Conference cookie::notes$archive:cd_v1

11.0. "Mobile Fidelity CD" by GOLD::WEAVER () Sun Feb 12 1984 18:01

It looks like one opponent to the CD media has dropped their case,
Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs is now selling CD's.  I just picked up
Al Stewart - "Year Of The Cat" at Tweeter etc. in Framingham (MA).
They had about five other titles from Mobile Fidelity at the time
I bought mine.

Actually I was told second hand that Mobile Fidelity was an opponent
to the CD media, so my first sentence may not be true.

The following is an except from Mobile Fidelity's folder that comes
with the CD:

-----------
...

The arrival of the Compact Disc as a storage medium, together with the
latest scientific achievements it represents, allows us the opportunity
to marry historical musical events (pre-digital era) with the marvels of
man's comtemporary technology.  We at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab believe
that future generations will continue to marvel at the musical
accomplishments of the past and learn from them.  Therefore, we are
attracted to the concept of converting the values of music history into
a form that offers the potential of enduring into future generations.

This Compact Disc represents the results, so far, of more than five
years of concentrated research by Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab into
expanding the limits of accurate musical conversion and recovery.  It
is a point of departure which will, like all Original Master
Recordings, be continuously refined and improved as our research
intensifies.

-----------

Note that "Year Of The Cat" is made from an analog master.  The
background hiss is as low as any other analog-digital CD I have
heard, and may actually be as low as the noise floor of my Harmon
Kardon receiver with my Sony CDP 101 turned on (Note that my hk
can be turned up full volume with the Sony off and not generate any
noise, with the Sony on I start hearing hiss at about the half of
full volume).  All in all it is a fine recording and well mastered.
I am looking forward to other works from Mobile Fidelity.

If anyone has bought any of the other Mobile Fidelity Titles, please
give us a report.  Note that they are selling around $22 at Tweeter
(about $3 more than most other CDs).  With the Tweeter Preferred
Customer Card you get some percentage off (the amount escapes my memory
right now).

						-Dave

The Tweeter Preferred Customer Card gives you 15% off CD Titles....

- dave  (a pleased Yamaha CD-X1 owner)

Realize that the card is only good on purchases less than $50.00.

Re: .2

I believe that the sign at Tweeter Etc says that the card is only
good for *items* with a price of under $50.00, not for purchases.

No matter what the policy is, I have used my card several times
for CD purchases of over $50.00.
						B.J.

    Since the conversion to VAXnotes has confused alot of people, my
    entry (actually FLAME) against MFL and Digital Audio magazine's
    review of one of their releases was missed. I purchased MFL's reissue
    of the Johnny Mathis "Heavenly" lp converted to disc. Digital Audio
    Mag couldn't say enough good things about it. I was VERY displeased
    at the reproduction. Taking into account the age of the master,
    I considered myself to be lenient in my personal review. The hiss
    was too bothersome to not notice. 
    
      I matched that CD versus Rhino Records 20 Greatest Hits of the
    Everly Brothers (age difference of masters used negligible), and
    there is no noticeable hiss. I've heard complaints about Rhino's
    stuff also (i.e., Turtles Hits - my lp version is very clean). Another
    set of shabby discs from Mobile Fidelity are their Grateful Dead
    reissues. I'm not a "dead-head" so wouldn't buy them anyway, but
    it upsets me that MFL's lp's can sound soooo good, but their disc
    ventures have been very hit or miss. 
    
      There's a store out here in San Jose, Ca. that sells many of MFL's
    discs for 12.99 to 13.99. Tower carries them for 14.99 to 15.99.
    Sounds like your discount store (Tweeters) isn't losing any of their
    markup with their discount cards (nyuk, nyuk).
    
    			Al
    
    

Tweeter, Etc. is hardly a discount store.  They are a stereo equipment
dealer.  CDs are purely a sideline for them, and they price gouge for them
like you wouldn't believe.

I don't have the Johnny Mathis HEAVENLY CD, but I do have the MFL CD release
of Al Stewart's YEAR OF THE CAT, and the sound quality is very good.

--PSW