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aaronk
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| Posted: 07 September 2010 at 11:08pm | IP Logged
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I briefly mentioned in another thread the fidelity problems with the song "Lovefool." Are there any CDs that do not have phase problems? If you do a fold down of the song, or if you've ever heard this song on a mono alarm clock radio, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. (It used to drive me nuts every time my station played this and I was listening on my clock radio.)
If you do a fold down, you'll hear the song get muddy/swishy at the following sections:
0:13-0:15
0:55-0:57
1:04-1:08
1:23-1:27
1:59-2:02
2:06-2:38
3:11-end
Also, there is a strange ticking noise on the end of my copy, which was also on the end of the copy we always played on the air. It's the same sound you get when a CD has a scratch. Are all copies like this?
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jimct
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| Posted: 07 September 2010 at 11:32pm | IP Logged
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Aaron, I am not very optomistic that my "Lovefool" promo CD single will sound any better than what you already own, but let me know if you'd like to hear what I've got, just for comparison's sake.
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aaronk
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| Posted: 07 September 2010 at 11:35pm | IP Logged
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Actually, Jim, just one minute ago, I pulled out my import CD single, and it has the same problem. My other source is a Promo Only radio compilation, which is likely just a dub of the promo CD. Thanks for the offer, though.
Edited by aaronk on 07 September 2010 at 11:35pm
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EdisonLite
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| Posted: 08 September 2010 at 7:54am | IP Logged
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IIRC, another issue about this song is that on the album, the song abruptly gets cut off before the last note fades out because the song goes immediately into another song. So I, too, bought the import CD single that Aaron and Jim refer to above. That one doesn't cut off abruptly - the last note fades out naturally and goes longer than the album version.
I never noticed any muddy/swishy/phase issues when hearing this in stereo. Aaron, is it only noticeable when you fold down to mono, or does it also get muddy in those spots on the regular stereo version?
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aaronk
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| Posted: 08 September 2010 at 8:05am | IP Logged
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It's VERY noticeable when you fold it to mono. It sounded terrible on mono radios. I can hear only a very slight change in fidelity during those passages, although I probably wouldn't have noticed it if I didn't know which spots were problematic.
Does the full length album have the clicking on the last note and the phase issues, or was this only a problem on the un-segued single copies?
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crapfromthepast
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| Posted: 08 September 2010 at 7:32pm | IP Logged
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Checked the versions on Hitmakers Vol. 126 and Top Hits USA RH40, and both have the problem you described.
Sounds like some badly aligned tape heads - almost surprising to hear that as late as 1996, when the world was moving to recording straight to hard drive.
Does anyone have the full LP? (First Band On the Moon? I forget the title...)
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EdisonLite
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| Posted: 08 September 2010 at 9:56pm | IP Logged
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I don't have the full LP so I can't answer that question. I got rid of it once I bought the CD single.
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Brian W.
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| Posted: 09 September 2010 at 12:58am | IP Logged
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Is it possible this was mixed in Q-sound?
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Hykker
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| Posted: 09 September 2010 at 5:46am | IP Logged
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Brian W. wrote:
| Is it possible this was mixed in Q-sound? |
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I was wondering the same thing myself, or maybe it was a poorly-executed (but intentional) effect.
I once worked at a station where the production director would play with phasing to create stereo effects...his response when it was pointed out that there was mono phase cancellation was that "no one listens in mono anymore". He didn't last long.
Edited by Hykker on 09 September 2010 at 5:47am
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crapfromthepast
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| Posted: 09 September 2010 at 7:07am | IP Logged
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Before I listened to the track, I also wondered if it were deliberate. But the times where the L/R summation gets warbly (see first post) don't correspond to real sections in the song. It gets wacky at random times, which leads me to think that it's unintentional.
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aaronk
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| Posted: 09 September 2010 at 9:37am | IP Logged
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Yes, I don't think it's intentional either. I'm leaning toward bad tape head alignment, too. It's doubtful that the full length album is any better, but you never know. I hope someone on the board has it and can report back.
What about the clicking sound at the end? That doesn't sound intentional to me either. Is it a related problem, perhaps, caused by a bad tape machine?
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Top 40 Music on Compact Disc : Chat Board
Topic: Cardigans - Lovefool (fidelity issues)
