Duran Duran "remaster" request

[Rubellan]

Whoever gets the first DD album remaster, if you can please post a screenshot of the waveform of Planet Earth. I'm fearing the worst that it's a solid block. I just listened to the sound samples and can tell they are WAY too loud, and could even hear the dulled out echo effect from possible massive compression. Ironically, if you listen to the B side samples, they are much lower in volume and sound dynamically intact.

Plus, I want to know if the DVD that comes with the UK edition is actually PAL or NTSC.

I'm holding off on purchasing, mainly until I find out about the DVD format. I'm probably stuck buying the set at some point because that demo of P.E. sounds amazing.

[Andee1970]

Rub

If it's UK it will defo be PAL, never NTSC (US format), I'm looking forward to the DD stuff, after the shambles that was Spandau (incidently would of preffered that to be a solid wall of sound rather than the apprentice remaster hack job done on it)........maybe you may want to get your hands on the Span stuff and do a better job????

[Surly]

[quote][i]Originally posted by Andee1970[/i]
<br>Rub

If it's UK it will defo be PAL, never NTSC (US format), I'm looking forward to the DD stuff, after the shambles that was Spandau (incidently would of preffered that to be a solid wall of sound rather than the apprentice remaster hack job done on it)........maybe you may want to get your hands on the Span stuff and do a better job????
[/quote]

Actually, some recent EMI UK releases that I bought from Amazon UK have come with NTSC DVDs, such as the [i]Messages[/i] package by OMD, and I believe the Thomas Dolby best of as well. No time for me to check my copies right now, but I believe others can confirm.

"Words like conviction can turn into a sentence"

[obs]

[i]> Actually, some recent EMI UK releases that I bought from Amazon UK have come with NTSC DVDs, such as the Messages package by OMD,[/i]

OMD Messages is indeed NTSC, as is Ultravox's the Very Best of.

BTW, one of the reviews I read of Rio 2CD remaster is that it was better sounding than the 2002 remaster.

[Rubellan]

Also, I would love someone to post the name of the person who did the remastering for these two DD titles. It should be right there in the booklet. I've been searching online, but no info as yet.

[moni]

The DVD is NTSC Region 0 and the remastering was done by Andy Walter so it's a different guy from the one that did Rio. The box is very neat it has a poster and 5 prints and the Cd's and the DVD are in card sleeves. I haven't listened it to it yet so i can't comment on the sound quality.Shit i just noticed the guy that did the remastering is the very same person who did those Spandau Ballet remasters.

[moni]

Oh it seems like it's starting again this loudness war nonsense. Somebody has posted a bad review of Seven and the Ragged Tiger on amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seven-Ragged-Ti ... sim_m_h__3

[moni]

I just listened to the first Duran Duran disc and it sounds absolutely horrible tinny and very compressed i had to turn my volume down it was so bad. I also noticed a weird dropout on the camera clicks at the beginning of Girls On Film. I'm scared to listen to the second disc now and judging by my previous post Seven And The Ragged Tiger is just the same and i would be willing to bet it's the same guy who remastered that Andy Walter he is called and he was responsible for that horrible Journeys To Glory remaster as well. Let's just hope he is not involved in the forthcoming Notorious and Big Thing remasters as well as Arcadia.

[Andee1970]

I only have one thing to say for this remaster hack job {again]

Andy Walter = What a CUNT!!!!!!!

[moni]

In fairness i suppose the bonus tracks actually sound better which i think was the case with Journeys To Glory as well still a wee bit compressed though. It's as if they don't give a toss about the main album and feel people will just be happy to get the bonus stuff. Why don't they spend some money and get somebody decent to remaster these like Bob Ludwig instead of fobbing us off with this shite.

[Andee1970]

The bonus disc maybe good, but the it's the main LP we are all wanting as the previous versions are well shat, but not as shat as what the Twat Walter has done, so expect the rest of the Duran and Spandau stuff to sound fucking shit as well....

[crystal]

[quote][i]Originally posted by moni[/i]
<br>Oh it seems like it's starting again this loudness war nonsense. Somebody has posted a bad review of Seven and the Ragged Tiger on amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Seven-Ragged-Ti ... sim_m_h__3
[/quote]

Just had the 'listening pleasure' (the main album, my ears need a break now) myself. Always thought the original album didn't have a good mix, but what Walters has done to that now - congrats... sounds totally strange and even worse - tinny, low end boost and in a way MP3-like...

wonder if the band have even listened to those remasters, shame that they didn't at least overlook the remastering.

[FiveTenFifteen]

[quote]Originally posted by Rubellan
[br]Whoever gets the first DD album remaster, if you can please post a screenshot of the waveform of Planet Earth. I'm fearing the worst that it's a solid block. I just listened to the sound samples and can tell they are WAY too loud, and could even hear the dulled out echo effect from possible massive compression. Ironically, if you listen to the B side samples, they are much lower in volume and sound dynamically intact.
[/quote]

Here is a screenshot... Sadly, you are not wrong. It sounds awful, compressed to hell and shrill.

Given the effort that has gone into the packaging (which is fantastic) it is mind-boggling that the music - THE MUSIC! - the main point of the whole exercise after all! - should have been butchered so badly.

Sigh...

<img src="http://www.fivetenfifteen.com/dd-pe-2010-rem.gif" alt="Wave form of Duran Duran 'Planet Earth' 2010 remaster as WAV file" border="0"></img>

[BigManRestless]

How the fuck did that intro to Girls On Film get past *any* sort of quality control???

[Rubellan]

God, what a nightmare. I wonder if the Ask Katy email address was getting bombed with questions/complaints, hence the absence? Does anyone have access to Duran's official forum to see if anything is going on there? Perhaps all remastering engineers should be required to watch this, and then they could understand what we're bitching about:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvheOquAmyw