| Review by downunderman December 16, 2014 (7 of 7 found this review helpful)
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Performance:  Sonics: |
What a shock this one was when I put it on.
I was expecting something at least vaguely reminiscent of the thin and trebly sounding presentation of yore. That is not what you get here. There is an excellent rundown of the remastering history of this album over on Amazon.com by a chap named Wayne Klein.
Here is the link: http://www.amazon.com/review/R2ZWLG9HXT1JVI/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm
It is clear Mofi got THE original master tape AND that it was very well engineered to begin with. With the added bonus of the tape remaining in good condition.
This is easily the best Pretenders Mofi remaster to date. Warm rich full analogue sound is what you will get here.
I guess previous issues on Vinyl and CD were hampered by it being a pretty long Album. So to fit it on the vinyl they had to crunch it down. Reverse compression you might call it and just as much of a problem on sound quality as the CD "loudness wars".
The soundstage is excellent and separation of instruments likewise. One of the many revelations for me has been the bass playing, now there in all its glory.
The disk is also highly crankable. Play it loud, just like the album cover recommends.
Get it while you can.
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| Review by blurayisking December 17, 2014 (2 of 3 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics:  |
| Just to expand on the previous review when the we talk about " crunch down " what were really talking about is playback volume. In the case of the Pretenders SACD, I found that the volume needed a pretty big boost in order to generally match the playback of the majority of my SACD's. Were looking at about 6 dB boost on the volume control. Once done, you've got yourself a very good sounding SACD. Bass output is most noticeable and overall sound is quite analogue in nature. The whole issue started with the LP needing a controlled recording level in order for the extra long playlist to fit on the vinyl. The same is true in the case of the SACD to avoid distortion. If you listen to the deluxe two-CD version that was released in 2009, it is recorded very loud and distortion is audible to the point of being ear bothersome.
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| Review by Marpow January 16, 2015 (4 of 5 found this review helpful)
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Performance: Sonics: |
The Pretenders: Pretenders Hybrid SACD Stereo Only. 2014 MOFI Reissue.
What a great disc and done very well by MOFI. My disc # is 01928. I have seen The Pretenders one time during there "Get Close" tour, awesome show, Oakland.
This album is ranked 155 of Rolling Stones 500. Ranked 20th best album of the 1980's. Steven Hoffman's 2009 reissue Gold CD has missing parts.
There is no DR value for this MOFI disc only a DR 12 for the a 1984 RBCD. I would guess the DR of this disc to at least be equal.
Performance: Super good. The Pretenders are a smash mouth band with a soft side. Punk/Rock/Pop elements, heavy driving bass throughout. Love it on first track when Chrissie Hynde says to "fuck off". The original recording released in 1979 was a radio favorite out of the gate. 12 tracks all good. I love songs like Stop Your Sobbing where a cool chick is telling her loser boy friend to grow up. Even included is an instrumental track. And don't forget that big Fender Telecaster sound.
Stereo Sonics: No problem on my end. Listened via the McIntosh all HDMI outs, left-right-sub speakers. When I first put in the disc it was a little subdued I thought, and I realized the disc I listened to before was very bright, which this disc is not. This has a flatter sound and very hard driving bass line throughout. My sub woofer added a bit of ambiance but there is no real need for a sub as the bass line is so great. As with almost all rock music, playing loud helps, and with this disc certainly appropriate. As always my criteria for a great rock recording are do drums and cymbals resonate and do vocals NOT sound shrill when volume is up. This issue passed the test. Sounds great in car also.
Packaging: Cardboard gate fold mini replica LP. Original liner notes, very brief and very small MOFI notes.
MOFI turned out a sonic beauty here for a hard driving group. Highly recommend.
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