Dire Straits Making Movies – Mo-Fi Vinyl 45RPM Review

Vinyl surface noise: 5+

Dynamic Range: 4+/5

Stereo Imaging: 4+

Image depth/perspective: 4

Overall frequency response: 4+

Track List:

Side One

1. Tunnel of Love

Side Two

1. Romeo and Juliet
2. Skateaway

Side Three

1. Expresso Love
2. Hand In Hand

Side Four

1. Solid Rock
2. Les Boys

This was their third album that was originally released on vinyl in 1980 by Vertigo Records and Warner Bros, going platinum and double platinum in the USA and UK respectively. Mobile Fidelity has re-mastered this new release from the original analog master tapes using their GAIN2 ULTRA ANALOG SYSTEM and had it pressed at RTI on 180gram High Definition Vinyl, a new vinyl formulation providing improvements in both noise floor and groove definition.

Vinyl – MFSL2-4, 180g 45RPM 2LP set Numbered Edition. Mine is number 000863.

The original CD version was released in 1984, and this new release is also available on Mo-Fi SACD – UDSACDS2186 as a Numbered Edition.

Musicians:

• Vocals/Guitar  – Mark Knopfler
• Drums – Pick Withers
• Bass – John Illsley
• Guitar – Sid McGinnis
• Keyboards – Roy Bittan

Reviewed using the Hana SL and MX-VYNL pre-amp.

In 1980, Dire Straits released their third album, Making Movies. This marked a move towards more complex arrangements and production which would continue for the remainder of the band’s career until the group’s dissolution in the 1990s. Featuring “Romeo and Juliet,” which became one of the band’s best-known chart hits, Making Movies saw the departure of David Knopfler while the recording of the album was still in progress.

This was one of the few Dire Straits albums’ I have never owned so its release by Mo-Fi on 45RPM vinyl was something I was really looking forward to. Especially after reading all the hyperbola about this albums production, my expectations were truly hyped. Did it meet them?……..Read on.

The moment the stylus hit the vinyl I knew that I was in for a treat. This has to be the quietest vinyl I have ever heard (and I hadn’t even cleaned it with my Nitty Gritty). No pops, no clicks and the vinyl surface noise was so low that on lead ins, between tracks and during quiet passages it was all but inaudible and very close to the silence of a CD. What a terrific pressing by RTI; congratulations. Now why can’t ALL pressing be just like this one? If this is high definition vinyl all pressing should be made on it. Both of my discs had a beautiful shine, were ruler flat and virtually perfectly concentric.

With only one or two tracks per side and widely spaced grooves, I expected high modulation levels and dynamics. To be honest I expected a little more than I got. The average level was low which I assume was to ensure they caught the entire dynamic range, and I felt the dynamics, whilst very good, were on occasions a little restrained. This lower cut level required me to add 6dB volume in order to achieve my normal MLP listening level and bring the album to life. The good news from all this was that due to the virtually non-existent vinyl noise and my low noise pre-amp, the increased gain didn’t create any noticeable increase in the system background noise.

With the analog master tape being some 39 years old, the dynamics were good but not exceptional and I am sure that the vinyl contained everything that the tape could provide. I definitely sensed some tape compression. Also the musics frequency range was a little less than stellar. However, all to be expected from such an old recording that was never produced to meet todays audiophile standards.

Finally being an 80’s studio recording the image depth was mediocre with only the kit showing any significant depth perspective.

All I can say is that I am sure that this is as good as it gets for this album and definitely good enough to be called audiophile.

So what about the music and sound? The music and musicianship was a solid 11/10 as you would have expected. After all, its Mark Knopfler and the ‘gang’. The opening track Tunnel Of Love provides a great start to this album, and flipping over to Romeo and Juliet continues the ride. Each track has something a little different musically to offer but all with that Mark Knopfler vocal and guitar leading the way.

Firstly the overall sound is ‘wide open’ and clean. Reverb is very detailed giving depth to the overall sound and providing some fine tail-outs. There is plenty of space around all instruments and the vocal stays clear and crisp, dead center right at the front at all times, showing no signs of sibilance. The kit sound never really changes from track to track. The kick drum is deep and solid with plenty of slam but not much beater sound while the snare is tight and clean with plenty of impact and a well damped ring. The toms are nicely placed in the stereo image and are tight with a well damped short resonance. Cymbals and hi-hat are clean and detailed even when worked hard. However, I found overall that the recording lacked a little ‘sparkle’ at the very top end. This tended to make the cymbals and hi-hat just a little dull.  Other percussive instruments like wood blocks etc. all had a detailed open sound.

General points of note throughout all tracks were that; the bass line while tight and clean never really got a chance to shine but was well integrated with the kick drum and overall sound. Both guitars could have been in my room, finger and fret work were clearly audable giving a real sense of presence, while the keyboards tended to blend in except on a couple of occasions were it was pushed to the front of the mix for a short break.

The only strange effect that I heard from the vinyl was S2T1 just as the track ended. I could hear a very low level regular ‘thunk’. I initially thought that this was a vinyl pressing problem but as the track was faded out so did the ‘thunk’. It was never heard anywhere else or on the remainder of the lead in to S2T2. Fortunately this was not an issue as it only became audible after the music had finished and faded out between the tracks.

No, it doesn’t rise to the dizzy audiophile heights of the Mo-Fi, Brothers In Arms 45. But this is not a reflection on the mastering or pressing, its just what was on those tapes which still provides an excellent musical and audiophile experience.

Moving on some THIRTY NINE years, todays modern technology and techniques of record production certainly seemed to get everything off those old analog tapes and into the grooves. Mo-Fi and RTI did an outstanding job.

I cannot imagine a better sounding (vinyl) version of this album ever being created, but I haven’t heard the SACD yet! If you are into vinyl, rock and Dire Straits, this has to be the definitive vinyl version of Making Movies; buy it before they are all gone.

Available on vinyl and CD from Mo-Fi, Elusive Disc, Acoustic Sounds, Music Direct and Discogs.

See my other vinyl reviews here.