Guest antic Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 Is it only me, or the mastering / production of new Shpongle CD is - compared to say old Shpongle, Ott, Younger Brother, Hallucinogen in Dub (incl. Live), Third Ear, Yggdrasil - of inferior quality? 1. The music is quieter, which in itself is not a bad thing if it's used to expand dynamics; but I can't hear that. 2. It sound muddier, i.e. there's not enough separation between the sounds/layers except for the hi-hats, that stand out too much IMO. 3. And this bothers me the most - there's hardly any bass there except for the 4/4 parts. Does anyone share my views? Am I simply overreacting or need to invest in better sound system to hear what I heard in those other CDs I mention? (And yes, I have the actual CD bought directly from Twisted Records) ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deecay Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 someone on the twistedforum also complained about the sound quality of ineffable mysteries.. but simon said that they hired a mixing guy who had 35 years of experience and that it was intended to sound like that. give me some time and i will post a link to that thread on twistedforum. still i personally like the cd and its sound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frozen dream Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 just steer clear of soundmasters masterings, my guess is they've all gotten deaf there over the years i was listening happy pills on my ipod just a bit earlier and it does sound ok in those shit earplugs, the mid section pops out nicely while pushing highs and lows gently out (well the highs still stay overcompressed imo), just like it should be in earplugs, but when i play it on my monitor speakers at home i can't help to feel that the bass is drowning the rest and in turn they turned up the highs too much afterwards (so they sound a bit fatiguing or blowing, just too loud in general) and i got the same feeling with the new shpongle, they try to put the bass so loud the rest gets pushed back, then they turn up the highs too strong and all of the dynamic image gets flattened and the overall volume levels drop by overcrowding the whole frequency spectrum after all this is nitpicking on the overall sound image, but i do feel like the professional level is dropping. it might also depend on how much $ a studio can spend to invest in hours of post-production by an external studio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deecay Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 it might also depend on how much $ a studio can spend to invest in hours of post-production by an external studio. yeah i also think that this is an important point. especially as twisted isnt running that well in terms of financial issues. still i dont think that neither simon nor raja would take a loss in quality just to save some money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kathmandu Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 it is because Shpongle now is performing concerts with band members. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest D N H Posted December 2, 2009 Share Posted December 2, 2009 I have the same impression of bad sound by the vinyl version of hallucinogen's twisted twslp 5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mars Posted December 3, 2009 Share Posted December 3, 2009 I had the impression described here, the first time I listened to the album. These were (the controversial leaked) mp3s, and using my earplugs. But if I listen to the real CD now, on my Cambridge/Jamo sound system, it's neat! Besides, I agree many other masterings are super bad with the bass and compression drowning you to oblivion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supergroover Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 The mp3's that are going around seem to be bad indeed. Or are you playing the original cd? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest antic Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 These were (the controversial leaked) mp3s, and using my earplugs. But if I listen to the real CD now, on my Cambridge/Jamo sound system, it's neat! Or are you playing the original cd? Are you guys reading the topic you're replying to at all? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supergroover Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 guess i didnt read the last bit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goa Bill Posted December 5, 2009 Share Posted December 5, 2009 Sounds excellent here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simorq Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 Sounds excellent here +1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astrognomix Posted December 7, 2009 Share Posted December 7, 2009 Sounds excellent here +2... the album is amazing. Sounds like you need new speakers, if that is still bothersome, adjust your EQ... we all have different taste and like different levels of bass, etc. If it sounds bad, tune it down a little in the EQ, problem solved. I have found my Bose speakers, and headphones, to be too bass heavy by default, so I have it ever so slightly tweaked to reduce bass and increase higher frequencies a touch, sounds fantastic now. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphythecat Posted December 8, 2009 Share Posted December 8, 2009 the album is just perffect for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caffein:me Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 I've got to say this.. Raja can't hear shit for starters. He's seriously hearing impaired. His last set in cph was horrible,(not accounting for a lame ass party, bad equipment etc.) although I give the guy credit for having a lot of energy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sideffect... Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 sounds great... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest antic Posted December 9, 2009 Share Posted December 9, 2009 Ok, it does in fact sound good after all. I had to hear it on different systems to see that. Immediate difference between this and e.g. Ott, HiD or Third Ear Audio is that in many of the tracks here the bass is more droning, instead of being 'plucked' (in a lack of a better word) on the bass guitar / synth, i.e. there's mostly no steep/hard attack on the ADSR envelope. Also in a lot of tracks here ('Nothing is something worth doing', 'Invisible man...', 'Electroplasm', parts of 'Ineffable mysteries') the bass is not used as a rhythmic device, but as a means to accentuate certain parts of the tunes, to build the tension, to distinguish different sections, etc. Overall, I think that this is the best Shpongle album yet - you could collect 8 better tunes from all 3 previous albums, but as a single CD this one beats all the others hands down. If only they ditched the singing in 'I am you' and 'No turn un-stoned' it would be perfect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphythecat Posted December 12, 2009 Share Posted December 12, 2009 Ok, it does in fact sound good after all. I had to hear it on different systems to see that. Immediate difference between this and e.g. Ott, HiD or Third Ear Audio is that in many of the tracks here the bass is more droning, instead of being 'plucked' (in a lack of a better word) on the bass guitar / synth, i.e. there's mostly no steep/hard attack on the ADSR envelope. Also in a lot of tracks here ('Nothing is something worth doing', 'Invisible man...', 'Electroplasm', parts of 'Ineffable mysteries') the bass is not used as a rhythmic device, but as a means to accentuate certain parts of the tunes, to build the tension, to distinguish different sections, etc. Overall, I think that this is the best Shpongle album yet - you could collect 8 better tunes from all 3 previous albums, but as a single CD this one beats all the others hands down. If only they ditched the singing in 'I am you' and 'No turn un-stoned' it would be perfect. +10000 BUT, well, i think that AYS is a little tiny bit better, but yes, its a classic already, and i didnt expect this from simon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.