Finding a "fixed" FLAC version of Huey Lewis and the News: Greatest Hits
The Verdict
There are three main compilations:
CDDA Accuracy
: Most tracks, including "Do You Believe In Love" and "The Power Of Love," show a 100% CDDA (Compact Disc Digital Audio) verification, confirming they are true lossless files and not upconverted from lower-quality sources. Track-Specific Issues :
Hip to Be Square:
The layered vocal harmonies in the chorus are significantly clearer in lossless formats.
- Source acquisition: obtain the highest-quality master (tape or approved digital master).
- Transfer: perform ADC with bit-perfect settings (e.g., 24-bit/96 kHz or the tape’s native spec); document hardware and software.
- Restoration (if needed): apply clicks/pop removal, de-noising, and careful de-essing without damaging transients.
- Editing and sequencing: fix track boundaries using accurate cuesheets; preserve gaps/pregaps per original release intent.
- Mastering: gentle limiting, EQ, and level matching across tracks; aim for consistent RMS and LUFS targets appropriate to a compilation (transparent mastering, e.g., -14 to -10 LUFS depending on preference).
- Quality control: listen-through, phase and mono-sum checks, spectrogram inspection for artifacts, and verify no clipping.
- Encoding: encode to FLAC using a lossless encoder (e.g., reference FLAC encoder, level choice for compression only), preserve original sample rate/bit depth if possible.
- Tagging and packaging: embed accurate metadata, ISRCs, release notes describing sources and fixes, and include original and remaster credits.
- Distribution notes: clearly label as remaster/archival transfer and date; include MD5 or checksums for integrity.
release provided even higher quality FLAC rips, though some digital versions of specific tracks like the "Back In Time" John "Jellybean" Benitez Mix