2006.12.05 - Stuttgart, Germany @ Porsche Arena
Source A: Solid State Recorder --- Sound Professionals CMC8 Cards > SPSB-8 (bassrolloff@16Hz) > attenuatorcable > TRS-cable > Microtrack2496
Transfer: MT2496 > USB2.0 > HDD > Cool Edit Pro 2.1 [cut, FadeIn/Out, normalize, bass lift (using the graficEQ - "simple bass lift")] > dBPowerAmp (flac7) > µtorrent
Location: Microphones mounted on my glasses standing on the left side about 20m back from overhanging speakers
Taper: DaGobert
Gen: 0 from Master
Notes - by Taper: PLEASE PRESERVE QUALITY, DO NOT ENCODE TO MP3, KEEP OUR RIGHT TO TRADE FREELY ALIVE, DON'T BE A FUCK & SELL THIS SHOW, ENJOY AS MUCH AS YOU LIKE, SEED AS LONG AS YOU CAN
Notes: Despite a great deal of adversity from the venue, the crowd & a somewhat less-than-"here" performance by Tool, this recording is in & of itself a worthy listen even when compared to the plethora of high quality recordings floating around from this era. Of particular interest is that the voice effects from Swamp Song are very evident in this source (I think this is the same effect as on Rosetta Stoned). Strong mid-range with a clear definition, however, this recording may be a bit too "tinny" for some listeners. The bass is evident but it is more of a thud rather than something with depth. Vocals apparently more pronounced in the recording than some reported it to be live. All in all, quite a fine listen.
Maynardism: "Thank you very much for coming down. Can't wait to see you next summer...”
Time: 1:49:42
<bass drone>
Stinkfist
46 & 2
Jambi
Schism
Lost Keys
Rosetta Stoned
Swamp Song
Wings for Marie
10.000 Days
Lateralus
Vicarious
Ænima
Source B: Hi-Mini Disc --- Core Sound Binaurals > Battery Box w/bass roll off at 120Hz > Sony MZ-RH910 Hi-MD(HiSP)
Transfer: Sony MZ-RH910 Hi-MD > USB > Sonicstage > Wav > Audacity > Wav > FLAC
Location: Front of stacks left, 15m back from overhanging speakers
Taper: Jadg2
Gen: 0 from Master
Notes - by Taper: Solid performance for the first set of songs or so, I felt on the night that Wings knocked something from the night by slowing things up too much then. Band played well, sounded a lot tighter compared to 6 months previously. Adam appeared to be rocking out subtly, whilst Danny and Justen played excellently, as per usual. Maynard sounded like he does these days. He had the full-gas-mask with built-in mic apparatus, and sang hands free, quite unusual looking. He wore sunglasses too underneath - take me somewhere nice. Recording notes - A relaxed crowd, few people dancing around me (slowly) and a bit of wooing. By the time it gets to Wings, people started talking a lot more from then until the end. The sound from the speakers sounded relatively clear and crisp, making this one of the better Tool recordings I've made. Known problems - PA static from Adam's guitar at the start, a lot of beer came my way at the start of Ænema, making for a quick mic check, but don't think you will notice. For burning to CD, I'd suggest after Wings 1 & 2
Notes: Although not as bright, per se, as Source A comes across, this source features a pleasant layer of bass, mid & high ranges that create a realistic reproduction of this performance. If nothing else, this is a standard CSB, FOS recording although it should be noted that the sound is somewhat distant in sound at times. The crowd is low as well, not too many annoying talkers. Standard fare for this leg of the tour; if every recording sounded at least this good the world would be a better place.
Maynardism:
"Thank you very much for coming down. Can't wait to see you next summer..."
Setlist
Time: 1:46:27
Source C: Solid State Recorder --- MBHO MBP 603 A / KA 200 N > Sound Devices MP-2 > Edirol R-09
Transfer: Master WAV > Digital Editing > CD Wave Editor V1.94.7 > FLAC V1.1.2
Location: ~25m from the stage, right side, section 3
Editing: Volume boost and fades in Steinberg WaveLab V5.0a, Mixed the right channel to the left one in Steinberg WaveLab V5.0a,
Dithering: UV22 HR dithering in Steinberg WaveLab V5.0a, Resampling: 48.0 kHz > 44.1 kHz resampling in Steinberg WaveLab V5.0a
Gen: 0 from Master
Notes - by Taper: Tracks D1T5-D2T08 mono (right channel only) due to a bad cable. This is the 16-bit version of this recording. To seamlessly join the two discs, simply remove D1T08 and D2T01.
Notes: I am going to say that this entire review is completely biased. In my opinion, this is the best of the sources around for this particular performance. There are a few issues with technical mix-ups with the cables but if you can overlook that this recording will shine-on in your collection. Vocals are bright, bass hits just right as the drums are as distinct as the bass-plucks from Justin. This is one of the finest recordings from this leg of the tour. Hell, take a listen to Swamp Song, compare it to any other recording out there from this leg & you be the judge. Definitely worth it to burn to CD & take with you to do whatever with.
Time: 1:48:09