Beatles "Abbey Road" .... Vinyl Pressing Comparisons & Black Triangle CD, etc

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Tone, Jun 10, 2009.

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  1. marcb

    marcb Senior Member

    Location:
    DC area
    Oh, I don't care for the MFSL and agree on the mid-range. But the overwhelming issue (for me and most others who don't like it) is with the bottom-end more than the top-end. Tubby with no low-end nuance. Definitely not thin and brittle.
     
  2. JP Christian

    JP Christian Forum Resident

    When I say thin and lean I do mean the mid range - yes, the bass is boosted as well and quite muddy, and with the treble boosted also it might have sounded OK on a cheap early 80's system but on more revealing setups it's flaws are well and truly obvious - too 'smiley' for my liking.
     
  3. Paul Saldana

    Paul Saldana jazz vinyl addict

    Location:
    SE USA (TN-GA-FL)
    There may be a minute plating or pressuring variation between the 2012 and the 2016, but both were cut on the same lathe with the same settings from the same digital source by Sean at AR. I would be very surprised if a Pallas pressed 2012 is audibly any different from your 2016 DeAgostini.
     
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  4. Paul Saldana

    Paul Saldana jazz vinyl addict

    Location:
    SE USA (TN-GA-FL)
    At very least, the earlier MFSL Abbey Road does not have a treble boost. I can't speak for the boxed set version released 8 years later having never heard it (and not knowing if it was recut). The earlier pressing *does* have a bump in the bass circa 80 hz.
     
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  5. JP Christian

    JP Christian Forum Resident

    Well I don't own any of the 2012's so I don't know if Sean Magee did anything subtly different when cutting the DeAgostini 2016, which was only £9.99 so I didn't see any harm in getting another copy - I forgot to include it in my earlier list but I would probably rate it slightly below the Pathe Marconi and slightly above the Pro-Use at a guess.
     
  6. marcb

    marcb Senior Member

    Location:
    DC area
    I think we're mostly in violent agreement but I suspect what you're hearing/describing is the mid-range suckout just making the top-end more apparent rather than it being boosted per se (relative to the bottom-end).
     
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  7. John Bliss

    John Bliss Forum Resident

    I like the MFSL, UK 78 green vinyl, Dutch original pressing and even the 2012, but the Pro Use is my favorite. The acclaimed UK early pressings are too expensive for me in vg+ or mint shape, and in any case, this was a well recorded and engineered album to begin with, to where I personally don't feel the need to search for any other copies. Even the US original vinyl isn't bad.
     
  8. Paul Saldana

    Paul Saldana jazz vinyl addict

    Location:
    SE USA (TN-GA-FL)
    I asked him - because I was curious about the 2016. And he personally told me the mastering is identical (since then someone has pointed out that the gibberish is missing from side 2 of Pepper).

    I would expect the 2012/2016 Abbey Road to be a big step down from the Pro-Use. For many that was the go-to pressing in the early eighties, and of course it's all analog. And supposedly the same tape that sourced the Pro Use is on the Black Triangle cd.
     
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  9. Ben Sinise

    Ben Sinise Forum Reticent

    Location:
    Sydney
    I think you're using the wrong terminology as thin and lean means that it's lacking bass, which is the polar opposite of the MFSL version.
    The mids and highs are not that bad, it's just that the bass is so overblown it makes it sound totally unbalanced.
     
  10. JP Christian

    JP Christian Forum Resident

    I personally just didn't find the pro-use very engaging - I actually prefer the standard AP and EAS issues - again the pro use isn't terrible, but I just didn't find myself drawn in - it's quite '2D' to me.

    Any 70's UK issue is going to sound stellar - some of my UK copies were only a fiver - it's getting tougher to find them in top shape, it took me quite a while to get a -2/-1 that wasn't noisy, but you will find them at reasonable prices if you keep looking - of course some sellers are lousy with their grading so it is a bit of a lottery...
     
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  11. JP Christian

    JP Christian Forum Resident

    I should have said 'thin and lean in the mid-range' - but I didn't specify the bass either so I'm not using the wrong terminology - the MFSL sounds thin and lean to me in the sense it had no 'body' to it because of the apparent lack of mid-range, or boosted bass and treble, depending on your opinion, so I disagree that the 'mids' are not that bad as for me, they are virtually non-existent.

    I'm just being honest - I personally don't think the MFSL lives up to the hype it gets - it's not cheap and it's not really *that* good - as I say, I was happy to sell mine for £85 to spend on better vinyl...
     
  12. Angel66

    Angel66 Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    I've got two of the -2/-2 AR and they sound amazing. Is the -2/-1 that different? So I don't have to spend? I've already got a 70's French Pathe pressing (which sounds terrific) and Japanese EAS (nice and clean) and the 1978 MFSL which I put on just for a really clean sound and crank it.
     
  13. vinylbeat

    vinylbeat Forum Resident

    My recently acquired Japan AP red vinyl 1st press might be my favorite after the -2/-1 UK. I actually like it better than the Pro Use, which I place third along with a 1st press German. IMO the 1st press UK's are generally the best sounding. But it's kind of hard stopping there, when you're an obsessed Beatles vinyl collector. Which I guess a lot of us are, when you own 15-20 copies of the same Beatles LP!
     
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  14. john lennonist

    john lennonist There ONCE was a NOTE, PURE and EASY...


    Agree 100%.

    The separately released MoFi Abbey Road LP sounds great... and is pressed on the quietest vinyl ever produced, which is important for this album as LP pressings of this often have substantial noise (especially Side Two, which has many "soft" passages).

    .
     
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  15. LitHum05

    LitHum05 El Disco es Cultura

    Location:
    Virginia
    Yesterday, I picked up a near mint copy of the MOFI Abbey Road for $30 USD. I already have a late ‘70s UK pressing. The bass stands out in the MOFI. But, at the same time, something remains refined about the pressing. It’s not just a mindless thumping, but a subtle reinterpretation of the album. I’m not sure yet which I prefer since the UK pressing has the better midrange. Still, I’ve never heard Abbey Road sound like this. I’m loving it. It’s like an arty record turned rock record overnight!

    Maybe I will give the new Sgt. Pepper a try after all.
     
  16. Om

    Om Make Your Own Kind Of Music

    Location:
    Boston, USA
    Yes I am very interested in this thread, seeing it is the only thread comparing vinyl to CD.

    Personally I have never heard the original UK vinyl, I am wondering if it beats the '09 remaster of AR.
     
  17. marcb

    marcb Senior Member

    Location:
    DC area
    It does.
     
  18. Angel66

    Angel66 Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    I just bought one from the Record Station in Paris (probably the best curated vinyl in Paris) and I keep playing to hear why it shouldn't sound great but it does.
     
  19. Angel66

    Angel66 Forum Resident

    Location:
    California
    I have two copies, both mint but both have crackle at the start.
     
  20. Moonchild

    Moonchild Forum Resident

    Location:
    Coruña. Spain
    And two daughters?
     
  21. Anton888

    Anton888 Forum Resident

    Who decided that the "Black triangle" Abbey Road is the most accurate?
     
  22. Solace

    Solace Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brussels, Belgium
    Last night I compared my Abbey Road UK first pressing (-2/-1, misaligned Apple label, no Her Majesty etc.) with the Danish first pressing (which has the same UK matrix) using the track 'Something'. They sounded identical. So if you see a Danish first pressing of Abbey Road, buy with confidence: to my ears they sound the same.

    I then compared these 2 first pressings with a UK second pressing (-2/-1, aligned Apple label, with Her Majesty etc.) and strangely enough the second pressing sounded more forward and transparent, a little 'fresher'. It's not night and day but it is noticeable if you're listening on headphones. On the test track, when the drum roll begins at the start it has a tad more clarity and oomph to it and George's openning vocal line sounds just a touch more ethereal and 'present'. The first pressings sound a little distant by comparison. Anyone else noticed this? Maybe my second pressing copy was made with new, fesh stampers or something.
     
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  23. Anton888

    Anton888 Forum Resident


    It seems you have a "Hot Stamper" or maybe even a "Super Hot Stamper" or even a "White Hot Stamper" in your collection. That is what Tom Port may answer to your discovery.

    What I would like to know is, which one sounds closest to the sound of the tape that was transferred for these pressings you compared?
     
  24. MILKEY

    MILKEY Forum Resident

    Location:
    NEW YORK
    The big question is going to be how will the NEW Abbey road remixed compare to these older vinyls. I wouldn't buy any expensive old vinyl until you hear the new one.
    Thanks
     
  25. dubious title

    dubious title Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ontario
    Have a scratchy UK first press and a fifth UK HTM. They both sound tremendous. What a thrilling listen this record is. So much to take in and enjoy.

    The first UK perhaps sounds a little more immediate. Read through the posts on this in the past and the AR HTM presses are very well thought of. Here's the Discogs entry for my HTM AR -

    The Beatles - Abbey Road
     
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