Beatles Mono VINYL Box Set - 8th September 2014 Release Date (Part 7)

I disagree with Mikey on that. I prefer WTB. Better and more sophisticated to me.

 

Yep. And. I think that WTB is the closest thing we have to what the Beatles probably sounded like in Hamburg. That's why I like the album so much. It has a confidence to it. A live energy I don't hear as much on PPM.

WTB, Help!, Revolver, MMT and finally The Beatles are my biggies.

 

Especially RS. Help! had some fairly well-balanced-for-stereo tracks on it and some heavy split ones. I read somewhere by RS they wanted a stereo mix that would fold back nicely for people who were playing it with mono players or something along those lines. Still weird, though.

 

Why waste money on the Maiden reissues they will look good but sound crap, get used originals. Up The Irons !!

 

I'm not crazy about that cut. Not that it's bad. I just prefer the -7N/-7N pressing

 

No. Norman Smith engineered both albums

 

I was holding out for an Amazon price drop, but finally pulled the trigger today.

 

Yeah, but an interesting comparison coming up with the 1981 mastering and the new one both being solid state.
Vinyl weight advantage to the upcoming release.

 

Michael Fremer's reviews are interesting due to what he writes about an album and what he ultimately rates the album on his site. With the Beatles seemed to get a great write up by him but scored and 8/8, and A Hard Days Night had some issues pointed out and scored a 10/10 on his scale.

 

In the text of his reviews I always understand his point of view because he's usually very clear about explaining it. The numbers I don't really pay much attention to because they seem pretty arbitrary. Similar to how I feel about movie reviews - the nuance of the text doesn't always show in the rating.

 

Can't find clean originals around here, and they're analogue-sourced black vinyl. For $22 a pop (just like the Beatles reissues), it's a no-brainer for the handful I need.

 

I enjoy Mr. Fremer's reviews but I have never based a buy or not buy decision based on one.

 

You have to remember he was listening on an ultra high end system that is going to be more revealling than what most of us will be listening on.
Didn't our host start a thread several months back saying saying that some high end systems, such as what he has to use for his mastering work, can be too revealling of any issues and can detract from the simple enjoyment of listening to the music?

 

That would be a bummer to spend $150,000 on a TT and then say "Man, I'm hearing too much."

 

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threa...-cant-stand-it-sometimes.335418/#post-9683495

 

I don't think Mikey suffers from what Steve was talking about which is always listening on a system who's primary focus is to be absolutely neutral. It doesn't seem that Fremer's gear du jour is put together with that in mind because it's not required.

 

This is all well and good but it's not completely accurate. The split stereo thing was an EMI mandated action and *not* George Martin. The reasoning was correct, in that the engineers wanted something that could fold down to mono nicely for the mono-player-people, but this wasn't something that Sir George came up with. It was short-lived, but it wasn't just the Beatles. Some Hollies tracks are mixed the exact same way too. I'm sure there are more but those are what I can think of right off the top of my head right now.

I recall seeing the text of the memo/directive, but I do not recall WHERE I saw it.

 

Thanks for this. I am all for more details and such to understand these issues more clearly. Wonder why EMI wasn't concerned with Beatles For Sale at the time they were doing stereo for it? Hindsight?

 

Always wondered about that myself.

 

Still a strange directive as they had mono records for those with mono players to get the most from them. I understand it was a transitional period but they still should of targeted mono records for mono players and stereo to get the best sound out of those newfangled stereo players.

 

Nothing wrong with the 65 stereo mix for Help! It's a similar style of mix to Beatles for Sale. No idea why Martin thought that needed remixing in 1987. I prefer the stereo mix of Help up to Ticket to Ride then it's Mono after that.

 

Got a first pressing with the 1st label, chubby type font in excellent condition for $90 last year on e-bay!
This price is ridiculous.

 

Yes I think you're right. I probably just thought I remembered the vocals being on one side for Help. I do agree that the fidelity is much better on the stereo Help than my 82 mono which sounds kinda dull and lifeless for some reason.

 

All in all I prefer stereo for the Help! album. It breaths more and as long as the vocals aren't jerked to one side I don't mind so much other instruments being so. The song Yesterday I prefer in mono.

 

I was asking myself why should I buy that boxset. I've decided to get it because I have only one Beatles mono album (Yellow Submarine), I've never owne a LPs box set and buying it I could have a complete and consistent release for all LPs. I convince myself that the first run might become collectible. If the re-issues stay in print for 1 or 2 years, we never know if it would be pressed with the same quality standards, maybe pressed at differents plants, pressed using later stampers (I guess it will be necessery to produce others mothers/stampers from the lacquers which will begin to worn...), different material for the sleeves ... we never know...