To be honest I think I'll play the first masters out and see how it goes, I preferred the smoothness of the sound but I was worried about the overall bite of the track

My concern was that the transients in the first master are loud and punchy but take up the headroom and perceived volume of the track. And you can't keep pushing the gains up because whilst it would bring the overall volume up to the equivalent of the track before, the transients would run well into the red with every kick.

Got both versions anyway. Will check them both out on Saturday before we open - be interested to get your opinion...