I know that Exile was re-released in "remaster" form - in mid 1990's. Is the "Ltd. Ed. Exile" different than this mix?

Also, is there a SACD release of Exile?

What Ltd Edition are you refering to??

xomd people sell such a beast on eBay - do you know if any are official?

The original Exile CD sukked big time. On CD, Exile was remastered once, when the catalog shifted to Virgin, and to the best of my knowledge, it is the one available today. The original rerelease of the CD came in a replica of the original album (with mini-postcards). Some people claim that that version is better than the versions available now, but I doubt it. It has not been released on SACD; only the London catalog was made available in the dual layer format from Abkco.

"The original rerelease of the CD came in a replica of the original album (with mini-postcards). Some people claim that that version is better than the versions available now"

I have some of those. I can't tell if there's any difference. I can't hear it if there is. I have SF, EOMS, IORR, B&B, SG and TY.

JumpingKentFlash

I also have the recent release on vinyl, which is supposedly an audiophile quality pressing. But, since I no longer have a decent turntable, I haven't heard it yet.

We discussed this some time ago.

ALL CD releases of EOMS are plain waful if compared to the old vinyl.

CBS and Virgin CD releases differ a lot. Virgin is somehow "warmer" and that booming bass of the CBS version is now more "natural". On the other hand it is also "duller" if compared to the first CBS. Take the percussions and marimbas on black angel for istance. On the LP they are clear up front with "the sound of the room" there. On the CBS they are still there up front, but the "room" is lost. On the Virgin CD percussions and marimbas seem as if they were played in a different room (and maybe a diffrent floor as well).

On CD the acoustic guitars are simply unlitenable. They sound as if they were the 81 infamous Ovations ...

C

I'll basically agree that the original album sounded much better than the CD's, but I think that Exile presents all kinds of problems for engineers trying to master it for CD. I have not heard many people who like the CBS CD, though.

the virgin is FAR better than cbs cd's....

some folks will tell you that the Mickboy remaster (from vinyl) is the way to go. In my a/b comparisons with the Virgin CD, I've found little difference.

Thanks for info & input.....that settles it - have to get a copy of Exile on vinyl...

There is a difference in the two CD's. For example, Listen to the 'Sweet Virginia', right at the chorus, the audio really spikes on the original CD - the Virgin re-issue is a much better mix.