Beatles German Pressings - Need Help!

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Tommyboy, Dec 29, 2007.

  1. RTurner

    RTurner Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    The hi hat version is also on the blue Odeon 'The Beatles' Greatest' which I bought sometime around 1975. Now I gotta give it a listen!

    :cheers: and Happy New Year


    :edthumbs:
     
  2. Winter Hugohalter

    Winter Hugohalter New Member

    Location:
    Camas Washington
    I know the German MONO LP's were abandoned rather early and are hard to come by. How do these sound compared to the UK's?
     
  3. I have three German Beatles albums:
    Die Beatles (Stereo LP - Hör Zu)
    Magical Mystery Tour (Stereo LP - HörZu)
    The World's Best (Stereo LP - S*R International)

    The Hör Zu's are superb as has already been mentioned. I think The World's Best is excellent too.
     
    kt66brooklyn likes this.
  4. inperson

    inperson Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    Can someone tell me a little about my French/German Magical Mystery Tour LP? The cover states that it was made in Germany but the LP is Pathe Marconi EMI-France. It is number 1C 072-04.449 and it has that German style MMT cover. It also has deep bass on Baby You're a Rich Man. Is this one good enough or do I need to keep looking for a German pressing? Is it basically the same?
     
    kt66brooklyn likes this.
  5. Nad 214

    Nad 214 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    It's to die for. when I got my copy cleaned and put it on the turntable as I had my back to my system as i was going to sit down, well I have to say my jaw dropped when I first heard the bass on coming from my speakers.
    Be careful when you find one as there are two 072 pressings.
    1 is the actual o72 German pressing
    2 the other is a German export with the Pathe Marconi print on the label and doesn't sound as good.
     
  6. Nad 214

    Nad 214 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    To my ears the WTB and HDN sound wonderful there so much better sounding than there German Stereo counterparts.
    In fact I play my MONO German HDN a lot can't say that for many of the German pressings.
    I love to find the guy in German who decided no more MONO pressings after 1964:realmad:
    I love those Green Odeon labels and often wonder what the German MONO's of
    Rubber Soul Revolver and Sgt Pepper would have sounded like.
    If only ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
     
    kt66brooklyn likes this.
  7. dgsinner

    dgsinner New Member

    Location:
    Far East
    I pulled the trigger and bought one of these yesterday. It's a blue label HorZu -- it does not have the striped sleeve that the yokono site suggests the first presses had, but it does have a poly lined inner that has markings that suggest to me it came with the record, so it must be a later, perhaps a 70s press.

    It does have a cardboard sheet insert with the cutouts, though.

    Here's the info on the deadwax:

    side a: SHZE-401-A-1
    side b: SHZE-401-B-2

    After the last number of each matrix there is a little mark like a plus sign with a couple little balls at each end of one of the lines.

    The laminated cover has flip backs at the top inside and a red and white HorZu sticker on the front lower left.

    The title lettering on the spine is upside down.

    After playing it and doing a little A/B-ing with a UK EMI stereo one box YEX 637-1/YEX 638-1, here's what I heard...

    First off, the vinyl -- it's QUIET! This HorZu pressing has phenomenally quiet vinyl if you get a NM copy like this one. The noise floor on the run ins is WAY, WAY down there. At the volume I was listening at, I heard NOTHING WHATSOEVER in terms of surface noise.

    Next, BASS. The bass is significantly more powerful than on the EMI one box.

    This press has a very warm sound to it, but it lacks the clarity of the EMI one box I compared it too, especially noticeable in the voices and high end like the snares. It's just somewhat less in focus like you have a tube buffer in the signal path or you're just that much further down the road from an original, early master. Not that this is a bad listen...it is definitely not. It is probably in the same league as the early 70s Japan AP series, maybe better (maybe that's another comparison I should do)...but...

    I played this on a Shelter 501, which is a very warm sounding cartridge. I also use a much more detailed Dynavector XX-2. I might have liked the HorZu more on that cartridge...

    Seems to me if your choice was between the HorZu (or a HorZu like this one) and a UK EMI one box, I'd go with the one box. The sharper focus and clarity sound better to my ears, bass not withstanding. Of course, you will probably have to pay lots more for an EMI one box (unless you're lucky) than for a HorZu like this one (I paid Y5,000 or about US$47). EMI one boxes have been increasing in price lately...

    Dale
     

    Attached Files:

  8. Francis

    Francis Active Member

    Location:
    South of France
    Thanks for this useful review, Dale ! :righton:
     
  9. dgsinner

    dgsinner New Member

    Location:
    Far East
    Not at all...my pleasure!

    Dale
     
  10. adhoc

    adhoc Gentlemen Prefer Stereo

    Pathe Marconi... doesn't that indicate a french pressing?

    FWIW, guys we need starting to include MATRIX NUMBERS - such discussions are useless without them. For example, not all German Apple Revolvers are equal. And there are a few variations of the blue label Sgt Pepper's also.
     
    WizardsWithMachinery likes this.
  11. Nad 214

    Nad 214 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    Your correct as to Apple Revolvers but I will say in every instance where I've bought the same tittle German vs Pathe Marconi the German has sounded the best. I will add I recently got a Blue label German Revolver A2/B2 and it sounds very good much better than the A1/B1 White label with the Gold rim trim.
    Another thing I noticed about the Pathe Marconi is the vinyl isn;t as quite as the German pressing.
    Yes we do need to include Matrix stampers etc.............
    Thanks.
     
  12. bekayne

    bekayne Senior Member

  13. JJ3810

    JJ3810 Senior Member

    Location:
    Virginia
    Some of those blue label German pressings of REVOLVER sound fabulous. Others, not so good. I haven't figure out how to tell them apart other than listening to them.
     
  14. Nad 214

    Nad 214 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    I would assume matrix as I don't think they pressed any other than the A1/B1 A2/B2 on the Odeon label.

    The German stuff is frustrating at times. With some of there pressings you think "Yep they got that one rite" and on others you think what were they thinking do they think that sounds good?
    Example 062 Blue label HDN I have a stone mint one played maybe twice and it sounds so bad vs the Yellow and Black UK Stereo HDN
     
  15. john lennonist

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



    I've also seen two copies of MMT like that -- German covers with French (Pathe Marconi) discs... in each case the store identified them as "German" so look carefully.
     
  16. Ben Sinise

    Ben Sinise Forum Reticent

    Location:
    Sydney
    Those Pathe Marconi MMTs use the same German Hor Zu/Apple stampers and also have German made covers. They sound no different to the equivalent German pressed copy.
     
  17. Ben Sinise

    Ben Sinise Forum Reticent

    Location:
    Sydney
    I agree, there's no complaint with my blue label 072 copy either.
     
  18. Ben Sinise

    Ben Sinise Forum Reticent

    Location:
    Sydney
    The sound quality on the SR World's Best is nothing like the 2 Hor Zu pressings, it's underwhelming in comparison. It does have the coolest cover though.
     
  19. Neptune55

    Neptune55 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oak Park, IL, USA
    How does this Hör Zu sound?

    I recently saw a German Hör Zu edition of Help! in a store and would like to know if anyone has any experience with this version. I was told this is a Hör Zu fourth pressing.

    Some details:

    SHZE 162 (on red label)
    Matrix info on side 1: 34257-A-2
    Hör Zu logo with an orange line on top on cover

    The record looked almost NM and was selling for $40.

    My concern is that on this thread it was indicated that some early Hör Zu Beatles pressings had a very low volume and thus sound rather noisy when cranked up. Yet others have had good luck with some of the Hör Zu pressings.

    I'd like to know into which (if any) of these camps this LP falls...
     
  20. Nad 214

    Nad 214 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    Just pick up a German apple pressing of Help On mine dead quite vinyl and sonics were killer.
    I'll have to check my HorZu and see if the matrix is the same.
     
    LitHum05 likes this.
  21. Neptune55

    Neptune55 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oak Park, IL, USA
    Nad, please let us know your Hör Zu matrix info. and also your opinion on the sonics. This would be much appreciated.
     
  22. Nad 214

    Nad 214 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio
    I checked mine last night. It has the small HorZu in Yellow and black on the top left corner of the cover.
    Same matrix as what you posted. I'd pass on it at $40.00 you can do much better with an apple pressing sonics are so much better.
     
  23. Frank Daniels

    Frank Daniels Forum Resident

    I tend to like most of the original pressings -- mono or stereo -- except for a few anomalies. German Odeon compiled Something New by themselves, so you get the extended version of "And I Love Her," but "Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand" is in rechanneled stereo on the stereo LP. With the Beatles has the first appearance of the "hi-hat" version of "All My Loving." The first issue of MMT from 1972 is awesome; the mixes found there wound up being the basis for the CD.

    Some of the reissues from the late 70's (1C-072- country/price code or all-red Hor Zu label) sound better, in my opinion. The DMM releases from the 1980's are super-hot -- lots of highs.

    Frank

    http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/kirkland/266/btls/ger/singger.htm
    http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/kirkland/266/btls/ger/epger.htm
    http://meltingpot.fortunecity.com/kirkland/266/btls/ger/lpger.htm
     
  24. Tommyboy

    Tommyboy Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York
    I just won a German Apple Help! today. I've read a lot of positive things about this pressing. My question is, what makes this LP such a good pressing? Is it the bass, like the German Apple Revolver?

    Does it compare favorably with the later UK solid state cuttings?
     
    LitHum05 likes this.
  25. Tommyboy

    Tommyboy Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    New York
    Anyone?
     

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