Dio: Holy Diver - Audio Fidelity 24kt Gold - selling out fast!

Steve Hoffman posted this on his board, will be mastering this week.

This certified Platinum album from 1983 is coming out as an Audio Fidelity 24 Karat Gold CD. I will be mastering this at Marsh Mastering in Hollywood on Tuesday the 27th of December. There is room on the couch for two lucky Forum members.

http://www.marshmastering.com/

We have gathered elements for mastering from several sources, including all analogs, all digitals and all previous vinyl and CD releases. We are even getting a set of masters from Wendy, Dio's wife. And also the crucial 1/2 inch 30 ips non-Dolby original mixes on 2 reels from Studio City Sound. Plus back up analogs in Burbank: B-9250, and two original 1630s: C-8717, also called B-9250 in Burbank and the Digital Archive DA-7072.

That is damn near everything on this title. What I want to do is to sort out where (IMO) the released versions of this album went wrong (no bass, too much top, no mids, etc.)

Original Credits:
Produced by Ronnie James Dio
Engineered by Angelo Arcuri, assisted by Ray Leonard
Recorded at Sound City, Los Angeles
Originally mastered by George Marino at Sterling Sound, New York



The Audio Fidelity version will sound the best, ever, trust me.

Very interesting.

Nice. All of his early albums has a very special sound. I don't know anything about these recording aspects, but I've always thought it's not very good even by '83 standards.

I have the Japanese remasters which sound superb. I wonder if this will top those?

Witchfinder wrote:

I have the Japanese remasters which sound superb. I wonder if this will top those?

He has access to more sources than the Japanese have. Japanese discs are usually remastered from straight digital transfers from the stereo master tapes (and which source they are using is up to the label providing the tapes). Steve will compare all available sources to determine which one will provide the best resulting master.

The Japanese have better pressing plants, but I think overall this will be a superior product.

The Canadian remaster awihle back was good too, plus the interview was cool.

Metallica released 24k versions of their classic albums awhile back, it had very little to (unnoticeable) no improvement... I'll only BELIEVE when somebody will attest to the final product, of course they will promise you the Moon and The Stars, anything to make you buy their product.

I'll remain Skeptical for now.....

...

Analogue Productions is far more than just 24k gold plated discs (like those Metallica albums). You should check out their website:

http://www.analogueproductions.com/

These are lovingly crafted products with more attention to detail than any of the major labels are willing to spend the money on. Their discs are almost always limited and fetch big bucks when they go out of print.

some notes from Steve Hoffman, the remastering engineer on the source used for the remaster for those interested...

"Quite a fun day working on HOLY DIVER. It was nice to finally hear this album minus the years of built up bad EQ and compression on all the released media. It's such a relief to be able to hear the album with some dynamics for a change. It makes the listening experience more enjoyable, y'all!

After baking (and salting to taste, uummmm, good) I used the original SOUND CITY STUDIO 1983 analog 30 ips AES half inch non-Dolby original stereo mixes (does everyone know what that means now?) and Steph Marsh and I meticulously mastered the album directly from those original work parts. These tapes haven't been used in many, many years, they are essentially the "DO NOT USE" work parts. They sound great after baking. Most everything was mastered with the EQ Cutting Masters down through the years. We bypassed those after reviewing. They could kill insects at 30 paces..

I gave Ronnie a human voice, made him sound more 3-D and everything else just fell in to place. Tremendous drum sounds and galloping guitars sound pretty lifelike. I'm happy."

I got this a couple of days ago. I compared it with the Rock Candy reissue from a few years ago, which I think sounds pretty decent, as far as modern brickwalled remasters go. The Hoffman version is definitely easier on the ears (no surprise there). The drums sound fantastic, which is again, no surprise. Hoffman really excels at drum and cymbal sounds. I think I prefer the guitars on the Rock Candy version. They are higher up in the mix and the solos have a smoother top end. The biggest disappointment for me with the Hoffman version is the vocals. They still have a little harshness in the top end. I suspect that's just the way they were recorded. As everyone knows, this album has always been trebly as hell. The guitars are all treble; not much you can do about that no matter how you master it if that's what's on the tape.

Overall, I prefer the Hoffman version, as it's easier on the ears and the drums sound like you're in the room with them. However, it is a more "polite" version. The guitars are back a bit. Keep in mind, this is based on what it sounds like on my stereo, which is certainly not audiophile quality.

Hoffman's remasters are often described as "polite", I think the reason is that he uses very minimal compression where almost EVERYONE else uses a ton and he doesn't boost any high end, going for a nice mid-range warmth most of the time.

I don't like all of his remasters, but some are just stunning. I'm looking forward to checking out this Holy Diver release.

I only have the heavier stuff he's done, but I've heard some of his other work. I thought both the Metallicas, Van Halen (debut), and Queensryche's Empire all sounded great (although Empire didn't really need a remaster IMO). Warmth is definitely his trademark. This is the first Hoffman remaster I've been slightly disappointed with, which again, I think has more to do with the recording that anything Hoffman did or didn't do. Holy Diver just wasn't recorded well.

His remaster of Deep Purple's Fireball is awesome.

He also did a nice job on In Rock but that album was recorded so poorly to begin with that it wasn't that much of an improvement...though he did fix the bad stereo balance of the Roger Glover remaster.

UP!

This CD was limited to a run of 5000 copies, 4280 copies have already been sold, so if you want this I wouldn't wait much longer.

S.D. wrote:

UP!

This CD was limited to a run of 5000 copies, 4280 copies have already been sold, so if you want this I wouldn't wait much longer.

I got my copy this week - sounds great!

Mine is on its way too, it was only $16 at Amazon (with 2 day free shipping with prime account).

i have wondered how this version compares to the 2005 remaster with the interview at the end..

Damn, hope this is still in print come pay day.

What are your thoughts on this version, S.D.? I'd love to hear your in-depth analysis.

Just ordered one myself just like Stormspell from Amazon prime! Looking forward to this one!

Got mine today, #2663

Got mine today #2172.... Holy crap this sounds great on my surround sound.

This thing sounds beautiful. I'm very happy about my decision to get this.

Phoenix Reign Drummer wrote:

Got mine today #2172.... Holy crap this sounds great on my surround sound.

It does sound fraking awesome! Mine is # 2190