I have not heard (seen) the Abbado/Berlin, but I have not heard anything by Abbado that I have not liked; he is brilliant.
Two others to consider if the music is of top priority: Karajan/Berlin. There is something about Karajan's treatment of Beethoven that strikes a chord with me. I know some feel that it is stark with too much emphasis on precision; still, it somehow rings true for me. The sound is very good, the video less so with too much emphasis on the conductor. I know I am contradicting myself, given Bernstein's drama and theatricality, but my favorite and the one I own is Bernstein's 1989 performance celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall. He conducted an orchestra comprised of members of orchestras from around the world and famously substituted the word " Freude" (Joy) with "Freiheit" (Freedom) in the chorale. Normally this kind of thing would piss off the purist in me, but the feeling of the importance and symbolism of the moment is palpable in this performance. I think it is the one to own. Both sound and video are very good. But not as good as what I heard/saw at my neighbor's place when he invited me over to check out his new 5.1 HT setup a few weeks ago. The audio and video on this Bluray release is spectacular, the music (interpretation) of this Christian Thielemann/Vienna DVD does not compare to either the Karajan or Bernstein with tempos that are too fast IMO. I'll take good sound with great music over great sound with good music any day.
Two others to consider if the music is of top priority: Karajan/Berlin. There is something about Karajan's treatment of Beethoven that strikes a chord with me. I know some feel that it is stark with too much emphasis on precision; still, it somehow rings true for me. The sound is very good, the video less so with too much emphasis on the conductor. I know I am contradicting myself, given Bernstein's drama and theatricality, but my favorite and the one I own is Bernstein's 1989 performance celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall. He conducted an orchestra comprised of members of orchestras from around the world and famously substituted the word " Freude" (Joy) with "Freiheit" (Freedom) in the chorale. Normally this kind of thing would piss off the purist in me, but the feeling of the importance and symbolism of the moment is palpable in this performance. I think it is the one to own. Both sound and video are very good. But not as good as what I heard/saw at my neighbor's place when he invited me over to check out his new 5.1 HT setup a few weeks ago. The audio and video on this Bluray release is spectacular, the music (interpretation) of this Christian Thielemann/Vienna DVD does not compare to either the Karajan or Bernstein with tempos that are too fast IMO. I'll take good sound with great music over great sound with good music any day.