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Great post. One of my first trades was for 9/12/99 (or maybe 9/11/99, can’t remember). It was a struggle to love those 99 AUDs. Some other ideas: maybe something changed in general live sound done in this period? Maybe the tape section changed locations or the sound team changed? I don’t put it on the tapers either, it’s an era that got recorded boomy and difficult to listen to.

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Yeh these '99's aren't relistened to me often- unless I was there or specific songs. BTW, this was the first time in my life I can remember just walking away from having somewhere to sleep. I had gone down to Atlanta with friends from home just up in Chattanooga. But after seeing the incredible lot scene I couldn't just go home. I walked back into the fray, saw a dude with peyote wrapped around his fingers for sale. first time i'd heard that being hawked- didn't try it- and more wheeling and dealing than i ever had...it had never felt more like being in a city named Phish. I met a women I'd delivered a pizza to like 3 months earlier- she had Phish playing- and her party let me crash on their floor! TWENTY-ONE YEARS OLD IS THE BAG!!

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Enjoyed this entry, Rob and revisiting this—in my opinion—very neglected tour.

Interesting take on the AUD quality. I do think the catches from the taper's section of Summer 98 are some of the best of any band ever so it's weird to see a dip.

Curious of what your setup is for critical listening? I start on ReListen and then download the source in lossless for the best I can get and—perhaps needless to say—the difference between the stream and having the files stored locally running through my system is galactic.

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Hey Jeff, good to hear from you! Please don't think of less of me when I say that, yeah, I'm mostly streaming on ReListen. I have to do a lot of research on the go or at work, and slinging FLACs just isn't an option. But even by those weak standards, it feels like a drop off from 98, and it's a tour/year where the SBDs always blow AUDs out of the water, imo.

Readers, check out Jeff's newsletter at https://ambientaudiophile.substack.com/, where I discover tons of great new music and read about high-end audio equipment I'll never own.

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Makes sense seeing as how most people just stream AUDs. Get you a Pono and take those FLACs on the run! Ha. And there’s always time to get into hi-Fi. It’s the best time in history with so much affordable awesome gear. Perfect for heads!

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