With the release of the remastered CD editions of their albums and singles the Beatles once more have broken new musical ground: giving fans the chance to experience updated recordings that sound dramatically better than the originals ever did.
As I did my listening marathon working my way through the stereo remaster collection, I kept thinking: “Hey, these guys really were as good as I thought they were.”
Back in the day, you never really could tell. A typical Beatlemania era concert was more about screaming crowds than the band’s music. The music systems of the ‘60s were primitive and stereo was then an innovation. (That’s why purists regard the mono collection as more definitive of the Beatles work.) George Martin, the Beatles’ justly celebrated producer, did great work with the technology of the times. But all in all Beatles recordings were a muffled mess and stayed that way through their march from LP disks and singles to tape to CD.
While their ‘60s rivals The Rolling Stones updated their CDs regularly to reflect updates in technology (and also stayed together as an act for all the intervening years), the Beatles catalog up until now has been frozen in time to the start of the CD era. The remasters for the first time use digital technology to restore lost frequencies, eliminate analog recording noise (such as tape hiss), and achieve proper stereo separation.
The result is a revelation.
For one thing, the traditional view of the Beatles -- great songwriters, but modestly talented singers and musicians -- is just wrong. Particularly on the early recordings which used to sound like a musical mush, the remasters now clearly define the four instrumental performances and vocals. Turns out, Paul McCartney and John Lennon had much more distinctive vocal styles than we realized at the time. (Come on, Baby Booomers, confess: you always faked it when you identified a song as a “John” or a “Paul” lead vocal.) Ringo did a lot more cymbal work and also played a wider range of percussion instruments than we ever knew. George’s guitar work was solid.
It is particularly fascinating to discover on the remasters that the Beatles accents were much apparent on their vocals than when we heard the originals.
Perhaps the biggest deal on the remaster is that their lyrics are now are crystal clear. If you work your way through them chronologically like I did, you can see them evolve from their early routine love songs with a rock beat into their later complex poetry with a sophisticated soundscape.
I periodically gripe that I have paid for the Beatles songs way too many times. But I don’t begrudge this investment. The Beatles never sounded better. Literally.
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Can Do
It’s a rule of high-end headphones that open-back designs always outperform sealed designs. But Denon, the Japanese high-end audio conglomerate, has just broken the rules.
The terminology refers to the outside casing of the headphones. Open designs have (doh!) openings so that the sound waves from the speaker drivers (the devices that make the sound) can radiate outward. In sealed designs the back is solid and sound waves stay inside. The sealed design, which broadcast and audio engineers favor, is why their slang for headphones is “cans” -- which is what a sealed phone resembles.
While closed architecture means you don’t disturb the person next to you and external noise is reduced, it also usually means that what you hear sounds muffled because the drivers are working with a confined volume of air.
Denon’s D2000/D5000/D7000 series of audiophile headphones magically avoid that. It’s not magic, of course, but solid design and quality components. But one has to guess exactly how they did it because Denon resisted the temptation to hype its product cutesy brand names for its design or technobabble bragging on its marketing materials.
The result in any case is a pair of headphones that have a spacious, three dimensional sound. You experience the audio as if you are listening in a roomy environment with the performers and instruments placed around you. (Excellent “soundstage” in audio jargon.) Listening to headphones sometimes can be tiring because you sense the sound blasting into each year with little in the middle.
Denons are strong in the midrange and highs, with a solid but not obtrusive bass. If your tastes run to the harder forms of rock and you want all bass, all the time, look elsewhere. Classical and jazz sound vibrant while rock and pop are crisp. As with all high end headphones, you will hear the difference between top-rate and mediocre audio engineering work on recording and between audiophile and lower quality recording technologies. Hint: low-quality MP3 will sound horrible.
While the headphones are large in size, they are lightweight and comfortable. Most wearers will particularly like the fact that the Denons put relatively little pressure on the side of your head; none of that vice-clamp-like grip that many large headphones have. If there is a downside, it’s that despite the closed back, the Denons do not seem to block out as much external noise as one might like. I’m guessing that’s the downside of the soft pressure and soft padding on the earcups.
The other downside is the effect on your wallet. The three models are priced at outrageous ($1,000), expensive ($600 list but available for less than $500), and pricey ($300). Not something for an impulse buy. But the if you are a serious music lover, you will love the Denon sound.
The terminology refers to the outside casing of the headphones. Open designs have (doh!) openings so that the sound waves from the speaker drivers (the devices that make the sound) can radiate outward. In sealed designs the back is solid and sound waves stay inside. The sealed design, which broadcast and audio engineers favor, is why their slang for headphones is “cans” -- which is what a sealed phone resembles.
While closed architecture means you don’t disturb the person next to you and external noise is reduced, it also usually means that what you hear sounds muffled because the drivers are working with a confined volume of air.
Denon’s D2000/D5000/D7000 series of audiophile headphones magically avoid that. It’s not magic, of course, but solid design and quality components. But one has to guess exactly how they did it because Denon resisted the temptation to hype its product cutesy brand names for its design or technobabble bragging on its marketing materials.
The result in any case is a pair of headphones that have a spacious, three dimensional sound. You experience the audio as if you are listening in a roomy environment with the performers and instruments placed around you. (Excellent “soundstage” in audio jargon.) Listening to headphones sometimes can be tiring because you sense the sound blasting into each year with little in the middle.
Denons are strong in the midrange and highs, with a solid but not obtrusive bass. If your tastes run to the harder forms of rock and you want all bass, all the time, look elsewhere. Classical and jazz sound vibrant while rock and pop are crisp. As with all high end headphones, you will hear the difference between top-rate and mediocre audio engineering work on recording and between audiophile and lower quality recording technologies. Hint: low-quality MP3 will sound horrible.
While the headphones are large in size, they are lightweight and comfortable. Most wearers will particularly like the fact that the Denons put relatively little pressure on the side of your head; none of that vice-clamp-like grip that many large headphones have. If there is a downside, it’s that despite the closed back, the Denons do not seem to block out as much external noise as one might like. I’m guessing that’s the downside of the soft pressure and soft padding on the earcups.
The other downside is the effect on your wallet. The three models are priced at outrageous ($1,000), expensive ($600 list but available for less than $500), and pricey ($300). Not something for an impulse buy. But the if you are a serious music lover, you will love the Denon sound.
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