. I'll do a shoot out between the two again.
Hi Lawrence, glad you enjoyed the video. What cleaning machine are you getting?
Nice but I wish it was presented in a slipcase box like UHQR
With the passing of David Crosby, this is a well timed release. Crosby/Stills and Nash is one of those rare record's without a weak song.
Agreed, on both counts...
Great comparison Dave. Time to offload some of those extra copies. Can we forgive those digital conversions over an analogue copy. ?
Thanks George. Time indeed, to sell some records on. Hmm, I wonder, Discogs, eBay???
@@DaveDenyer discogs
Hi Dave, great video with some wonderful records which I also have copies of. Those U.K. Atlantic plum pressings are special. I wonder whether the cutting process back in 1969/1970 and the valve based technology gave the cuts a realism that current solid state technology doesn’t?
I think you may be right in that 'wondering'... apart from a handful of 'audiophile' mastering studios (which are absolutely outstanding) I don't think modern processes and equipment generally stand up to the traditional methods.
Nice review as always, thanks
DSD jump aside, do you think the differences are the cutting technology and pressing quality in each generational step 1969, 2001, 2023, and the one step is closer to the master tape sound, it would be good to know what MoFi used to benchmark the latest cut, if they used an original first pressing for example then it may not have been as clean, just a thought ?
Hi @Chunksville, glad you liked the review.
Without hearing the master tape it's very hard to say, but my gut feeling is that both the Classic and MOFI have been remastered / cut with 'clarity' as the primary concern. It's easy to go from the original to either and hear the benefits in this respect but equally there is a loss of 'life'. To expand upon the analogy I used in the video, think of the MOFI and The Classic Records as distilled water, triple distilled maybe in the case of the MOFI, and think of the original as fresh, mountain spring water...
This reminds me of why I like film. High res video is superior technically, but film has soul. Great review.
And that’s a great analogy! Thanks for your feedback.
Wally Heider's studio was possibly responsible for some of the greatest recordings of this era.
I have no issues whatsoever with the HDCD releases of this album, that of David Crosby's 'If I Could Only Remember My Name', and the first Stephen Stills album, some of which was recorded there also. The magic, beauty and treasure they contain is very special.
Thank you especially for your review of Muddy Waters, 'Folk Singer', a wonderful recording that had escaped me.
Love and Peace to you, and all your music loving viewers.
Thanks so much for your wonderful feedback @hallaiged
Very beautifully described, excellent job Sir! You make I feel a valid point about the 'Soul' or the sound of an album, which may or may not have to do with the 'clarity' of the pressing. BUT... we all know that the comparison that you are simply *DYING* to do, that you can't wait to do, and are breathlessly anticipating is... Between the MOV Dirt and the recent 2-LP release of course! 😃 I know, I know... I am truly the neighbourhood pest, my deepest and sincerest apologies. Sadly, I think it had something to do with my mother shaking me a tad too much when I was little...
LOL!
I'm expecting my son to visit in a couple of weeks and I will ask him to bring along his MOV Dirt...
@@DaveDenyer You are a good sport Sir! 😁
Which of the many different pressings of your original U.S. version of Deja vu do you have? If you think the Classic Records version of C,S &N sounds better than the original U.S. version, you should hear the 4-disc 200g, 45 rpm version from Classic Records. To me, this is the closest to my original Monarch U.S. pressings, as far as brightness goes.
Unfortunately I chose to get the single-disc 200g Classic Records version rather than the 4-disc, 200g, 45 rpm version. I found the single-disc 200g CR version to not be as bright as the original U.S. Monarch pressing.
The problem with my original U.S. pressings is that the vinyl is not as quiet as the CR versions.
I'll have to check which US original I have. To clarify, I actually think I prefer the originals over the Classic Records, and MOFI. They are different, but for me the originals just have the edge.
@@DaveDenyer This is also how I feel. Remember, most of these re-issues were sourced from 30-50 year old master tapes, and magnetic recording tape deteriorates and just plain worn from usage over the years. In the case of Atlantic Records, the original session tapes were burned in a warehouse fire back in the 1970's.
The One Step sounds murky tonally off. A mid 70s George Piros is the most dynamic version. Electric Recording Company is coming out with a copy in late 2023
I’ll have to track down one of those GP cuts. Thanks for the tip!
A mid 70s Piros US CSN debut sounds even better than the Original and a mint copy will cost you less than $20. You can tell the separation of the voices and even how far apart the guys are apart when singing various parts and stepping away from the microphone. The One Step is dreadful - detail, poor tonality, lacks air.
The Rhino release is completely unbalanced / overloaded in Wooden Ships