Modern music sucks, and these pics prove it!

[Stormwatch]

In this image, you see the same song twice: "Home by the Sea" by Genesis -- the original '83 release and the '04 Platinum Collection version.



What is the difference? The new version appears to be much louder. But what if you set the volume so that they are equally loud? In iTunes, for example, there is the "sound check" preference that does it automatically. What do they sound like at the same actual volume?

The "loud" version sounds muffled, like a cassete tape. It's almost like the speakers are wrapped in a towel. Especially the drums. Sometimes, you can barely hear them.

And why is that? There is a limit to the amplitude of sound in a CD. You can't make the loud louder than the loudest, so you take the soft and make it closer to the loud. That is how they make those "loud" records. Problem is, drums make "spikes". They are supposed to be louder than the other instruments. Remember the amplitude: what if every other instrument is already on the maximum? How to get even louder? There is no louder.

And the point is moot: since you own the volume knob, those records are not actually louder; they're just squashed. Again, an image says much:



Now that was actually just me and Photoshop, so it may not be 100% precise, but it shows what I mean. The same song: in red, the original; in blue, the "loud" version, adjusted for volume. See the difference? The loud version loses the "spikes". They've been squashed.

What's truly sad is that it is not an aberration. Most recent albums are even worse. They've been getting louder and louder for around a decade now. No one wants their record to be the softest in a bunch. Who pays the price? Your ears. The music is all loud, all the time, and even if you turn down the volume, it gets fatiguing and unpleasant pretty quickly.

So, if you ever wondered why today's music is crap... it's not a lack of talented musicians (although there is a lot of crap out there). It's engineered that way, because clueless record label business types treat music like a damn penis size contest.

[Christuserloeser]

Yeah, that's what a compressor does. Honestly I like compression e.g. on voices, but the problem is it's used way too much usually.

- That's why commercials are way louder than the actual TV program btw.

[|darc|]

The best way you can avoid this is to find needledrops on the internet.

Because vinyl doesn't have this problem, people with excellent audio equipment take virgin (never played) vinyl records and record them. You get extremely high quality audio like that. That is, only if the vinyl hasn't been made from the digital master, I'm not sure if they do that or not, as I don't get needledrops that often.

[JKKDARK]

This problem didn't happen when Glam Metal was the dominant Rock music!

[Ex-Cyber]

There's a decent article on this phenomenon (and why it's so bad) here.

[MulletMan13]

Yeah it's really sad how all of my mp3 rips and such from common era of music sound loud even when my speakers are set to about 20%. I'm never turning my speaker volume up at all because it never requires it... it's unfortunate that turning the volume down on the computer and up on the speaker end doesn't do anything since the source is the problem.

[not just souLLy now]

It's called the loudness war, it's been going on for a while. Yes it sucks, a lot.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war

Using a player that supports replay gain is one way of making sure all your tracks are at roughly the same volume, however it doesn't replace the dynamic range that is lost when something is mastered badly like this.

[jaredfogle]

I hate this.

But hey, everyone calls bullshit on me when I say I can hear 320 MP3 compression; so you go eat a dick, Stormwatch.

[Jaded JAaron77]

I hate this.

But hey, everyone calls bullshit on me when I say I can hear 320 MP3 compression; so you go eat a dick, Stormwatch.

actually, you're not alone there. I can still hear some muffled-ness and compression in mp3 at 320kbps. I've got a good example too, 2:34 into the Anberlin song "Audrey, Start the Revolution!" is a guitar rift that can only barely be heard on my 250kbps mp3 (at 128 it can't be heard at all), even though on the CD it is clear as day. On my 320kbps mp3 it's just as loud as it is on the CD, but it sounds just a little bit flatter and a little muffled.

[not just souLLy now]

This isn't about MP3 compression, this is about CDs being mastered badly.
I'd call b/s on you being able to tell the difference though if those MP3s are securely ripped using the proper lame settings compared to a FLAC rip of the same CD. Virtually nobody can tell the difference, I'd assume you have MP3s made using a crap encoder personally.

[Christuserloeser]

There's no denying that a CD sounds way better than any MP3. I got some very good headphones and with NIN's Fragile I were able to easily tell the difference between my LAME encoded MP3s and the original CD.

However, the thing is that a high quality MP3 does sound fantastic. There's no reason not to prefer MP3 or OGG if you want small files with great quality.


Anyway, back on the topic of compression:

Because vinyl doesn't have this problem, people with excellent audio equipment take virgin (never played) vinyl records and record them.

It's true that vinyl doesn't suffer from this 'problem' as much as some recent CDs do.

However, I am not sure if an analogue to digital transfer from vinyl really is better. Either it's digital or it's analogue.

If it's an analogue recording, then there's no question about it that vinyl is the best choice to listen to it. If it is a digital recording then I would prefer a CD or MP3/OGG.



A compressor is a good thing if used correctly. During a mixing session it can be applied to single instrument or voice tracks to improve the overall sound. During the mastering a compressor is a good thing to give the loudest parts of a track some more punch.

Compressors itself can be analogue or digital, and there are many many different types of compressors.

They can't really be used for classic or jazz live recordings I think, and of course quieter parts probably shouldn't be compressed too much during the mastering - if at all.


The video showed what happens if you use maximum compression on an already fully mastered single mono track. What it did not show was how a combination of compression on single instrument, vocals and drum tracks during the mix and a wisely used slight compression during the mastering on the finished stereo mix did get the recording to where it was before the software compressor on its maximum settings was applied.

[jaredfogle]

This isn't about MP3 compression, this is about CDs being mastered badly.
I'd call b/s on you being able to tell the difference though if those MP3s are securely ripped using the proper lame settings compared to a FLAC rip of the same CD. Virtually nobody can tell the difference, I'd assume you have MP3s made using a crap encoder personally.

Firstly, I'm well aware of the subject at hand. I was drawing a parallel to a related problem with compressed music. Learn to read.

Do you have any idea how sensitive and discerning one's ear's have to be to tune an acoustic guitar and escape "accumulated error"? I'm a musician. I hear things you don't, I have to or else I sound bad.

You can't use my ears, and I can't use yours. I can hear it. Maybe not in rock or hip-hop, but certainly in jazz or classical. MP3 feels like fake drugs to me (sometimes). I've been disappointed enough times now to despise lossy compression as a whole.

[jaredfogle]

This isn't about MP3 compression, this is about CDs being mastered badly.
I'd call b/s on you being able to tell the difference though if those MP3s are securely ripped using the proper lame settings compared to a FLAC rip of the same CD. Virtually nobody can tell the difference, I'd assume you have MP3s made using a crap encoder personally.

Firstly, I'm well aware of the subject at hand. I was drawing a parallel to a related problem with compressed music. Learn to read.

Do you have any idea how sensitive and discerning one's ear's have to be to tune an acoustic guitar and escape "accumulated error"? I'm a musician. I hear things you don't, I have to or else I sound bad.

You can't use my ears, and I can't use yours. I can hear it. Maybe not in rock or hip-hop, but certainly in jazz or classical. MP3 feels like fake drugs to me (sometimes). I've been disappointed enough times now to despise lossy compression as a whole.

[not just souLLy now]

This isn't about MP3 compression, this is about CDs being mastered badly.
I'd call b/s on you being able to tell the difference though if those MP3s are securely ripped using the proper lame settings compared to a FLAC rip of the same CD. Virtually nobody can tell the difference, I'd assume you have MP3s made using a crap encoder personally.

Firstly, I'm well aware of the subject at hand. I was drawing a parallel to a related problem with compressed music. Learn to read.

Do you have any idea how sensitive and discerning one's ear's have to be to tune an acoustic guitar and escape "accumulated error"? I'm a musician. I hear things you don't, I have to or else I sound bad.

You can't use my ears, and I can't use yours. I can hear it. Maybe not in rock or hip-hop, but certainly in jazz or classical. MP3 feels like fake drugs to me (sometimes). I've been disappointed enough times now to despise lossy compression as a whole.

Quite the sensitive little soul aren't we? my apologies for doubting your superhuman hearing

[Stormwatch]

Alright, cool down, no fighting in my audiophile thread!

souLLy, I do not think jared was claiming to have super-human hearing; It's just logical to assume that someone with musical training can "grasp" sounds better.

[az_bont]

I can tell the difference between butter and "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter".

[Roofus]

I can tell the difference between butter and "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter".

No you can't. No one can. That's why they named it that, you lying Welsh bastard.

[S. Thompson]

Yeah - this has been a problem for a while. Unfortunately, most bands don't care or don't know enough about the mastering process to step in and do/say something.

- Fuzmeister