More of the Music of Michael Jackson
Reviews and Commentaries for Thriller
This killer copy of Thriller that we discovered in our 2006 shootout gave us a whole new appreciation for just how good the album could sound. It was a real breakthrough, and proof that significant progress in audio is just a matter of time and effort, the more the better.
Our review from 2006
I remember twenty years ago playing Thriller and thinking the sound was transistory, spitty, and aggressive.
Well, I didn’t have a Triplanar tonearm, a beautiful VPI table and everything that goes along with them back then.
Now I can play the record.
I couldn’t back then.
All that spit was simply my table, arm, cartridge and setup not being good enough, as well as all the garbage downstream from it that was feeding the speakers.
The record is no different, it just sounds different now. Which is what makes the record a great test. If you can play this record, you can probably play practically any pop and rock record. (Classical is another matter.)
This Pressing Changes Everything
This pressing has a side two that is so amazing sounding that it completely changed my understanding and appreciation of this album. The average copy is a nice pop record. This copy is a masterpiece of production and engineering.
After playing a bunch of these we noticed some recurring shortcomings on most of the pressings. Either they lacked extension on the top end or they lacked bass definition and weight, or both. When this copy hit the table, the first thing we noticed was that the top end was Right On The Money and the bottom end was also Right On The Money.
Not surprisingly, the middle fell right into place.
It ended up having the most ambience, the most transparency, the most resolution, the most dynamic contrasts, the most presence — in short, it had more of everything than any copy we’ve ever heard.
The lesson to be learned in this case may be that when the extremes are properly transferred to the vinyl, the middle will take care of itself. Since the extremes seem to be the hardest thing to get right, at least on this record, that might explain why so many copies don’t seem to cut it.
Side one fits perfectly into this theory. The bottom end is meaty with plenty of punchy, solid bass, but the top end is lacking a bit of extension compared to the very best.
The result is that there’s a trace of hardness in the vocals that shouldn’t be there. If you can add a dB or two of extreme highs, everything will sound right on side one. It all comes back to life with a little more top end.
Robert Brook Knows the Way
Robert has written a great deal about the various problems he’s encountered along these same fronts:
- He’s dramatically improved his equipment, and
- He’s taught himself how to do a better job of dialing in turntable setup.
Further Reading
