Definitive Audiophile pressings

[Turbo]

Sounds good! Out of curiosity, what was the grading for each of those and how did it jive with what you're hearing?

Abbey road was EX and it’s visually pristine although there are pops during playback (mostly in B2 and B3). A good record cleaner would probably fix a lot of it.

Revolver was VG+ and it has scuffs and more popping but no scratches. There was a bit of dirt through Elenor Rigby that I took care of with the spin clean. A more thorough clean would help here too though. But great condition considering the age.

I’d say the grading on these was how I’d grade them, but it didn’t exceed expectations.

 

[Russ I]

Abbey road was EX and it’s visually pristine although there are pops during playback (mostly in B2 and B3). A good record cleaner would probably fix a lot of it.

Revolver was VG+ and it has scuffs and more popping but no scratches. There was a bit of dirt through Elenor Rigby that I took care of with the spin clean. A more thorough clean would help here too though. But great condition considering the age.

I’d say the grading on these was how I’d grade them, but it didn’t exceed expectations.

Cool. Thanks! The couple that I've played were EX and fit with your description of Abbey Road--a few pops here and there, but overall very clean. Not completely quiet, but any light noise is infrequent and doesn't intrude on the experience. I vacuum cleaned both and have listened to one of them, which seems to be even quieter. So I agree, grading seems accurate and fair.

 

[Mather]

Dammit @Mather , you have to keep NightMather locked up. He just bought a bunch of stuff from Japan on my AmEx..

Well, I think we all knew there would be some blowback after I instituted "Operation Ghost Protocol: NIGHTMather De-Funded". I'm sorry you were the first casualty. I'll have my lawyer get in touch. But just a word of warning, he's completely fucking useless.

 

[Andy]

Spun Abbey Road and Revolver.

First off, this Abbey Road pressing is wonderful. You need to tolerate a bit of pops in the quieter parts, but it’s overall really clean. The instruments are well balanced, bass is rich and highs well defined. She’s So Heavy in particular was a revelation. This is my new definitive version.

Revolver is the ODEON stereo version. Thought I got a mono but it seems I messed that up. Sounds great though! More poppy than Abbey Road, but this is a 1966 so it’s par for the course. Again, well balanced bass, mids and highs. Great copy for now, but I’ll probably keep looking for a mono.

Which pressing off Abbey road did you get? I have one in my basket

edit - I see it's the EAS, I have an AP in the basket, I'm still not sure which one to get, I'm seeing different views when I search it. Fremer says the ES are fantastic & you do now, so I might have another look this evening for am EAS.

 

[uvwxVinyl]

I'm really impressed with how this VMP Queen - A night at the Opera sounds. I think the guitars sound awesome on this! Was this really theirs or just a coloured pressing of a wider release?

Feel like it's probably worth the $40 to be honest.

edit: Goddamnit...flipped to side 2 it's warped those bastards!!!

 

[Joe Mac]

I'm really impressed with how this VMP Queen - A night at the Opera sounds. I think the guitars sound awesome on this! Was this really theirs or just a coloured pressing of a wider release?

Feel like it's probably worth the $40 to be honest.

edit: Goddamnit...flipped to side 2 it's warped those bastards!!!

I don’t remember them claiming any special new mastering for it at the time so I always just thought it was the normal 1/2 master with their vinyl colour and fancy sleeves. Happy to be proved wrong if someone knows better.

 

[jamieanderson1968]

Well, I think we all knew there would be some blowback after I instituted "Operation Ghost Protocol: NIGHTMather De-Funded". I'm sorry you were the first casualty. I'll have my lawyer get in touch. But just a word of warning, he's completely fucking useless.

No worries I should have expected it. I thought I saw him walking along the side of the highway to Bobcaygeon the other day, but I just kept driving.

 

[Colonel4Bin]

Cross-posting from Discogs help thread:

What would you guys do in this situation?

Ordered an audiophile record from a Discogs seller who has 50+ sales and 100% feedback. They graded the record as VG+/VG+ and said that it was cleaned and plays very quietly. It was a little below the median so I bit, as it’s one that I’ve been looking for a good copy of for a while. But it was still a little above $100.

it arrived yesterday and had a fair amount of marks on it. Nothing feelable but more than something I would grade VG+. I put it on and there are about 40-50 pops/clicks/crackles throughout the whole thing. It has a click every revolution for the whole first minute. I tried it on two turntables and it was consistent on both. No skips, and the record still sounds great, but the noise doesn’t seem to comport with “plays very quietly.”

I contacted the seller and they answered that it might be my stylus and brought up that they have high level gear. I told the seller that it was consistent across two separate carts and it was definitely not the stylus (I use a brandy new Sukimo Moonstone and Ortofon 2M Blue).

I’ve never had a grading discrepancy on Discogs but I rarely buy off of there for fear of this. Anyone deal with something similar/thoughts on what I should do?

 

[mitchwagz]

Cross-posting from Discogs help thread:

What would you guys do in this situation?

Ordered an audiophile record from a Discogs seller who has 50+ sales and 100% feedback. They graded the record as VG+/VG+ and said that it was cleaned and plays very quietly. It was a little below the median so I bit, as it’s one that I’ve been looking for a good copy of for a while. But it was still a little above $100.

it arrived yesterday and had a fair amount of marks on it. Nothing feelable but more than something I would grade VG+. I put it on and there are about 40-50 pops/clicks/crackles throughout the whole thing. It has a click every revolution for the whole first minute. I tried it on two turntables and it was consistent on both. No skips, and the record still sounds great, but the noise doesn’t seem to comport with “plays very quietly.”

I contacted the seller and they answered that it might be my stylus and brought up that they have high level gear. I told the seller that it was consistent across two separate carts and it was definitely not the stylus (I use a brandy new Sukimo Moonstone and Ortofon 2M Blue).

I’ve never had a grading discrepancy on Discogs but I rarely buy off of there for fear of this. Anyone deal with something similar/thoughts on what I should do?

I would either try to get a partial refund and maybe provide sound clips to state your case. But be prepared for the seller to say no. Or else ask to return it for a full refund if you aren’t satisfied. There’s really not much else you can do. That’s how I handle most of ny grading disputes, and how others handle it with me.

 

[Andy]

Cross-posting from Discogs help thread:

What would you guys do in this situation?

Ordered an audiophile record from a Discogs seller who has 50+ sales and 100% feedback. They graded the record as VG+/VG+ and said that it was cleaned and plays very quietly. It was a little below the median so I bit, as it’s one that I’ve been looking for a good copy of for a while. But it was still a little above $100.

it arrived yesterday and had a fair amount of marks on it. Nothing feelable but more than something I would grade VG+. I put it on and there are about 40-50 pops/clicks/crackles throughout the whole thing. It has a click every revolution for the whole first minute. I tried it on two turntables and it was consistent on both. No skips, and the record still sounds great, but the noise doesn’t seem to comport with “plays very quietly.”

I contacted the seller and they answered that it might be my stylus and brought up that they have high level gear. I told the seller that it was consistent across two separate carts and it was definitely not the stylus (I use a brandy new Sukimo Moonstone and Ortofon 2M Blue).

I’ve never had a grading discrepancy on Discogs but I rarely buy off of there for fear of this. Anyone deal with something similar/thoughts on what I should do?

I would go back and ask for a return / refund particularly on a $100 record. I've probably done the wrong thing in the past & just sucked it up because the records weren't too expensive & then decided not to buy from them again, I know which stores I've bought from that I trust.

It can be a bit subjective on grading, particularly if it's not play tested. I think a lot of people know just give the record a clean & put it on at NM knowing it's full of crackles.

Weirdly, the most annoying was a Japanese record store, that everything else they gave me was excellent. I ordered a NM vinyl with VG sleeve & the sleeve was excellent & the vinyl unlistenable. Not worth the postage back to Japan, but I think they just got the grading switched.

 

[AnthonyI]

Cross-posting from Discogs help thread:

What would you guys do in this situation?

Ordered an audiophile record from a Discogs seller who has 50+ sales and 100% feedback. They graded the record as VG+/VG+ and said that it was cleaned and plays very quietly. It was a little below the median so I bit, as it’s one that I’ve been looking for a good copy of for a while. But it was still a little above $100.

it arrived yesterday and had a fair amount of marks on it. Nothing feelable but more than something I would grade VG+. I put it on and there are about 40-50 pops/clicks/crackles throughout the whole thing. It has a click every revolution for the whole first minute. I tried it on two turntables and it was consistent on both. No skips, and the record still sounds great, but the noise doesn’t seem to comport with “plays very quietly.”

I contacted the seller and they answered that it might be my stylus and brought up that they have high level gear. I told the seller that it was consistent across two separate carts and it was definitely not the stylus (I use a brandy new Sukimo Moonstone and Ortofon 2M Blue).

I’ve never had a grading discrepancy on Discogs but I rarely buy off of there for fear of this. Anyone deal with something similar/thoughts on what I should do?

I would agree with everyone else, and you can pose Discogs own definition of VG+ as your "expectation". In a nutshell, mostly minor cosmetic issues, but nothing that effects the sound quality or playback, unfortunately it falls on how well the sellers customer service intentions are.

Good Luck

 

[Colonel4Bin]

It can be a bit subjective on grading, particularly if it's not play tested. I think a lot of people know just give the record a clean & put it on at NM knowing it's full of crackles.

What is kinda annoying is that they specifically said it “plays quietly.” Anyone looking at this record would not assume it would play quietly without actually play testing it.

I think I’m going to try and get a full refund or at least a partial refund. Kinda bugs me that they just assumed it was my own equipment.

 

[Andy]

What is kinda annoying is that they specifically said it “plays quietly.” Anyone looking at this record would not assume it would play quietly without actually play testing it.

I think I’m going to try and get a full refund or at least a partial refund. Kinda bugs me that they just assumed it was my own equipment.

Exactly, usually people argue about the default visual inspection. but that goes completely against the description here. definitely ask for a refund / return

 

[Turbo]

Which pressing off Abbey road did you get? I have one in my basket

edit - I see it's the EAS, I have an AP in the basket, I'm still not sure which one to get, I'm seeing different views when I search it. Fremer says the ES are fantastic & you do now, so I might have another look this evening for am EAS.

Yeah, I got the 1976 japanese EAS reissue. I think it was the best price for EX grading and had the fun OBI too. The reviews for it seemed pretty good on Discogs, so I went for it. I can confirm it sounds great.

 

[Turbo]

I’ll be really interested to see what you make of those Beatles albums, really really interested

Sounds good! Out of curiosity, what was the grading for each of those and how did it jive with what you're hearing?

I now spun "Let It Be". I got the 1971 pressing with "stereo" in red on the spine. The pressing is great. Well balanced, solid bass and defined highs. Unfortunately my copy has a decent amount of background pops even though it visually looks pristine, especially on side 1. A little too much for my taste to be honest. Visually EX, but I wouldn't call this more than VG on playback. But a clean copy of this would be fantastic. I actually compared the sound to my copy of the recent reissue, it it's not even close - that one is so thin, especially the highs and feels much less dynamic. So I'll probably keep looking for a clean copy, but the pressing itself is great.

Bonus review: Blondie "Eat To The Beat" (1979 japanese original). This one is so quiet it sounds new. I first thought it sounded a little thin in the bass department, but it's just recorded at a much lower volume than most records. So I cranked it! Sounds quite good actually - really happy with this one.

 

[dansomeone]

I now spun "Let It Be". I got the 1971 pressing with "stereo" in red on the spine. The pressing is great. Well balanced, solid bass and defined highs. Unfortunately my copy has a decent amount of background pops even though it visually looks pristine, especially on side 1. A little too much for my taste to be honest. Visually EX, but I wouldn't call this more than VG on playback. But a clean copy of this would be fantastic. I actually compared the sound to my copy of the recent reissue, it it's not even close - that one is so thin, especially the highs and feels much less dynamic. So I'll probably keep looking for a clean copy, but the pressing itself is great.

Bonus review: Blondie "Eat To The Beat" (1979 japanese original). This one is so quiet it sounds new. I first thought it sounded a little thin in the bass department, but it's just recorded at a much lower volume than most records. So I cranked it! Sounds quite good actually - really happy with this one.

I've ordered 11 LPs from Record City in total, all graded Ex-. The five from 1977-1985 are flawless. However, some of the other six, from 1970-1974, have varying degrees of surface noise that I would consider more VG+. Considering the volume of records they list for sale on a daily basis, I don't think their grades are based on play-testing.

As an aside, I have wondered if there is a psychological effect at play in grading records. My opinion is the age of the record has no bearing, but I think some people give older records more slack, because they're older, and grade them higher than they should be objectively.

Holy shit, my Record City order is already on the truck for delivery today. The speed is super fast for Canada too it seems. Will post photos of the records later when I get them.

I know, talk about instant gratification! I ordered five LPs this weekend. They were shipped from Tokyo Monday evening CST and are out for delivery this morning, 36 hours later.

 

[Mather]

I've ordered 11 LPs from Record City in total, all graded Ex-. The five from 1977-1985 are flawless. However, some of the other six, from 1970-1974, have varying degrees of surface noise that I would consider more VG+. Considering the volume of records they list for sale on a daily basis, I don't think their grades are based on play-testing.

As an aside, I have wondered if there is a psychological effect at play in grading records. My opinion is the age of the record has no bearing, but I think some people give older records more slack, because they're older, and grade them higher than they should be objectively.


I know, talk about instant gratification! I ordered five LPs this weekend. They were shipped from Tokyo Monday evening CST and are out for delivery this morning, 36 hours later.

This is what has stopped me from ordering from them. I appreciate that they have actual play test clips on some of their albums. But these are EX rated albums and the play test clips I've listened to are all VG at best. I appreciate these are older albums, but EX is EX, doesn't matter the age. That's basically a mint rating and they are certainly not playing anywhere in the vicinity of mint. Of the ones I've heard.

 

[AnthonyI]

This is what has stopped me from ordering from them. I appreciate that they have actual play test clips on some of their albums. But these are EX rated albums and the play test clips I've listened to are all VG at best. I appreciate these are older albums, but EX is EX, doesn't matter the age. That's basically a mint rating and they are certainly not playing anywhere in the vicinity of mint. From what I've heard.

I could be dead wrong, but I would question if that clip is of the actual album regardless of the claim and or the sound quality. I went ahead and bought 3 albums just to see for myself, grading is a pain in the ass for buyers, we all know that. Playback is also a mixed bag when it becomes minimal, meaning, your system has a lot to do with what you may or may not hear, do you clean your vinyl, etc...

Arriving today, so we'll see, but I get your point @Mather.

On a side note, how hung up is everyone on having an OBI, I honestly could care less, but I was just curious.

 

[Joe Mac]

This is what has stopped me from ordering from them. I appreciate that they have actual play test clips on some of their albums. But these are EX rated albums and the play test clips I've listened to are all VG at best. I appreciate these are older albums, but EX is EX, doesn't matter the age. That's basically a mint rating and they are certainly not playing anywhere in the vicinity of mint. Of the ones I've heard.

I don’t think EX is a mint rating tbh. Because I’ve bought M- rated records off them that are to all intents new despite their age. In fact I think the ones I’ve got with that designation were sealed. I think it’s closer to somewhere between VG+ and NM- on a cogs scale.

 

[Poly-Rythmo]

This is what has stopped me from ordering from them. I appreciate that they have actual play test clips on some of their albums. But these are EX rated albums and the play test clips I've listened to are all VG at best. I appreciate these are older albums, but EX is EX, doesn't matter the age. That's basically a mint rating and they are certainly not playing anywhere in the vicinity of mint. Of the ones I've heard.

I've bought a fair bit from Record City over the years. I don't think I've ever had something be under-graded but I've had plenty of VG+ that play VG+, not EX as some say Japanese undergrade. But at that grading the differences can be marginal. I've kind of run out of things to buy from Record City for now so am trying a Discogs Japanese seller currently...