Hot Stamper Pressings of the Music of Led Zeppelin Available Now
We did not care for the newly remastered version of Houses of the Holy. It badly lacks the kind of mastering that Robert Ludwig brought to the sound, and by that we mean lots of lovely tubes in the mastering chain.
What tube equipment he used and how he used it is something we have been researching for years now, but rather than go down that rabbit hole for the moment, let’s just say the Tubey Magic that is all over the original cuttings of the album is hard to find on the new one, and that means it’s missing a quality that makes Houses of the Holy one of the most luscious audiophile listening experiences one can have, even for those of us who long ago gave up on tube equipment.
The notes for side one, track one (The Song Remains the Same) and track three (Over the Hills and Far Away), read:
- Blary, but not as awful as I expected
- Dry, top end is bright, big though
The notes for side two, tracks one (Dancing Days) and three (No Quarter), read:
- A bit thick, tonally OK
- Less space around the low end
Tubes are what the doctor ordered, precisely the medicine that was needed to cure many of this pressing’s problems, but tubes are not what Jimmy Page and his engineer, John Davis, brought to the project, and more’s the pity. Any good domestic original will show you exactly what is wrong with the sound of this version in under two minutes.