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Sony Classical to release Ultimate Star Wars Soundtrack Collection (January 8, 2016)


TownerFan

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3 minutes ago, crumbs said:

It would be beyond heartbreaking to learn that parts of the original trilogy's masters disintegrated after the 1993 scan, and the best quality copy of those recordings is now based on 1993 scanning technology.

 

Has there ever been a clear explanation on why ROTJ sounds so bad? Were they secondary source masters? I just can't believe those CDs came from the original tapes, especially knowing how good the score sounds in other releases.

  ROTJ sounds bad because the mastering studio destroyed it in their mastering process with noise removal. Leaving little after 5kHz and next to nothing after 10kHz for all the unreleased material like "Funeral Pyre for a Jedi" film version and "Tatooine Rendevous" (One of the worst sounding tracks).

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10 minutes ago, Zaralyth said:

  ROTJ sounds bad because the mastering studio destroyed it in their mastering process with noise removal. Leaving little after 5kHz and next to nothing after 10kHz for all the unreleased material like "Funeral Pyre for a Jedi" film version and "Tatooine Rendevous" (One of the worst sounding tracks).

 

Geez, hard to believe how that passed QC before discs were pressed. Disgustingly inept.

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16 minutes ago, crumbs said:

 

Geez, hard to believe how that passed QC before discs were pressed. Disgustingly inept.

And unfortunately as far as I know those unreleased cues that are barely listenable are now only available on those SE disks because their source is missing, destroyed or otherwise, we will never really know. Most of the SE music is fine but ROTJ is the worst because of its source. Poor transfer technique, and overall stupidity on the studio's part. Perhaps one day we will get real transfers. Assuming the tapes can be located..

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8 minutes ago, Zaralyth said:

And unfortunately as far as I know those unreleased cues that are barely listenable are now only available on those SE disks because their source is missing, destroyed or otherwise, we will never really know. Most of the SE music is fine but ROTJ is the worst because of its source. Poor transfer technique, and overall stupidity on the studio's part. Perhaps one day we will get real transfers. Assuming the tapes can be located..

 

Nick Redman and Mike Mattesino are obviously incompetent!

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Not everything Zaralyth saying here is true.  I know for a fact a better sounding ROTJ exists - I've heard it!

 

And of course some of it can be heard in the ROTS OST bonus DVD and various video games

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I am trying to artificially "remaster" some of the not so good mixes from ROTJ, as I'm trying to re-create a complete score for my own listening purposes using the new 24/192 transfers along with my own edits. They don't sound perfect, and are far from finished, but do sound slightly better than the SE version thus far.

test1.wav

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Bought my digital download yesterday from 7digital - paid about US$ 18 for the 24-bit/44.1kHz. :)

 

Although I've only had a quick listen, my first impression is the following:

E1 - I am able to detect a slight improvement over the original CD (mainly used "Anakin's Theme" for comparison). It's easier to hear some of the more subtle sounding instruments.

E2 & E3 - I haven't yet had the time to listen to it properly (was too curious about the OT).

E4 - I am sorry to say that I am not impressed with the remastering - I will be sticking with my SE and Anthology. However, I am a fan of the OST-sequencing and getting some of the original edits. The "Main Title" is a blast!

E5 - The remastering generally improves upon both the sound of the SE and the anthology. But I had such high hopes based on the comments here on the forum, that I think my expectations were too high. So unfortunately, I wasn't blown away like many of the other JWfaners seem to have been, but it definitely sounds better. :)

E6 - My first impression is the remastering doesn't offer any improvemtns on the previous releases in terms of sound quality. I will be sticking with the a mix of tracks from the SE and Anthology for better sound.

 

So to sum up - the real gain seems to be TESB. Horns are more prominent and the overall mix is really good. As a fan of OST sequencing however, I find it thrilling that these were released. Regarding sound quality, I would like to point out that this is based on a really quick listen/comparison, and I didn't have the time to properlly listen to every track.... I just did some cherry picking to get an overall feel of the compilation. ;)

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I wonder how much music from ESB and ROTJ can't be assembled using ONLY the Anthology and newly released HD remasters? Might be worth assembling a new edit using just these two sources.

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Keep in mind that better-sounding sources for TESB and JEDI session masters - I think SW sounds already pretty amazing on the SE - could have been found after the SE releases. Shawn Murphy seems to imply something in the Google chat posted a few days ago, as far as saying that material is stored somewhere and could be unearthed if there's will (and money) to do so.

 

I've pulled back a few FSM magazine articles about the SE, in which Matessino detailed some of the work done for those releases and there are some interesting facts that maybe some people aren't aware of anymore. I'll post scans here when I'll have a bit of spare time.

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They must have the film versions of everything because the soundtracks for the Blu-Rays and DVD's aren't locked with the sound effects and dialogue. I remember an article about the 2004 release of the OT and A New Hope's music was stereo flipped in the rear speakers (but the sound effects hadn't moved). They could release a version based on the film versions of the scores (which they kind of did with TPM Ultimate Edition). 

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25 minutes ago, aj_vader said:

They must have the film versions of everything because the soundtracks for the Blu-Rays and DVD's aren't locked with the sound effects and dialogue. I remember an article about the 2004 release of the OT and A New Hope's music was stereo flipped in the rear speakers (but the sound effects hadn't moved). They could release a version based on the film versions of the scores (which they kind of did with TPM Ultimate Edition). 

 

The music stems as conformed to the final film is a less than desirable source for an album release, but they could still be used to fill some of the missing gaps of course. I was referring to unedited multi-track session elements. I'm confident most of them are archived somewhere safe and hopefully already digitally transferred.

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And it is worth nothing that Lucasfilm owns all that and does not have to wait for Sony's contract to end to begin working on them (re-transferring them).  They just can't release a commercial album with that material until Sony's license is over.

 

But they could do the back end of the entire project now, and have it in stores the day after their contract ends.  That'd be awesome.

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5 hours ago, Jay said:

Not everything Zaralyth saying here is true.  I know for a fact a better sounding ROTJ exists - I've heard it!

 

And of course some of it can be heard in the ROTS OST bonus DVD and various video games

"As far as I know"

 

:P the only ROTJ music I have is the Anthology, SE disks and new digitals. And since the anthology and SE's were mastered for loudness and not dynamic range (take ROTJ track 2 for example). I really just hate the quality of the audio. And I what I said is what I got out of that PDF interview, this is still a new and exciting concept for me so apologies if some things I said were incorrect, bring incorrect just means there's more to learn! 

 

I also have the complete scores from the John Williams collection website by Markus Hable but to me they sound like edits and remasteres of everything we have put together, not different material.

Im interested to know of this better sound ROTJ... namely to see if some cues sound better than what I have... where is it from, exactly? 

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How many of You have read the Chris Malone work?

 

I know that the new theory about some unearthed multi-track sources to Original Trilogy of Star Wars is something fresh to me (gives us all hope) but let's face the facts and the truth.

It's funny but here exactly fits the dialogue between Count Dooku and Obi-Wan from Episode II.

Count " What if I told you that the...."

Now we are getting to the point. Everybody who read this work will know what happened (I don't know the exact date, the source also doesn't mention it, but I suppose that it was done somewhere 1992 or 1993)

When the Anthology set was made also then they hit on huge technical problems (which drives me crazy in negative way - because I'm asking the same questions over many years: Why people which made a career , fortune and the most important glory and fame on collaborating in every possible way on Star Wars; let to the such tragic loss in just 10 years after the finish of Return of the Jedi. We know how many passion and knowledge saint memory Eric Tomlinson and the rest of the recording crew done to the Star Wars Trilogy soundtracks during recording. They choose the best materials (also the tapes) which was available then.

And someone who was in charge at 20th Century Fox or Lucasfilm just treat all this saint stuff like garbage - Lock in the basement and forget about it.

I was wrong before because the most tragic loss was done to the Star Wars master session tapes (after Arista's release, so count the time between 1993 and 1996) . Arista's Anthology Box set (for Star Wars) in large way for the first time used  two-track tapes with actual film mixes (prepared by Eric Tomlinson to movie).

Now the bad and sad to us part of the real story.

When they made The Empire Strikes Back to this release (it's the most tragic loss for me , probably for You also) they couldn't find the original master session tapes (so they used copies) - four-track 1/4". These tapes  (already then! So I'm asking: Who was such an ..... le to make in just 14, 13 years the whole matter in such bad way! It's just like You have original Rembrandt or Gauguin or da Vinci's famous painting and put it in the garbage or let to the thing play with the fire or water) were purportedly in poor condition – probably suffering from lubricant failure therefore making baking an inappropriate treatment – and were not located until near completion of the project.

What could then say the mastering engineer Bill Wolford about the master session tapes? Here is sad answer: “At least one tape was beginning to fall apart as I transferred it,” and the second part of his talk: I had to use alcohol on the capstan wheel to clean the disintegrating residue off as it played, being careful not to affect the pitch. If I hadn’t done this the tape would cause a squeal as it passed the heads rendering the dub useless. He also said that : there were limited playbacks possible before the tape was rendered unusable.

Already then the Empire tapes were incomplete and PolyGram was unwilling to locate the original LP album tapes.

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It has to be remembered that in 1983, when ROTJ was released, home video was still in its infancy. And the concept of having a rerelease of a score that was anything other then an OST reissue was non existent.

 

There wasn't really a huge reason to keep all the elements in pristine condition after the film had been completed. 

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22 minutes ago, Zaralyth said:

Im interested to know of this better sound ROTJ... namely to see if some cues sound better than what I have... where is it from, exactly? 

 

I was in California visiting with some people in the industry and one of them played me some on his laptop.  Better versions of ROTJ absolutely exist than what was used for the 1997 SE CDs.  The entire 1997 SE project was rushed.  We'll get better versions of these classic scores one day, likely very shortly after Sony's contract ends.  It's too bad no one will say publicly when that is (I have no idea myself).

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7 hours ago, rough cut said:

Bought my digital download yesterday from 7digital - paid about US$ 18 for the 24-bit/44.1kHz. :)

 

Although I've only had a quick listen, my first impression is the following:

E1 - I am able to detect a slight improvement over the original CD (mainly used "Anakin's Theme" for comparison). It's easier to hear some of the more subtle sounding instruments.

E2 & E3 - I haven't yet had the time to listen to it properly (was too curious about the OT).

E4 - I am sorry to say that I am not impressed with the remastering - I will be sticking with my SE and Anthology. However, I am a fan of the OST-sequencing and getting some of the original edits. The "Main Title" is a blast!

E5 - The remastering generally improves upon both the sond of the SE and the anthology. But I had such high hopes based on the comments here on the forum, that I think my expectations were too high. So unfortunately, I wasn't blown away like many of the other JWfaners seem to have been, but it definitely sounds better. :)

E6 - My first impression is the remastering doesn't offer any improvemtns on the previous releases in terms of sound quality. I will be sticking with the a mix of tracks from the SE and Anthology for better sound.

 

So to sum up - the real gain seems to be TESB. Horns are more prominent and the overall mix is really good. As a fan of OST sequencing however, I find it thrilling that these were released. Regarding sound quality, I would like to point out that this is based on a really quick listen/comparison, and I didn't have the time to properlly listen to every track.... I just did some cherry picking to get an overall feel of the compilation. ;)

 

It is important to know how you are listening to this.  Do you have audiophile gear?  Is it an apple earphone? 

3 hours ago, TownerFan said:

 

The music stems as conformed to the final film is a less than desirable source for an album release, but they could still be used to fill some of the missing gaps of course. I was referring to unedited multi-track session elements. I'm confident most of them are archived somewhere safe and hopefully already digitally transferred.

 

Do you remember this from a few years ago?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/331114835955

...for only $7,500? 

 

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42 minutes ago, karelm said:

 

It is important to know how you are listening to this.  Do you have audiophile gear?  Is it an apple earphone? 

 

 

Totally agree! I hate it when somebody comments about sound quality and then later find out they're listening through laptop speakers. I wouldn't say my set up is audiophile, but I'd like to say it's at least midrange in terms of being able to reproduce a sound close to what producers might have hoped to achieve. Currently I have the Pioneer VSX 921 and am listening through midsize Elac speakers.

2 hours ago, Jay said:

 

I was in California visiting with some people in the industry and one of them played me some on his laptop.  Better versions of ROTJ absolutely exist than what was used for the 1997 SE CDs.

 

...although when it comes to ROTJ, it would probably be possible to detect an improvement over existing material, simply because the material at hand (for us mere mortals anyway) is so sub par. ;)

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2 hours ago, Zaralyth said:

 

I wonder how legitimate that is. And WHAT is encompasses exactly...

 

It says this at the bottom of the page:

The most RARE piece of STAR WARS Collectable Memorabilia presently offered for sale! An Original Soundtrack Master Tape dated weeks before the movie opened.  The Only One in the World................................for sale...........EVER! 

Offered from the personal estate of John Neal the Senior Sound Engineer for George Lucas is a two inch Musical Master Tape from STAR WARS.  Included is the Opening Credits, the Café song, the Closing Credits and several other pieces.  These Tapes come with a letter from SKYWALKER Ranch.  In addition to this Master Tape is a quarter inch reel of "Special Effects". All tapes come in their original factory boxes.  Included is John's personal first run copy of STAR WARS the record, with a note-liner sheet that has John Neal's name in large font.  Mr. Neal was the inventor of Quadraphonic Sound; presently referred to as Surround Sound.  He won the Sterling Patron Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.  John also was the Senior Sound Engineer for The EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, JAWS & CLOSE ENCOUNTERS of a THIRD KIND, Please see my other listings offering those tapes. If you have any questions regarding these tapes, please forward them to me and I will do my best to answer them.

 

Zara, I think you should be the owner of these.

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So far, I have listened to Star Wars and the Empire Strikes Back on the 192/24 release.  ESB has a noticeable bump up in sound quality.  What I hear is wider stereo separation, improved EQ (overall more presence, tightness (punchier), and clarity), and wider dynamic range than the SE.  This is all good.  I don't know if it is significant enough for those without high end audio equipment to notice.  In Star Wars, I have more issues.  I prefer the SE.  The dynamic and editing issues are noticeable here but not in the SE.  It has been many years since I heard the OST order and it does give me a pavlovian reminder of my youth but we ABSOLUTELY need a real remix and I am confused about the existence of the original sources but hold out hope that we'll get something soon that is the ultimate release.  So far, this is an improvement on ESB, not on SW, and I haven't heard the rest. 

 

29 minutes ago, Stefancos said:

What? She only joined last week! Clearly it should be mine!

Steef, do you share your spoils?  I think not.

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I'd pay for it definitely if I could. Like holy that sounds like an amazing piece of collectible media to own. I could only dream of owning it.. that's half my tuition right there in a music reel...

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2 hours ago, karelm said:

So far, I have listened to Star Wars and the Empire Strikes Back on the 192/24 release.  ESB has a noticeable bump up in sound quality.  What I hear is wider stereo separation, improved EQ (overall more presence, tightness (punchier), and clarity), and wider dynamic range than the SE. 

 

Grrrrrr! I can't stand that they didn't put this on CD!

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35 minutes ago, BloodBoal said:

 

Holy shit! The Café Song! The only thing better than the Cellar Song!

 

Want it!

I wonder if Mos Eisley cantina was a nice little Belgian style bistro in the previous design when JW composed this. Nicely dressed Imperial officers sipping their special coffees over a tray of biscottis and a cake stand or having their midday wine glass with fine cuisine from the 5 star Cantina kitchen.

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Even if Disney gets the rights in 2019, who says they will do anything with them right away? Could be years before they decide it's time for a re-release. I mean it's not like Star Wars music is difficult to get at the moment.

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I don't actually believe you when you say the ROTJ Polydor release is the best release of that score. I think you are just saying that to get people to argue with you, same as E.T. and Elliot, who has been exhibiting similar levels of "NOTICE ME! NOTICE ME!" behaviour.

 

If you guys get a rise out of it, thats fine. But I can't take it seriously.

 

I disagree with much of what Thor says, but I at least know he's honest about his opinions.

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1 hour ago, Stefancos said:

I don't actually believe you when you say the ROTJ Polydor release is the best release of that score. I think you are just saying that to get people to argue with you, same as E.T. and Elliot, who has been exhibiting similar levels of "NOTICE ME! NOTICE ME!" behaviour.

 

If you guys get a rise out of it, thats fine. But I can't take it seriously.

 

"Incorrect."

 

Screen-Shot-2015-11-23-at-12.28.19-PM.pn

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1 hour ago, Stefancos said:

I don't actually believe you when you say the ROTJ Polydor release is the best release of that score. I think you are just saying that to get people to argue with you, same as E.T. and Elliot, who has been exhibiting similar levels of "NOTICE ME! NOTICE ME!" behaviour.

 

If you guys get a rise out of it, thats fine. But I can't take it seriously.

 

I disagree with much of what Thor says, but I at least know he's honest about his opinions.

 

This.  And even Thor agree the 1993 Anthology version of ROTJ is better than the OST.

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