Definitive Audiophile pressings

waruv said:
So I’d trust the links and video more than me but just in case. Low mid level system A/B/C

My super short version is the AP and 20th are surprisingly different presses for a pretty straightforward album. The AP experience is a more intense affair - stronger bass and emphasis on the vocal with pointed sound. The 20th gives a lot more room to the backing instruments which I find to be a very cool experience. You don’t get that in many other sources - more guitar for sure and I think it helps a lot of the tracks on Side B. They mention it on a Discogs post and I’d agree the acoustic guitar accompaniment is pronounced and really cool. My 20th has some very odd electrical feedback I hope disappears on a thorough clean or I will aim for a replacement (edit: it didn’t but given its not on Side B and no one else reported it, I think it’s a single copy issue). I am assuming this is not pressing wide or I think we’d hear about it. Both copies are flat and quiet beyond that (a bit of noise on my AP but again I think it’s a me issue as it’s overdue for a clean).

I’d give the edge, minorly, to the AP. I appreciate the stronger floor and emphasis choices. I don’t give the AP a 3x cost advantage though. I’d happily spend $25 on the 20th anniversary over $75 on the AP. For severe Norah addicts both are worth owning for their different takes. 20th is more relaxed and free whereas AP is more intense. Coffee shop vs Jazz Club vibes.

Just for posterity sake I put on the Blue Note too (standard press before the 20th anniversary) - decent pressing, but it feels a bit muddier after listening to the other two and should only be in consideration as a cheaper used option if it comes up or if you really dislike the 20th treatment of the overall feel. It’s like the little brother of the AP in terms of style but lacks the oomph. Mine didn't have major sibilance issues but others have reported that enough to consider. My uneducated ear ratings vs. other general pressings would be

AP: 4.5/5
20th: 4.25/5
Blue Note: 3/5
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I think you and Michael are pretty close in comparison!, just some different terminology, For $25 I liked the 20th first spin. I also have the original redbook Cd on my server


and for anyone that missed it, this comparison is now up to 12 versions of Norah! But the AP is the SACD
magicvinyldigital.net

Norah Jones – Come Away With Me – Review (LP , CD, SACD, Streaming, remastered 2022, 5.1, Atmos Binaural)

“Come Away With Me” is the first album of Norah Jones released on February 26, 2002 by Blue Note records. This very well recorded album used analog tape recorders which allowed to produ…
magicvinyldigital.net magicvinyldigital.net
 
Mather said:
That's odd because on Cogs Ella uses DHL. But yeah nothing. Just bitch ass FedEx from AS(S).

Although even after NINETY dollars in fees $70 of which were just FedEx garbage charges on 2 records, it's still just around what we would pay in Canada in store, and 3 of the 4 items aren't even available in store up here sooooo... here we are...
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Did cogs automatically charge the tax on the purchase so it was already paid so they could just declare that? That’s what happened to me with my Ella discogs purchases, cogs charged VAT and Ella just handed over the invoice showing that. Nothing to do with DHL, they charge same as FedEx otherwise in my experience, and more down to it already being paid at source.
 
JohnnyCashFan said:
I think you and Michael are pretty close in comparison!, just some different terminology, For $25 I liked the 20th first spin. I also have the original redbook Cd on my server


and for anyone that missed it, this comparison is now up to 12 versions of Norah! But the AP is the SACD
magicvinyldigital.net

Norah Jones – Come Away With Me – Review (LP , CD, SACD, Streaming, remastered 2022, 5.1, Atmos Binaural)

“Come Away With Me” is the first album of Norah Jones released on February 26, 2002 by Blue Note records. This very well recorded album used analog tape recorders which allowed to produ…
magicvinyldigital.net magicvinyldigital.net
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Having only heard the CD, streaming on Apple, and the 20th, I'm really enjoying the 20th too.
 
Joe Mac said:
Did cogs automatically charge the tax on the purchase so it was already paid so they could just declare that? That’s what happened to me with my Ella discogs purchases, cogs charged VAT and Ella just handed over the invoice showing that. Nothing to do with DHL, they charge same as FedEx otherwise in my experience, and more down to it already being paid at source.
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Nope, no tax no nothing. Just the album price and the shipping price. Odd. Also not good because if I truly don't get charged from them I'm going to have to buy EVERYDAMNTHINGTHEYHAVE
 
Joe Mac said:
Everything?

Steely Dan - Aja (Vinyl, US, 1977) For Sale | Discogs

Shop the 1977 US Vinyl release of Aja by Steely Dan at Discogs.
www.discogs.com www.discogs.com
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One thing I did do though, is I asked Ella before every shipment if they could possibly declare a low value and they put them all at $10.00. So perhaps the value being that low just meant they sailed through customs but I still would have expected a brokerage fee even so...
 
Mather said:
One thing I did do though, is I asked Ella before every shipment if they could possibly declare a low value and they put them all at $10.00. So perhaps the value being that low just meant they sailed through customs but I still would have expected a brokerage fee even so...
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Record city do that too. They declare 100 yen a record which is around €1. We still get a charge because customs kicks in at €0 now but it’s like €15 including brokerage for 20 records so I don’t complain. If there’s no customs payable there’s no brokerage charge, that’s to “cover” their costs for acting on your behalf in declaring and paying for the customs to have the parcel released.
 
e.s. said:
But isn't there a Who reissue campaign going on right now?
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The half speed abbey road ones, yes. I’m not a big fan of the half speed abbey roads at all and don’t think that would stop AS from doing it. It’s also possible they do a UHQR of an album instead of the full run of albums.
 
e.s. said:
Yeah, a UHQR of Who's Next seems entirely likely.

And agreed on the half speed Abbey Road reissues – I have no interest in those myself.
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The velvet underground ones are surprisingly not bad if you can get them for a cheap price. Amy Winehouse Back to Black as well. But the others I have heard have been entirely forgettable especially for the price
 
MikeH said:
The velvet underground ones are surprisingly not bad if you can get them for a cheap price. Amy Winehouse Back to Black as well. But the others I have heard have been entirely forgettable especially for the price
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all three Everything but the Girl releases sound fantastic - especially for the price.
 
e.s. said:
The Amy Winehouse I might check out. I've got an original pressing of that, but I wouldn't say it's one of my best sounding records.
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you can only take things so far with that record IMO. Much of it was done at Daptone on a very meager recording setup, which is part of the Daptone sound and vibe. I'm pretty happy with the Abbey Road 1/2 speed, I got a good deal on it in trade.
 
e.s. said:
Would you say it's a huge upgrade from the original? I'm not unhappy with the copy I have, I just never found it to be a huge improvement over the CD, which I had first.
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Back To Black? Yeah it’s a sizeable step up but I really don’t like the original press, I actually used to listen to the CD over it. It’s still not “audiophile” but it’s probably the best you’re going to get out of the original recordings. Plus the Abbey Road one has a second LP with the bonus tracks that you got on the special edition CD so it was kinda worth it for that alone.
 
Mather said:
One thing I did do though, is I asked Ella before every shipment if they could possibly declare a low value and they put them all at $10.00. So perhaps the value being that low just meant they sailed through customs but I still would have expected a brokerage fee even so...
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How does this work through cogs though?

Whenever I buy internationally from cogs, they automatically add 20% tax after I've committed to buy.
 
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