Coldplay - Viva La Vida LP (sound quality?)

[househead]

Hello, anyone here own this album? I love the songs but the sound on the cd is pure garbage. It can hardly be turned up on my home system. Does the vinyl version have better sound quality? Thanks!

[Johnny Vinyl]

I have the vinyl version of this album, but since I am in between turntables I haven't had a chance to listen to it yet. Now, being a somewhat biased vinyl-lover I would say it will sound better. The CD sound has never truly captured my imagination. I will say however, that sometimes a LP can sound horrible and I truly hope that is not the case with this one.

John

[dobyblue]

I have this on vinyl and yes it's a great improvement over the CD.
I have listened to the album in its entirety and of course the vinyl came with a free CD. Comparing Strawberry Swing it's laughable how poor the CD sounds to be perfectly honest. The vinyl is ALIVE and powerful and dynamic.

[househead]

Thanks guys!

Looks like I'll be buying it. I feel like I've been duped already shelling out the $ for the cd coaster. The songs are too good not to have though.

[dobyblue]

Parachutes is also well worth picking up on vinyl.

[are1981]

I believe the problem with the album is the recording itself. Rythm sounds terrible, the cymbals the worst. It sounds like the audio was poorly recorded, then the source have been over-compressed for volume during mastering...

I love the music, but the current release is worthless. I consider the album, as it sounds now, as a demo tape. It has to be rerecorded to ever sound good.

[dobyblue]

Originally Posted by are1981

I believe the problem with the album is the recording itself. Rythm sounds terrible, the cymbals the worst. It sounds like the audio was poorly recorded, then the source have been over-compressed for volume during mastering...

I love the music, but the current release is worthless. I consider the album, as it sounds now, as a demo tape. It has to be rerecorded to ever sound good.

Was it a European pressing you were trying and what turntable set-up?

[are1981]

Originally Posted by dobyblue

Was it a European pressing you were trying and what turntable set-up?

Sorry, I was writing about my european CD copy. Forgot this was an LP thread. Someone above commented the bad sounding CD, and what I meant was that it sounds like the problem with the album, at least my CD copy, is the master the CD comes from, and I guess the LP comes from the same master.

My CD sounds like the album have been
1: poorly recorded,
2: then somehow been compressed to 128 kbps MP3's,
3: then made the CD master by mistake from the MP3's,
4: and then pressed the CD I bough.

[dobyblue]

Ah okay - it seems to be on my copy that the vinyl came from a different master, probably a 24-bit high res digital master. It's sonically night and day going from the CD to the vinyl - much more open and natural sounding on the LP.

[are1981]

Originally Posted by dobyblue

Ah okay - it seems to be on my copy that the vinyl came from a different master, probably a 24-bit high res digital master. It's sonically night and day going from the CD to the vinyl - much more open and natural sounding on the LP.

That can't be right. Why would they intentionally press a bad sounding CD?

[Clark Kent]

The CD simply sounds awful, like more compression was layered into the sound after it was already compressed and maximized during the recording. Most of Coldplay's recent stuff sounds like it. That free concert CD they gave away sounds like it was mastered from MP3 files.

[atdm71]

No worries, it's definitely not your system. It's the CD, and yes, it's shockingly poor quality for a group and album of this magnitude. A terrible disappointment, for sure.

The tour on the other hand was phenomenal. Chris Martin said there were cameras in the audience filming with the intent of an eventual DVD release of the tour. To date, nothing, not even an announcement. Assuming this will get a Blu-ray release whenever it comes out will be your best chance to hear the album at the level of quality you'd expect.

I can't comment on the vinyl release. I actually have my doubts about that one too, but others speak for it being way better than the CD so place your bets...