Grateful Dead

LOL, yeah when I was little I used to wonder why I got this funny feeling when ever they were on lol.
Think those outfits could be any shorter?

SIXTUS: digging the new sign! Tee it up Bra! FOOOUUUUUURRRRRR! Do they yell that in disc golf?

ESTPRO: yaaaassssss, it seems to be the tapes. Like your synopsis! And it is about the mystery, though it bums me out that such a great show (s) dosent come from a better source : (
FALL 73 Baby!..., now if we could just get: 9/11, and (pick one 12,15 or 17, hey, don’t wanna be greedy!), 10/25, 10/30, and of course 12/18! So Jim and KF, how’s that tunnel coming?

JIM: 17 meters? Which note/string are you referring too E, A, D, or G, as the length will vary accordingly!
What c/c? 😉...the only problem is all the scaffolding. She’s used to all the audio cartons etc, but she’s getting a little wiggly about the scaffolding?

CARLO: dude you crack me up. Think most of us have been there one way or another, Ha! This isn’t the first time you’ve shared a similar fun story with us (fun now, perhaps not then lol) When the going gets weird....
Thanks for sharing!

AJS: Dominator MX 10?....weren’t those what Hasek got into? Heard it didn’t go so well and now he’s selling em outta the trunk of his car?

MR SMITH: harsh is actually a term used frequently in audio lingo. Killer Dead indeed!
Thanks for the cool Mickey link and as always the awesome scans!

PF/TM: yeah, inquiring, drug ravaged, senile, dirty old men wanna know!

DARK-STAR: glad your not hearing “it”; as it would damper your appreciation of such an otherwise stellar release!
Attack, Sustain, and Decay are fundamentals of ALL sounds. Attack you get, sustain is sorta how long the main body of the sound is, and decay is the “trail off”. These can all been different types or times/lengths...many pro audio devices can manipulate these. Garcia’s Mutron Envelope Filter is one example. Good Compressors will have these controls.
So there good very well be some of that, but I think unfortunately, overall it’s just not a very good source...
And yes that is the problem with 2 track tapes, so the mix it what it is, but hey, even a bad Dead tape is usually better then some DIY tinny, noisy, crowd cassette of 80s Hair band LOL. Or as my cousin Eecktar would say “a little bit o sumthin is better than all of nothing!” Really it kinda amazes me how much really good stuff there is considering all the ways that a tape can end up unlistenable!
I actually like the mix for the most part, cept Kieth being too low on occasion and the whole Bob thing?

DREADING: 6/24/73 Big RR Blues. I don’t hear a problem, though when the ride cymbal comes in from 2:13 until 3:08 (right speaker if your wired correct) it is prevalent and at first I thought perhaps he was using a sizzle ride ( the kind with the rivets? Loosely attached to give it a more sizzle sound than a normal ride cymbal), but I think it’s just the way it’s EQd/miced...I can see on certain gear it could sound too prominent...

I love my wife dearly, but....oh my goodness...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFk6-Mn-8yg

Maybe ABBA? Those two were sweeties.

You piqued my curiosity! I’m thinking maybe Heart, maybe the Bangles…? Inquiring minds wanna know !

Hi Oroborius, I meant that maybe Jeff Norman used something in the mastering of the tape to restrain any "sharp attacks" that existed on the master (good term BTW, I never heard it used before but I understood what you meant immediately). My understanding is when they recorded these things the night of the show, they were constantly making adjustments to the mix and levels throughout the show, so it's possible the master was a bit hot on places, and Norman tried to compensate? This could account for what you're describing in that one quote that I posted of yours from the other day. I forget exactly what you said but it just made me think that maybe this was the potential cause. Just a guess. I really don't hear what you're talking about, but I keep trying. I do hear some loud symbols now and then like somebody mentioned but nothing that is nearly as noticeable as the bass that was added to the Berkeley show. I don't hear anything abnormal except for the usual stuff and some occasional loud symbols.

Hi Uncle Sam, when you say there should be a better balance of all the people playing in the band and that you hope the people who master these ancient tapes do a better job next time, it makes me think you are not aware of the difference between two track and multi track recordings. Dave's Picks are all two track recordings, which means Jeff Norman (the "masterer") only has two tapes to work with. That means multiple instruments and vocals are recorded to each tape, so there is really no way to turn anyone up or down. The reason Weir and Garcia are the two loud ones on 9/8 is because that's the way the band was recorded the night of the show. With only two tapes with which to master this release, the only thing that can be turned up and down is the left or right speaker, but I don't I think any of us would be happy if they were uneven. It's really the person who recorded the show you have to approach with your comment. With multi track recordings every instrument gets its own reel of tape. If the show was recorded on a multi track recorder then the person who masters the tapes for release CAN make some people playing in the band louder than others. But all Dave's Picks and Dick Picks and Road Picks are all two track recordings so we get what we get as far as levels are concerned. If you want a list of multi track shows PM me and I will send.

I happened upon an old video from a certain pop band from the 70s

the two singers are sooooooo hot

- a wistful middle-aged man

Carlo drank both cups, apparently

that's some pretty funny $hit man. Sounds about right and I've definitely had similar warps of space and time.

When are we playing some Hilltop Disc Golf???
Course is open, fully vaxxed, it's time!
Shoot me a PM if there is interest.

Sixtus

Amazing look at all of the sonic ingredients of the 'stew' that is Dave's 38. With my old ears and modest sound system, even I heard the difference between 9/7 and 9/8 on first listen – thought at the time that 9/8 was 'oddly harsh' (my naive terminology). After reading your methodical and excellent analysis, I better understand why. Makes me more aware of all the miracles I take for granted that allow us to listen to 50-year-old Grateful Dead MUSIC as cleanly as is technically possible. I re-read all the chapters of your 'treatise' (without hearing aids this time 🤪), and have an even greater appreciation for the rabbits our archivist and remastering whiz continue to pull out of their hats multiple times each year. And thanks to everybody for all the great posts Uro inspired!

Looks like Dave's 38 is the exception that proves the rule (and even so it's still 4 CDs of killer Dead!). . . Well done Dave, Jeffrey. And especially well done Oroborous.

And speaking of Mickey's recording prowess, checkout his and Zakir's 'Sound Consciousness: Drones for Sonic Bathing': https://www.onecommune.com/sound-consciousness-mickey-hart-zakir-hussai…