Question for the boomers: what was it like to live through major improvements in audio fidelity?

[RayDunzl]

If a TV can output ultraviolet, how does that make it 'better' than one that already does a top-flight job at outputting the visible spectrum?

You wouldn't need to lose viewing hours at the Tanning Salon.

Might hasten your cataracts, though.

 

[Audionaut]

Of course, there are also some deteriorations:
LP covers were sometimes an art form in their own right. Some were really style-defining.

And of course the mix tapes that you made for your girlfriend and made her love you forever.

 

[Robin L]

According to a review in the May/June Fanfare, the latest 2024 remastering of the Szell Beethoven cycle is a definite improvement, though I've lost track of how many times it's been digitally remastered before.

Listening to Symphony No. 1 now via Qobuz. Sounds fantastic.

Unfortunately, there have been big layoffs at Sony, so I think the days of big remastered boxes are coming to an end.

I'm not clear as to when this set was remastered. The set with this image on Tidal is Redbook. The single issues with the original covers (marked as 2018) is 24/192. They sound the same, as far as I can tell.

 

[Daverz]

I'm not clear as to when this set was remastered. The set with this image on Tidal is Redbook. The single issues with the original covers (marked as 2018) is 24/192. They sound the same, as far as I can tell.

Qobuz gives a 2024 release date. The bit-depth and sample rate are irrelevant IMO.

 

[wadude]

Growing up through the changes in audio tech was a decades long test of patience! Radio, vinyl and tape; ouch! Actually, during the '60s, radios were nice at the beach. '70s album covers, especially gatefolds, were good for removing stems and seeds. '80s tapes were useful, convenient and for many, even a creative outlet. Analog sources still offer pleasant diversions with lots of rabbit holes and nostalgic rituals, but the digital revolution has improved the overall quality of sound at every price point. Digital sources with vintage downstream gear can be a beautiful combination.

 

[Robin L]

Qobuz gives a 2024 release date. The bit-depth and sample rate are irrelevant IMO.

Right. However, the release date would be for that specific box, though the remaster work could have happened earlier. I've got this massive, wonderful box of the Busch Quartet and related ensembles issued on Warner Classics. The date of the box is 2015, but the remastering ranges from 1987 to 2015. And the cover of the remastered Szell/Cleveland set does not say when it was remastered. So, it's possible that that the set in question would have had an earlier remastering. Like I said, I listened to both, they sounded the same as far as I can tell and agree that hi-rez playback would not make the two sound any different.

 

[krabapple]

It's always funny when there's a rave review for the sound of a 'remaster' whose measurable differences, if any, are insignificant

I wonder if Fanfare does actual due diligence (waveform comparison)?

As the sort of nerd who does exactly that, I recall a remaster from years ago where all they did was change the overall level of the previous mastering by less than a dB.

 

[xanalog]

Honestly I could care less what medium/format is used (FM radio, cassette, R2R, 8-track, EL-cassette, vinyl, video-hifi, CD, DAT, MP3, FLAC, WAV, DSD etc) as it is about the music and not the medium.

Before recordable cassettes, you couldn't take your LP music with you. That was the game changer more than any other, because uninterrupted music - while mobile - did not exist before then.

A well-read man; my grandfather had a gramophone with metal needles and a stack of 78rpm LPs... He did not have much patience (or use) for rugrats, and demanded ultimate silence, while he read and listened in his rocking chair.
It took me some 20 years to realize, he had been my personal DJ and he taught me to appreciate that the hardware was no BFD, if you don't stfu and listen to the music.

What I don't like about the newer generations is that they don't really realize what a bunch spoiled, lucky stiffs they are (or will be) to have at their fingertips such a vast library of music to choose from... Whereas, as a boomer, we had to forage for that soul-food called music, no matter the source or the transport.

 

[Daverz]

Right. However, the release date would be for that specific box, though the remaster work could have happened earlier. I've got this massive, wonderful box of the Busch Quartet and related ensembles issued on Warner Classics. The date of the box is 2015, but the remastering ranges from 1987 to 2015. And the cover of the remastered Szell/Cleveland set does not say when it was remastered. So, it's possible that that the set in question would have had an earlier remastering. Like I said, I listened to both, they sounded the same as far as I can tell and agree that hi-rez playback would not make the two sound any different.

I'll try comparing with the big Sony Szell box if I have a chance.

 

[Robin L]

Before recordable cassettes, you couldn't take your LP music with you. That was the game changer more than any other, because uninterrupted music - while mobile - did not exist before then.

A well-read man; my grandfather had a gramophone with metal needles and a stack of 78rpm LPs... He did not have much patience (or use) for rugrats, and demanded ultimate silence, while he read and listened in his rocking chair.
It took me some 20 years to realize, he had been my personal DJ and he taught me to appreciate that the hardware was no BFD, if you don't stfu and listen to the music.

What I don't like about the newer generations is that they don't really realize what a bunch spoiled, lucky stiffs they are (or will be) to have at their fingertips such a vast library of music to choose from... Whereas, as a boomer, we had to forage for that soul-food called music, no matter the source or the transport.

I'm a Boomer and I've been swimming in vinyl and polycarbonate since I got out of High School. Just yesterday picked up 4 CDs of some pretty highfalutin' music - Bernstein/VPO, D-F-D, Mahler's "Das Lied von der Erde", Sir Adrian Boult, London Philharmonic, Vaughan Williams London Symphony and Tallis Fantasia and two discs of the pianist William Kapell. All for $4 as I volunteer for a library where donated CDs sell for $1 each. But when I was younger (so much younger than today) the same sorts of music also fell into my lap, back when record companies sent out loads of promo copies to big box record stores. This is what comes from working in big record stores. Of course, arranging one's life so that one can survive on the low wages of retail means that access to music must have meant a lot. One might say similar things about musicians.

 

[MattHooper]

As someone who lived through the transition from vinyl records to CDs, and then have gone back to listen to vinyl records again (as well as my ripped CDs)….

My own impression in revisiting the comparison is that, in practice, the sonic advantages of CDs weren’t necessarily as big as I had originally thought.

But I say that as a personal impression, not something I expect others to agree with.
There are obviously technical advantages for CD as well as true sonic advantages. But as I’ve said before, how significant those advantages are will be something like “in the eye of the beholder.” In playing either format in my own system, I find the differences in recording and mastering quality ultimately more obvious or significant than whether I’m playing a record or a CD file.

 

[Anton S]

... My own impression in revisiting the comparison is that, in practice, the sonic advantages of CDs weren’t necessarily as big as I had originally thought. ...

Does it hurt badly where you bumped your head?

Sonically, CD's annihilate vinyl records. Only those with masochistic tendencies would argue otherwise. Pick any standard metric - S/N, THD, channel separation, bandwidth, etc - and the difference in real-world performance is night and day. And that's not even taking all those tiresome clicks and pops into consideration.

 

[MattHooper]

Does it hurt badly where you bumped your head?

Not at all. In fact, the doctors said the bump on the head actually managed to improve my hearing.

Sonically, CD's annihilate vinyl records. Only those with masochistic tendencies would argue otherwise.

Sure, if you say so…hurts so good

 

[LtMandella]

It's been a blast! In late 60's I was building Dynaco and Heathkit products. In 70s and 80s buying Reel to Reels and NAD. In 90s I took a break.
In 2000s got into tubed electronics.
Now here I am in 2020s and loving the affordable Chinese great chip amps, great dacs, excellent reasonably priced speakers. Life is good for a boomer audiophile!
Except for the fact my hearing is deteriorating

 

[DodieSTL]

Mostly the crazy large collection (I still have) of Maxell 90 min cassettes dubbed from library CD's during the '80's that haven't been played for 2 decades.
What fun!
Streaming is a beautiful thing now...

 

[LtMandella]

What I don't like about the newer generations is that they don't really realize what a bunch spoiled, lucky stiffs they are

Funny you should say that because I feel the same way about my 19 year old son. And now that I think about it, I can remember my Dad saying the same thing to me. And I swear I can recall my Dad saying that _his_ Dad said the same thing to him!
and, and, and...
You get the idea.

 

[xanalog]

Another game changer was the realization that you were no longer wed (in holy matrimony) to your turntable.
I mean, like being married to a high-maintenance partner... who demanded your full attention, lest you forget to flip the LP (every 20 minutes).
The LP divorce was bitter sweet... until the realization that the 2nd marriage - to CDs - was similarly another maintenance nightmare (every 60 minutes).

Unattended and uninterrupted music is where it's at for me, since the start of the 21st Century.
Now, I practically run a harem in the house.
There are 4 music systems in the house, three of which can either play the same music or have different feeds from 5 different sources, 24/7/365.

 

[MattHooper]

Another game changer was the realization that you were no longer wed (in holy matrimony) to your turntable.
I mean, like being married to a high-maintenance partner... who demanded your full attention, lest you forget to flip the LP (every 20 minutes).
The LP divorce was bitter sweet... until the realization that the 2nd marriage - to CDs - was similarly another maintenance nightmare (every 60 minutes).

Unattended and uninterrupted music is where it's at for me, since the start of the 21st Century.
Now, I practically run a harem in the house.
There are 4 music systems in the house, three of which can either play the same music or have different feeds from 5 different sources, 24/7/365.

I have trying polygamy and polyandry I went back to monogamy (bought a turntable).

Feels more wholesome

 

[Petrushka]

I have trying polygamy and polyandry I went back to monogamy (bought a turntable).

Feels more wholesome

I just realized that for me, music is not a hobby. Is air to breathe.

The hobby part is keeping it clean and at a comfortable temperature. A essential activity, but not an end in itself.

 

[Emdub]

In the 60’s I was too busy enjoying the benefits of the sexual revolution to pay attention to audio improvements.