More of the Music of Led Zeppelin
Reviews and Commentaries for Led Zeppelin II
I had posted one of his videos here under the heading “Does it seem like this guy knows anything about Dark Side of the Moon?”
That was too generous. Apparently he does not know anything about records period. Any records. Records with any titles.
That would include records with the title Led Zeppelin II, the subject of today’s commentary.
This video has to be The. Dumbest. Video. Ever.
Never have I seen this level of vapidity on display. I had no idea people like this existed, but here is one, and unfortunately he knows how to make videos.
Most of the audiophiles I’ve run into over the years had no idea how little they knew about records and audio. (I admit I was one of those guys for the first twenty years I was in high end audio. Thank god there were no audiophile forums or youtube channels around back then.)
The audiophiles of which I speak mostly stayed in their listening rooms where their secrets were safe. With the advent of the internet and youtube, now these clueless types can make their ignorance known to the wider world, the Dunning-Kruger* effect on full display.
The Video
The concept undergirding this demonstration of — now that I think about it, I’m not sure what exactly is being demonstrated other than the fact that records, when spinning on a turntable and scratched by a needle, can make sounds, and those sounds can come out of your computer speakers when you play the video. It’s science.
Anyway, the demonstration is simplicity itself. Watch it, and then you tell me if this isn’t the dumbest video about records that you have ever seen.
This none-too-bright fellow came up with the idea of doing a video about Led Zeppelin II pressing variations. Must have taken him at least an hour to record and edit it. Maybe more!
His plan involved:
- Playing six different pressings of the album.
- Playing these six records on a cheap-ass turntable that no audiophile could possibly take seriously.
- Switching from one pressing to another in the middle of random tracks.
- Recording the awful sound coming out of the awful speakers while the six pressings were playing.
- And, at the end, asking the viewer to go to the comments section to discuss the sound that they heard on the various pressings.
As it happens, I know four of these six titles very well.
The MoFi is a ridiculously bright, ridiculously phony remastering hack job. You can read my review of it by clicking on the link at the top of this page.
So is the Classic, so tonally wrong it defies understanding. Again, my review is here for all to see.
Now it’s your turn. Please to play the video.
Did you hear how bright those two pressings are?
I sure didn’t!
Now, if you play one of the best sounding versions of Led Zeppelin II, the Robert Ludwig “Hot Mix,” which incidentally is not a different mix. hot or otherwise, and you play three of the worst sounding versions (I’m including the early recut in that trio, a real piece of garbage), and they all kind of sound the same, what could possibly be the value of a video such as this?
It can have no value. When it was over I felt dumber than when it started.
And of course this person never makes a single statement comparing the sound of any of these pressings to any of the other pressings. Apparently that’s your job.
It is unlikely he would have anything of value to say. To butcher a much more elegant formulation ascribed to Mark Twain, regarding the question of his being a fool, perhaps it’s best he doesn’t open his mouth and remove all doubt.
He may be as deaf as he is stupid, but even if he is neither, the comments section should be overflowing with audiophiles questioning this guy’s sanity. The fact that it is not full of such comments does not speak well for audiophiles, music lovers or the human race in general.
I posted another of this fellow’s videos here. Below is an extract from the commentary accompanying it.
Two Minutes Was Enough
I frankly admit I did not spend two minutes watching this video. I simply do not have the patience to watch audiophiles like this guy opine about records he thinks he knows a lot better than he actually does.
That said, if there is a pressing that he thinks is the best, and you own one, we would be happy to send you a Hot Stamper to go head to head with it and let the chips fall where they may.
We are not in the opinion business. Opinions are cheap. Everybody has them.
We wrote a bit about the subject in a post entitled Explaining doesn’t work. Only hearing works.
A relevant excerpt:
All forums — whatever their benefits — cannot overcome this problem.
Next time someone posts an opinion about a record, ask yourself “What does his system sound like?”
If you don’t know the answer, why would you put any stock in his opinion? For all you know his system sucks and his critical listening skills are non-existent. He might have a pair of JBL 100s in his basement listening room and a Dual turntable (or the modern equivalent of same).
He may hate the records whose sound you love and love the records whose sound you hate.
Rather than being in the opinion business, we prefer being in the better sounding records business, offering, as we like to say, Records for Audiophiles, Not Audiophile Records.
Our records are expensive, but they deliver the superior sound we say they do, and we have the letters from customers to prove it.
Hot Stamper Testimonial Letters
And if we are wrong — which does happen from time to time, we see no reason to hide the fact — you get your money back.
*More on the Dunning-Kruger effect:
An extract from Steven Novella’s explanation of this psychological effect gives some background:
Dunning summarizes the effect as:
“…incompetent people do not recognize—scratch that, cannot recognize—just how incompetent they are,”
He further explains:
“What’s curious is that, in many cases, incompetence does not leave people disoriented, perplexed, or cautious. Instead, the incompetent are often blessed with an inappropriate confidence, buoyed by something that feels to them like knowledge.”
Our video poster appears confidant that he knows a lot about records. He has six different pressings of a single Led Zeppelin album. Why would he collect so many different pressings of the same music? He must know something!
But what does he know? After watching this video you would be hard-pressed to answer that question.
Basic Concepts and Realities Explained
Important Lessons We Learned from Record Experiments