Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 14, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 14, 2007 Y'know, Dave, I think everyone realizes that the front end is analog, we're listening on CDs and MP3s, and that the music, musicians, and engineers make a larger difference than whether they tracked analog or digital. It's really obvious. It's sort of like the guy who asks: "Hey, what's a great microphone for doing vocals? And then someone comes along and says, "Well, you know, what matters far more than the microphone is who is singing into it. And you know, the mic preamp and the converter that you are using really affects your signal path. Oh, and make sure you have a good sounding room and that the person knows great microphone technique." Sure. But...what's a great microphone for doing vocals? And so the original question - with the assumption that everyone knows all of the above because we record and hang out here - is simply: "What is the best digital recording you've heard?" And yes, I mean digital as the multitrack capture medium, acknowledging all the rest. So, Dave, what is a digital multitrack recording that you really think sounds great? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Professor Tom Posted September 14, 2007 Members Share Posted September 14, 2007 Donald Fagen - Kamakiriad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dave Martin Posted September 14, 2007 Members Share Posted September 14, 2007 So, Dave, what is a digital multitrack recording that you really think sounds great? Well, a couple of PDQ Bach's Telarc recordings were probably digital, since I think Michael Bishop likes working that way. the 1712 Overture and Oedipus Tex sounded great (though I'm not sire if it isn't simply that I love those compositions). Mavis Staples' record from a couple of years ago might well have been recorded digitally, and I think it's wonderful (though that might be because avis is the best singer there is). Joe DeFrancesco's Goodfella's CD makes me smile (and it might be recorded digitally), and at the risk of sounding self-serving, I'm really proud of Carolyn Martin's "Swing" CD ( http://cdbaby.com/cd/carolynmartin2 ), which is the only one of these that I'm SURe was recorded and mixed in Pro Tools... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Beck Posted September 15, 2007 Members Share Posted September 15, 2007 The quality of the songs, the musicians, the engineers, the mics and signal chain and even the recording environment - ALL are more important than whether it's a 'digital' recording. I would say equally important, but a strong link in the chain does not make up for a weak link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lsits Posted September 16, 2007 Members Share Posted September 16, 2007 Peter Gabriel - So. I beleive it was one of the first digital recordings. Correct me if I'm wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Han Posted September 16, 2007 Members Share Posted September 16, 2007 Peter Gabriel - So. I beleive it was one of the first digital recordings. Correct me if I'm wrong. I think 'So' is an AAD recording. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dave Martin Posted September 16, 2007 Members Share Posted September 16, 2007 I would say equally important, but a strong link in the chain does not make up for a weak link. Gotta disagree with that - I love the Elmore James recordings, and the blues recordings that Alan Lomax did for the Library of Congress. The technical quality of those recordings was awful, but it doesn't matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted September 16, 2007 Author Members Share Posted September 16, 2007 Yeah, amazingly, the songs and the musicians are still more important! Add to that a bunch of amazing field recordings from the early 1900s until recently from all over the world, and Harry Smith's amazing recordings, Robert Johnson, Fred McDowell, the SoundWays collections (Panama Funk and Colombia CDs), and the "Old Time Music of West Virginia" series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rudolf von Hagenwil Posted September 16, 2007 Members Share Posted September 16, 2007 Peter Gabriel - So. I beleive it was one of the first digital recordings. Correct me if I'm wrong. In 1979, the first digital Compact Disc prototype was created. The first compact disc rolled off the Philips production line in 1982, I can't remember what the titel was, but I have copies of the very first CD who went into pressing. The first digital recording where done many years before that date, for example the picture lazer discs already had digital audio data. In 1967, the first digital tape recorder was invented. In 1968 the PCM-30 standard was introduced. The first digital 8-track reel to reel came in circa 1972. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dave Martin Posted September 17, 2007 Members Share Posted September 17, 2007 I would say equally important, but a strong link in the chain does not make up for a weak link. I just saw this again, and now I want to know what you consider to be a 'weak' link? Digital converters? Hard drives? CD's? What? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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