SPARS Code
Encyclopedia
Society of Professional Audio Recording Services
The Society of Professional Audio Recording Services, or SPARS for short, is an organization that holds conferences and publishes papers about the professional audio community. Its members include many of the top audio engineers working in the industry today....
. The SPARS code is a three-letter code that appears on some Compact Disc
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
recordings telling the consumer whether analog
Analog signal
An analog or analogue signal is any continuous signal for which the time varying feature of the signal is a representation of some other time varying quantity, i.e., analogous to another time varying signal. It differs from a digital signal in terms of small fluctuations in the signal which are...
(A) or digital
Digital
A digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
(D) equipment was used in producing the recording. Several limitations of the code have led to it being largely abandoned.
Codes
The three letters of the code have the following meanings:- First letter – the type of audio recorder (usually a tape recorderTape recorderAn audio tape recorder, tape deck, reel-to-reel tape deck, cassette deck or tape machine is an audio storage device that records and plays back sounds, including articulated voices, usually using magnetic tape, either wound on a reel or in a cassette, for storage...
) used during initial recording (analog or digital) - Second letter – the type of audio recorder used during mixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
(analog or digital) - Third letter – the type of masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
used (digital only, a third letter A implies Vinyl release)
There are four types:
- AAD – Analog tape recorder used during initial recording, mixing/editing, Digital mastering.
- ADD – Analog tape recorder used during initial recording, Digital tape recorder used during mixing/editing and for mastering.
- DDD – Digital tape recorder used during initial recording, mixing/editing and for mastering.
- DAD – Digital tape recorder used during initial recording, Analog tape recorder used during mixing/editing, Digital mastering.
Since CD is a digital medium, it must be produced from a digital master—therefore the last letter of the code will always be D. Newer LPs
LP album
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
stored the music in analog format, yet they were often labelled as DDD, as the recording and mixing/editing were both digital.
As digital tape recorders only became widely available in the late 1970s, almost all recordings prior to this date that appear on CD will be AAD or ADD – having been digitally remastered. This means that the original analog master tape has been converted (transcribed) to digital. It does not always imply that there has been any additional editing or mixing, although this may have taken place.
The jewel box booklet and/or inlay of early compact discs included the SPARS code, typically DDD, ADD, or AAD. In practice, DAD was very rare, as many companies usually used digital tape recorders during the editing or mixing stage. The typeface
Typeface
In typography, a typeface is the artistic representation or interpretation of characters; it is the way the type looks. Each type is designed and there are thousands of different typefaces in existence, with new ones being developed constantly....
Combi Symbols CD includes the two common ways that the code was written on recordings.
The SPARS code was introduced by PolyGram
PolyGram
PolyGram was the name of the major label recording company started by Philips from as a holding company for its music interests in 1945. In 1999 it was sold to Seagram and merged into Universal Music Group.-Hollandsche Decca Distributie , 1929-1950:...
in 1984.
Limitations
By the mid-1990s, confusion surrounding the code and the anomalies it produces led the inventor to recommend its discontinuation. As a result, new CD releases are less likely to include a SPARS code.Lack of detail
The main limitation of the code is that it only covers the type of tape recorder used, not taking into account other equipment used in the production of the recording. For example, during the mixing stage (the middle letter in the code) many DDD recordings may have actually been converted from digital to analog, mixed on an analog mixing console, but converted back to digital and digitally recorded, thus earning it a D in the relevant part of the code. In addition to this, many recordings have effects or parts of different recordings added on to them, creating more confusion for the code.Representation of quality
Regardless of the quality of the recording, many DDD classical musicClassical music
Classical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
compact discs typically sold for considerably more than their ADD counterparts of the same work, due to the so-called premium attached to the fledging digital recording technology. For instance, Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan
Herbert von Karajan was an Austrian orchestra and opera conductor. To the wider world he was perhaps most famously associated with the Berlin Philharmonic, of which he was principal conductor for 35 years...
's recording of Beethoven's Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 3 (Beethoven)
Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 3 in E flat major , also known as the Eroica , is a landmark musical work marking the full arrival of the composer's "middle-period," a series of unprecedented large scale works of emotional depth and structural rigor.The symphony is widely regarded as a mature...
, an analogue recording in the 1970s that won the Grand Prix du Disque
Grand Prix du Disque
The Grand Prix du Disque is the premier French award for musical recordings. The award was inaugurated by l'Académie Charles Cros in 1948 and offers prizes in various categories. The categories vary from year to year, and multiple awards are often made in any one category in the same year...
, sold for considerably less than his 1980s digital recording of the same piece, though the newer recording was not particularly critically acclaimed.
Examples
- Jean-Michel JarreJean Michel JarreJean Michel André Jarre is a French composer, performer and music producer. He is a pioneer in the electronic, ambient and New Age genres, and known as an organiser of outdoor spectacles of his music featuring lights, laser displays, and fireworks.Jarre was raised in Lyon by his mother and...
– ZoolookZoolookZoolook is the fourth overall mainstream studio album by Jean Michel Jarre, and released on Disques Dreyfus in 1984. It makes extensive use of digital recording techniques and sampling. It is considered by many fans as one of Jarre's most experimental albums to date...
(1984) – DDD (One of the first Compact Discs labelled as DDD) - RushRush (band)Rush is a Canadian rock band formed in August 1968, in the Willowdale neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of bassist, keyboardist, and lead vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart...
– PrestoPresto (album)-Personnel:* Geddy Lee - bass guitar, synthesizers, vocals* Alex Lifeson - electric and acoustic guitars, backing vocals* Neil Peart - drums, percussion* Rupert Hine - additional keyboards, production*Stephen W Tayler - recording and mixing...
(1989) – DDD - WeezerWeezerWeezer is an American alternative rock band. The band currently consists of Rivers Cuomo , Patrick Wilson , Brian Bell , and Scott Shriner . The band has changed lineups three times since its formation in 1992...
– Weezer (1994) – AAD - NirvanaNirvana (band)Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
– NevermindNevermindNevermind is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991. Produced by Butch Vig, Nevermind was the group's first release on DGC Records...
(1991) – AAD - SoundgardenSoundgardenSoundgarden is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington in 1984 by singer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto...
– SuperunknownSuperunknownSuperunknown is the fourth album by American grunge band Soundgarden, released on March 8, 1994 through A&M Records. Soundgarden began work on the album after touring in support of its previous album, Badmotorfinger...
(1994) – AAD - R.E.M.R.E.M.R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
– Out of TimeOut of Time (album)Out of Time is the seventh album by the American alternative rock band R.E.M., released on Warner Bros. Records in 1991. With Out of Time R.E.M.'s status grew from that of a cult band to a massive international act. The record topped the album sales charts in both the U.S...
(1991) – AAD - AerosmithAerosmithAerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
- PumpPump (album)*After the end of "What It Takes" there is a brief, untitled, instrumental hidden track composed and performed by Randy Raine-Reusch. This was not included on all the releases in all countries.-Bonus track :-Lawsuit:...
(1989) - ADD - AerosmithAerosmithAerosmith is an American rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many...
– Get a GripGet a GripGet a Grip is the 11th studio album by American rock band Aerosmith, released in April 1993 by Geffen Records. Get a Grip was the band's last studio album to be released by Geffen before they returned to Columbia Records....
(1993) – AAA - U2U2U2 are an Irish rock band from Dublin. Formed in 1976, the group consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr. . U2's early sound was rooted in post-punk but eventually grew to incorporate influences from many genres of popular music...
– The Unforgettable FireThe Unforgettable FireU2 feared that following the overt rock of their 1983 War album and War Tour, they were in danger of becoming another "shrill", "sloganeering arena-rock band". The success of the 1983 Under a Blood Red Sky live album and the Live at Red Rocks video, however, had given them artistic—and for the...
(1984) – ADD - MinistryMinistry (band)Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded by lead singer Al Jourgensen in 1981. Originally a synthpop outfit, Ministry changed its style to industrial metal in the late 1980s. Ministry found mainstream success in the early 1990s with its most successful album Psalm 69: The Way to...
- Psalm 69Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs-Samples:Samples.N.W.O.*"All right! It's all right!" - Apocalypse Now*"What we are looking at is good and evil, right and wrong." "A new world order!" "We're not about to make that same mistake twice." "God bless America! [crowd cheering]" "Wait...watch and learn." "I believe in freedom." -...
(1992) - DAD - ScorpionsScorpions (band)Scorpions are a heavy metal/hard rock band from Hannover, Germany, formed in 1965 by guitarist Rudolf Schenker, who is the band's only constant member. They are known for their 1980s rock anthem "Rock You Like a Hurricane" and many singles, such as "No One Like You", "Send Me an Angel", "Still...
- Love at First StingLove at First StingLove at First Sting is the ninth studio album by the German heavy metal band Scorpions, released in 1984 . Love at First Sting became the most successful album of the band in the USA where it peaked at number 6 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1984 and went triple platinum...
(1984) - DDD - Judas PriestJudas PriestJudas Priest are an English heavy metal band from Birmingham, England, formed in 1969. The current line-up consists of lead vocalist Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis. The band has gone through several drummers over the years,...
- TurboTurbo (Judas Priest album)-Judas Priest:*Rob Halford: Lead Vocals*Glenn Tipton: Lead Guitars*K.K. Downing: Lead Guitars*Ian Hill: Bass Guitar*Dave Holland: Drums-Guests:*Jeff Martin: Backing Vocals on "Wild Nights, Hot & Crazy Days"-External links:*...
(1986) - DDD - Iron MaidenIron MaidenIron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...
- Somewhere in Time (1986) - ADD - Kool G. Rap & DJ Polo – Wanted: Dead or Alive – DDD
- YelloYelloYello is a Swiss electronica band consisting of Dieter Meier and Boris Blank. They are probably best known for their singles "The Race" and "Oh Yeah", which feature a mix of electronic music and manipulated vocals, as does most of their music....
– FlagFlag (Yello album)Flag is Yello's sixth original album, released in 1988 and featuring the eight-minute tour-de-force, "The Race", the single of which reached number 7 in the UK singles chart in August of that year. An early cut of the album was used as the soundtrack for the film Nuns on the Run.-Track listing:*All...
(1988) – ADD - ABBAABBAABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1970 which consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog...
– The VisitorsThe Visitors (ABBA album)The Visitors is the eighth and final studio album by Swedish pop group ABBA, released on November 30, 1981.With The Visitors, ABBA took several steps away from the "lighter" pop music they had recorded previously and the album is often regarded as a more complex and mature effort...
(1981, released on CD 1982) – DDD - Wendy CarlosWendy CarlosWendy Carlos is an American composer and electronic musician. Carlos first came to notice in the late 1960s with recordings made on the Moog synthesizer, then a relatively new and unknown instrument; most notable were LPs of synthesized Bach and the soundtrack for Stanley Kubrick's film A...
– Switched-On Bach 2000 – DDDD (The Additional "D" is based on the fact that the instrument the music was made on was also digital, and the recording was digitally recorded, mixed, and mastered) - Amy GrantAmy GrantAmy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
– Lead Me On (1988) – DDD - Amy GrantAmy GrantAmy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
– Heart in MotionHeart in Motion- Personnel :* Amy Grant: Vocals.* Tom Hemby: Guitars .* Dann Huff: Guitars .* Gordon Kennedy: Guitars .* Jerry McPherson Guitars .* Donald Kirkpatrick: Guitars ....
(1991) – AAD - Michael JacksonMichael JacksonMichael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...
- Bad (1987) - DDD - Kenny RobertsKenny Roberts (musician)Kenny Roberts was a country music singer, born in Lenoir City, Tennessee, but raised on a farm outside of Greenfield, Massachusetts....
– You're My Kind of People (1988) – DDA/DDD (Digital Recording And Mixing, but initially released only on analog formats. Released on CD in Early 2000s.) - Kenny RobertsKenny Roberts (musician)Kenny Roberts was a country music singer, born in Lenoir City, Tennessee, but raised on a farm outside of Greenfield, Massachusetts....
– It Only Makes Me Cry (Forgetting You) (1988) – DDA/DDD (Digital Recording And Mixing, but initially released only on analog formats. Released on CD in Early 2000s.) - Simple MindsSimple MindsSimple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
– Street Fighting YearsStreet Fighting YearsStreet Fighting Years is the eighth studio album by Simple Minds, released in 1989.Produced by Trevor Horn and Stephen Lipson, the album was a major stylistic departure from the previous album, 1985's Once Upon A Time, While still maintaining the epic arena-rock sense of scale and drama which the...
(1989) – AAD - Simple MindsSimple MindsSimple Minds are a Scottish rock band who achieved worldwide popularity from the mid-1980s to the early 1990s. The band produced a handful of critically acclaimed albums in the early 1980s and best known for their #1 US, Canada and Netherlands hit single "Don't You ", from the soundtrack of the...
- Real LifeReal Life (Simple Minds album)Real Life is the ninth studio album by Simple Minds, released in April 1991. The first album without Michael MacNeil, the album reached #2 in the UK, but failed to chart in the United States, despite hitting the Top 40 with "See the Lights", which also reached #1 on the US Modern Rock Tracks...
(1991) - DDD - GenesisGenesis (band)Genesis are an English rock band that formed in 1967. The band currently comprises the longest-tenured members Tony Banks , Mike Rutherford and Phil Collins . Past members Peter Gabriel , Steve Hackett and Anthony Phillips , also played major roles in the band in its early years...
- Invisible TouchInvisible TouchInvisible Touch is the 13th studio album by the band Genesis, released in 1986. It reached No.1 in the UK where it remained in the charts for 96 weeks, making it by far the most commercially successful album of their career, eventually selling over 15 million copies worldwide...
(1986) - ADD - Celine DionCeline DionCéline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
– Unison (1990) – AAD, DDD (four tracks) - Haswell & Hecker – Blackest Ever Black (Electroacoustic UPIC Recordings) (2007) – DDDD
- David BowieDavid BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
– RykodiscRykodiscRykodisc Records is an American record label. It is owned by Warner Music Group, operates as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and is distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance.-Company history:...
had an LP series of reissues with the AAA code [analog tape used in all the processes] - They Might Be GiantsThey Might Be GiantsThey Might Be Giants is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years Flansburgh and Linnell were frequently accompanied by a drum machine. In the early 1990s, TMBG became a full band. Currently, the members of TMBG are...
– Flood (1990) – DAD - Dire StraitsDire StraitsDire Straits were a British rock band active from 1977 to 1995, composed of Mark Knopfler , his younger brother David Knopfler , John Illsley , and Pick Withers .Dire Straits' sound drew from a variety of musical influences, including jazz, folk, blues, and came closest...
– Brothers in ArmsBrothers in Arms (Dire Straits album)- Original LP track listing :- 2005 Re-Issue 2 LP track listing :The 2005 Limited Edition Deluxe 180 gram High Performance Vinyl reissue contained the full-length versions of all songs by spreading out the songs over two half speed mastered LPs....
(1985) – DDD - Monie LoveMonie LoveSimone Riscoe , better known by her stage name Monie Love, is an English emcee and former radio personality in the United States...
– Down to EarthDown to Earth (Monie Love album)Down to Earth is the debut album by Monie Love, which was released on October 30, 1990, on Warner Bros. Records. The was somewhat successful, peaking at 109 on the Billboard 200 and 26 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, and spawned three charting singles...
(1990) – DDD - Bryan AdamsBryan AdamsBryan Adams, is a Canadian rock singer-songwriter, guitarist, bassist, producer, actor and photographer. Adams has won dozens of awards and nominations, including 20 Juno Awards among 56 nominations. He has also received 15 Grammy Award nominations including a win for Best Song Written...
– Waking Up the NeighboursWaking Up the NeighboursWaking Up the Neighbours is an album by Canadian singer/songwriter Bryan Adams released in 1991 and his sixth studio album. The album was recorded at Battery Studios in England, and at The Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, mixed at Mayfair Studios in England, and mastered by Bob Ludwig at Masterdisk...
(1991) – DDD - My Bloody Valentine – LovelessLoveless (album)Loveless is the second studio album by alternative rock band My Bloody Valentine. Released on 4 November 1991, Loveless was recorded over a two-year period between 1989 and 1991 in nineteen recording studios...
(1991) – AAD - Destiny in SpaceDestiny in SpaceDestiny in Space is a 70mm American documentary film released to IMAX cinemas in 1994. The film is directed in part by Academy Award-winning sound designer Ben Burtt, and is narrated by Leonard Nimoy....
/Blue PlanetBlue Planet (film)Blue Planet is an IMAX film directed by Ben Burtt, and produced by the IMAX Space Technology corporation for the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum, as well as Lockheed Corporation...
/The Dream Is AliveThe Dream Is AliveThe Dream is Alive is an IMAX movie, released in June 1985, about NASA's Space Shuttle program. The film was narrated by Walter Cronkite, and directed by Graeme Ferguson.-Synopsis:...
– Original Motion Picture Soundtracks (Released together on one CD, 1994) – DAD - The ThermalsThe ThermalsThe Thermals are an American indie punk band based in Portland, Oregon. The group was formed in 2002. With influences heavily rooted in both lo-fi punk, as well as more standard rock, the band's songs are also known for their political and religious imagery.- History :The Thermals came together in...
- Personal LifePersonal Life (album)Personal Life is the fifth album from the Portland-based indie rock band The Thermals. The album was released on September 7, 2010, on Kill Rock Stars.The first single from the album to be released is "I Don't Believe You"...
(2010) - AAA (printed on vinyl issue) - Gerry RaffertyGerry RaffertyGerald "Gerry" Rafferty was a Scottish singer songwriter best known for his solo hits "Baker Street", "Right Down the Line", "Days Gone Down", "Night Owl", "Get It Right Next Time", and with the band Stealers Wheel, "Stuck in the Middle with You". Rafferty was born into a working-class family in...
- City to CityCity to CityCity to City is an album by Scottish singer-songwriter Gerry Rafferty. It was Rafferty's first solo release in six years - and first release of any kind since 1975 - due to his tenure in the band Stealer's Wheel and subsequent legal proceedings which prevented Rafferty from releasing any new solo...
(1978) - AAD
See also
- Analog sound vs. digital soundAnalog sound vs. digital soundThis article compares the two ways in which sound is recorded and stored. Actual sound waves consist of continuous variations in air pressure. Representations of these signals can be recorded using either digital or analog techniques....
- Digital recordingDigital recordingIn digital recording, digital audio and digital video is directly recorded to a storage device as a stream of discrete numbers, representing the changes in air pressure for audio and chroma and luminance values for video through time, thus making an abstract template for the original sound or...
- Sound recording and reproductionSound recording and reproductionSound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
- High Definition Compatible DigitalHigh Definition Compatible DigitalHigh Definition Compatible Digital, or HDCD is a patented encode-decode process, now owned by Microsoft, that improves the audio quality of standard Redbook audio CDs, while retaining backward compatibility with existing Compact disc players....