Aussi disponible en version française.

Hello, today we’re back behind the scenes of the release of Serge Gainsbourg’s L’homme à tête de chou, with a new remix and mastering in stereo and multichannel. This new version is available in a boxed set containing 2 CDs, a Blu-ray and a booklet, as well as a double-disc vinyl edition with booklet or a single edition.
In addition to the remixed album, the box set and double-disc vinyl edition include the musical version of the album and working versions of certain recordings.
To find out more about this reissue, we went into the studio of sound engineer Poussin (Digital Encoding System Studio), who explained the work he carried out on this new edition. We’ve already had the opportunity to take you on a tour of this studio, explaining all the stages from tape restoration to Dolby Atmos mixing.
Today we’re back to take you through the restoration, remixing, mastering and production of the different versions.

The review includes the original stereo version, the musical stereo version, the 5.1 version and the Dolby Atmos version. The Dolby Atmos 2023 version is not available for streaming (only on blu-ray). The previous Dolby Atmos mix is available for streaming on Amazon, Tidal and Apple Music.

In the previous report, sound engineer Poussin explained that the old stereo magnetic tapes used for the masters are often damaged or aged by time, so to get a better result from his work he uses multitrack recordings, which are tapes that have been used less and are therefore in better condition.
For this album, we’ll be using a 24-track analogue tape on multiple reels, as shown on the tape label below.

You’ll find all the information about the recording, i.e. 24 tracks on a 2-inch tape at a speed of 38 cm per second, 15 IPS in NAB format and with Dolby noise reduction (by default, if nothing is specified, Dolby A noise reduction is used).

The photos below show the distribution of the various tracks, i.e. the 24 tracks, between the instruments and the vocals.

The A820 24-track player is calibrated for tape playback. The 24 tracks are digitised to 24-bit 96kHz for use in the new mix.

A lot of mixing is done for this new version and the artistic decisions are validated with the Artistic direction: Sebastien Merlet and Christophe Geudin. From September 20, you can also visit la Maison de Serge Gainsbourg.
This new mix will provide a better balance between the voice and the music. The sound is validated at each stage of the mixing process.
Three mixes are produced:

• The stereo version which is used for all media with a specific mastering stage depending on the broadcast medium (CD/Streaming, Blu-ray and vinyl).
• The 5.1 mix.
• The Dolby Atmos mix.

L’homme à tête de chou had already been remixed in Dolby Atmos 2 years ago, but that mix remained faithful to the balance of the original version.  The new Dolby Atmos mix will provide a new balance between the music and the voice. All mixes are at 48kHz.

After mixing, it’s time for mastering.

There are 3 types of mastering:

– Stereo mastering for Blu-ray, which takes advantage of great dynamics.

– Mastering for CD and streaming: sound engineer Poussin explains that he has to stay within current CD standards, so he applies a small amount of dynamic compression, which is appropriate for this type of music (here we’re at DR10, which keeps the dynamics up).

– Mastering for vinyl uses specific analogue processing, with the transfer to tape using the Ampex ATR-104 tape recorder at 30 ips (76 cm/s), which gives a natural compression..

The Manley analogue equaliser and compressor are also used for this mastering. This work was done in order to preserve the analogue processing for vinyl cutting.

The result of this new mix is impressive, with a perfectly natural voice and music that reintroduces all the instruments. It’s not just a remix by today’s standards, it’s really an artistic approach that brings a better balance to this album, which was different at the time of its creation. The mixing time for this reissue was longer than for the original mix, which shows the care that went into this restoration.

To verify the result of this work and compare it with the original version, the Blu-ray was listened to at Studio DES.

Using the Blu-ray, we compared the original stereo version, the stereo version of the 2023 mix, the 2023 version of the 5.1 mix and the 2023 Dolby Atmos version.

The comparison of the stereo versions is impressive: vocal balance and musical presence are more natural than in the original. The 1976 stereo version has a lower sound level than the 2023 mix, so in order not to alter the master of the 1976 version, sound engineer Poussin chose not to modify its sound level.

On this superb studio recording, the voice is very natural, with a grain that gives the singer presence. As for the music, everything is clear and precise, with the finest nuances and instrumental interplay audible.

Switching to 5.1 gives you more space, but it’s the Dolby Atmos version that is the most impressive. Let’s start with a description of the studio, which is certified for Dolby Atmos Music with a 9.1.8 system. If you want to know more about the studio’s equipment, you’ll find all the details in these two reports, Studio DES Part1 and Part2.

Listening in Dolby Atmos begins with the track L’homme à tête de chou, the opening of which brings clarity and precision from the bells that follow the music and fill the room. Serge’s voice comes across naturally, so realistic is the reproduction that you can actually hear him in front of you.
The Dolby Atmos version is like a natural 3D extension of the stereo version.
The track Lunatic Asylum is a perfect example of this natural 3D extension of sound. The music spreads out across all the speakers with great coherence, and it’s as if this song was designed for the Dolby Atmos format.
A comparison with the ADM master shows that the Dolby Digital True HD Atmos track is faithful to the master, with the same sound quality.
The Dolby Atmos version of Tidal’s 2021 mix gives greater prominence to vocals than the 2023 version.
The Dolby Atmos version of the Blu-ray is more coherent, as is the 2023 stereo version.

All these listening tests are in line with the measurements taken on the different versions. Samples of the different versions are also available so that you can appreciate the work that has gone into this new mix.

Below you will find the description of the different editions, as well as the measurements of each edition in the following chapters.
The synthesis of the review and the samples are available here

The original album is composed of 12 tracks:

1. L’homme à tête de chou
2. Chez Max coiffeur pour hommes
3. Marilou reggae
4. Transit à Marilou
5. Flash Forward
6. Aéroplanes
7. Premiers symptômes
8. Ma Lou Marilou
9. Variations sur Marilou
10. Meurtre à l’extincteur
11. Marilou sous la neige
12. Lunatic Asylum

The streaming versions may evolve over time, those presented here correspond to the version tested at the date of publication, or update of the review.

Review of the editions:

Part 1: Presentation of the editions

Part 2 : Summary, scoring and Sample

Part 3 : Waveform and dynamique comparaison

Part 4 : Spectrum comparisons

Part 5 : Spectrogram comparaisons>

Part 6 : Spatialization

Part 1: presentation of the editions

Ed 1: Vinyl – 2023

Presentation

The double LP vinyl edition contains the album with the 2023 mix on the first vinyl record and the musical version plus 4 alternative vocal takes (Transit À Marilou, Ma Lou Marilou, Meurtre À l’extincteur, Lunatic Asylum) on the second vinyl record. This album also comes with a 20-page booklet describing the genesis of the album (Ref: 602455574664).

Ed 2: CD – 2023

Presentation

The CD box set contains 2 CDs and a Blu-ray, plus a small booklet describing the album. As with the vinyl, the first disc features the album with its 2023 mix, and the second CD the musical version, this time with 5 alternative vocal versions (Transit À Marilou, Ma Lou Marilou, Variations Sur Marilou, Meurtre À l’extincteur, Lunatic Asylum). Only the first CD has been tested here. (Ref: 602455574732)

Ed 3: Tidal stereo – 2023

Presentation

The Tidal Stereo version contains the same content as the 2 CDs in the box set. The first 12 tracks corresponding to the 2023 mix are used for this test. These tracks are presented in 16-bit 44.1 kHz format.

Ed 4: Bluray stereo original 1976

Presentation

The CD box set contains 2 CDs and a Blu-ray, plus a small booklet describing the album (Ref: 602455574732).

It is the original 1976 stereo track that is tested for this Ed4 presented in 24 bit 48 kHz.

Ed 5: Bluray stereo – 2023

Presentation

The CD box set contains 2 CDs and a Blu-ray, plus a small booklet describing the album (Ref: 602455574732).

It is the stereo 2023 mix track that is being tested for this Ed5, presented in 24 bit 48 kHz.

Ed 6: Bluray 5.1 – 2023

Presentation

The CD box set contains 2 CDs and a Blu-ray, plus a small booklet describing the album (Ref: 602455574732).

It is the 2023 5.1 mix track that is being tested for this Ed6, presented in Dolby Digital.

Ed 7: Bluray Dolby Atmos – 2023

Presentation

The CD box set contains 2 CDs and a Blu-ray, plus a small booklet describing the album (Ref: 602455574732).

It is the Dolby Atmos 2023 mix track that is being tested for this Ed7, presented in Dolby Digital TrueHD, a lossless format with a bit rate in excess of 9000kbits/s.

Ed 8: Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2021

Presentation

The Tidal Dolby Atmos version corresponds to the Atmos mixes of 2021. It is presented in Dolby Digital plus with a bit rate of 768 kbits/s, or in Dolby AC4.

Part 2 : Summary, scoring and Samples

Ed 1: Vinyl – 2023

Beautiful double vinyl edition with a double quality sleeve and a nice booklet. The pressing is very accurate. The vocals sound dynamic and natural, and the music is rich in detail, with all instruments reproduced perfectly. The 2023 mix provides a very fine restoration of this famous Serge Gainsbourg album. The vocals are very natural, making this the best stereo edition.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●● (5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Surface noise: ●●●●o (4)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4.5)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” 24 bits 88.2 kHz:

Ed 2: CD – 2023

On this CD we find the 2023 mix with the new balance between vocals and instruments, which brings a new listening experience to this album. Listening to the CD confirms the work done on the mastering, with a louder sound and slightly less dynamic range, which can be heard when comparing the CD extract with that on the Blu-ray (2023 stereo mix).

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●oo (3)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3.5)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” 16 bits 44.1 kHz:

Ed 3: Tidal stereo – 2023

The Tidal stereo version presented in 16 bit 44.1 kHz comes from the same master as the CD version (Ed 2), which is confirmed by the samples.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●oo (3)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3.5)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” 16 bits 44.1 kHz:

Ed 4: Bluray stereo original 1976

It’s very interesting to have the original version of this album on the blu-ray, the comparison with the 2023 mix shows the work done on the new mix to bring out the music, fully highlighting the instruments used. On this original version, the vocals are more present, with a tonal balance that has been adjusted in the new mix to make them sound more natural.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●● (5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3.5)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” 24 bits 48 kHz:

Ed 5: Bluray stereo – 2023

Very good reproduction of the 2023 mix on the blu-ray edition, with better dynamics and precision than the CD version. This is the reference digital stereo version for listening to the new mix of this album.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” 24 bits 48 kHz:

Ed 6: Bluray 5.1 – 2023

The reissue of this album also features a 5.1 mix. In this mix we find the new balance between music and vocals, with the spatial extension of 5.1. However, this version lacks the finesse and spaciousness of the Dolby Atmos version presented in Dolby TrueHD.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4.5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●ooo (2.4)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3.5)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” 5.1 16 bits 48 kHz:

The sample is in 5.1 wav format, if you can not play the sample in your navigator, you can save it, right button menu and “Save Audio As…” and play it with an external player.

Ed 7: Bluray Dolby Atmos – 2023

The 2023’s Dolby Atmos mix gives the music a truly natural spatial extension. The coherent sound of the vocals is maintained at the front, but all the instruments open up into the room. Despite the spatial effect on the music, the spatialization score of 5.3 is explained by the dominance of the voice on the front channels. On ‘Lunatic Asylum’, the track seems to have been designed for spatial reproduction, so natural is the Atmos mix. The Dolby TrueHD format retains all the detail of the original master, allowing the finest nuances of vocals and instruments to be heard.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4.5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●●●●ooooo (5.3)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4.5)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” Atmos decoded in 7.1:

The sample is in 5.1 wav format, if you can not play the sample in your navigator, you can save it, right button menu and “Save Audio As…” and play it with an external player.

Ed 8: Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2021

This Dolby Atmos version retains the coherence of the original version, with the voice more prominent than the music. This means that the music is less spatial and more frontal, in keeping with the 1976 mix. The new 2023 Atmos mix on the Blu-ray offers the new voice/music balance, but it is not available for streaming.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4.5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●●●oooooo (4.1)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4)

Sample : ”L’homme à tête de chou” Atmos decoded in 5.1:

The sample is in 5.1 wav format, if you can not play the sample in your navigator, you can save it, right button menu and “Save Audio As…” and play it with an external player.

Find all the waveform, spectrum, spectrogram and spatialization measurements below.

Part 3 : Waveform and dynamic comparaisons

Waveform

The waveform represents tracks of this album.

For the watform of the vinyl, we find a good dynamic rangeas shown in the graph and confirmed by the DR measurement.

On the waveforms below (CD 2023, Tidal 2023), we note the greater use of a limiter on the peaks (while maintaining a DR10) compared with the blu-ray version, as indicated in the mastering instructions for these media.

The 2023 mix on the blu-ray offers a fine dynamic range (DR12) with very slight use of the limiter.

The multichannel versions of blu-ray 5.1, blu-ray Atmos (decoded in 7.1) and Tidal Dolby Atmos (decoded in 5.1), present beautiful dynamics on all channels, with no trace of limiter. The rear channels are well used, as can be seen on listening.

The original 1976 blu-ray version favors the voice in particular, and here presents a fine dynamic range with its original recording level still low.

Dynamic

Dynamic represents the ability to reproduce a wide range of sounds from the softest to the loudest. The target is to compare the dynamics of the music and not of the media (CD, digital files or vinyl).

For our 8 editions reviewed have obtained the following Dynamic Range (DR) :

	Vinyl – 2023	CD – 2023	Tidal stereo – 2023	Bluray stereo original 1976	Bluray stereo – 2023	Bluray 5.1 – 2023	Bluray Dolby Atmos – 2023	Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2021
Global	DR14	DR10	DR10	DR15	DR12	DR14	DR13	DR13
Min	DR12	DR9	DR9	DR12	DR11	DR13	DR11	DR12
Max	DR15	DR13	DR13	DR17	DR13	DR16	DR14	DR14
L’homme à tête de chou	DR15	DR10	DR10	DR16	DR13	DR14	DR14	DR13
Chez Max coiffeur pour hommes	DR13	DR10	DR10	DR15	DR13	DR14	DR12	DR13
Marilou reggae	DR14	DR10	DR10	DR16	DR12	DR16	DR14	DR14
Transit à Marilou	DR13	DR9	DR9	DR15	DR12	DR13	DR12	DR12
Flash Forward	DR14	DR10	DR10	DR16	DR12	DR14	DR14	DR14
Aéroplanes	DR14	DR10	DR10	DR16	DR12	DR14	DR13	DR13
Premiers symptômes	DR12	DR13	DR13	DR15	DR13	DR13	DR13	DR15
Ma Lou Marilou	DR14	DR10	DR10	DR15	DR12	DR14	DR14	DR14
Variations sur Marilou	DR14	DR9	DR9	DR16	DR12	DR15	DR14	DR14
Meurtre à l’extincteur	DR13	DR10	DR10	DR12	DR11	DR15	DR13	DR13
Marilou sous la neige	DR13	DR10	DR10	DR13	DR11	DR13	DR11	DR12
Lunatic Asylum	DR15	DR10	DR10	DR17	DR13	DR14	DR14	DR14

With a dynamic range between DR12 and DR14 for the different mixes of 2023 and 1976, there are good dynamics on all media except CD and streaming for the 2023 version, which are a little less dynamic with a DR10.

As a reminder, the scale goes from 0 to more 20, but the dynamics are considered good from 12, quite good between 10 and 11, and deteriorate below 10.

Part 4 : spectrum comparisons

Spectrum

The Spectrum allows to check the tonal balance of the music (balance between treble, medium and bass sounds) and to detect process that may have been carried out during the recording, the mixing, mastering or manufacturing phases. It is also possible to detect frequency interference issues.

The graph below compares the 2023 vinyl spectrum (white curve) with the 2023 blu-ray mix spectrum (blue curve). The curves overlap up to 15 kHz, and above this frequency (yellow zone), there’s an increase of a few dB for vinyl. This increase rises to 10 dB at 20 kHz.

The graph below compares the CD 2023 spectrum (white curve) with the Tidal 2023 spectrum (blue curve). The curves overlap completely across the spectrum. As indicated by the sound engineer, these versions come from the same master. The yellow arrow indicates the 22 kHz limit due to the CD sampling frequency.

The graph below compares the spectrum of the 2023 CD (white curve) with the spectrum of the 2023 blu-ray version (blue curve). The curves overlap completely across the spectrum, with just one difference above 20 kHz, mainly due to the use of different sampling frequencies (44.1 kHz for CD and 48 kHz for blu-ray).

The graph below compares the spectrum of the 1976 blu-ray version(white curve) with the spectrum of the 2023 blu-ray version (blue curve).
The yellow zone shows an accentuation of the 15 kHz level for the 1976 version (greater than 7 dB). The green zone shows a very significant bass boost below 100 Hz for the 2023 version, with more than 8 dB at 60 Hz. With these deviations, the 2023 version will have a different sound balance with a strong bass presence.
The green zone shows small variations due to the deferment of the mixes, with the music more prominent in the 2023 version.

The spectrum of the Dolby Atmos Tidal version decoded in 5.1, shows a higher level for the front channels (R, L, C) (yellow arrow). The bass channel is filtered at 120 Hz (green arrow).

The spectrum of the Dolby Atmos blu-ray version decoded in 7.1 shows a similar level for the front and surround channels, but higher for the front channels (R, L, C) (yellow arrow) above 4 kHz. The bass channel is filtered at 120 Hz. The maximum frequency is limited to 24 kHz due to the Dolby Digital TrueHD sampling frequency.

The spectrum of the Dolby Atmos Tidal version decoded in 5.1 shows a similar level for the 5 front and surround channels, but higher for the front channels (R, L, C) (yellow arrow) above 4 kHz. The bass channel is filtered at 120 Hz. Maximum frequency is limited to 20 kHz due to Dolby Digital Plus encoding.

Part 5 : Spectrogram comparaisons

Spectrogram

Spectrogram is another representation of frequency versus time of a track. For each channel (right and left), horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents frequency. The amplitude is represented by the intensity (brightness) of the color of each point in the image.

The spectrograms below of the vinyl record show a frequency that rises above 20 kHz (yellow arrow) with a signal above these frequencies that is composed of distortion due to the principle of vinyl record playback (white arrow).

The graphs above show the spectrograms for the CD, tidal and Blu-ray stereo versions, with the maximum frequency limited to 22 kHz or 24 kHz (yellow arrow) depending on the sampling frequency used for the medium (44.1 kHz or 48 kHz). There is no signal above this limit (white arrow).

The spectrogram of the Blu-ray Dolby Atmos version ( decoded in 7.1) shows that the maximum frequency is 24 kHz (yellow arrow) with no signal above (white arrow). This is due to the sampling frequency at 48 kHz. The green arrow shows 120 Hz filtering of the bass channel (LFE).

The spectrogram of the blu-ray 5.1 version shows that the maximum frequency is 20 kHz (yellow arrow) with no signal above (white arrow). This is due to the encoding used (Dolby Digital). The green arrow shows 120 Hz filtering of the bass channel (LFE).

The spectrogram of the Tidal Dolby Atmos version (decoded in 5.1) shows that the maximum frequency is 20 kHz (yellow arrow) with no signal above (white arrow). This is due to the encoding used (Dolby Digital Plus), which optimizes the amount of information by limiting the bandwidth to 20 kHz in order to reduce the data rate. The green arrow shows 120 Hz filtering of the bass channel (LFE).

Part 6 : Spatialization

Spatialization allows you to define the sound distribution of the music on all the channels. The spatialization indicator and the description of the graph are described here.

Spatialization is available for versions 5.1 and Dolby Atmos (2023 Blu-ray and 2021 Tidal version).

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Detail of the ratings :

• Dynamic :
  1. Significant dynamic compression, DR less than 7
  2. Compression of the present dynamics, DR between 7 and 9.
  3. Correct piece DR >=10
  4. No dynamic compression (DR >12), dynamic rendering
  5. No dynamic compression, high DR and very dynamic sound rendering
• Spectrum :
  1. Spectrum cut and less than 15 khz
  2. Spectrum cut at 15 khz
  3. Spectrum not conforming to the original and cut (not HD) or original but limited bandwidth (but less than 20 kHz)
  4. Spectrum conforming to the original (but not HD)
  5. Spectrum conforming to the original with HD resolution (higher than 24kHz)
• Surface noise (only for vinyl):
  1. Continuous audible noise
  2. Audible surface noise except on passages with a high level of noise
  3. Reduced surface noise, barely audible on low level crossings
  4. Low surface noise, very good quality
  5. Very low surface noise, no defects, almost inaudible on the quiet passages (exceptional disc)
• Spatialization :
  • Between 0 and 5 for 5.1 or 7.1 channels configuration
  • Between 0 and 10 for Atmos configuration (7.1.4)
  • For more information on spatialization, you can read the article describing this parameter here.
• Restitution :
  1. Low quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  2. Average quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  3. Quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Good record.
  4. High quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Very high level disc.
  5. Maximum quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Exceptional disc.

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