Worst sounding recordings (produced/mastered)

[Miserablegit]

The other thread has given me quite a few hours of listening pleasure so I thought I’d start this one to name & shame.

I’m listening to most of this on Tidal- I’ve got the PH company director master super duper audio subscription.

My starter is one of my favourite tracks:

Baba o Riley - The Who

but the version on this album


It is shocking - it has been recorded behind a sofa with all levels set to “Mediocre” if “crap” wasn’t available on the console.

[anonymoususer]

Deepest Purple Compilation
Sounded flat and lifeless on many tracks

[Tony1963]

Every Adele album?

Screechy awful sound. Made for cheap commercial radio broadcasts.

[MitchT]

Jessie Ware "What's Your Pleasure?"

Love every song on the album but it's almost impossible to listen to because the mix is so flat and muddy with no stereo width whatsoever. Such a disappointment.

[anonymous-user]

The Stooges Raw Power.

I think it's been remixed a couple of times, but it still sounds awful. Sounds like it's being played on a mono Dansette record player with fluff on the needle.

Fantastic album though!

[southendpier]

Queen - Live Killers.

Wonderful album but such a shame on the recording. I think even the band look back and this it was awful.

[DavidY]

anonymoususer said:

Deepest Purple Compilation
Sounded flat and lifeless on many tracks

This is beacuse each side is 30 mins+ so there was not enough vinyl to record the full dynamics, so every track is compressed to enable it all it fit on. If it had been a short double album (Like Rainbows On Stage at 64mins total!), it would have been very different.

[Deranged Rover]

Tony1963 said:

Every Adele album?

Screechy awful sound. Made for cheap commercial radio broadcasts.

To be fair, even with the best mastering in the world, Adele would still sound screechy and awful...

The worst one I've encountered recently was Mason Hill's "Against the Wall" album which I bought on picture disc.

Completely compressed, barely any treble and huge amounts of surface noise.

[Ken P]

Deranged Rover said:

Tony1963 said:

Every Adele album?

Screechy awful sound. Made for cheap commercial radio broadcasts.

To be fair, even with the best mastering in the world, Adele would still sound screechy and awful...

Yep... that's just her voice.. awful.. like the woman herself.

[Halmyre]

I was sorely disappointed with Kate Bush's 'Before the Dawn' recordings from her live shows. Dull and lifeless in places.

[Sixtyten]

Rush - Vapor Trails. Appalling compressed murk. The "fixed" version isn't better, it's marginally less unacceptable
Any The Go! Team Album. Lo fi is one thing, that it's hard to discern anything through the compression or the clipping makes them all unlistenable. but "Rolling Blackouts" is notable for being unbearable.

[Harji]

Led Zeppelin III, I have the 80's re-issue vinyl from its original release and the CD , both are flat and muddled, I can only assume the production was crap and the master is poor.

[-Cappo-]

Ken P said:

Yep... that's just her voice.. awful.. like the woman herself.

Referred to as "Adull" in this house.

[OutInTheShed]

Over the years I've heard a few Hawkwind live recordings which must be in the running?

"A poor attempt at the impossible" according to a mate of mine who is a quite good amateur sound techie.

[thebraketester]

Radiohead - The Bends

I love the content but it I don't think it was well mixed and mastered at all.

[Halmyre]

OutInTheShed said:

Over the years I've heard a few Hawkwind live recordings which must be in the running?

"A poor attempt at the impossible" according to a mate of mine who is a quite good amateur sound techie.

They're not referred to as "Black Sabbath with vacuum cleaners" for nothing.

[MC Bodge]

thebraketester said:

Radiohead - The Bends

I love the content but it I don't think it was well mixed and mastered at all.

I loved it in the 90s.

I listened to it a few days ago. I thought that the sound was a bit off, although couldn't explain why.

[OutInTheShed]

Halmyre said:

OutInTheShed said:

Over the years I've heard a few Hawkwind live recordings which must be in the running?

"A poor attempt at the impossible" according to a mate of mine who is a quite good amateur sound techie.

They're not referred to as "Black Sabbath with vacuum cleaners" for nothing.

I'd not heard that before!
I've seen Hawkwind live a few times, in the 80s and 90s, a couple of the gigs were incredibly well engineered, another I recall sounding (and looking) amateur. I think they're still going?

[rjfp1962]

southendpier said:

Queen - Live Killers.

Wonderful album but such a shame on the recording. I think even the band look back and this it was awful.

Agreed.. I've owned this on vinyl and CD, and on both the sound was average at best.

I'd add the first three Queen studio albums... Queen, Queen II and Sheer Heart Attack to the list.
Things improve with A Night At The Opera..

[Export56]

ACDC : If you want blood, bought the record when it came out, shocking, thin screechy sound, just horrible. Ballbreaker is one of the best produced ACDC I have heard, just excellent, very flattering for hi fi.
Dire Straits Live pretty poor, odd considering Brothers in Arms was the CD demo album of choice back in the day, remember hearing Money for nothing very loud in Chelmsford audio in about 85, the build up at the start was alarming, such was the sound pressure.