tonereef

I see Black Fire is also available now as a 24/192 download. Anyone know whether there will be more BN SHM CDs, or is this it?

How does the 1995 Connoisseur of Smoke Stack (which I have), mastered by Larry Walsh, compare to the RVG?

I haven't heard the Mosaic but I would think the SHM CDs would have to sound better, given that the Mosaic transfers are from 1995.

It's not listed there - the 2003 Japanese RVG would be the same as the 1999 US RVG. It's this one: http://www.amazon.co.jp/ポイント・オブ・ディパーチャー-アンドリュー・ヒル/dp/B002HJ5X7C/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1439134187&sr=8-4&keywords=Andrew+Hill+Point+of+Departure TOCJ-8568. At least, the liner notes of the current reissue are dated 2009, so it must be this one with a new cat#. But the remastering might actually have been done earlier than 2009, as CD Japan's site says this 2009 version is a "priced down reissue" - but of what, I don't know. Anyway, AFAIK the only other Japanese mastering was from TOCJ-4167 from 1994, that would be a 16-bit remaster, and of course it's long o.p.

Listened to the Andrew!!! and Compulsion SHM CDs and compared them with the US CD reissues. Of the two sessions Andrew!!! is the easier listen. It's a good recording, and the 2005 McMaster Connoisseur sounds good. The SHM ups the ante in terms of smoothness, refinement and subtle detail. It's also mastered at a higher level but doesn't sound less dynamic. Compulsion is way more avant-garde and thick (2 bass, 2 percussion). The piano sounds very distant relative to the horns, drums and percussion, and Hill plays a lot of clangy, dissonant chords. Van Gelder was of course not known for flattering or even pleasant piano sound. Modern recordings (using stereo micing) sound way better. The SHM is an improvement over the 2007 RVG in ways similar to Andrew!!!, and makes for a more enjoyable listen. These (flat?) 24/192 remasters must be reducing the noise floor to allow more detail and overtones through, and they are noticeably cleaner (lower distortion) as well (at least partly the result I would guess of better a/d and sample-rate converters), but I think you'd need to have an audiophile system to really appreciate the difference, unlike with PoD, where it's like night and day. It must be said though that the Japanese 24 bit remaster of PoD does not have the same palpable clarity and presence as these SHMs, and the higher hiss level is likely the result of the Japanese master being a generation or two away from the US master. So it's really too bad that Hill's masterpiece wasn't given the 24/192 SHM treatment.

Mine has the "Van Gelder" stamp but no ear - so not a first pressing then. (Do ear pressings sound better?) Anyway, it's not bad sounding, but a bit dull and lacking presence, detail and space around things. I don't know if some compression was used on the Japanese CD, but it sounds lively and detailed, the timbres are good, hiss sounds right. Too much compression also affects timbres, you know. (And, conversely, if instruments don't sound right, no amount of dynamics is going to compensate.) As for the MM LP, Rob Hutton told me it's far better than the original RVG (not sure if he was referring to the 33 rpm version, but on his blog he writes that the ones they've redone in 33 improve on the 45s).

Anyone who loves Andrew Hill's Point of Departure: the "Finest 1100" reissue is the 2008 24 bit mastering and it sounds great. The RVG of this title is a mess: super bright and shallow. Richard Davis is barely there, while Tony Williams' cymbals have a very unnatural sheen, as does the piano. This Japanese mastering is just full and natural sounding, with plenty of detail through my Stax headphones. Probably bettered by the 24/192 download (too bad no one felt it was worth putting that transfer out as an SHM-CD) or the Music Matters LPs (though I have an original Blue Notes pressing, and this CD is better). Not far off the SHM Out to Lunch.