Beatles mono VINYL box set (Part #14)

marcb: >>If you can get your hands on an old DW brush, try it. The grain of the fabric is perfect for collecting dust off an LP.<<

I will. Have heard a lot of good about it. Thanks for the tip!

 

My copy of the Mono box is due into my local shop sometime tomorrow. I am PRAYING HARDCORE to the vinyl gods to let there not be ANY defects or packaging issues with mine (worst case scenario, I would have to exchange them for the seperately available copies). I was one of the unfortunate MANY who bought the Rainbo-pressed 2012 Stereo box on its release, and got stuck with close to half the pressings therein being defective in one way or another. When EMI very BRIEFLY began importing EU pressings into this country, I started re-buying those to replace the Rainbos with. Sadly, I only got as far as "Revolver" before the EU's were apparently no longer being imported into the states :-( In any event, slight warpage (at least of the sort that does not affect SQ or playability in any way) is not an issue with me, nor are any marks on the vinyl that may not be heard when the record is played. In any case, I just wish to for this to be a 'One-and-Done' kind of deal, and to not have to RELIVE the Nightmare I experienced with my initial purchase of the 2012 Stereo box! Enough said for now!

 

Strange. I just played that disc for the first time last night. It was stellar.

 

Mono masters is on deck to day....I'll post thoughts and any feedback I can. I've worked my way through my first box with no issues up to this point. I popped open my second last night to check visually the condition. Looked great.

 

too bad about your bad Rainbo pressings. Capitol EMI had a very generous exchange policy for several months after the release. In fact they sent replacements is white sleeves and didn't ask for the damaged ones back. I got a great stereo set now and I gave the problem discs to a San Francisco Cafe that plays records. In a loud place so they don't have any problems

The mono set is stunning. A slight warp on PPM for me but plays well. None of my holes are too tight. Everything fits perfectly.

 

Nope, the Fabs weren't digitized until 1987.

 

Doesn't make any sense to me either.

I've listened to both versions several time through headphones and can't detect a crumb of difference and I've checked Lewisohn's Beatles recording sessions book at least 3 times and he has no documentation of a true mono mix.

It is what it is.

 

first impressions of Mono Masters....when you open it, the packaging is really stunning...the quality of the photos and sleeve are off the charts...it looks GREAT. (only record that comes "fully" shrink wrapped in my set also...not sure if that's been mentioned but I am sure it has (no hype sticker or anything)

I just listened to LP one....there were a couple of tracks that I think were old tapes (well they're all old) but one or two of the songs show their age in terms of what they had to present us...that said. I really don't mind...to me it's still like someone handing you a copy right off the original tapes which to me has a special quality and in a way it's like being able to connect directly to what remains of those original tapes...so it's kind of neat...if you were always curious about how much is left of some songs....you'll hear it a little on the first LP and to me that wasn't a bad thing....it felt intimate and like getting to look behind the curtain at the Beatles archives in a way.

I did have a lot of static on the second side about 3 tracks in...I cleaned it before listening, and then had to pull it off 2 times to finish the job....once it was free of either some slight debris or static...not sure which...the record was immaculate. Sometimes if a certain spot on the record seems to be having issues what I've done is pull it off clean it and then check another track...if it plays "clean" I will then go back to the trouble spot to see what's going on now that I am sure my needle isn't having issues...if it's still "fuzzy" I will clean again and try they same approach....every time I've worked through the issue and ended up having a perfect play through/

I don't have a high end cleaning system...so don't be afraid to get in and clean these once or twice...I still believe some of it leans more towards static than anything else...but that is just my opinion.

on to record 2!

 

Certain songs are stellar on mine. A few songs have distorted vocals in parts, very distorted in spots. Like I said, I can hear it on the digital version of I Feel Fine, so I think that's the way it is.

 

For those who have issues with static, I would recommend trying L'Art du Son for cleaning. It's so effective, that I no longer use any additional form of static removal for my new or used vinyl. It really does work.

 

Just pulled the trigger on Mono Masters from Go Hastings on the 'Bay.

 

I'm totally in the same camp with you. This set and the Blue Box of 1978 which I got earlier are just enough for never worrying about the originals. Those just give me a nearly complete Beatles catalog in AAA sound. However, I didn't get the box for less than $300, but that's OK.

I wonder why they didn't include the early Beatles' recordings with Tony Sheridan into this set.

 

Yeah, I had a $15 eBay coupon, and a seller I buy stuff from had some boxes listed at $299.99. Right place at the right time (for a change).

 

I will get one...I just hadn't had the opportunity yet!

thank you.

 

The cleaning fluid lasts a long time too.

 

FYI, there's a thread out there specifically on this topic. You might want to check it out.

I was having some mistracking issues myself on this LP set. But after some tweaking of my set-up, I was able to get rid of almost all of it. I suspect this one was cut a little hot and will reveal if you have some issues in your set-up, your tonearm/cart compatibility, and/or your carts tracking ability.

 

I understand about I Feel Fine. It's not a well recorded track but I'm used to how it sounds. Maybe that's why Capitol decided to drown it in reverb/echo.

 

There's been a few posts about Revolution 1 and whether it's a fold-down or not, so I thought I'd load them both together in Audacity and have a look. Once you trim the two back to start playing simultaneously, it becomes quickly apparent that the stereo version is slightly faster..... I should mention that both these samples are rips from both stereo and mono CD boxsets..... By the end of the tracks, the stereo version is aprox 1.5 secs faster than the mono! I imagine that may be down to a tape speed error at the mastering stage? However with a little 'speed adjustment done, it can be brought closely down to match the mono. I then used Audacity to drop the stereo down to a mono mix, and took -2db off in volume to roughly match the levels of the mono track.
Looking at the waveforms, there's little difference between them, except for maybe small compression done to the stereo track, but playing simultaneously together - summed stereo to left, and mono track to right, i cannot hear a scrap of difference in the mix......
Therefore, I agree with those who state that the mono LP version of the song is a fold-down of the stereo track.... although it somehow managed to play at a very slightly faster speed - not audibly so in isolation, but with the two tracks played together, the stereo does slowly creep further ahead!

 

This is not at all unusual. Could be the original mixdown tape machine, could be the playback machine. The stereo and mono versions of Strawberry Fields Forever on the CD remasters also differ slightly in speed; sync them up at the beginning and they get hit with speed-creep really quickly.

 

Ah, but those echo-drenched mixes of I Feel Fine/She's A Woman were NOT Capitol creations. Rather, they were mixed that way by George Martin specifically for the US market.

 

Some of my lp's had some flashing in the spindle but so far I haven't found a tight fit on a record. But quite a bit of my lp's had cracked labels. Side 2 of the second lp of the WA had some sort of look to the vinyl as if it had freshly dried or wiped off fluid. This was on Revolution 1 and I played it but I really couldn't detect any problem with the sound.

 

I finally joined the party yesterday evening. So far I am VERY impressed. I have played PPM, RS, SPLHCB, WA, and disc 2 of MM. In each case I washed with distilled water and vacuumed before playing - there was a little bit of loose flashing around the edges that I wanted to make sure was properly gone. Once done, pressings were very quiet bar the odd bit of lead in/lead out noise. From what I've heard so far they sound really, really nice!

I was kinda worried I would be expecting the earth and be disappointed. I'm not. Really happy. Since I'd better whinge about something, I wish the Emitex inners had been included. That's all I can complain about thus far.

 

Listened to Rubber Soul today great mix and dynamics bought out in the pressing. John's vocal in "Girl" is right in the room.

 

I'm still really liking my Rainbo pressings. I know there were problems with some, but the ones that were good sound great in my opinion. EMI had to save face with this release to make up for the bad press from the stereo box sets. They went the extra mile to make these nice and I commend them for that.

For those that are hung up against digital sourced pressings, I highly recommend the US pressings with the purple capitol logo. They are analog and sound really nice. I have been acquiring them for reasonable prices too. If you can get over the song list differences that is.

 

And there is the argument that of the Stereo LPs would have been pressed perfectly, then these mono probably would have been from digital sources. I remember speaking to someone at Capitol the weeks after the stereo box was released telling me that just received the first mono test pressings. Those were from digital. After the problems they rethought and started over. A good thing