Metallica Vinyl Reissues

The 2008 45RPM of Ride The Lightning is one of the worst pressings I own. Sounds like it was mastered through a transistor radio.

To hear people praising the 2008's is baffling to me. There are literally pages on other threads slamming them. I wound up selling my others for decent money and was able to track down an original US Master Of Puppets... No sonic marvel, but a huge step up from the 2008. Still hunting an original Ride and Justice.

That said, the 45RPM of the Black Album is excellent. That one I DID keep. And I'd be curious if these new issues truly are identical... A friend swears his new version of Justice is much better than the 2008, but I'm not sure I believe him...

 

I actually just found your post from a similar thread from a while back. Yes, the consensus is the 2008's suck, which would mean the new ones suck too. That's a shame. I got excited at the idea of what they (Metallica) could do with their reissues now that they own them again. Here I was thinking they were going to be white knights for us and replace the "shameful" 2008's with high quality pressings to show their artistic integrity. Unfortunately I was just reminded that this is Metallica we're talking about…

 

I also heard that the 2014 Blackened releases are the same as 2008, but I can't confirm that. I checked out the new packaging at a store the other day, and there's no reference to anything really.

I think most peoples problem really stem from the original mixes. For example '...And Justice For All' will never really sound good unless it's fully remixed. The 2008 (and presumably 2014) are remasters of the original mixes, so no matter what they're at the mercy of those original mixes.

I think the original CD's sound pretty flat and terrible, so the vinyl is a minor (if negligible) improvement but if you're looking for Metallica vinyl it's the best option over the originals (in my opinion).

Keep in mind that the whole catalog will eventually get remastered...again. And re-released...again. W/ bonus material. That's not confirmed, but I would say it's inevitable. The only real question, is which side of the loudness war will they be on!

 

Did anyone ever confirm if there was a pressing problem or something? I will re-listen to a couple 2008's tonight, but I thought they all sounded pretty clean. I don't have the originals to compare, but other than the Japan SHM CD's from a few years ago the 2008 vinyl sounds good to me.

 

It was a mastering problem. They chose to make the early records sound incredibly harsh and trebly. My Elektra MOP doesn't sound like that.
The pressings themselves were fine... Flat and quiet, heavy vinyl. But that doesn't negate terrible sound.

My issue with Justice (the 33 not the 45) was how quiet it was mastered. Coupled with the original bad mix, it made for a very dull listen. I've been told the 45 is better but I haven't felt like spending the money to find out.

Apparently the Black Album was from a different batch with much better mastering. The 33 is supposed to sound really good too... So I assume these new issues would sound similar. Not sure about Load/Reload/etc as that's when I get off the Metallica train....

 

it is mixed really loud, louder than all the other Metallica records, but all the better to piss off your parents with eh?

 

As everyone else has noted, the LP reissues of the first three albums are terrible, jacked treble and no musicality. You're better off finding vintage copies of hose Metallica albums.

I don't know if Justice was improved or not, but the infamous bass-shy mix might make for an easier reissue. I have a 1988 LP copy, so I haven't listened to the reissue.

From The Black Album on, Metallica switched gears and sent everything to Bernie Grundman, who is one of the good guys. All these later LPs should sound excellent. Why don't I have Black Album on vinyl? Because I've got the tape, and that's what I owned back in 1991. Hah. I'd like to hear how the reissued Load sounds, as I have the 1996 LP, and that sounds very good, just a little bit better than the CD.

St. Anger also sounded better on LP, and I think the side changes allowed one to appreciate that album in smaller chunks (the live DVD still kills it). And D-Mag, as we all know, sounds terrible. Not as painfully bad as the CD, but still lousy. As for Lulu, the Lou Reed collaboration, I still haven't bought the LP because it's too expensive ($50 at Cheapo), but I'm a rare fan of this album, so I really need to fix that. C'mon, losers, it's Lou Reed! What more do ya want?

 

I recently bought LP copies of Garage Inc, and Load for a great sale price. Both of these are the Grundman remasters like the black album(which I also have and it sounds Flippin great). I did notice though that the copy of Load I got is now a press on the "blackened records" label the band owns, but it appears to use the same mastering Grundman did from the previous reissue and sounds really good. Garage Inc also sounds awesome and can be had at a bargain right now from MD.

 

im one of the few that likes the 2008 MOP and RTL....they sound fine on my system. better to me than the original black/red elektra labels usa press.

for kill em all i have an original silver label megaforce and thats sounds great to me so i didnt need the reissue.

i bought the 2008 2lp justice album and i didnt have anything to compare it to so i found ok...it was very very detailed but was very thin sounding and at a low volume.....i ended up getting an original 1988 lp and found that to be much much better.

for the black album i have the 4lp 45rpm....sounds pretty darn good.

 

So if the 2008 releases don't meet the forum's standards, which releases do?

 

I was crazy enough to get ALL 45 RPM 2008 reissues. I also have originals of nearly all their LPs. I will give VERY brief reviews for those of you who are interested. Again, these are for the 45 RPM reissues.

Kill 'em All - Sounds pretty darn good. Similar enough to the Elektra 80s pressing to warrant a buy. However, I have the MFN 60 45 RPM special DMM release from the 80s that, in my opinion, is the best pressing of this album (haven't heard the Megaforce OP).

RtL - Ehh... Like a blanket was laid over your speakers. It lacks some of the dynamics of earlier pressings. However, the vinyl is very heavy and dead-quiet. The separation between the instruments and vocals is great. I have the MFN 60 45 RPM DMM special issue of this, too. That pressing, in my opinion, is the best out there. I haven't heard the Megaforce OP of this either.

MoP - Similar to RtL. Blanket over speakers, but separation, detail, and quality of the pressing (outside of SQ) are outstanding. Yet again, I have the MFN 60 45 RPM DMM pressing from the 80s, which is the best pressing of this album.

AJFA - Have both the EU box set and OP. Both sound amazing (outside the obvious original mastering issues). The box set may get the nudge, because there is a bit more depth and detail that I can hear. Box set FTW if you can find a sealed one.

Black album - Box set sounds amazing outside of one sibiliance issue at the start of Nothing Else Matters. This box set truly sounds spectacular.

Load & Reload - Box set blows away the OP. Sounds amazing.

Garage Inc. - Box set blows away the OP. Depth, separation, and dynamics are amazing. However, one or two of the 6 LP set that I have are significantly warped.

S&M - Only have the box set, which sounds absolutely incredible.

St. Anger - Only have box set. It sounds spectacular. The snare that so many find annoying isn't that intrusive with this box set. I highly recommend this edition (especially since you can probably find a cheap used copy since not many really like this album).

Death Magnetic - The 5 LP box set sounds much better than the CD. Get a hold of this if you can. Plus, the packaging is pretty sweet.


Summary of my favorite pressings of each album:

KeA - 80's MFN 60 DMM 45 RPM 2 LP pressing
RtL - 80's MFN 60 DMM 45 RPM 2 LP pressing
MoP - 80's MFN 60 DMM 45 RPM 2 LP pressing
AJFA - 4 LP box set
Black album - 4 LP box set
Load & Reload - 4 LP box sets
Garage Inc - 6 LP box set
S&M - 6 LP box set
St. Anger - 4 LP box set
DM - 5 LP box set

Hope this helps. Cheers.

 

Great! Certainly helped me. Thank you very much for taking the time to write this all down for public mass consumption!

 

It's my pleasure!

 

The Megaforce KEA slays the MFN UK first pressing that I have. Don't get me wrong the MFN is great but the very first Megaforce pressing I was able to find in NM condition is just so much more awesome and has more "balls"!

 

Wow, really? I may have to find one... They just go for so much money on eBay nowadays... Are you talking about the 33 RPM MFN pressing, or the 2 LP 45 RPM one? I have the latter.

 

I have the 33 RPM MFN. I also have the 2008 33&45 editions on vinyl. Saddly, I have never heard the 45 RPM MFN editions.

 

For what it's worth, I have the 2008 "Kill 'Em All" vinyl and it's a pretty lackluster release but I have the 2010 black album and it's basically the best rock "demo" albums I have! (As in to demonstrate how good the hi-fi is)

 

Ahhh, gotcha. Yeah, you should try to get your hands on a 45 RPM MFN edition of one of their first 3 albums. They are spectacular pressings.

The 4 LP black album truly does sound amazing. Last time I checked, Metallica still had the 4 LP 45 RPM on sale from their online store for ONLY $30. If you don't have this box yet, I would jump on this sale while still possible.

 

I have the 2008 Kill 'em All and compared to a needledrop I have of the original Megaforce it does sound like ****!

 

Are you referring to the 2008 45 or 33 RPM KEA? My 45 RPM sounds pretty darn good, but not as good as my 45 RPM MFN pressing from '87

 

The 33. Its cut at a very low volume and does'nt have the same punch as the megaforce.

 

I find Metallica to be the biggest lottery of any band when buying vinyl issues.

I have got a 33 of Kill 'em All and a 45 of Ride The Lightening and both are so bad I can't imagine I will listen to them again.

And Justice For All is my favourite Metallica album and I found the 33 to be so terrible that I returned it as faulty. When the replacement came back the same, I upgraded to the 45. That is better, but still one of the worst sounding records in my collection.

I have only got the 33 of the Black Album and I think it sounds excellent. I will probably seek out the 45, but only because I am interested to see how it is possible to get a heavy rock recording to sound any better than the 33 (and in case I wear out my 33!)

The 45 of Garage Inc is almost as good as the above.

I have just received 33s of Load, Reload, St Anger and Death Magnetic. None of these are particular favourites, which is why I have not picked them up until now, but I am looking forward to giving them a try!

 

I find the 45RPM of RTL to be unlistenable. Based on the opinions from this board and elsewhere, I sold the 45s of KEA and MOP, still sealed, for pretty good money.

I snagged an original US press of MOP and it's not audiophile... But it's miles better than the reissue. Now I'm simply hunting for originals of the rest. AJFA looks to be the hardest to track.

The 45RPM of the Black Album is fantastic, however. I wish that level of care had been applied to the first four albums. Huge opportunity missed there.

 

I have caved in and ordered Black on 45. It is not often I buy a second copy of an album without selling the first, but I will make an exception here.

It is a lot more expensive to get it here in the UK than in the States!

 

Best versions for me-

KEA- Megaforce US Vinyl
RTL- DCC Gold CD mastered by Steve Hoffman
MOP- DCC Gold CD mastered by Steve Hoffman
And Justice For All is just a poor sounding album to start with, terrible production, where's the bass!?