I'm wondering about such CDs as the Rush Remasters series, and I see that the Dire Straits CDs have been remastered.

I already have almost all of the Rush catalog on CD. Now that I'm in the Axiom fold, I'm wondering if I would really be able to tell a difference between the old versions I have and the newly remastered ones.

Anyone done an A/B test on these?

Why don't you buy one or two and have your own A/B test?

I probably will once the basement HT is completed (that's where the Axioms will go).

I figure that for the older Rush recordings, the capacity for upgrade is pretty good. However, they've been recording everything digitally since 1985, so I'm not so sure that, for example, the "Power Windows" remaster will be that noteworthy. It already is one of the best-recorded CDs that I have!

I also see that the Beatles' catalog is up for remaster soon.

Hemispheres is my all time favorite album. In fact it was the first music to grace my new system. The remastered version of the older stuff is fairly significant. When I put the two Hemisphere discs side by side there's no comparrison. The remastered is well worth it. But as has been said the newer CD's not as much. They can only do as good as the source material. Presto comes to mind. Great album, terrible engineering. As is with their newest CD's. Vapor Trails Sucks.

BTW, if you haven't got the R-30 DVD yet, it is great. Highly recommended!

I've found older cds from the 70's and 80's have been worth it...more detail, less "tinny", and a bit more bass. However, anything in the 90's and forward, I get suspicious. Sometimes I wonder if all they do is throw on extra tracks, then call it a "remaster".

Thanks for the words on Hemispheres, also one of my favorite Rush albums. It was the first one I owned, back on LP. I'll definitely have to go for it with the Rush CDs from the 1970s.

Yes, you will hear a difference with "re-masters".
The best ones, stay true to the original mix....with more care taken during the 24 bit mastering.
Some, get the re-mixed, re-master treatment, with the eq flat, and other "tamperings".

If only, ALL cds originally had the complete # of 1's and 0's
none of the re-masters, sacd, etc. would be needed to try and make up for it.

There is a better sound to the 2112 cd. My old one had some scratches and started to skip so I had to get a new one. As I need to, I will replace all with the remasters. And Vapor Trails doesn't suck. One of their best in my opinion. Whats also great about Rush is how different each recording is which results in their longevity.

Rapmon, I believe he was referring to the engineering of the Vapor Trails CD. If it's anything like the engineering on Test for Echo then it does, indeed, suck.

O.K. I guess I don't understand how a recording can be great but the engineering suck. What should I be listening for? How much better could VT have been? I assumed that the way the songs sounded is what they were going for. Maybe not.