Do Fans Really Care About Hi Fidelity?

Is there a push and pull between the industry and the audience when it comes to audio fidelity? Love to hear your POV in comments.

You can see the full Billy Corgan episode by visiting our link in bio.

#billycorgan #smashingpumpkins #musicproduction
#hifidelity

[WhyTheHorseface]

The most important thing is the song. If the song hooks you, it doesn’t matter how it’s recorded. BUT I also appreciate fantastic sound and production. You put on the new SP record and those guitars just sound huge and powerful. But if the song isn’t there, the best sounding guitar in the world won’t make me love hearing it.

[kennethbrown]

Insightful perspective from one of the most cerebral people in music

[grantwalkersound]

I think it's partially the artists and engineers driving the hi fidelity game. Artists want their vision to be expressed in the most accurate way they can, and engineers love toys (and it's their literal job). Obviously the industry responds to the demand with more products. I am aware 99.9% of people won't know the difference between Mix 1 and Mix 11... That I lowered the kick by half a dB, and maybe adjusted the 2-bus compressor because it had been squeezing too hard or whatever... No one cares but other artists and engineers.

[danmagee]

Fidelity matters for sure. Especially with modern recordings because people expect it to have that clarity etc that they are used to. I think with older recordings it doesn't matter as much because people know they are old recordings and in the back of their head they're not as particular. For example smells like teen spirit, if they would have used Butch vigs mix rather than Andy Wallace's the song wouldn't have been as big. The song matters the most for sure but fidelity also matters for modern recordings

[mtchim]

It's all about the performance. I still listen to AM radio most of the time. AM is the New alternative to the "popular" music.

[TheZappazapper]

There are a number of things that can make a piece of art interesting and compelling. "Fidelity" is one of those things, but so is content, so is energy, so is presentation, so is aesthetic. Arguably, fidelity is on the bottom end of that list, only because a bad recording of a good song is still a good song, and a good recording of a bad song is still a bad song.

[joeldukes]

He’s right. That’s why MOST not ALL remasters suck. I’m an audiophile, but a good song ? Fidelity matters little when something grabs more than your ears

[carminelombardi]

With all the social media and tech devices, people today don't see music as important in their lives as it did before all this happened.

[tehfn]

There is an album by The God Machine, called Scenes from the second storey. It's a masterpiece. But when you hear it on vinyl and hear on CD it's worlds apart in fidelity and atmosphere. It doesn't detract from the fact it's brilliant music, but the style of the music felt like the vinyl artifacts added to the atmosphere.

[PochoNews]

I used to argue this point with girlfriends. But that’s her effort and futility. Sound like music and its essence is subjective. And as a singer, I had to realize that early on or suffer the arrows which I didn’t. It’s OK that some people don’t like your stuff. It’s OK that people think your music is too loud or abrupt or cynical or anything. I just let it go and let it flow. Like I don’t like listening to Frank Sinatra at all. But I love the way he looked.

[viciousattackvideo]

Once digital compression became sonically acceptable, the “good enough” era began. Ironically the pitch correction and editing went the other way.

[rns]

I honestly do care about hifi recordings I feel lucky to have purchased all of the hifi versions of the reissues (in addition to the LP)

+1 vote (beg) to have a more expensive hifi recording made available on your future albums.

[brendansheehy]

It’s almost always the best or remastered versions of classic songs that get listened to the most though so there is a balance. I don’t think there’s a Beatles song out there that quite sounds like how it came out of the record player in the 60’s.

[greyklopstock]

Nah as a bass player, the bass ain't too loud on "I'll Be There." That's James motherfucking Jamerson, that bass is just right in my biased opinion

[TheRollingStoness]

As I get older, I feel like I hear the difference between 320 mp3 and FLAC, even tho my doctor says I have less hearing ability than a year my ears...😢

[antonharmacinski]

Can most fans afford true high fidelity equipment?

[AlfimAlves]

I disagree, as a child I put my Californication CD in my dad’s car and I was shocked at the loudness and distortion. I knew it was the CD because other albums sounded okay

[adamrajcarless]

Who’s driving the fidelity train is an amazing question

[wesbeach]

Fidelity starts with how you want to present your musicianship. Lo-fi is just as enjoyable as hi-fi.

[dwpuritan]

Fidelity is feel though. Hence Lo Fi is massive but, musically, quite dull.