General Music Chat

Yeah, that's a great documentary! All about their humble beginnings to their current status. Man, those guys are survivors. Musical soldiers in a way.

Man, when I was a kid I HATED Rush with a passion. In hindsight, Geddy's piercingly high vocals and all the 80's synth crap initially turned me off. But,2112 is one of my favorite albums now. Maybe Primus and Tatsuya Yoshida had something to do with it.

It is odd how I've reevaluated certain music as I got older. Billy Squier was another one. Hated him then. Like him now. Gawd, I hope I never turn into the kind of person I hated.

Although I was not a "Squier" fan, I did admire his knack for guitar riffs and song writing.

Billy Squier was another one. Hated him then. Like him now. Gawd, I hope I never turn into the kind of person I hated.

how could anyone hate Billy Squire? He was soooooo - 80's
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fR0j7sModCI

I always hated the rumble, needle noises, pops and scratches, along with the ungodly compression and conversions they had to use for vinyl just to get more bass response in the grove. I used to know the compression ratios but that was some time ago.

I like 24 bit digital, and I bet 32 would sound right out of heaven. I LOVE the low or invisible noise floor and the pristine highs and sub sonic low end that nothing else compares to. The bandwidth is really to die for.

I liked Vinyl I even liked tape when it came along. But my ears can hear stuff the digital format captures that vinyl or tape never could.

I like wav files, but at 256K mp3's sound really good. I convert all my wav to 256K MP3's for my MP3 player. The bandwidth improves quite a bit.

To me, preferring vinyl to digital is like saying I really miss the fuzzy wavy snow ridden pictures we used to get on our old TV. This high def digital stuff really sucks.

But to each his or her own I guess. All depends on what your ears hear. Hang in there, digital media will only continue to expand it's horizens.

Live musicians need to proceed with caution: Anything you do in the studio, the listener will expect you to pull off live.

Whats kind of funny about this is, I went to see Rush live and now I have a hard time listening to the studio albums. Rush live is 100 times better IMO.

Oh yeah, Rush's chops are insane live! They are the prime example of professional musicians. You know you're getting more when you go to a live show. That's how it should be.

Right, so, one of the reasons I've never seen Rush live is because everyone I've known who saw them live said they played just like the album.

Which would bore me to tears.

If I want it just like the album, I'll listen to the album.

Yeah, that's a great documentary! All about their humble beginnings to their current status. Man, those guys are survivors. Musical soldiers in a way.

Man, when I was a kid I HATED Rush with a passion. In hindsight, Geddy's piercingly high vocals and all the 80's synth crap initially turned me off. But,2112 is one of my favorite albums now. Maybe Primus and Tatsuya Yoshida had something to do with it.

It is odd how I've reevaluated certain music as I got older. Billy Squier was another one. Hated him then. Like him now. Gawd, I hope I never turn into the kind of person I hated.

Okay, so I went just the opposite direction. I loved Rush when I was kid. One of my favorite bands. Not so much any more. I pretty much don't listen to anything after Fly By Night by them and I can take them or leave them, really.

Been there, done that. Bored now.

You are the first person I've ever heard say this - I've never compared vinyl with digital so I dunno - but I'm sure the vinyl purists will be creating Slacker G dolls and sticking needles in it after they read this

I always hated the rumble, needle noises, pops and scratches, along with the ungodly compression and conversions they had to use for vinyl just to get more bass response in the grove. I used to know the compression ratios but that was some time ago.

I like 24 bit digital, and I bet 32 would sound right out of heaven. I LOVE the low or invisible noise floor and the pristine highs and sub sonic low end that nothing else compares to. The bandwidth is really to die for.

I liked Vinyl I even liked tape when it came along. But my ears can hear stuff the digital format captures that vinyl or tape never could.

I like wav files, but at 256K mp3's sound really good. I convert all my wav to 256K MP3's for my MP3 player. The bandwidth improves quite a bit.

To me, preferring vinyl to digital is like saying I really miss the fuzzy wavy snow ridden pictures we used to get on our old TV. This high def digital stuff really sucks.

But to each his or her own I guess. All depends on what your ears hear. Hang in there, digital media will only continue to expand it's horizens.

I always hated the rumble, needle noises, pops and scratches, along with the ungodly compression and conversions they had to use for vinyl just to get more bass response in the grove. I used to know the compression ratios but that was some time ago.

I like 24 bit digital, and I bet 32 would sound right out of heaven. I LOVE the low or invisible noise floor and the pristine highs and sub sonic low end that nothing else compares to. The bandwidth is really to die for.

I liked Vinyl I even liked tape when it came along. But my ears can hear stuff the digital format captures that vinyl or tape never could.

I like wav files, but at 256K mp3's sound really good. I convert all my wav to 256K MP3's for my MP3 player. The bandwidth improves quite a bit.

To me, preferring vinyl to digital is like saying I really miss the fuzzy wavy snow ridden pictures we used to get on our old TV. This high def digital stuff really sucks.

But to each his or her own I guess. All depends on what your ears hear. Hang in there, digital media will only continue to expand it's horizens.

I hear you Slacker, but, the CD was a great medium. As an audiophile, I went to CD because of the short-comings vinyl had. I have a huge collection of platters that I converted to CD. Cassettes were a step above vinyl, but they had their own problems(along with a whole lot of good points). At home, I use studio grade equipment as my 'home stereo system'. The young guns laugh at me, but then they shut up when I fire it up, and suddenly, it sounds like Robert Plant is standing right in front of them.

Although I was not a "Squier" fan, I did admire his knack for guitar riffs and song writing.

He was just a Robert Plant ripoff.

Although I was not a "Squier" fan, I did admire his knack for guitar riffs and song writing.

He was just a Robert Plant ripoff.

There is a difference between being a 'ripoff', and being 'influenced' by another singer. Did Billy Idol create his sneer, or did he get it from Sid Vicious? or did Sid get it from Elvis?

There is a difference between being a 'ripoff', and being 'influenced' by another singer. Did Billy Idol create his sneer, or did he get it from Sid Vicious? or did Sid get it from Elvis?

I thought his leather pants were just uncomfortable.

There is a difference between being a 'ripoff', and being 'influenced' by another singer. Did Billy Idol create his sneer, or did he get it from Sid Vicious? or did Sid get it from Elvis?

I thought his leather pants were just uncomfortable.

Billy was the quintessential rip off artist, and his "owners" knew it. (I have a feeling this comment will bite me in the butt one day)

I always hated the rumble, needle noises, pops and scratches, along with the ungodly compression and conversions they had to use for vinyl just to get more bass response in the grove. I used to know the compression ratios but that was some time ago.

I like 24 bit digital, and I bet 32 would sound right out of heaven. I LOVE the low or invisible noise floor and the pristine highs and sub sonic low end that nothing else compares to. The bandwidth is really to die for.

I liked Vinyl I even liked tape when it came along. But my ears can hear stuff the digital format captures that vinyl or tape never could.

I like wav files, but at 256K mp3's sound really good. I convert all my wav to 256K MP3's for my MP3 player. The bandwidth improves quite a bit.

To me, preferring vinyl to digital is like saying I really miss the fuzzy wavy snow ridden pictures we used to get on our old TV. This high def digital stuff really sucks.

But to each his or her own I guess. All depends on what your ears hear. Hang in there, digital media will only continue to expand it's horizens.

Humm... I'm not sure I'm clear about all you said there Slacker. I was not reffering to my funky Sears turntable with a metal needle now. I used to cut vinyl although I would not say I was the best at it. We never really used much compression and there are no such conversions that I remember. If you had to take a bit of the lows out to not jump the groove you did. Once in a blue moon we would hit a comp pretty softly but not often. I was always concerned more with frequencies in relationship to real estate. Nothing worse than running out of laquer before the songs over. Not bad if your flying off of multitrack but if your direct, well you started looking for another job. As for 24 bit. I'm not as concerned with bit rate as I am with sampling rate. It's the stair stepping that altogether bothers me. I could draw this out to show just what you don't in digital get but it's all academic and boring. There's no real battle between analog and digital. They both have their good and bad. But no matter what you use to capture your performance, compressing it down to mp3 is just taking your art and pissing all over it. Why record 24/96 if your going to end up with crap? I've worked with all the lossless codecs, Flac and the like. There's a reason they call it lossless and not lossnothing! If you are working in digital though, I do advise investing in a super clock. I don't care what converters you own....until you steady clock them...you have not heard their capabilities. It's expensive but worth it. Okay enough tech talk. I'm making this all start to sound nerdy. Time for a drink!

As I've stated before, I have a huge collection of vinyl and an excellent turntable. I prefer an LP, even with all its occasional pops and hisses, to a CD. You just have to make sure you have a quality stylus and take care of your records. I've done side by side comparisons, in particular with UB40's "Labor of Love". The bass sounds more real, as do the vocals. You do lose a little on the high end.

As I've stated before, I have a huge collection of vinyl and an excellent turntable. I prefer an LP, even with all its occasional pops and hisses, to a CD. You just have to make sure you have a quality stylus and take care of your records. I've done side by side comparisons, in particular with UB40's "Labor of Love". The bass sounds more real, as do the vocals. You do lose a little on the high end.

CDs were always problematic. When they came out in the 80's the low end was shite and the high end was often too shrill. They got better at making 'em and the converters improved. But, I don't get it why studios often record at 24bits when CD's are STILL a measly 16bits. You'd think it could capture a broader frequency range if CD's matched the studio's specs a little closer. Add to that the shorter shelf life CD's have compared to vinyl. The aluminum film inside continues to rot away, making expensive beer coasters.

All considered, vinyl is still the best format to archive music on. CD's are disposable. Cassettes are in-between, concerning shelf-life and sound quality. MP3s are pure sh*t. Nice to try stuff on. But, no staying power, lower quality, etc. JMHO

Interesting thread. I'll just say this.... Everything we play and sing is real, no pitch correction, no effects outside of what is available on the amplifier, THE REAL DEAL.... but.... I have to wonder if this just loses us audience.
I mean it's like trying to get kids intested in playing a card game with you when they have whatever is the latest game console right there at their fingertips. There is little chance they won't prefer the technology. All that having been said, I know we will continue to play our instruments and sing with no pitch correction technology at all. If this makes us dinosaurs, fine, I just hope at least some folks find dinosaurs more entertaining than technology.

WB