Rolling Stones Mono Box Set (lp or cd)


I wanted to get the ball rolling. I thought that including both formats here would be beneficial to the entire discussion. I personally have little experience with the Rolling Stones. However, I think I can add an opinion in the form of having heard lots of music from this era and how this box relates to the Beatles Mono Box. I'm currently using my stereo cart. I've listened to the first 5 lps in chronological order.

One thing that has stood out to me is how consistent these 5 lps are in sound quality. ( "Out Of Our Heads", US has more pronounced bass, haven't listened to the UK yet.) This is kind of unusual in my listening experience. Compared to the Beatles Mono box which wasn't as consistent, album to album. I find the detail, the ambient retrieval, and the bass overall to be very good. What bothers me is I feel it is recorded too hot as well as I feel the overall sound seems somewhat very slightly artificial. ( I never felt this way listening to the Beatles Mono box). These last two issues may have to do with the re-mastering chain. It may be the quality of the mics, the recording venue, etc...I don't know. I don't have the originals to compare. There is the dimensional character of the soundstage that is very nice as was the Beatles. The vinyl itself is super quiet but I see that a few of these will need to be flattened. So far, there isn't an pressed "off-center" issue.
astro58go
jafant,

Thanks for the input!

I listened to "Flowers" & "Their Satanic Majesties Request" this morning.

I have a US stereo "Flowers" pressed at Bell Labs. By comparison, there is no contest. The US stereo was so inconsistent and with electronically processed stereo, it was a big mess. The new mono is consistent (I talked about this earlier), but is actually not bad to listen to. SQ difference is night & day.

"TSMR"...admittedly, I've never heard this lp. From what I've read and from the obvious album cover art work, this was their answer to Sgt. Peppers. After listening, I don't feel like I've missed much at all. I'd say that given the nature of how this music was conceived and this new digital re-mastering, the artificial nature is amplified. SQ is mostly sterile and artificial sounding IMO. I found two songs on side two that I liked for content but overall, this one was a chore to listen to.

Thanks! for the continued inputs. Have you listened to all of the discs in this boxed set? Keep me posted- astro58go.

Happy Listening!