This is a different spin on the CD vs. Vinyl debate.

I was sorting out some records and stuff today, and I found some old cassette versions of Bowie albums that I haven't listened to since CD's became the norm... and I put them on.

WOW! The sounded a whole lot better than the CDs... obviously the Remastering lost something, and a lot of the mixes are quite different... the Tapes is warmer and more ... dense ... than the CDs. Even the slightly different track running orders give a different spin on the albums... the aural equivalent of the actual 'sound' differences. If that makes sense.

The analogue hiss and analogue sound revealled memories that I thought lost. The whole feel of the recordings is so different. I recommend all you old time fans dig out the cassettes and see what happens after all the years listening to the sterile compact discs.

I always thought that Records sounded better than CD and Tape. CD's are just easier to use.

T.ReX☼BowiE

'You'll be shooting up on anything,tomorrows never there...'

Did Bowie ever release any Reel to Reel tapes? Some audiophiles actually swear by these as the best sounding sound carrier. I've yet to hear one because they are so hard to find, even for hunter and collector such as myself.

BFP

I've seen the RCA MWSTW on reel to reel, and lot's of 8-track cartridges.

I think it's just down to the actual original mixes having more density... the remastering process requires a stripping down of the tracks and rebuilding... in essense remixing it, and it is nearly impossible to regain the original mixes again, even if following to producer's instruction sheet down to the letter.

Even the RCA CD's have that unremastered sound that I'm talking about. The digital remastering has definitely taken off a layer of magic.

The sound quality on 8-tracks is'nt that good, it all depends on what kind of condition they are in, the pads in the 8-tracks tend to rot.

"The sex is in the rhythm"

So my original Bowie vinyl is, in essense, the most authoritative Bowie sound carrier? European or US vinyl?

BFP

Japanese?

There's a picture of the Alladin Sane reel to reel in the 30th anniversary issue booklet.

In reply to:

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The digital remastering has definitely taken off a layer of magic.

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Are there any particulary good remastering projects that don't lose that warmth or whateveritis that makes the vinyl and tapes sound "better?"

I bought the gold, Au 20 CD of Heroes when they were out. Any opinion on them? Sadly it was the only one I could afford before they effectively disappeared. I don't have Heroes on vinyl anymore, so I can't really compare them...

I don't want the world, I just want your half

I'm not sure it is the 'warmth' thing lots of people suggest about digital sound carriers... in my experience the problem is with the digital remixing not getting the levels of the instruments correct when they put songs back together again.

Compare RCA Station To Station (the second half of the song) (any format) and the Ryko Disc version. It hangs limp, the soaring backing vocals are a touch quieter and the guitar is a bit more hidden. Together it rips the heart from the song.

Dr Toby Mountain did a good job, but it perhaps was rushed (??)

Also compare the recent ZS reissue for the digital technicians cocking up a remaster. ...bits of songs are missing!