Definitive Audiophile pressings

Andy said:
yes

  • Matrix / Runout (Side A runout, etched, variant 1): DBZSLP 40 (0) 207 734 8719 BC71696-01 A₁
www.discogs.com

David Bowie – The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars (2016, 180 Gram, Vinyl)

View credits, reviews, tracks and shop for the 2016 Vinyl release of "The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars" on Discogs.
www.discogs.com www.discogs.com
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My understanding is that, as one Discogs commenter notes, most of the items for sale under that purported AAA Discogs listing are sealed, and there's a good chance they lack the runout "DBZSLP 40" bc they're a later 2020 press from a digital source. It seems the hype stickers, barcodes, copyright notices, etc. are all the same on both (unless the Discogs photos are not correct).
 
Portland Sheriff said:
My understanding is that, as one Discogs commenter notes, most of the items for sale under that purported AAA Discogs listing are sealed, and there's a good chance they lack the runout "DBZSLP 40" bc they're a later 2020 press from a digital source. It seems the hype stickers, barcodes, copyright notices, etc. are all the same on both (unless the Discogs photos are not correct).
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yeah, it was me that added the comment on cogs. There is a separate listing for the 2020 version, the runout details in that listing are the ones @MrChad is looking for.
 
MikeH said:
Maybe it’s just my system but I don’t find the EQ all that smiley. And I love the separation on that one. Curious to hear how it sounds compared to the 2016!
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WAY overblown. Back in the day, when these were coming out, no one claimed simley face, and the term hadn't been coined yet. No such thing, really. Do these people really think MOFI had some formula where they goosed the highs and bass and sucked out the mids? Ridiculous. Even more so on a forum whose 'host' does actually have a formula - hard cut at 10k, roll of around 50hz, and bump the mids to get that 'warm, tube-like' sound and make sure the cymbals don't sound like cymbals.
 
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I remember there was an issue with Craft Recordings shipping with Eastern Sounds, can anyone remind me what that issue was?

I preordered the Bill Evans Friday Evening release and got a shipment notice 2 weeks ago, but its just been sitting as "Shipment Received, Package Acceptance Pending" ever since. To add further intrigue, I got a notice from Concord Music Group today saying the release for Friday Evening has been pushed back to September.

Highly confused over here....

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TransformerMan said:
I remember there was an issue with Craft Recordings shipping with Eastern Sounds, can anyone remind me what that issue was?

I preordered the Bill Evans Friday Evening release and got a shipment notice 2 weeks ago, but its just been sitting as "Shipment Received, Package Acceptance Pending" ever since. To add further intrigue, I got a notice from Concord Music Group today saying the release for Friday Evening has been pushed back to September.

Highly confused over here....

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Yes, that was basically the issue.
 
TransformerMan said:
I remember there was an issue with Craft Recordings shipping with Eastern Sounds, can anyone remind me what that issue was?

I preordered the Bill Evans Friday Evening release and got a shipment notice 2 weeks ago, but its just been sitting as "Shipment Received, Package Acceptance Pending" ever since. To add further intrigue, I got a notice from Concord Music Group today saying the release for Friday Evening has been pushed back to September.

Highly confused over here....

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interesting. I got a copy in there uk with a hype sticker that said pressed at rti, but it wasn't. crappy paper sleeves and lots of pops on side a so I returned it. I think you might be better waiting for the September pressing.
 
TransformerMan said:
I remember there was an issue with Craft Recordings shipping with Eastern Sounds, can anyone remind me what that issue was?

I preordered the Bill Evans Friday Evening release and got a shipment notice 2 weeks ago, but its just been sitting as "Shipment Received, Package Acceptance Pending" ever since. To add further intrigue, I got a notice from Concord Music Group today saying the release for Friday Evening has been pushed back to September.

Highly confused over here....

giphy.gif
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Your album is either sitting at the Batavia, IL Post Office or still with Craft's distributor, Second City Prints. It'll be in limbo for a long while. Every order I purchased from Craft directly using media mail does this exact thing. They blame it on the USPS but it may be their distributors fault, not sure anyone really knows. Id recommend going forward, either you pay more for faster shipping speeds, or don't buy from Craft directly. Pretty much every vendor gets these Craft pressings, whether it is local shops, Amazon, etc. I usually try to pick up Craft pressings locally or from Plaidroom.
 
Andy said:
interesting. I got a copy in there uk with a hype sticker that said pressed at rti, but it wasn't. crappy paper sleeves and lots of pops on side a so I returned it. I think you might be better waiting for the September pressing.
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HUH?? September pressing? I got my copy already, day before release date, and a nice RTI pressing. Should be easy to find still.
 
This might be a question for the Bowie thread, but after picking up a green label Bilbo pressing of Hunky Dory a few weeks back and still being amazed at it, I did some googling. I'm really tempted to go down a Bilbo Bowie rabbit hole.

I'm eyeing up an expensive Ziggy, but could get a 1972 pressing a little cheaper. Even though I already have a great sounding Japanese pressing and the AAA 2016, when I listen to Hunky Dory I think I need a better Ziggy (the MOFI is out of my price range).

Does anyone have any of the Bowie Bilbo pressings? (I'm assuming @jamieanderson1968 has all the Bowie) Am I better chasing these, or going for early 70's or first pressings?

Steve Hoffman site looks as dismissive as ever, but this guy gets it.

BilBo, Bowie and a Closer Look at Mastering Credits - The Broken Record

It's hard to find a good sounding record, especially when you have no idea where to start. Should I buy a US version? UK? German? Is a first pressing essential and worth the money? WHICH first pressing? Or if there's a better reissue, which one of those? And in the end, will it even
www.thebrokenrecord.net www.thebrokenrecord.net
 
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MrChad said:
I know it’s been mentioned in this thread multiple times, but the Hendrix family releases are phenomenal. I picked up Electric Ladyland last week for around $18, and the pressing, packaging and sound quality are top notch. It would be worth it at twice the price.
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My Ladyland shipped from Amz today!! (ordered June 5th) There must be a ton of pre/backorders for these as they are not showing any stock on the page. It was 19.99 btw. Still waiting on Axis.
 
Andy said:
This might be a question for the Bowie thread, but after picking up a green label Bilbo pressing of Hunky Dory a few weeks back and still being amazed at it, I did some googling. I'm really tempted to go down a Bilbo Bowie rabbit hole.

I'm eyeing up an expensive Ziggy, but could get a 1972 pressing a little cheaper. Even though I already have a great sounding Japanese pressing and the AAA 2016, when I listen to Hunky Dory I think I need a better Ziggy (the MOFI is out of my price range).

Does anyone have any of the Bowie Bilbo pressings? (I'm assuming @jamieanderson1968 has all the Bowie) Am I better chasing these, or going for early 70's or first pressings?

Steve Hoffman site looks as dismissive as ever, but this guy gets it.

BilBo, Bowie and a Closer Look at Mastering Credits - The Broken Record

It's hard to find a good sounding record, especially when you have no idea where to start. Should I buy a US version? UK? German? Is a first pressing essential and worth the money? WHICH first pressing? Or if there's a better reissue, which one of those? And in the end, will it even
www.thebrokenrecord.net www.thebrokenrecord.net
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I have read about them but never actually seen or heard one. Word is they are some of the best sounding Bowie records pressed after 1980 but also pretty elusive in the wild these days since they are 40 year old pressings now.
 
Selaws said:
Back when the UHQR Kind Of Blue was announced I put an order in for a copy and later had an email to say that unless I added more items to the order it would be a while as they had issues with the updates to VAT. After a back-and-forth email conversation, I decided to cancel as it just wasn't worth all the hassle.

Well, turns out that when I made the order a first attempt which I was told didn't go through (the system was crashing with everyone trying to order) actually did. Today the record arrived (with no extra fees) which is a welcomed surprise.

I won't have time to listen to it for a while but it certainly looks good and it will be nice to compare with my OG mono.

View attachment 104880
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I had my first listen of this today after opening it up.

The set itself is really great and there are lots of additional sheets that explain the process, upcoming titles, certificates of the material patent, the team at UHQR etc. Plus the liner notes booklet. The record came separate to the jacket, which is a stoughton tip-on with session photos on the inside. The record itself is their patented 'Clarity Vinyl' which is a milky colour with a decent weight and really flat (my copy is at least).

Going into it I had already heard that there had been issues of popping and surface noise with some of the batches so I was consciously listening out for those. I didn't really want to but it was on my mind. Generally there were hardly any issues other than a few very very light clicks that I imagine could have been a bit of static or something (I did clean it on the VC-S2 before playing) and I will listen out for it on the next play though.

The sound itself really is stunning, there's no two ways about it. There's a clarity to it that really allows each instrument to breathe. Each tiny element becomes really apparent and there are bits that I have never noticed before. Miles' raspy breath before the note kicks in for example. I haven't done an A/B with my first mono pressing yet but it's definitely on the cards. I had not heard the stereo pressing before this and think I would have prefered this to have been a mono treatment, but that's just personal preference.

The choice of Kind Of Blue was an obvious one and I imagine they knew it would sell like hot cakes. It's been reissued a million times now and there is a question as to whether we need yet another one (they are releasing the 45rmp UHQR soon as well). Im not someone that usually buys multiple copies of the same album, so it's a bit hypocritical for me to say this, but I do wish these kind of companies would release some of the less obvious albums. I would definitely be more interested in those and would be more inclined to buy them. Craft's One-Step has been interesting so far. Although Coltrane was an obvious artist to choose, the album was one of his lesser-known ones, and the Yusef Lateef was a superb pick in my opinion.

To be honest, I can't imagine I will end up buying many more of these in the future though. It's not cheap at all (crazy money when you think about it) and as the shipping from the US (and potential fees) bumps it even higher. The Craft releases are a good comparison, and they are cheaper and available direct from the UK (as well as being more interesting titles IMO), so I will likely look into those over the UHQR's.
 
Selaws said:
I had my first listen of this today after opening it up.

The set itself is really great and there are lots of additional sheets that explain the process, upcoming titles, certificates of the material patent, the team at UHQR etc. Plus the liner notes booklet. The record came separate to the jacket, which is a stoughton tip-on with session photos on the inside. The record itself is their patented 'Clarity Vinyl' which is a milky colour with a decent weight and really flat (my copy is at least).

Going into it I had already heard that there had been issues of popping and surface noise with some of the batches so I was consciously listening out for those. I didn't really want to but it was on my mind. Generally there were hardly any issues other than a few very very light clicks that I imagine could have been a bit of static or something (I did clean it on the VC-S2 before playing) and I will listen out for it on the next play though.

The sound itself really is stunning, there's no two ways about it. There's a clarity to it that really allows each instrument to breathe. Each tiny element becomes really apparent and there are bits that I have never noticed before. Miles' raspy breath before the note kicks in for example. I haven't done an A/B with my first mono pressing yet but it's definitely on the cards. I had not heard the stereo pressing before this and think I would have prefered this to have been a mono treatment, but that's just personal preference.

The choice of Kind Of Blue was an obvious one and I imagine they knew it would sell like hot cakes. It's been reissued a million times now and there is a question as to whether we need yet another one (they are releasing the 45rmp UHQR soon as well). Im not someone that usually buys multiple copies of the same album, so it's a bit hypocritical for me to say this, but I do wish these kind of companies would release some of the less obvious albums. I would definitely be more interested in those and would be more inclined to buy them. Craft's One-Step has been interesting so far. Although Coltrane was an obvious artist to choose, the album was one of his lesser-known ones, and the Yusef Lateef was a superb pick in my opinion.

To be honest, I can't imagine I will end up buying many more of these in the future though. It's not cheap at all (crazy money when you think about it) and as the shipping from the US (and potential fees) bumps it even higher. The Craft releases are a good comparison, and they are cheaper and available direct from the UK (as well as being more interesting titles IMO), so I will likely look into those over the UHQR's.
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I feel like MoFi, AP, and Craft could skip all the big boxes with these UHQRs and other One-steps. Just throw the LPs in a sturdy tip-on jacket and sell them for $60 bucks. That'd be ideal for me at least.

Wasn't there a Neil Young Great Hits One-step that did this and was $50?
 
zdkaiser said:
I feel like MoFi, AP, and Craft could skip all the big boxes with these UHQRs and other One-steps. Just throw the LPs in a sturdy tip-on jacket and sell them for $60 bucks. That'd be ideal for me at least.

Wasn't there a Neil Young Great Hits One-step that did this and was $50?
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AP’s box is clearly overkill. I actually like the craft ones. MoFi’s are just inconvenient AF.
 
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