Definitive Audiophile pressings

[Mather]

Just as a follow up to the Pearl Jam Vs pressing, second copy is worse than the first and is once again riddled with no fill on side A in exactly the same place and it's Optimal and Pallas discs again. So.... it's not just bad Mather luck in this case, it's a dodgy pressing. Which is a shame because the mastering is fantastic.

 

[RHANDMJ]

I see. Yeah, I've only been to a couple record shops in Calgary years ago, and I was blown away with all the EU pressings they had in stock. Stuff that was hard to find in the US. The Canadian dollar was also kind of weak at the time, so I bought a lot.

It's not a store by store thing, in Canada stores buy from the label or a single distributor, Fab. Fab basically buy from labels too, just a wider range including indies, which can be hard for stores to order from due to minimum quantities.

The label for the most part sources wherever has available supply, if all the U.S. pressing is going to fulfill U.S. orders the label may well source from the E.U. , same with the distributor - if they can't get any from the domestic label, they may go to a Euro distributor. Generally labels and distributors try to avoid that due to added cost (which gets passed on to customers).

 

[mitchwagz]

Just as a follow up to the Pearl Jam Vs pressing, second copy is worse than the first and is once again riddled with no fill on side A in exactly the same place and it's Optimal and Pallas discs again. So.... it's not just bad Mather luck in this case, it's a dodgy pressing. Which is a shame because the mastering is fantastic.

Just got my copy in today and mine is the US release pressed at RTI. Pearl Jam - Vs.

The discs are actually quite dirty and it’s not exactly quiet but damn does this record sound good. Best I’ve ever heard it and I had a first pressing for quite awhile (mind you that copy was riddled with skips). So I’m happy and maybe the US pressing is a safer bet? Still not the best quality pressing though.

 

[zdkaiser]

Just got my copy in today and mine is the US release pressed at RTI. Pearl Jam - Vs.

The discs are actually quite dirty and it’s not exactly quiet but damn does this record sound good. Best I’ve ever heard it and I had a first pressing for quite awhile (mind you that copy was riddled with skips). So I’m happy and maybe the US pressing is a safer bet? Still not the best quality pressing though.

Good to know there is also a US RTI pressing.

 

[Mather]

Just got my copy in today and mine is the US release pressed at RTI. Pearl Jam - Vs.

The discs are actually quite dirty and it’s not exactly quiet but damn does this record sound good. Best I’ve ever heard it and I had a first pressing for quite awhile (mind you that copy was riddled with skips). So I’m happy and maybe the US pressing is a safer bet? Still not the best quality pressing though.

Yeah it's the first I've heard of the RTI pressing. Yeah it sounds incredible but man is the vinyl dirty and in the case of the mix and match ones I've gotten, just plain weird.

 

[Mather]

Just got my copy in today and mine is the US release pressed at RTI. Pearl Jam - Vs.

The discs are actually quite dirty and it’s not exactly quiet but damn does this record sound good. Best I’ve ever heard it and I had a first pressing for quite awhile (mind you that copy was riddled with skips). So I’m happy and maybe the US pressing is a safer bet? Still not the best quality pressing though.

Okay I just looked at the US RTI images on Cogs. They match my discs, but look at yours. Does disk one have a flat label and disc two have a ringed indented Pallas style label? That's gotta be two different plants no?

 

[zdkaiser]

Okay I just looked at the US RTI images on Cogs. They match my discs, but look at yours. Does disk one have a flat label and disc two have a ringed indented Pallas style label? That's gotta be two different plants no?

Sometimes this hobby makes me just want to listen to digital music.

 

[mitchwagz]

Okay I just looked at the US RTI images on Cogs. They match my discs, but look at yours. Does disk one have a flat label and disc two have a ringed indented Pallas style label? That's gotta be two different plants no?

Yes, that’s exactly how my copy is and my disc 2 is definitely cleaner than disc 1, but the runouts match the typical RTI format. Definitely not Pallas. This is a weird one. Is your disc 2 good?

 

[Mather]

Yes, that’s exactly how my copy is and my disc 2 is definitely cleaner than disc 1, but the runouts match the typical RTI format. Definitely not Pallas. This is a weird one. Is your disc 2 good?

Both of them have some issues, no fill, just general noise. Doesn't ruin the pressing but it's not clean.

 

[Angsty]

How much better should I expect the 60th anniversary reissue of “My Favorite Things” to be compared to my current Waxtime Jazz Classics pressing?

 

[Ghost]

How much better should I expect the 60th anniversary reissue of “My Favorite Things” to be compared to my current Waxtime Jazz Classics pressing?

I’d imagine it’s a noticeable step up!

 

[Jbraswell]

How much better should I expect the 60th anniversary reissue of “My Favorite Things” to be compared to my current Waxtime Jazz Classics pressing?

I would say significant. But some people claim they can't hear a difference with cut from tape directly. KG did a nice job on it with his newer system upgrades.

 

[Nee Lewman]

How much better should I expect the 60th anniversary reissue of “My Favorite Things” to be compared to my current Waxtime Jazz Classics pressing?

Probably night and day. The wax time stuff I have it’s perfectly serviceable. The My Favorite Things is closer to audiophile standards.

 

[Jbraswell]

That Petty 3 LP Fillmore set sounds awesome.
Now I'm clamoring for the rest of the 20+ tracks on the 6 LPs.
Damn good recording!

 

[wmeugene]

That Petty 3 LP Fillmore set sounds awesome.
Now I'm clamoring for the rest of the 20+ tracks on the 6 LPs.
Damn good recording!

I have the full set and it is indeed awesome and a great recording.

 

[Jbraswell]

I have the full set and it is indeed awesome and a great recording.

It does need a little tone control adjustment here, better with some boosted bass and a tad more treble. IMO

 

[Turbo]

Just as a follow up to the Pearl Jam Vs pressing, second copy is worse than the first and is once again riddled with no fill on side A in exactly the same place and it's Optimal and Pallas discs again. So.... it's not just bad Mather luck in this case, it's a dodgy pressing. Which is a shame because the mastering is fantastic.

So I got my copy today and was just QC'ing it. Both records have RTI etchings and both have the same pressing ring at around 32mm, which I believe confirms RTI. So it doesn't look like this copy was pressed at two plants. Thought you might find that interesting. Note that the pressing sleuthing site has RTI with two presses, one with a ring at 31.7mm and another with rings at 31.7mm and 70mm - is that what you had?

I saw a spot of non-fill in Go, but I honestly couldn't hear it while playing over speakers. I didn't visually detect any other, but I reserve the right to update that when I play through the whole thing, especially the quieter tracks. The records were filthy and filled with scuffs and minor scratches though. There's a hairline through Rearviewmirror and Rats, which I also played through to check, but I couldn't audibly detect it when playing on the speakers.

The mastering is indeed fantastic. I'll keep my fingers crossed that no problematic audible issue comes up on the full playthrough.

 

[Mather]

So I got my copy today and was just QC'ing it. Both records have RTI etchings and both have the same pressing ring at around 32mm, which I believe confirms RTI. So it doesn't look like this copy was pressed at two plants. Thought you might find that interesting. Note that the pressing sleuthing site has RTI with two presses, one with a ring at 31.7mm and another with rings at 31.7mm and 70mm - is that what you had?

I saw a spot of non-fill in Go, but I honestly couldn't hear it while playing over speakers. I didn't visually detect any other, but I reserve the right to update that when I play through the whole thing, especially the quieter tracks. The records were filthy and filled with scuffs and minor scratches though. There's a hairline through Rearviewmirror and Rats, which I also played through to check, but I couldn't audibly detect it when playing on the speakers.

The mastering is indeed fantastic. I'll keep my fingers crossed that no problematic audible issue comes up on the full playthrough.

Yeah I have two copies. One where one label/disc is flat/smooth across the label. And the other has the deep indented rings. My second copy both disc has the deep indented rings.

So flat label like this, like what Optimal usually looks like. No raised or lower parts.

And then with the big indented ring, you can see it clearly where it raises up after the Side D marking.

I thought that second one was Pallas, first was Optimal or RTI.

 

[Turbo]

Yeah I have two copies. One where one label/disc is flat/smooth across the label. And the other has the deep indented rings. My second copy both disc has the deep indented rings.

So flat label like this, like what Optimal usually looks like. No raised or lower parts.
View attachment 188473
And then with the big indented ring, you can see it clearly where it raises up after the Side D marking.
View attachment 188474
I thought that second one was Pallas, first was Optimal or RTI.

I see - mine are definitely both the same. I'd call it a light indentation, a little more than level but not deep at 32 mm and otherwise flat with no outer ring rise (like your first LP).

 

[Mather]

I see - mine are definitely both the same. I'd call it a light indentation, a little more than level but not deep at 32 mm and otherwise flat with no outer ring rise (like your first LP).

Yeah my second copy both discs have the deep indentation ring, but no other indicating factors as to whether it's the EU or US. Pallas has that indentation ring yes? I feel like it does?