Vinyl Icons

Of the 247 documented versions of Equinoxe, 125 were released between 1978 and 1980, so there's little difference between them other than their country of origin (unless they were 8-tracks or Compact Cassettes).

ORIGINAL LP (1978)
This original vinyl artefact [Disques Dreyfus FDM 83150]was mixed at Studio Gang in Paris and pressed by a facility located in Tourouvre, North-West France. Although still quite highly rated among collectors, there are some who consider there to be too much treble in some sections. The 1978 German vinyl pressings [Polydor 3100 478] were also considered good and remain prized by collectors.

8-TRACK CARTRIDGE (1978)
This release appeared in the US [Polydor 8T-1-6175] though it suffered from a frequent problem with the 8-track format in that parts 3 and 7 were both split between the end of one 8-track 'program' and the start of the next.

CASSETTE (1978)
Details are identical to the 1978 French vinyl edition, except that this version appeared as a Disques Dreyfus cassette. A chrome tape version [Polydor JAR4 2] was later released in Canada in 1986.

FIRST CD (1983)
The first CDs [Disques Dreyfus FDM CD-83150] were not re-mastered or enhanced in any way. They were well accepted by fans, except that some batches suffered from audible crackling noises in the left channel at around 9s into Pt 3. A case of try before you buy.

REMASTERED LP (1986)
The first vinyl remaster popped up in the US where Jack 'Supercutter' Skinner had handled the mastering at the estimable Sterling Sound studio in New York [Polydor 422 829 456 1 Y1].

REMASTERED CD (1991)
Produced by Moulages et Plastiques de l'Ouest' in France, this was commissioned as part of a complete remastered Jarre box set, but it was also released separately [Disques Dreyfus 824 747-2].

MOFI remasters (1995)
As might be expected, these are still widely regarded as the best versions in their respective formats, most closely resembling the original vinyl, with admirable warmth and good sound throughout top, bottom and midrange [MSFL 1-227, vinyl; UDCD 647, CD].

REMASTERED CD (2014)
There was a flurry of digitally remastered Equinoxes in preparation for the new millennium, starting with Scott Hull of Masterdisk's 96kHz/24-bit edition [Disques Dreyfus 487376 2]. Among the most interesting is a 2014 re-master from the original analogue tapes by Dave Dadwater at Paris-based Yakuda Audio [Disques Dreyfus 88843024692].