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Volume 2: Audience 8.2 - Sounds like taper attended the first two nights and had different seats each time because this one, while pretty strong, shows a rather overloaded bass signal that does not distort the tape as much as it crowds the sound field in the middle. This places guitar secondary in the mix, and vocals third. Drums sound good. The overall mix is what I would call decent for 1969 audience but not as clear as the first night.
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Aud 8.4 - A very good, clear tape for the time (includes Corn Exchange and Saville Theater 67 both excellent). Only problem is, the taper recorded less than 1 minute on almost every song except for a Red House. Kind of infuriating. (Red House is complete and smokes! It seems this was recorded by someone who interviewed Hendrix, so he probably just wanted small pieces to embellish his interview tape to be broadcast at his college station or something).
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Volume 3: Audience 7.6 - Bass is pumping at the expense of everything else unless the music pauses now and then which makes guitar front and center for a moment. It’s somewhat muddy, but you do hear everything happening, and the ears do adjust. It’s the worst of the three night stand. Good, at times, and worth having nonetheless.
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Audience 8.3 - This recording originates from a very low generation, but probably master tape source and as such it is very clean. The caveat is that it seems to have been recorded from the back of the hall, which is not that bad since the hall was probably not that large. It’s a good recording that needs a volume boost, which thankfully you can crank it and it does not distort.
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Aud 7.2 - Thin, like a small transistor cassette deck recording but surprisingly the narrow bandwidth allows Jimi’s guitar to penetrate and come to the center, so you are treated to a Jimi fest on this tape. Lo Fi, yes, but it’s the Jimi show with a cutting guitar sound with that tell tale stadium echo that gives it a nostalgic vibe. I kind of like this tape. Really interesting capture!
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Sale!Audience 7.0 - A noisy tape that is to be expected from this time period and from a fan in the audience…that being said, it has something to offer to the collector. It’s a little distorted in the low frequencies which is OK because this band does not live on bottom end anyway. The guitar is pretty clear, so you get treated to the band’s formidable front line with vocals and bass coming in behind the guitars.
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Aud 6.9 - Distant, with only Jimi’s singing and a booming bass audible, except for when Jimi is soloing and then you hear his leads bouncing almost like quadraphonic around the venue. Now, that does add some cool atmospherics, but this tape is for the hard core. Lastly, I can say at least this – Red House sounds much better, and I am sure if someone remastered this tape it would bring out a lot more good stuff so it is salvageable IMHO.
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Audience 8.5 - OK, so the deal here is that the taper seems to be real close to the PA system and his machine is getting bombasted like heck, but the thing is holding up somewhat. Early on, the snare drum is pegging his meters and it’s kind of annoying until he seems to either move a little or dial back the recording levels because it evens out after a couple songs. A very kinetic and wild show and recording that throws you headfirst into the action, a thrill ride of epic proportions I would say. Have fun!
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Aud 6.9 - Not very good, but I think someone has mastered this nonetheless because a lot of the mid band muck is gone, and you can hear Jimi sing! You get his guitar next in this mix, and at times the sun peaks from behind the clouds. I think, if you are a collector, this is of historical importance due to Jimi’s connection with the Southern blues.
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Aud 8.4 - Oh how I love this show! Why? It’s reasonably clear with only a bit of upper level distortion – but man, this just blows EVERYTHING away! The set list for one, it’s got some little gems on it, and the playing – YUP – he’s killin’ it. What else? Oh, a very intimate feel, just has a sort of immediate impact kind of sound. Mitch and Noel are spot on, Jimi feeds off of their energy as well as the audience. A MUST!