Originally Posted by
Macca
Aside from a few CDs with too much compression (mainly 'Best Of' compliations) I don't have this problem at all.
Example: I have 'Let It Bleed' on original CD and the painstaking SACD re-master. Yes the re-master sounds a little better, but both it and the original sound good. Good enough that I wouldn't actually care which I listened to.
Not saying there is not a difference between various pressings and masterings, but it isn't as big a difference as say going from a competent phono stage to a really good one. With vinyl, especially, spending more money (in the right way) can really jump things up by a big margin.
That makes sense, and of course upgrading your audio chain has the potential to improve things significantly. But my point is that it's a slippery slope. Yes, you can get a better phono stage, and your LPs will sounds better. But then you'll start thinking "wow, if this upgrade improved things so much, can you imagine if I went for that other even fancier phono preamp?" So there is no end to upgraditis.
With different mastering/pressing etc., I found out that once I get my hands on a decent pressing, I'm 100% satisfied. I'm freed from "well, if this pressing is such an improvement, can you imagine if I stumbled upon some pressing that would be even better?" No, once the pressing sounds to my liking, that's the end of the road, and from then onwards I'm left alone to just enjoy the music in peace.
Don't you just hate it when you cannot detect where the post ends and a signature line begins?
Alex.